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LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport City Council of the city of Lakeport are opening membership to the Parks and Recreation Commission to include one member residing outside the city limits but within the Lakeport zip code.

There are currently three seats open. If you have an interest in serving your community, applying for a position on a city commission or committee is a great place to start.

Applications will be accepted until March 5 at 5 p.m.

This is an opportunity to give input on ongoing projects such as the continued expansion of Westside Community Park, the rehabilitation of the Westshore swimming pool, the maintenance and operation of Library Park and the Lakefront Park area.

In addition to these ongoing projects, the Parks and Recreation Commission acts in an advisory capacity to the Lakeport City Council in matters pertaining to city parks and recreation.

They also cooperate with the Lakeport Planning Commission and civic organizations to advance the sound planning of new recreation areas and facilities.

The commission consists of five voting members, at least four who are residents of the city and up to one member who lives outside of the city limits but within the Lakeport zip code area, to be appointed by the city council on the basis of interest and qualification.

The Parks and Recreation Commission meets monthly and the term for membership on this committee is two years.

The appointments will be effective retroactive to Jan. 1.

Membership on the Parks and Recreation Commission is voluntary.

If you are interested in serving on the commission, applications are available on the city’s Web site at www.cityoflakeport.com under the Hot Topic, “Now Recruiting: Parks and Recreation Commission."

For additional information, please contact Deputy City Clerk Hilary Britton at 707-263‑5615, Extension 102, or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

NORTH COAST, Calif. – At the end of a Tuesday vehicle pursuit Mendocino County Sheriff’s deputies shot and killed a woman who was a suspect in an armed robbery in Ukiah.

The identity of the woman, who was fatally shot in Willits where the pursuit had ended after confronting deputies while armed with a handgun, was not released by authorities on Tuesday.

Capt. Gregory Van Patten said the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office was notified at 9:25 a.m. Tuesday of an armed robbery of a Chevrolet Camaro at Thurston Auto Plaza, located at 2800 North State Street in Ukiah.

Van Patten said the suspect was described as a white female adult and the Camaro was last seen traveling at a high rate of speed northbound on Highway 101 toward Calpella.

A short time later a Mendocino County Sheriff’s deputy saw the Camaro traveling at a high rate of speed northbound on Highway 101 near the Cal Fire Howard Forest station, which Van Patten said is a few miles south of the city of Willits.

The deputy sheriff attempted a traffic stop of the Camaro and a pursuit ensued at speeds over 100 miles per hour onto the Highway 101 bypass, Van Patten said.

Additional Mendocino County Sheriff’s deputies joined the pursuit with assistance from officers from the Willits Police Department, according to Van Patten.

Van Patten said that a short time later the Camaro crashed along the roadside of Highway 101 at Mile Post Marker 49.10 north of the bypass.

He said a white female adult exited the Camaro while holding a handgun and subsequently confronted the pursuing deputy sheriffs and officers.

A shooting resulted and the white female adult died at the scene. No deputy sheriffs or officers were injured as a result of the shooting, Van Patten said.

Highway 101 was closed to both directions of traffic for several hours to preserve scene evidence, Van Patten said.

He said investigators from the Mendocino County District Attorney’s Office were summoned to the scene and will be the lead investigative agency.

District Attorney’s Office spokesman Mike Geniella confirmed that the agency will oversee the investigation into the shooting, but added that there would be no further comment by the District Attorney’s Office on any details until that investigation is complete.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Local business owner and East Region Town Hall Chairwoman Denise Loustalot has pulled papers from the Lake County Registrar of Voters Office and officially announced her candidacy to represent the people of District 3 on the Lake County Board of Supervisors.

“Our Northshore communities need more jobs and better economic opportunities. As the successful owner of two local businesses that employ 28 people, I have the experience to create jobs and attract new businesses to District 3,” said Loustalot.

“Creating a more prosperous local economy also means protecting Clear Lake, our most precious economic and environmental resource,” she said. “As county supervisor, I will focus on environmentally appropriate business development that preserves our quality of life.”

“Unfortunately, the needs of District 3 residents have too often gone unmet at the county level,” continued Loustalot. “We deserve a supervisor who listens better, talks less, and works in a more effective manner with other county leaders to improve roads and services in our local communities.

She added, “As a regional town hall chair and former Clearlake mayor, I will use my leadership skills to ensure that the people of District 3 receive our fair share of county resources.”

Local community and business leaders joined in expressing their support for Loustalot’s candidacy for county supervisor.

“Denise is a public servant not a politician. She is truly committed to the best interests of our communities and I’m proud to endorse her candidacy for Supervisor,” stated Northshore resident Kathy Garner.

“Denise Loustalot understands how to grow a business and create jobs,” said Bill Stone, immediate past president of the Clearlake Oaks Business Association. “We need that kind of hands-on leadership working for District 3 on the County Board of Supervisors.”

Other community leaders endorsing Denise include Lake County Planning Commissioner Bob Malley, Upper Lake business owner Roger Hue de Laroque and former Lake County Supervisor Ed Robey.

A resident of Lake County for more than 37 years, Loustalot graduated from Lower Lake High School in 1988.

She is a third-generation family small business owner. Denise and her husband Pete own two successful local businesses. She currently serves as president of the Clear Lake Chamber of Commerce.

In addition to her business involvement, Loustalot has devoted many years of service to the community.

She chairs the East Region Town Hall community organization and formerly served on the boards of the Land Area Formation Council and the Lake County Area Planning Council, as well as the Public Education and Government TV Board.

Loustalot is a former councilwoman and two-term mayor from the city of Clearlake . She is a member of Rotary and Soroptimists.

The Loustalots have a “blended” family of five children.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry (D-Winters) has made more significant progress in her efforts to improve the health of Clear Lake.

Curry, whose district includes Lake County, announced on Monday that successful work with Secretary John Laird of the California Natural Resources Agency, or CNRA, and the Department of Water Resources, or DWR, to secure $15 million to help complete the first phase of the Middle Creek Restoration project located at the north end of Clear Lake in Lake County.

The grant will be funded by bond proceeds from Propositions 84 and 1E.

“I want to thank Secretary Laird, Director Nemeth and the staff at CNRA and DWR for their work on this critical project for Lake County,” said Assemblymember Aguiar-Curry. “This is a big victory for Clear Lake and the county. They’ve really used some creativity to come through for us.”

The Middle Creek Flood Damage Reduction and Ecosystem Restoration Project’s goal is to eliminate flood risk to residential structures, numerous outbuildings, and approximately 1,650 acres of agricultural land at the north end of Clear Lake. It will restore damaged habitat and help the watershed that feeds the lake.

Restoration of this large, previously reclaimed area, as a functional wetland is anticipated to have a significant effect on watershed health and the water quality of Clear Lake.

Clear Lake is the largest, natural freshwater lake in California and possibly the oldest lake in North America.

The natural properties of the Lake and the watersheds that feed into it make the lake very nutrient rich. One of the primary sources of these nutrients is located within the Middle Creek Restoration Project.

Completion of the project would have an immediate positive effect on the state of the lake and surrounding areas.

“Last year, in my AB 707, we were able to establish a Blue Ribbon Committee to guide the future of Clear Lake water and watershed quality and regional economic development, $2 million for Clear Lake research and a stewardship plan, and $5 million in the water bond on this year’s ballot to protect the Lake,” said Aguiar-Curry. “This grant for the Middle Creek Restoration Project will continue those efforts, reduce flooding, restore wetlands, and reduce the amount of nutrients flowing into Clear Lake. Gov. Brown, Secretary Laird and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon have been tremendous partners in our efforts to make Lake County’s future brighter, cleaner and more prosperous.”

Aguiar-Curry represents the Fourth Assembly District, which includes all of Lake and Napa counties, parts of Colusa, Solano and Sonoma Counties, and all of Yolo County except West Sacramento.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Authorities have arrested a Lakeport doctor who is accused of sexual battery on a woman who worked at his office.

Dr. Mohamad Moutaz Almawaldi, 56, was arrested last week, according to Lt. Corey Paulich of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

Paulich said that on Aug. 9 a report was made to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office regarding an assault that the victim said was committed by Dr. Almawaldi.

The adult female victim reported that Dr. Almawaldi had sexually battered her while she was working at his office in Lakeport. Paulich said she reported that Dr. Almawaldi forcefully kissed her and pulled down her shirt.

Dr. Almawaldi was contacted and did not wish to provide a statement, Paulich said.

Paulich said the sheriff’s office forwarded the case to the Lake County District Attorney’s Office, which in turn filed a complaint with the Lake County Superior Court.

On Nov. 30 a felony arrest warrant was issued for Dr. Almawaldi, Paulich said.

On Feb. 7, the Lakeport Police Department located Almawaldi, according to Chief Brad Rasmussen.

Rasmussen said his agency was aware that Almawaldi had a warrant and they located him at Evergreen Lakeport Healthcare, where they took him into custody.

Paulich said Almawaldi was booked into the Lake County Jail on the same night. He later posted the $20,000 bail and was released.

Emma Dugas, a spokesperson for Sutter Lakeside Hospital, told Lake County News that the hospital is aware of the allegations against Dr. Almawaldi, which were reported to have occurred in his private practice.

“Dr. Almawaldi has had courtesy privileges with Sutter Lakeside Hospital so that he may order diagnostic tests for his private practice patients,” said Dugas.

She said Almawaldi is not an active member of the Sutter Lakeside Hospital medical staff.

Dugas said the hospital couldn’t comment further.

According to the Medical Board of California, Almawaldi is a board-certified nephrologist, or kidney specialist, who graduated from the University of Damascus Faculty of Medicine in his native Syria in 1984.

He has been licensed as both a physician and surgeon since August 1991, with his license due to expire in June 2019, according to the Medical Board.

Online medical board records show that Almawaldi has no record of administrative disciplinary actions, court orders, convictions, malpractice judgments, probationary licenses or letters of reprimand.

Almawaldi is tentatively scheduled to appear in Lake County Superior Court on April 3, according to his booking sheet.

Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to contact the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at 707-262-4238.

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.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The California Highway Patrol is working to identify an individual who fled the scene of a Friday night solo-vehicle hit-and-run crash that injured one person.

The crash occurred at 11:35 p.m. on Fairway Drive east of Tenino way in the Clear Lake Rivieras, according to the CHP’s Clear Lake Area office.

Injured in the crash was the vehicle’s passenger, Charles Wade Rose Jr., 53, of Kelseyville, the CHP reported.

The CHP said the driver who fled was behind the wheel of a 2003 Ford F-350 pickup traveling westbound on Fairview Drive.

The driver failed to negotiate a curve in the roadway, which allowed the pickup to go off the road and travel down a steep embankment, according to the report.

As the pickup was going down the embankment, the front of it hit a large rock, causing it to overturn, the CHP said.

The CHP said the pickup came to rest approximately 100 feet south of Fairway Drive where it caught fire.

After the crash, the driver fled on foot and was not located, the CHP said.

Rose, who was seated in the right front seat and wearing a seat belt, sustained moderate injuries in the wreck and was flown by REACH air ambulance to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, according to the CHP.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation by the CHP.

Any witnesses not contacted by the CHP on scene are encouraged to call the CHP’s Clear Lake Area Office at 707-279-0103.

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.