News
KELSEYVILLE – At long last a park in the Clear Lake Riviera is coming closer to becoming a reality.
The four-acre parcel adjacent to the elementary school has been targeted for a community park.
A public meeting was held June 12 at the elementary school to get community input on the park design.
Some of the ideas that are being considered would be baseball diamonds, soccer fields, picnic tables and playground equipment. The cost of such a project is currently up in the air until the community expresses what it wants in a park.
“We have $300,000 to work with,” said Supervisor Rob Brown. “Obviously that won’t be enough but we are not sure how much more we will need. It all depends on what the community wants in a park.”
Brown said the community can help by giving the county as much input as early as possible about what they expect their community park to look like.
“I’m really excited about it,” said Brown. “I know there are a lot of people in the Riviera that have expressed interest in this and I’m glad it is this much closer to being a reality. We’ve had a very good conversation with Superintendent of Kelseyville School District Boyce McClain as well as Riviera Elementary School Principal Enrico Frediani to develop a relationship with them in order to make this happen.”
Presently the elementary school is being used after classes are out for recreation without the benefit of restroom facilities. The new park will create a new recreation area on property already owned by the county and provide much needed public restrooms.
Currently after school a gate is placed across the road into the school to keep vehicles out. In the summer and in the evenings one can see several cars parked in the entrance while the occupants continue to the elementary school on foot.
Plans are also on the horizon for a much larger park on the edge of the Clear Lake Riviera subdivision.
The owner of a large parcel of land to the south of the subdivision and east of Soda Bay Road is planning to submit a subdivision proposal for roughly 150 lots.
The developer has shown a willingness to work with the Clear Lake Riviera Board in order to make this subdivision palatable to the neighborhood. He has proposed donating roughly 250 acres of land for a large public park.
“Aside from the obvious recreational activities, this park would provide much needed wildlife corridors and the protection of the Thurston Creek watershed,” said Alan Siegel, president of the Clear Lake Riviera Home Owners Association. “The placement of a park legally usable by all of our residents would undoubtedly raise property values as well as offer myriad recreational activities. And while we are excited about this possibility we will bring every issue to the neighborhood for input.”
Realtor Ray Perry is a member of the CPS/Country Air Kelseyville office. Visit his Web site at www.rayperry.com.
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
LAKEPORT – A grass fire that broke out Saturday afternoon endangered numerous homes, caused firefighters to evacuate residents, and burned at least one outbuilding and several vehicles.
The fire occurred in the area of Crystal Lake Way and Alterra Drive in north Lakeport, bordering a neighborhood of about 30 homes.
Keith Hill of Cal Fire's incident center reported that they received a call for mutual aid at 2:56 p.m.
Mike Hampton, who lives along the south side of Alterra Drive, said his wife called to tell him about the fire at 2:45 p.m. while he was still at work for AT&T in Ukiah. Hampton said his wife reported hearing sirens at that point.
At 2:51 p.m., with the fire spreading quickly, Hampton's wife called 911 and and was told to evacuate her home immediately. Hampton said his wife immediately took their children and did just that, calling him as she did so, and he immediately left Ukiah.
Emergency personnel told the other residents to evacuate their homes as well, as high winds pushed the fire down the hill and in the direction of the homes – with smoke so thick that visibility on the ground was down to 80 feet.
Panicked people were running down the streets carrying their children, pets and their possessions.
Many also stayed behind, using shovels and buckets of water from swimming pools to build defense lines between the fire and their homes.
About a dozen engines were on scene, coming from agencies including Lakeport Fire Protection District, Northshore Fire, Kelseyville Fire, U.S. Forest Service and Cal Fire. The Lake County Sheriff's Office and California Highway Patrol also were on scene, with CHP directing homeowners to move their vehicles to a safe area behind a local gas station.
Cal Fire sent two engines, one dozer, two hand crews, a battalion chief, one air attack, one helicopter and two air tankers. The specifics of how many personnel and engines from other agencies was not available Saturday evening.
The Cal Fire air tankers proved critical to the firefighting effort. Firefighters at the scene noted trouble getting enough pressure from the neighborhood's fire hydrants. Hampton confirmed that the homes in the area have struggled with water pressure for some time.
Cal Fire personnel on the radio could be heard pinpointing the precise area to drop water on the fire, with officials making efforts not to drop it too heavily on the area's homes.
The grass fire – which emergency personnel indicated may have begun when a resident was mowing grass with a lawnmower – burned trees, hundreds of feet of a shared neighborhood fence and then followed side fences closer to residence.
Estimates on the fire ranged from four to eight acres is size, with a definite size not yet confirmed from Lakeport Fire.
As many as 50 firefighters were still at the scene later into the evening after 6 p.m., mopping up and putting out hot spots.
Hampton and his family were safely back in their home on Saturday night, although they were shaken by the experience. One of the buildings to burn that day was his children's playhouse in the backyard. The heat from the fire was so intense that it caused some windows in his home to break.
Several cars and a sailboat also were lost in the fire, with further building losses unconfirmed Saturday evening.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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- Details
- Written by: Harold LaBonte and Elizabeth Larson
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