Two organizations that represent county officials across California said Saturday they plan to offer help for property owners struggling to make property tax payments due to the COVID-19 crisis.
The California State Association of Counties is the voice of California’s 58 counties at the state and federal level.
That organization, along with the California Association of County Treasurers and Tax Collectors, on Saturday addressed the COVID‐19 crisis and the April 10 property tax deadline.
“Taking care of Californians is our top priority, and counties, cities, and schools are burning through local reserves to do so. Any delay in payments beyond the April 10 property tax deadline, for individuals or businesses that can pay, will tip local governments into insolvency at a time when our residents need us the most,” the associations said in a joint statement.
“Counties will use all existing authority to cancel penalties and other charges for homeowners, small businesses and other property owners that are unable to pay their property taxes due to circumstances caused by COVID‐19 on a case‐by‐case basis. However, property owners who can pay or that haven’t been directly affected by COVID‐19, including international corporations and out‐of‐state landlords, still need to pay on time to keep critical government services running,” the associations said.
The associations said property taxes only go to local governments – schools, counties, cities and special districts – not to the state or federal government, and directly fund education, health care, hospitals, welfare services, fire protection and efforts to address homelessness efforts, to name a few.
“Delaying the April 10 property tax payment would take tens of billions of dollars away from local government, create cash flow problems, and cause some to default on their loans, which would have significant long‐term effects on all local agencies in California,” the associations said.
Gov. Gavin Newsom responded on Saturday with praise for the commitment to cancel penalties and other charges for those with demonstrated economic hardship.
“This is good news for Californians. I would like to thank the California State Association of Counties and the California Association of County Treasurers and Tax Collectors for committing to providing economic relief for residents and small businesses facing hardships due to COVID-19,” said Gov. Newsom.
NASA’s Ground Transportation team guides NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket’s completed core stage from NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans to the agency’s Pegasus barge on Jan. 8. NASA’s Marine Transportation team and Pegasus crew then shipped the rocket stage to NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, for the core stage Green Run test series. The 212-foot-tall core stage is currently undergoing Green Run testing. Credits: NASA/Tyler Martin. As NASA prepares for the first launch of Artemis I, the first mission of the agency’s Space Launch System, or SLS, rocket and Orion spacecraft to the Moon, one team will be there every step of the way: the aptly nicknamed “SLS Move Team.”
Based out of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, the move team ensures all the flight hardware for the SLS rocket’s core stage is safely and efficiently transported from the site where it was manufactured to various test facilities and – ultimately – to its future launch site. From the very beginning, the move team has been an integral part of the SLS Program.
“Marshall’s Ground and Marine Transportation teams are responsible for the handling and transportation of the SLS rocket’s core stage, which is the largest rocket stage NASA has assembled, tested and transported since the Apollo Program,” said Robert Rutherford, transportation and logistics engineering group lead at Marshall. “We started logistics planning for both the moves of structural test articles of the individual elements and for the entire Artemis I core stage early on in the program.”
While the full team is divided between ground and marine activities, together they typically operate as one cohesive unit to successfully transport the large hardware for the megarocket’s 212-foot-tall core stage. The huge stage includes two giant propellant tanks and four RS-25 engines, each the size of a compact car.
The teams’ coordination and efforts were prominently displayed as the first SLS rocket core stage was rolled out from NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans to the agency’s Pegasus barge on Jan. 8, then transported by Pegasus from New Orleans to nearby NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, for the core stage Green Run test series.
Once the barge and flight hardware arrived at Stennis, the Ground Operations team was again at work, helping to prepare, lift and install the flight hardware into the B-2 Test Stand for the test campaign.
“The effort to move the SLS rocket’s core stage from Michoud to Stennis and installing it into the B-2 Test Stand is a result of extensive preparation,” said Bryan Jones, logistics engineering and ground transportation team lead at Marshall. “It was a true team effort. Without the support of all parties that play a part in the operations, we would not be able to be successful.”
The Ground and Marine Transportation teams have been vital in shipping four structural test articles from Michoud to Marshall for testing. The teams prepared for the move of actual flight hardware with SLS pathfinders during the spring and summer of 2019.
The ground and marine teams spend months meticulously planning and developing detailed transportation move procedures to ensure test articles and flight hardware alike are delivered without a mishap. They use a myriad of specialized equipment, including transporters specifically designed to accommodate and hold the hardware, and Pegasus.
The now 310-foot-long barge was modified and refurbished in 2015 to successfully ferry the SLS core stage, which is more than 50 feet longer than the space shuttle external tank and – when including ground support and transportation equipment -- more than 600,000 pounds heavier. The shuttle’s external tanks were frequent passengers aboard Pegasus during the shuttle era of space exploration.
“Each member of the team understands the privilege and responsibility that NASA’s ground and marine transportation teams have been given in handling hardware that will enable the United States to send American astronauts to the Moon and on to Mars,” said Alan Murphy, team lead of marine operations for Pegasus. “The key to preparation for the Pegasus crew is in the vessel itself. Pegasus has the capacity to carry each of the individual core stage elements in addition to the actual core stage.
The size of the SLS core stage pathfinder and the flight hardware core stage, although massive, did not intimidate the Pegasus crew as we leaned on our experience from shipping the four structural test articles,” he added.
Like their counterparts in ground transportation, the Pegasus crew prepared to ship the larger, much heavier fully assembled core stage by delivering structural test articles and pathfinders to different NASA centers. Pegasus made the first delivery of the Artemis program to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida with the core stage pathfinder, a full-scale replica of the stage, in September 2019.
The Ground and Marine Transportation teams coordinate their efforts with numerous other NASA organizations and dozens of agencies, including the Tennessee Valley Authority, Corps of Engineers, Coast Guard and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to get the hardware from one NASA facility to another.
“Before NASA transports any hardware, teams meet to consider every aspect of the move from the strength of the roadways to the weather the day of the move,” Rutherford said. “Because of the SLS core stage’s height, weight, width and length, special combinations and modifications had to be made to roads, docks, even power lines, and to the barge itself, to accommodate the total weight and width of the rocket hardware.”
Hours of work go into planning and executing the various dynamics of transporting, loading and handling the flight hardware. However, the final factor for consideration before any move begins is usually the most unpredictable: the weather. Following the arrival of Pegasus and the core stage for Artemis I to Stennis for the Green Run test series, crews spent several days assessing the wind and rain factors at and above ground level before lifting and installing the rocket stage into the test stand.
While the core stage undergoes Green Run testing at Stennis, Ground and Marine Transportation teams will be at work to ship the launch vehicle stage adapter, the part of the rocket that connects the core stage to the upper part of the rocket. The hardware will move from Marshall, where it is manufactured, on Pegasus to Kennedy, where engineers will prepare it for integration to the rest of the rocket ahead of the launch of Artemis I.
A rocket as large as the SLS rocket doesn’t arrive to the launch pad fully assembled. Teams will assemble, or stack, the various elements and stages of the SLS rocket inside Kennedy’s Vehicle Assembly Building before moving the fully assembled rocket to the launch pad. As they have done since the beginning, the men and women of Marshall’s ground and marine transportation teams will be on hand to plan and carry out the well-orchestrated effort it takes to transport the various pieces of hardware across the country — and waterways — to Kennedy for the first Artemis launch to the Moon.
NASA is working to land the first woman and the next man on the Moon by 2024. SLS, along with Orion, the human landing system, and the Gateway in orbit around the Moon, are NASA’s backbone for deep space exploration. SLS is the only rocket that can send Orion, astronauts and supplies to the Moon on a single mission.
The crew of NASA's Barge Pegasus prepares for voyage after successfully loading the core stage for NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket onto the vessel Jan. 8. The crew, from left, includes Terry Fitzgerald, Alan Murphy, Nick Owen, Jarret Wiltbank, Arlan Cochran, John Campbell, Chris Marcus, Clay Necaise and Joe Robinson, who help take the massive core stage on its first journey. With the core stage and barge crew aboard, Pegasus ferried the completed core stage from NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans to NASA's Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, for the core stage Green Run test series. Measuring 212 feet tall and 27.6 feet in diameter, the SLS core stage is the longest item ever shipped by a NASA barge. Pegasus was modified and refurbished to successfully ferry the SLS core stage, which is more than 50 feet longer than the space shuttle external tank and -- including ground support and transportation equipment -- more than 600,000 pounds heavier. The massive core stage contains the cryogenic liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen tanks that will feed four RS-25 rocket engines, along with the vehicle's avionics and flight computers. Upon arrival to Stennis, the Artemis rocket stage was into the B-2 Test Stand for the core stage Green Run test series, an important step toward safely launching SLS and NASA's Orion spacecraft beyond Earth's orbit forward to the Moon. Credits: NASA/ Eric Bordelon.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Gov. Gavin Newsom and State Superintendent Tony Thurmond recommended on Wednesday that school classes should take place via distance learning rather than on school campuses throughout the remainder of the 2019/20 school year in California.
The Lake County Office of Education and the district superintendents, after consulting with Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace, agree with those recommendations for the safety of students and the community during this health crisis.
Suspension of in-classroom instruction has become necessary to help Lake County and California “flatten the curve” and slow the spread of COVID-19 so that emergency medical responders have as much time as possible to prepare for an influx of patients and save lives.
Lake County schools will deliver distance-based instruction through the end of the school year, unless the situation improves and warrants a safe return to the classroom as determined by Dr. Pace.
Students and their families will continue to receive specific plans and instructions from their child’s school district regarding ongoing remote learning.
“There is frustration that it has not been possible to determine an exact date to reopen campuses. But as Dr. Anthony Fauci, the United States top infectious-diseases expert says, ‘You don’t make the timeline; the virus makes the timeline,’” said Lake County Superintendent of Schools Brock Falkenberg.
School districts have been hard at work since mid-March building distance learning programs from the ground up to serve students remotely, including English learners and those with disabilities.
LCOE has diligently supported these efforts with virtual, county-wide trainings for educators, as well as individualized support for school districts.
Falkenberg added, “Teachers, support staff, and administrators are working long hours to provide students access to their academic education. They are also providing the social and emotional support that is so necessary during this health crisis.”
Although students may not be returning to campus, school sites will stay open for staff to perform tasks that have been deemed essential by their districts, including the preparation of student meals. In Lake County, every child under the age of 18 can receive these meals. Please check with your local school for details.
Falkenberg added, “I recognize this difficult but necessary decision may cause disappointment. I am a parent of a graduating senior. I understand the disappointment and challenges first-hand.”
Due to the ever-changing nature of this health crisis, please visit www.lakecoe.org/COVID-19 or the Lake County Office of Education Facebook page for up-to-date information.
Please visit your local district website, for information pertaining to specific schools.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The COVID-19 crisis is affecting us all, and with entire industries declared non-essential, local businesses are in need of support.
Resources are available, through both state and federal programs.
The following links offer current program information.
This link includes information on everything from loan opportunities to guidance on whether businesses are considered essential or non-essential in light of COVID-19.
These pages are regularly updated, and with programs changing due to legislative action at the federal and state levels, business owners are encouraged to frequently visit these webpages to stay current on the latest opportunities available.
On Thursday afternoon, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced new supports for small businesses.
The California Office of Emergency Services said that as of Friday, California small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 crisis can apply for a loan from the federal government for up to $10 million. The program is first-come, first-serve and the governor encourages all eligible California small businesses to contact their lender to learn more.
This federal program is called the Paycheck Protection Program, and is authorizing up to $349 billion in total funding.
CalOES also reported that the governor announced that the state is allocating $50 million to the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank for loan guarantees to small businesses to help eliminate barriers to capital for individuals who do not qualify for federal funds, including low wealth and undocumented immigrant communities.
The state is also allowing small businesses to defer payment of sales and use taxes of up to $50,000, for up to 12 months.
Lake County Economic Development Corporation also recently produced a webinar, which can be seen above, to help local businesses understand and access available resources.
Lake County Economic Development Corp. can be reached at 707-279-1540, Extension 101.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Clearlake Animal Control has added two new pups to its lineup of adoptable dogs.
The shelter has moved most of its dogs into foster. Potential adopters can make appointments to meet and adopt available dogs.
The following dogs are ready for adoption or foster.
“Aaron.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Aaron’
“Aaron” is a male boxer mix puppy with a short brown coat with black and white markings.
He is dog No. 3726.
“Angel.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Angel’
“Angel” is a female boxer mix puppy with a short brown coat with black and white markings.
She is dog No. 3727.
“Buddy.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Buddy’
“Buddy” is a male spaniel mix with a black and white coat.
He is dog No. 3667.
“Cha-Chi.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Cha-Chi’
“Cha-Chi” is a male Chihuahua with a short gold and white coat.
He is dog No. 3661.
“Duchess.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Duchess’
“Duchess” is a female Chihuahua puppy with a short tan coat.
She is dog No. 3618.
“Fable.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Fable’
“Fable” is a female husky with a smooth brown and buff coat.
She is dog No. 3044.
“Freckles.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Freckles’
“Freckles” is a female Australian Cattle Dog mix with a short red and white coat.
She has been spayed.
She is dog No. 3668.
“Lucious.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Lucious’
“Lucious” is a male American Staffordshire Terrier mix with a short gray and white coat.
He is dog No. 3690.
“Phoebe.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Phoebe’
“Phoebe” is a female American Pit Bull Terrier mix with a short black and white coat.
She is dog No. 3483.
“Princess.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Princess’
“Princess” is a female German Shepherd with a black and tan coat.
She has been spayed.
Princess is young and energetic. She previously lived around a smaller dog and has been around the office cat. She will benefit from training and attention.
She is dog No. 3669.
“Tucker.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Tucker’
“Tucker” is a male American Staffordshire Terrier puppy with a short white and gray coat.
He is dog No. 3717.
“Tyson.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Tyson’
“Tyson” is a male American Staffordshire Terrier with a short gray and white coat.
He has been neutered.
He is dog No. 1863.
“Woodrow.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Woodrow’
“Woodrow” is a male Staffordshire Bull Terrier with a black and white coat.
He is dog No. 3281.
Clearlake Animal Control’s shelter is located at 6820 Old Highway 53, off Airport Road.
Hours of operation are noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The shelter is closed Sundays, Mondays and major holidays; the shelter offers appointments on the days it’s closed to accommodate people.
Call the Clearlake Animal Control shelter at 707-273-9440, or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to inquire about adoptions.
Visit Clearlake Animal Control on Facebook or at the city’s website.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
Dennis Fordham. Courtesy photo. Estate planning is best done at times of ease when there is no compelling reason to do so.
Now during the COVID 19 pandemic, here in California – and elsewhere – some people want to create, or update, their estate planning documents during the crisis.
Normally, estate planning entails in-person meetings with your attorney to discuss, review, and to sign, witness and notarize documents.
Since Gov. Newsom’s stay at home order and social distancing order such meetings essentially became unavailable.
This is especially true for residents at skilled nursing facilities and assisted living homes who are prohibited from receiving any visitors.
So how can California residents proceed with their estate planning during the pandemic? With attorneys working from home, client communications are now done by phone and on-line meetings (such as Zoom).
Documents can be drafted and sent to clients by email or facsimile for review and signing by clients. While regular mail is still available it may mean the attorney making a trip to the post office.
The challenge for everyone is with executing the documents. Estate planning typically involves signing a trust and/or will, trust transfer deeds (to convey real property into a trust) powers of attorney for financial, property and legal affairs, and an advanced health care directive and HIPAA release. Each has their own required manner of execution.
A trust, or an amendment to a trust, is only required to be signed by the settlor(s) and is not required to be notarized. Notarization is simply the best and usual practice. Often the drafting attorney is also a notary. California, unlike some other states, does not allow online notarization where the notary interacts with the signor by means of a webcam.
Signing a deed to convey title to real property into one’s trust, therefore, presents a challenge. Notary services can be obtained at some essential businesses, for example a UPS Store. Otherwise some mobile notaries, when facilitating real estate refinancing of mortgages and sales, are meeting clients on their porch and using both social distancing and hand sanitizers to minimize the risk.
The notary’s journal, the signor’s identification card, and documents to be signed are placed on a porch table and each person takes turns going to the table.
Fortunately signing the trust transfer deed can be delayed till after the pandemic.
The pledging of the real property by means of a declaration of trust assets and/or assignment of trust assets typically ensures that even if the settlor were to die or become incapacitated during the pandemic period that the successor trustee can later petition the court (once normal operations resume) for a court order to confirm the pledged real property (and other pledged assets) as belonging to the trust.
A successful petition means avoiding an otherwise unnecessary probate.
A will that is drafted by an attorney must be signed by the testator and witnessed by two disinterested witnesses. Nowadays, the will signing can either take place with everyone staying 6 feet apart and using hand sanitizers (like the porch scenario), or can be witnessed remotely by webcam (in real-time) and the witnesses can separately sign the witness attestation page.
Alternatively, a person can handwrite a so-called “holographic” will to give specific assets (such as personal property), make monetary gifts, and to divide the rest of the estate.
The will should also name an executor and say whether the executor’s bond requirement is waived; a bond is an expense paid by the estate to safeguard the estate against any wrongful acts by the personal representative.
In California, powers of attorney, advance health care directives and HIPAA releases can all be witnessed by two disinterested persons who are not named in these documents. That said, such documents are normally notarized but these are extraordinary times.
Anyone who wishes to proceed with estate planning may wish to call a qualified estate planning attorney and discuss how that attorney is handling such work. They may also wish to call a UPS Store or a mobile notary to discuss notarization of deeds and trustee certifications of trust, as relevant.
Dennis A. Fordham, attorney, is a State Bar-Certified Specialist in estate planning, probate and trust law. His office is at 870 S. Main St., Lakeport, Calif. He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and 707-263-3235.
What's up for April? The Seven Sisters meet the evening star, Mars continues its getaway, and unpacking the moon illusion.
At the beginning of April, look to the west each evening in the couple of hours after sunset as Venus visits the Pleiades.
Watch each night from the 1st through the 5th, as Venus climbs higher in the sky each evening, crossing through the Pleiades star cluster.
The planetary quartet of Jupiter, Saturn, Mars and the moon once again make a showing in mid-April.
Since giving Jupiter and Saturn the slip last month, the Red Planet continues its getaway from the gas giants in this month's morning skies. Mars begins the month just beneath Saturn, but by the middle of April, it's moved a decent distance away.
The moon swings by on the 14th, 15th and 16th. The three planets won't appear close together in the sky again for a couple of years, so catch them now if you can!
Earth is currently catching up to Mars in its orbit, as the two planets come into the right position for the launch of NASA's Mars 2020 mission and its newly named Perseverance rover.
Most of us have had the experience of watching the full moon rise in the distance, maybe over a city or a distant mountain, and it looks HUGE.
In fact, it's got the very appropriate (if unimaginative) name of "the moon illusion." Although this illusion has been known for thousands of years, there still isn't a truly satisfying scientific explanation for why we see it.
Now the moon is essentially the same width in the sky on any specific night, whether it's rising, setting or overhead. (There are a variety of experiments you can do to prove this for yourself.)
Photographers can simulate the moon illusion by taking shots of the moon low on the horizon using a long lens with buildings, mountains or trees in the frame.
It's known not to be an optical effect of our atmosphere, though the atmosphere does add to the yellowish color of the rising and setting moon, much as it makes the rising and setting sun look redder.
Even airline pilots and astronauts have reported seeing the moon illusion – in the absence of trees, buildings and mountains to help provide a sense of scale.
Researchers have shown that it's definitely something going on in our brains that has to do with the way we perceive the size of distant objects near the horizon, versus high in the sky, but the precise explanation for why it happens is still elusive.
So until someone puzzles out exactly what our brains are up to, it's probably best to just enjoy the moon illusion, and the moody, atmospheric and sometimes downright haunting vistas it creates.
Preston Dyches works for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County’s Public Health officer is continuing to urge people to stay home and practice precautions as COVID-19 cases rise across the state.
By Thursday night, cases statewide had topped 11,000, with nearly 250 deaths, according to numbers Lake County News compiled from health departments across the state.
With state health experts predicting COVID-19 cases are due to peak later this month, earlier this week several counties around the Bay Area extended their shelter in place orders to May 3.
On Thursday, Napa became the latest county to take that action. Napa County Public Health Officer Dr. Karen Relucio reported during a Thursday afternoon webcast that she had also extended that order until May 3.
Lake County’s shelter in place order, which went into effect on March 19, is due to expire on April 10.
However, Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace told Lake County News on Thursday that he wasn’t yet prepared to extend the local order.
“There are a few clarifications that will need to be made, so likely something will come out next week,” he said.
Separately, Pace issued a Thursday update that touched on testing numbers and emphasized the need to continue to stay at home.
“We continue to perform testing as allowed by available supplies,” Pace said.
At that point, more than 150 tests had been conducted, with more than over 120 results back, and all of those negative, he said.
However, with California’s cases rising rapidly, Pace said it remains critical that everyone commit to these primary strategies to limit entry and spread of the virus:
– Stay home: leave only to conduct essential business, and maintain at least 6 feet of social distancing while out. – Do not gather or mix with people outside of your immediate household – there are reported cases of COVID-19 spread and even death resulting from gatherings of extended family and/or friends. – Wash your hands frequently, and regularly disinfect common surfaces.
Pace also urged people not to meet with friends or do nonessential activities, as the virus can be spread for a few days before symptoms appear.
“People who knowingly ignore the rules are jeopardizing the safety of their friends and neighbors by choosing to satisfy their own desires over the well-being of the community,” he said.
“We have been fortunate to not yet see the infections that are beginning to surge in neighboring counties. Taking precautions now has the potential to dramatically change the outcome of the COVID-19 outbreak. Please take every precaution you can to help slow the spread of this virus,” Pace said.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The Clearlake Police Department said it has cited a property owner who repeatedly violated the county’s shelter in place order’s restrictions on lodging facilities by continuing to rent out a home through Airbnb.
Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace issued a countywide shelter in place order that went into effect on March 19.
Three days later, he issued an amended order that closed Clear Lake and other county waterways and lodging facilities unless they are serving medical staff, COVID-19 emergency workers, construction workers of critical infrastructure and permanent residents who have resided on-site since prior to March 9.
The Clearlake Police Department reported Thursday that its Code Enforcement Bureau received information regarding the rental of a home via Airbnb.
Police said Code Enforcement had contacted the property’s owner less than a week ago for renting in violation of the order. In that situation, the property owner was warned and provided with a copy of the order and exemption flowchart.
Although the owner denied that a new rental was occurring, the Code Enforcement officer made contact with the new renters, who traveled from out of the area, as they arrived and confirmed they rented through Airbnb. They were advised of the orders and vacated, police said.
The police department said the property owner – whose name was not released – was cited for renting the property in violation of the health officer’s orders and for property use in violation of the law. The property owner faces a fine of $600.
Clearlake Police Chief Andrew White told Lake County News that he contacted Airbnb via its website on March 26 to notify them of the rental restrictions due to the shelter in place order.
In his message to the company, White cited the shelter in place order, sent them a link to the order along with a flowchart for determining restrictions, and explained violations and the potential for administrative citations.
“Out of concern for the safety of your customers and in order to prevent them from being cited for violating the order, we would appreciate your help in flagging the rentals within the City of Clearlake notifying any potential renters (as well as property owners) of these restrictions,” White wrote to the company.
White said Airbnb acknowledged receipt of the notification and closed it without a response.
Lake County News reached out to Airbnb on Thursday evening to ask if it has a policy regarding shelter in place orders, if it’s making any effort to flag rental properties in areas where there are such orders enacted and if they are communicating with property owners at all about the orders. The company did not immediately respond.
White said this was the eighth citation his department has issued for violations of the shelter in place order.
So far, all of them have been issued to individuals who have refused to follow the orders, said White.
White and other local law enforcement officials have emphasized the need for education over enforcement, with the latter used as a last resort.
Earlier this week, the Lakeport Police Department issued its first citation to a woman who refused to go home after she was found drinking wine in a courthouse parking lot, as Lake County News has reported.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
NORTH COAST, Calif. – On Thursday, Gov. Gavin Newsom honored a Santa Rosa Police Department detective who died this week from COVID-19.
Det. Marylou Armer, 44, had previously tested positive for COVID-19 and died Tuesday from complications from the illness, officials said.
Her death is the first line of duty death of a police officer in California to be associated with the disease.
“Jennifer and I are terribly saddened to learn of Det. Armer’s untimely death,” Gov. Newsom said. “Amid the current fight against COVID-19, Det. Armer selflessly and courageously served her community and the people of California. We extend our heartfelt condolences to her family, friends, colleagues and members of the Santa Rosa community as they mourn her loss.”
Armer was a 20-year veteran of the City of Santa Rosa. She began her career as a field evidence technician and was sworn in as a police officer in May 2008.
She was serving as a member of the Santa Rosa Police Department’s Domestic Violence Sexual Assault Team at the time of her death.
Detective Armer is survived by her husband and daughter.
In honor of Det. Armer, State Capitol flags will be flown at half-staff.
On Friday, the city of Santa Rosa’s elected officials and staff will honor Armer by wearing blue and they invite the community to do the same.
Since people must stay home due to county and state shelter in place orders, officials are asking that people show support by posting photos of themselves wearing blue on social media using the hashtag #BlueforMarylou.
“Not on social media? No problem, wearing blue at home is equally meaningful,” city officials said in a Thursday statement.
California’s public health officials have released guidance on the use of cloth face coverings to protect against COVID-19 for Californians who must leave their homes to conduct essential activities.
The guidance does not require people to wear face coverings – and is not a substitute for the state’s current guidance regarding social distancing and hand washing.
The state also does not recommend Californians use N-95 or surgical masks, which are needed for health care workers and first responders who will be there for when lives are at risk.
“Face coverings are not a substitute for physical distancing or frequent hand washing, which we know are amongst the most effective ways to reduce the spread of COVID-19,” said Dr. Sonia Angell, director of the California Department of Public Health and State Health officer.
“Wearing a cloth face covering could provide some additional benefit by acting as a reminder for other people to keep their distance, and it could help reduce the spread of infectious particles from those who could be infected but don’t have symptoms,” Angell said.
“Face coverings could provide some additional protection against COVID-19, but Californians should not have a false sense of security if they choose to wear them. Make sure you’re also staying 6 feet away from other people if you have to leave your home to get groceries or prescriptions,” said California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly.
The new guidance reminds Californians that the best defense against COVID-19 continues to be:
– Staying at home and physical distancing; – Washing hands frequently; – Avoiding touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands; and – Avoiding being around sick people.
The use of cloth face coverings could reduce the transmission of COVID-19 by individuals who do not have symptoms and may reinforce physical distancing.
Public health officials also caution that face coverings may increase risk if users reduce their use of strong defenses such as physical distancing and frequent hand washing.
Authorities are searching for Lester Jackson, 30, who walked away from the California Correctional Center Alder Conservation Camp in Del Norte County on Tuesday, March 31, 2020. Photo courtesy of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation officials, assisted by Cal Fire, the California Highway Patrol and local law enforcement agencies are continuing efforts to locate a minimum-security inmate who walked away from Alder Conservation Camp in Del Norte County early Tuesday morning.
Lester Jackson, 30, who was assigned as a firefighter, was last seen at Alder Conservation Camp in Klamath on March 31 wearing gray sweat pants, officials said.
Jackson is a black male, 6 feet 1 inch tall, weighing 170 pounds with brown eyes, long black hair worn in dreadlocks, a mustache and a short beard.
He has a tattoo on his outer right forearm that says “GRIMY” and another on his inner right forearm with a picture of a prison tower and a lit candle below it. Jackson has several tattoos on his torso; one reads “trippin 4 life.”
Jackson was received from Solano County in May 2011 with an 11-year, 10-month sentence for second-degree robbery, false imprisonment and carjacking. He was scheduled to parole in June 2020.
Jackson has associates in Oakland. Anyone who sees him should call 911 or contact law enforcement authorities immediately. Anyone having knowledge of Jackson’s whereabouts should contact the California Correctional Center watch commander at 530-257-2181, Extension 4173.
Since 1977, 99 percent of all offenders who have left an adult institution, camp or community-based program without permission have been apprehended.
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