News

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – State assistance will once again be made available for fire cleanup in Lake County.

On Tuesday, the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, state Sen. Mike McGuire and Assemblyman Bill Dodd announced that state funding will be provided under the California Disaster Assistance Act to fund debris cleanup and removal in the neighborhoods of the Clayton fire impact zone similar to what occurred following last year’s Valley fire.

The Clayton fire, the fourth devastating wildfire to hit Lake County in the last 14 months, burned nearly 4,000 acres and destroyed 299 structures, including 203 homes and eight commercial buildings.

Leading into Tuesday's announcement, assessments were completed over the last several weeks by the Office of Emergency Services, the State Department of Toxic Substance Control and local authorities in the impacted Lower Lake neighborhoods.

State-sanctioned debris removal teams will be advancing into Lake County in the next few weeks, officials said.

Sen. McGuire made it a priority – despite the fact the Clayton fire won’t likely be declared a federal disaster – to move assistance from the state for debris removal and cleanup into Lake County.

This desperately needed assistance will ensure the health and safety of local residents living near or in the areas devastated by the Clayton fire in the years to come.

“A staggering 22 percent of Lake County’s total land mass burned over the past 14 months, from the Rocky, Jerusalem, Valley and now the Clayton Fire,” Sen. McGuire said. “Lake County is already suffering from these devastating events and we are committed to working day and night to help the community recover and rebuild stronger than ever. Both CalOES and CalRecycle did amazing work after the Valley fire in Lake County – moving out millions of pounds of debris – and we are grateful to partner with them again to assist in Lower Lake.”

CalRecycle – the state agency responsible for debris cleanup and removal – will be coming in to begin work in the Lower Lake area in the coming weeks. Currently, the State Department of Toxic Substances Control is in the Lower Lake working remediation.

After the Valley fire, CalRecycle contracted debris removal crews to clear residential properties in record time.

With the damage left by the Clayton fire, CalRecycle will once again manage the debris removal and site cleanups.

“This is a huge benefit for our community – CalRecycle will be able to come in and remove the debris in a timely manner and that’s what we really need right now in order to expedite the rebuilding process,” Lake County Supervisor Rob Brown said. “We are grateful for the unwavering advocacy of Sen. McGuire and Assemblymember Dodd to get this agreement approved.”

Lake County officially requested assistance from the state for debris cleanup, which is estimated to cost more than $3 million in the Clayton fire impact zone.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The Kelseyville Unified School District is forming a bond oversight committee for Measure U and is inviting community members to apply.

District voters approved Measure U, a $24 million general obligation bond to improve and upgrade school facilities, on June 7. The vote was 61.7 percent to 38.3 percent in favor of the bond.

Some of the projects that have been identified so far for bond funding include repair and replacement of leaking roofs, deteriorating plumbing systems, and outdated heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems; updating inadequate electrical systems; and improving student access to computers and modern technology.

The district's Citizen's Bond Oversight Committee will review expenditures from construction activity associated with Measure U, and be responsible for ensuring that bond revenues are used properly and for informing the public of bond expenditures.

The district board invites all interested community members at least 18 years of age and living within the geographic boundary of the Kelseyville Unified School District to apply for service on the Bond Oversight Committee.

The bond oversight committee must have at least seven members. In addition to two members of the community at large, there must be at least one member from each of the following groups:

• One member who is active in a business organization representing the business community located within the school district.
• One member who is active in a senior citizen's organization.
• One member who is the parent or guardian of a child enrolled in the school district.
• One member who is the parent or guardian of a child enrolled in the school district and is active in a parent-teacher organization.
• One member who is active in a bona-fide taxpayer's organization.

The Bond Oversight Committee may not include any employee or official of the school district or any vendor, contractor or consultant of the school district.

Applications may be downloaded from the district’s Web site at www.kvusd.org or may be obtained at the Kelseyville Unified School District Office located at 4410 Konocti Road.

Applicants must have all application forms completed and given to Superintendent Dave McQueen at the Kelseyville Unified District by 4 p.m. Sept. 30.

Qualified applicants will be interviewed and chosen by the Kelseyville Unified School District Board of Trustees on Oct. 4.

If you have any questions, need more information or help in obtaining an application, call the Kelseyville Unified School District Office at 707-279-1511.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – The California Department of Fish and Wildlife's (CDFW) Northern Region Inland Fisheries Program and Heritage and Wild Trout Program staff will soon reintroduce a small population of rare rescued trout to their native waters in the McCloud River in Shasta County.
 
McCloud River Redband Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss stonei) is one of several sensitive and unique fish species that has required human intervention in order to ensure their survival during California's continuing drought.
 
“The drought continues to be devastating on the populations of these important fish,” said Andrew Jensen, a biologist with CDFW's Northern Region Inland Fisheries Program. “If we did not take action to save them during the summers, small, independent populations may have succumbed. Our proactive rescue efforts will help maintain this unique species for the future.”
 
CDFW biologists monitoring McCloud Redband streams (tributaries of the upper McCloud River) from late 2013 through mid-2015 found that drought effects were causing perilous conditions for the fish in both winter (with sections of the streams freezing over) and summer (with sections of the streams going dry). 

McCloud Redband, a state-listed Species of Special Concern, are in no immediate risk of extinction but their populations are small, fragmented and exist only in a few small streams.

Rescue operations by CDFW in 2013-15 greatly reduced the drought mortality of the species.
 
Anticipating potential drought impacts on sensitive wild fish populations, CDFW installed self-contained Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS) at several CDFW hatcheries throughout the state last year.

The RAS enable the hatcheries to safely house rescued wild fish until environmental conditions improve.

One of these facilities, CDFW's Mt. Shasta Hatchery, was selected to serve as a drought safe haven for the McCloud Redband due to its proximity to the imperiled streams.

More than 1,000 McCloud Redband were brought to the facility, where many were spawned by CDFW staff.
 
Today much of California remains in a drought, but the upper McCloud River watershed received some relief in the first half of 2016, with near-normal precipitation during the winter and spring.

CDFW fisheries biologists believe that these improved habitat conditions (and forecast conditions) will support the release of the rescued McCloud Redband Trout.
 
Both the rescued adult fish and the hatchery-origin juveniles will be released beginning this week in sections of the stream that will provide the best chance of long-term success with minimal impacts to the existing natural-origin population.

All the released fish will be tagged, allowing fisheries biologists to track their movement and survival after release into the river.

LUCERNE, Calif. – The Northshore Community Center and Lucerne Alpine Seniors Inc. will present its first Rockin' Dancin' BBQ on Friday, Sept. 23, from 3 to 11 p.m.

This will be an all-day music festival featuring your favorite local bands and special guest artists joining in for the day; with a barbecue or vegetarian dinner and no-host beer and wine bar – all to be had for the most reasonable prices in the county.

Your $5 full-day admission (additional donations gratefully accepted) will afford you the many and varied talents of the music line-up: Stonelion (alternative, original blues), The Background Kings (pop/rock), Kurt @ Work (original, eclectic), Hella' Mella' (dance jam), FOGG (classic rock, dance – Open Mic Lucerne's faithful house band), Hearts & Bones (original rock 'n' roll), and special out-of-town guests Amadou Camara, Mariah Soumah & Guest (drumming, music and dance from Guinea, West Africa) and Jeff Curtis (unique, original acoustic guitar compositions, from New York).

David Howard, the stalwart and talented master of ceremonies for Open Mic Lucerne will emcee, as well as perform with his band, The Background Kings.

There will be a no-host beer and wine bar, and a choice of dinner options. Hippie Joe Fernandez is generously donating and cheffing up a tri-tip barbecue with all the fixins', available at $10 per plate. There also will be a vegetarian lasagna dinner for only $5.

All dinners include bread, salad, dessert and a cold drink, and will be served from 5 to 8 p.m.

The Rockin' Dancin' BBQ is sponsored by Odd Fellows Lodge No. 241, Upper Lake; Hippie Joe Fernandez of Upper Lake; the Lake County merchants and vendors who support the efforts to maintain and improve the quality of life on the Northshore; and the staff, volunteers and board of directors of the Northshore Community Center / Lucerne Alpine Seniors, Inc.

All proceeds to benefit the Lucerne Alpine Seniors, Inc. and the programs they support and provide to the Northshore Community.

The Northshore Community Center is located at 3985 Country Club Drive. Lucerne, between Ninth and Tenth avenues. Just turn inland from (north of) Highway 20 at the Foster's Freeze, proceed one block, and you're there.

For program details, please call Peter at 707-998-3121; Verge at 707-671-3465; or call the Northshore Community Center at 707-274-8779.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Public Works Department said that there will be a closure on a portion of First Street on Wednesday, Sept. 21.

From 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. First Street between Main and Park streets will be closed to all traffic while Pacific Gas and Electric crews work in the area.

Community members are asked to drive with caution in the area and be aware of the workers.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The question of life outside planet Earth fascinates the entire human race. It is perhaps the most intriguing topic in all of astronomy.

This coming Saturday, Sept. 24, Lake County’s Taylor Observatory’s County's Window to the Universe Lecture series presents “The Diversity of Alien Worlds.”

The speaker is Professor Stephen Kane of the Department of Astronomy and Physics at San Francisco State University.

Professor Kane will explain the term “habitable zone” which is used to classify the probability that bodies in the universe could harbor alien life.

Kane is an internationally recognized expert in exoplanet discovery. He has personally identified several hundred exoplanets using novel techniques developed by him and by colleagues in this intriguing branch of astronomy.

In addition, Kane heads a group of 14 scientists searching for potential habitable zone planets using the Kepler Space Telescope: www.kepler.nasa.gov .

The Window to the Universe series is sponsored by Friends of the Taylor Observatory-Norton Planetarium and includes the lecture, a show in the Norton Planetarium and viewing through the observatory’s several telescopes.

The first planetarium show is at 7:30 p.m., followed by the lecture at 8 p.m. and a second planetarium show at 9 p.m., all for an admission price of $5. Lake County K-12 students are admitted with no charge. 

The observatory is at the end of Oak Hills Lane in Kelseyville.

For updates and further information check the Facebook page for Friends of Taylor Observatory or call 415-209-3084.