Letters
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- Written by: Jim Steele
It takes an understanding of complex budgets; hiring and leading professional department leaders; long term planning; and public accountability to be an effective county supervisor.
Brad has demonstrated this capacity in his appointed career and we are fortunate he still wants to give back to the community as an elected leader.
I strongly support and vouch for his wisdom, abilities and good character.
Jim Steele is the former District 3 supervisor for Lake County. He lives in Clearlake Oaks, California.
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- Written by: Adina Flores
The larger Scott Dam is located where water is stored at Lake Pillsbury, and the smaller Cape Horn Dam constitutes the creation of the Van Arsdale Reservoir.
District 2 Congressional candidates Tief Gibbs and Jared Huffman have touted their support for providing an upgraded fish passageway while completely disregarding the impact on stakeholders.
According to their congressional opponent, Chris Coluombe, the dam removal will cost the taxpayers an estimated $500 million, constituents and firefighters will face further fire risk due to reduced water availability, and agricultural producers will face the impact of starving our land of water.
The bulk of tribal voices aside from James Russ, president of the Round Valley Indian Tribes Council, have been ignored since the inception of Huffman’s Potter Valley Project Ad-Hoc Committee.
Per Redheaded Blackbelt: “On June 17, 2019 the Wiyot Tribe and Round Valley Indian Tribes walked out of an ad hoc committee meeting in solidarity with the Bear River after Bear River, a federally recognized tribe, was asked to leave by Congressman Huffman’s staff.”
Prior to the formation of the Eel-Russian JPA, the Russian River Water Forum represented interests in Sonoma, Mendocino, Lake and Humboldt counties. The group’s consultant, Kearns & West includes Pacific Gas and Electric Co., the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and an excessive number of local, state and federal government agencies within their client portfolio.
Following the Tubbs Fire, California’s elected officials lobbied $2 million for PG&E with monies intended for the fire victims via Rebuild North Bay.
Being that PG&E funds Congressman Huffman’s campaign, is the decision to move forward with the dam removal monetarily influenced and have these business dealings been fully transparent?
Adina Flores lives in Petaluma, California.
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- Written by: Jeff Davis
As the water purveyor for the majority of what is now the city of Clearlake, we have seen the town grow from a few farm homesteads to the blossoming city you see today.
With the long list of developments, the city of Clearlake has on the horizon, we are continually dedicated to ensuring our current customers are adequately serviced and not financially impacted by these projects.
Highlands Mutual Water Co., Konocti County Water District, Golden State Water, Lower Lake County Water Works and Lake County Fire Protection District work diligently together to identify areas that could benefit from increased fire hydrants and/or water pressure.
In the last year Highlands Mutual Water Company has added an additional 19 new fire hydrants to its distribution system including a raw water hydrant. With all new developments, the appropriate water company and the fire department work closely with developers and contractors to ensure fire suppression is adequately serviced and established consumers are not hindered.
These agencies have formed an alliance that works together for the betterment of the community.
While none of the listed water companies service areas overlap, they do however, provide service adjacent to each other within designated service boundaries. These boundaries are clearly defined through engineered mapping and/or the Lake Local Agency Formation Commission.
Just as the city of Clearlake is very different from the county of Lake, the water companies throughout the area are just as diverse with their business structure, rates, and fees. As water companies we only have one focus and that is to serve our customers for all of their water needs.
Our mission here at Highlands Mutual Water Co. is to provide safe, high quality drinking water while accommodating consumer needs with distinguished customer service.
Jeff Davis is general manager of the Highlands Water Co. in Clearlake, California.
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- Written by: Mary Benson
I was struck by Jessica Pyska’s comments at the Jan. 10 forum that she had begun preparing for the supervisor position two years in advance of the 2020 election when she was first elected. I thought that showed a remarkable amount of dedication to earning a job. Since then, it seems to me that we have been getting our money’s worth: she devotes more than full time to the position. Jessica Pyska has built upon the community organizing skills she honed after the Valley Fire and in obtaining grant funding for Cobb after the fire, and as Supervisor she has helped to expand grant funding for all of us in Lake County. Her predecessor had been opposed to travel outside of our area to lobby for funding, but Jessica Pyska has successfully brought dollars home from trips to Sacramento and Washington, D.C. Jessica Pyska seems to take a broad view and looks to the future, and I believe we need that.
She also has shown that she listens and responds to her constituents. I have learned from Jessica Pyska that the whole renaming of Kelseyville issue was taken out of our collective hands when the healing organization filed for the name change with the federal government. Once those papers were filed, we no longer were in control of either the process or of the outcome. We can have input through an email to
In the meantime, it seems that our elected supervisor is incorrectly being accused of spearheading the name change process and chastised for not taking a stand on either side. Good leaders don't divide their communities; they encourage all voices to be heard and they are there after a decision is made to assist with the healing process. Staking out a strong position and siding with one side of the Kelseyville community, as her opponent has done, will alienate the other side and will do nothing to help deal with the outcome; in fact I believe it will make the aftermath even more difficult.
Mr. Bridges has shown a surprising lack of preparation for this job he is applying for. I was disappointed that he didn’t have even a basic grasp of the Middle Creek marsh project that has been ongoing for close to 20 years and could have a major impact on the quality of the lake water. His body language during the Jan. 10 forum conveyed to me a sense of impatience and unwillingness to listen to his opponent (such as eye rolling, checking his phone, dismissive gestures). Don’t take my word for it — you can see it for yourself on YouTube. Supervisors spend an incredible amount of time listening to people who have other points of view, and the best supervisors listen well.
Mr. Bridges was unwilling to commit to devote full time to this position at the Jan. 10 forum, and later walked back his comments to clarify that he would still participate in his day job but would make time for the Supervisor position. I am out of patience with candidates who promise (let alone those who don’t promise) to give up their day job, and we citizens later end up having to make do with less than full time effort from our Supervisor.
I am voting for Jessica Pyska to continue the work she has started, and I hope you will join me.
Mary Benson lives in Lower Lake, California.
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