LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – After years of work and collaboration by local agencies and organizations, Lake County’s first permanent housing facility dedicated to addressing homelessness officially opened on Thursday.
Hope Center, a project of Hope Rising Lake County in partnership with numerous local agencies and the city of Clearlake, is located at 3400 Emerson St. in Clearlake.
It was celebrated during a small, socially-distanced ceremony on Thursday afternoon, witnessed by local officials, partners and the center’s eight new employees.
The building, which formerly housed medical offices, was purchased by Adventist Health. It’s now been remodeled into a 20-bed transitional housing facility, with a kitchen, conference and meeting rooms, and other amenities.
The project has been the work of years by a number of dedicated partners, but earlier this year it looked like it had stalled, as construction halted and grant funding “vaporized,” according to Hope Rising Executive Director Allison Panella.
But big ideas have a way of overcoming even the greatest of obstacles.
Shelly Trumbo, Adventist Health’s vice president of community integration who was Hope Rising’s interim executive director at its founding, suggested that central to the Hope Center is a “love ethic,” and quoting the definition of love in 1 Corinthians Chapter 13, Trumbo added, “Love never gives up.”
In January, Panella and Shannon Kimbell-Auth, Adventist Health’s manager for community integration who will now head up the staff at Hope Center, went to the Clearlake City Council to request financial assistance to get the center’s doors opened.
The council was open to the proposal and followed up in April by approving a memorandum of understanding with Adventist Health Clear Lake and Hope Rising Lake County in which the city contributed $500,000 in bond funds for the Hope Center.
Then, in September, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that Lake County had received funding as part of the third round of awards for Project Homekey, a program administered by the California Department of Housing and Community Development that is making $600 million available to local public entities to provide long-term housing for people experiencing homelessness.
The Hope Center received $3.38 million from that Project Homekey funding round.
Assemblywoman Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, on hand in person for the Thursday ceremony, said the Project Homekey grant was “significant,” and will fund Lake County’s first permanent housing center for the homeless.
Aguiar-Curry recognized the strong efforts of local officials and the resulting partnerships in creating the center.
Congressman Mike Thompson, in a video shown at the ceremony, also heralded the work of the public and private partners whose work has made the Hope Center a reality.
Trumbo noted during the ceremony that while love is the motivator for the work, “There’s nothing soft about standing alongside a human being and supporting them through their journey of transformation. That’s the work that’s going to be happening here, and that’s love, and it’s strong and it’s solid.”
She added, “Revolutions don’t just happen in big moments in public view, they happen in small ways of people coming together.”
One of the key partners in creating the Hope Center is Adventist Health Clear Lake.
The hospital’s president and CEO, David Santos, recalled arriving in Lake County in 2009 and seeing the county’s needs, which set him on a path to addressing addiction and mental illness. That, in turn, led to focusing on “high utilizers,” those who frequently use hospital and other services in the community. He said his goal was to instill hope in both patients and health care providers.
“Today, I declare, we’ve reached a tipping point,” said Santos, who believes that Lake County is creating a rural health model not just for California but for the rest of the nation.
Panella said the Hope Center is unique; it exists because of a network of agencies that worked together.
Those agencies include the city of Clearlake, Lake County Behavioral Health Services, Lake County Continuum of Care, Partnership HealthPlan, the Lake County Health Department, the Department of Social Services, North Coast Opportunities, Adventist Health and Redwood Community Services.
Panella recounted earlier this year meeting at the site with Kimbell-Auth, City Manager Alan Flora, City Councilman Russell Perdock, who also is an Adventist Health staffer. At that point, construction had stalled and grant funding – along with their dreams – had depleted.
At the same time, they found the Hope Center sign had been vandalized, with the “Hope” turned to “Nope.”
But the woman who vandalized the sign came to them that day, admitted what she did, then asked to make amends by cleaning the sign. She then asked to help weed the property, which Panella said she did.
Panella said everybody needs the opportunity to go from “nope to hope.”
Following a ribbon-cutting in front of the building, Kimbell-Auth and other staff led an in-person and virtual tour of the facility and invited people to plant flower seeds and bulbs in the flower beds around the building.
Kimbell-Auth said the people who will live at the center will be called “participants” rather than “clients.”
“They’re participating in their own housing navigation plan,” she explained.
As part of their responsibilities, participants will have access to Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous meetings, and do daily chores like mopping floors, emptying trash and cleaning bathrooms.
To become a sponsor, volunteer or provide a meal for Hope Center participants, visit www.hoperisinglc.org.
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.l
The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation this week issued new projections for COVID-19 deaths in the United States, anticipating another 200,000 fatalities by March unless mask-wearing increases substantially.
The institute, an independent global health research center at the University of Washington, has issued key forecasts of how the virus will impact the nation and the world throughout the pandemic.
In its latest report issued on Thursday, the institute reported that daily cases are increasing at an accelerating rate with deaths also increasing but at a slower rate.
“Given the experience in Europe, we expect that the increase in deaths will soon begin to match the increase in cases,” the institute’s latest briefing notes.
That’s because the fall/winter surge is evident in nearly all 50 states at this time, the institute reported.
The updated forecast issued this week takes into account evidence from hospital studies showing that the infection-fatality rate has declined 30-percent since April due to improved treatment.
“Despite this, we expect 439,000 cumulative deaths by March 1 and a peak of daily deaths in mid January at 2,200 a day. Although mask use has increased to 67 percent, further increases to 95 percent could save a further 68,000 lives by March 1,” the institute reported.
The projection puts California’s deaths by March 1 at 27,073. Currently, the state has reported more than 18,100 deaths due to the virus.
The institute also estimated that, as of Nov. 9, 12 percent of the people in the United States have been infected with COVID-19. That ranges from 1 percent in Vermont to 24 percent in New Jersey. California’s infection rate is reported as between 7.5 and 9.9 percent.
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.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The National Weather Service is forecasting cloudy skies, rain and cooler temperatures over the coming week.
The agency reported that a strong storm system is forecast to move across Northern California on Friday, with the potential for “widespread beneficial rainfall,” along with gusty south winds and mountain snow.
Rainfall is expected to take place in Lake County between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Friday, according to the forecast.
The National Weather Service said a quarter of an inch to three-quarters of an inch are expected in Lake County.
The forecast calls for chances of rain through Friday night, with a break on Saturday before the possibility of more rain on Saturday night.
Mostly cloudy conditions are anticipated on Sunday and Monday, with slight chances of rain from Tuesday through Thursday.
In the south county, winds of up to 17 miles per hour and gusts of up to 22 miles per hour are forecast on Friday. Lighter winds of up to 7 miles per hour are forecast across the entire county through Sunday.
Temperatures over the coming week will range from the low 50s to high 60s during the day, and drop into the high 30s at night, based on the forecast.
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. – Clearlake Animal Control has a group of big dogs and a little one, too, needing homes.
The following dogs are ready for adoption or foster.
“Bella.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Bella’
“Bella” is a female American Bully mix.
She has a short beige and tan coat.
She is dog No. 3537.
“Cinderella.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Cinderella’
“Cinderella” is a small female terrier mix.
She has a short wiry white coat.
She is dog No. 4346.
“Inky.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Inky’
“Inky” is a male German Shepherd mix.
He has a long smooth black coat.
He is dog No. 4324.
“Jack.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Jack’
“Jack” is a male Labrador Retriever mix with a short yellow coat.
He is dog No. 4155.
“Smokey.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Smokey’
“Smokey” is a male American Staffordshire Terrier mix.
He has a short gray coat.
He is dog No. 4347.
The shelter is open by appointment only due to COVID-19.
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 and schedule a visit to the shelter.
Visit Clearlake Animal Control on Facebook or on 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.
A site plan for the Lakefront Park in Lakeport, California. Image courtesy of the city of Lakeport. LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Lakeport City Council has voted to shift more than $800,000 from city reserves to cover additional costs of developing the new Lakefront Park.
The council, in a 4-0 vote, approved the proposal from city staff at its Nov. 3 meeting. Councilwoman Stacey Mattina recused herself from the discussion because she owns property nearby.
The seven-acre Lakefront Park is located at 800 and 810 N. Main St.
The city received a $5.9 million state grant in April that included funds to cover the purchase of the two properties for the park, including an acre and a half the city purchased from the Hotaling family for $50,000 and a 5.3-acre parcel purchased for $660,000 from the Lakeport Unified School District in late spring.
City Manager Kevin Ingram went to the council on Nov. 3 to ask for its direction on next steps.
The city had approved the park site plan in August. Key amenities include a lakeside promenade, basketball court, ninja gym, amphitheater, splash pad, skate park, multiuse lawn area, large sheltered picnic area, bathroom/concession building, public art, parking lot, landscaping and lighting. It also sets aside an area that would eventually be the location of a boathouse for the Clear Lake Scullers.
Ingram explained in his written report that city staff, in working with SSA Landscape Architects – the firm the city hired to work on the park’s planning, design, engineering and project management – discovered that it was going to exceed the $4.5 million in the grant to cover construction.
Ingram’s report attributed the cost overruns to factors including “extremely high construction costs and unfavorable geotechnical issues.”
Staff and SSA reevaluated the plan and came up with ways of bringing the project back within its budget, but that would mean curtailing some amenities, such as the skatepark, which was set for a 35-percent cutback, a reduction of about $124,000.
Other park amenities also were slated for cutbacks totaling just over $585,000. The only items not slated for cuts, and which were proposed for increases, included landscaping and pathways, the amphitheater, basketball court, public art and the boat ramp renovation. Ingram said the fitness park was completely removed from those scaled-back plans.
However, Ingram offered another option – using general fund reserves of up to $805,570 to restore some of the amenities.
Ingram told the council at the Nov. 3 meeting that even with proposed cuts, it will still be a great park.
“This is a one-time project. It’s a very exciting project,” he said.
While using reserves is a sticky issue, Ingram said the city has a very healthy level of reserves – about $5 million – and the park is a special project that rises to the level of consideration for use of those funds.
“Parks are economic drivers. They do help us grow our revenues,” he said, noting that they act as anchors for the city’s downtown area.
He also pointed out that the council had been prepared to purchase the property for the park with general fund money before it knew that the grant would cover it.
Councilman Kenny Parlet noted during the discussion, as he has in previous matters relating to capital projects, that putting them off only costs the city more money in the long run.
“I believe that anything we don’t do now is lost forever,” Parlet said, adding that every time they wait even six months, the cost of construction often doubles.
Parlet said he’d spoken with city Finance Director Nick Walker who told him that the city has extremely healthy reserves.
“I believe that we should do everything that we can to put this thing together in its entirety,” even if it requires tapping into reserves, Parlet said.
Parlet said the economy overall is expected to be extremely robust for the coming decade and that the park will be good for the local economy.
Ingram also told the council during the meeting that timing was an issue, that they needed to be able to get the project bid out in time to meet the state grant’s deadline to be open to the public. That was the driving factor for bringing it forward this month for discussion.
Like Ingram, Parlet noted that the city hadn’t expected to get the money to cover the property purchase.
“We knew that this was a great investment,” Parlet said. “We were going to buy that property come hell or high water.”
Councilwoman Mireya Turner moved to approve spending $805,570 in reserves to cover the increased expenses and to amend the budget, which Parlet seconded and the council approved 4-0.
At the same meeting, the council also voted to rename the city’s downtown walking trail in honor of Ann Blue, who worked tirelessly to establish it; and voted to relocate the two 20-minute designated parking spaces adjacent to City Hall from Park Street to Second Street, along with adopting revisions to the Green Zones, or limited parking areas, and two-hour parking resolutions to reflect the changes.
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.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – As the Lake County Registrar of Voters Office continues to process ballots from the Nov. 3 election, elections officials are also working to verify signatures or get signatures on ballots that were returned unsigned.
Registrar Maria Valadez reported that she is planning to have Lake County’s election results certified by Dec. 1, which is the deadline she has to report the results for the presidential election to the Secretary of State’s Office, with other state and local contests having a Dec. 4 deadline.
Valadez previously reported that more than 18,000 ballots remained to be processed following Election Day, by the end of which more than 11,000 had been counted.
Lake County’s unprocessed ballots are among more than 1.4 million across California yet to be counted, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.
In a message on the elections office’s website this week, Valadez emphasized that the Nov. 3 election results are not final and that her staff members “are working very diligently on completing all tasks required to certify the election.”
Valadez said there are many checks and balances when certifying the election results. “The process of certifying election results, also known as the Official Canvass, is mandated by state law to make sure the public can have confidence in the integrity of the final results.”
One of those steps is dealing with unsigned vote-by-mail ballots or vote-by-mail ballots where there are discrepancies in signatures.
Valadez’s office sent out signature verification or unsigned ballot envelope statements to voters whose ballots were found to have those issues.
Voters who received the notices are being urged to return the completed forms either by mail, fax, email or in-person by noon on Tuesday, Dec. 1.
Valadez’s office emphasized that it cannot count a voter’s vote-by-mail ballot if the completed and signed statement is not returned by that Dec. 1 deadline.
Valadez also issued an update on her website explaining why Lake County’s preliminary results displayed 70 out of 70 precincts as 100-percent reported despite ballots remaining to be counted.
“Lake County has 70 voting precincts, which are composed of 50 voting precincts and 20 mail ballot precincts. Just as we must do for every election, we are required to make certain reports to the Secretary of State’s office,” Valadez wrote.
She said election code requires officials to conduct a semifinal official canvass by tabulating vote-by-mail and precinct ballots and compiling the results. “The semifinal official canvass shall commence immediately upon the close of the polls and shall continue without adjournment until all precincts are accounted for.”
Valadez explained that, for every election, by the end of the night, after all voting precincts have reported back to her office, her office must report to the Secretary of State’s Office that ballots for all voting precincts – including mail ballot precincts – cast on election night have been counted and reported.
“Therefore our last report to the Secretary of State’s office must indicate that the 70 voting precincts have been reported at 100%.” she wrote.
She said elections law also requires her to transmit the semifinal official results to the Secretary of State’s Office upon closing of the polls, by 8 p.m. and no later than 10 p.m. Afterward, reports must be submitted on a two-hour basis until the semifinal official canvass is completed.
When reporting to the Secretary of State’s Office, Valadez said her final end-of-night report must match the number of reportable precincts – in this case, 70 – before the semifinal official canvass can be considered completed and final.
As the canvass continues, Valadez – as per longtime county protocol – will not update results until the final certified results are completed.
“We do not interrupt the careful steps that we take during the Canvass to release interim unofficial results,” she wrote. “Interim unofficial results have no bearing on the final outcome of the races and contests. Only final certified results will impact the races and contests,” she said in her online statement.
For more information, contact the Registrar of Voters Office at 707-263-2372 or via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
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.
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