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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors will hold a special Monday morning meeting to discuss the Public Health officer’s plan to move Lake County from the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown into its first reopening phase following Memorial Day weekend.

The meeting will begin at 10 a.m. Monday, May 18.

The meeting can be watched live on Channel 8, online at https://countyoflake.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx and on the county’s Facebook page. Accompanying board documents, the agenda and archived board meeting videos also are available at that link.

Because the meeting will be held virtually, members of the public are asked to submit comments on items to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Please note the agenda item number addressed.

Written comments for this special meeting must be submitted to the clerk to the Board of Supervisors by ‪4 p.m. Sunday, May 17.

During the meeting, Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace will offer his weekly comprehensive COVID-19 situational update.

Pace and Public Health staff will then present their local variance plan to accelerate through the later phases of Stage 2 of California’s COVID-19 Response Resilience Roadmap.

Once reviewed by State Public health officials, the local variance would grant Pace the authority to reopen some additional Lake County businesses.

Pace’s plan will require mandatory masking for reopening all businesses through Stage 2.

The plan calls for beginning Stage 1 to begin on May 26. It will allow for reopening destination retail; personal services, limited to car washes, pet grooming, tanning facilities and landscape gardening; outdoor dining restaurants with social distancing, not gaming areas or bars; office-based businesses, although telework remains strongly encouraged; outdoor museums and open gallery places; government offices that were deemed non-essential; and childcare expanded to children of nonessential workers.

Phase two will begin on June 9. It will allow for dine-in restaurants with social distancing, not gaming or bars; day camps, after school programs, carried out in stable groups of 10 children or fewer, without changes from one group to another.

Schools will remain closed until the fall, the plan states.

Pace offers an in-depth explanation of his plan in this commentary.

Prior to reopening all businesses must complete a reopening business plan, social distancing plan and a self-certification attestation form that must be posted at the entrance of each business entrance and must be made available for the public.

The board also will consider submitting a letter to the state in support of the county’s variance attestation form, in accordance with state guidelines.

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.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport City Council will hold a special Monday meeting to consider a letter of support for the county’s variance request to the state as it seeks to move into the COVID-19 recovery and reopening stages.

The council will meet at 10:30 a.m. Monday, May 18.

To speak on an agenda item, access the meeting remotely here or join by phone by calling 213- 929-4231 or toll-free, 866-901-6455. The access code is 673-889-880; the audio pin will be shown after joining the webinar. Those phoning in without using the web link will be in “listen mode” only and will not be able to participate or comment.

Comments can be submitted by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . To give the City Clerk adequate time to print out comments for consideration at the meeting, please submit written comments prior to 10 a.m. Monday, May 18.

Please indicate in the email subject line "for public comment" and list the item number of the agenda item that is the topic of the comment. Comments that read to the council will be subject to the three minute time limitation (approximately 350 words). Written comments that are only to be provided to the council and not read at the meeting will be distributed to the council prior to the meeting.

The council’s single item of business is to consider a letter of support for Lake County’s variance to accelerate the pace of advancing through Stage 2 of the State’s Pandemic Roadmap to be submitted to Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The Board of Supervisors will meet at 10 a.m. Monday to consider the variance and its own letter of support.

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.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Library announces the good news that the library has subscribed to a fun new reading program that your child can access from home.

Scholastic BookFlix is an online literacy resource that pairs classic animated stories from Weston Woods with thematically aligned nonfiction ebooks from Scholastic to build a love of reading and learning.

This engaging digital resource for children in grades Pre-K through third will help early readers develop and practice essential reading skills, and introduces them to a world of knowledge and exploration.

Your child can access Scholastic BookFlix with a Lake County Library card anywhere there is an internet connection.

Patrons can access bookflix by heading to the library website at http://library.lakecountyca.gov and clicking on digital content. This interactive resource will help them get excited about reading and books, and extends learning beyond school hours.

BookFlix includes classic animated stories, each paired with a related nonfiction ebook. BookFlix has Spanish language versions of the stories.

With the “Read-aloud Supports” students can hear each book narrated, and also hear definitions of key words and directions for each activity. Educational puzzlers let children show what they have learned.

Safe, age-appropriate web links selected by Scholastic’s editors give kids the opportunity to extend their learning on a topic. The “Meet the Creator” section inspires kids to learn more about each fiction book.

Scholastic BookFlix is specifically created to support non-, beginning, and reluctant readers — it’s the perfect resource for independent reading practice at school and at home.

With a library card, patrons can access the library’s array of digital services without the need to visit a local branch. If you need a library card, you can create an online card with the application form on the library website.

If you have a question about an existing library account, call 707-263-8817 and leave a message. Library staff will be available by phone during normal operating hours to assist with the digital resources.

The Lake County Library continues to offer services during the COVID19 stay at home. If you want to keep up with library news, sign up for free weekly email updates on the library’s homepage.

Jan Cook is a library technician for the Lake County Library.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Four dogs are waiting for new homes at Clearlake Animal Control this week.

While 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.

‘Lady’

“Lady” is a female German Shepherd mix.

She has been spayed.

She is dog No. 3683.

‘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.

‘Spud’

“Spud” is a male American Staffordshire Terrier with a short brindle and white coat.

He has been neutered.

He is dog No. 3733.

‘Tyson’

“Tyson” is a male American Staffordshire Terrier with a short gray and white coat.

He has been neutered.

He is dog No. 1863.

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.

For Artemis missions, NASA’s Orion spacecraft will be traveling at 25,000 miles per hour as it reenters the Earth’s atmosphere, which will slow it down to 325 mph. Parachutes will then bring it down to about 20 mph.

During the parachute deploy sequence, hardware will be jettisoned and fall into the Pacific Ocean below while the recovery ship awaits near the landing site. Keeping the ship and recovery team safe is critical to mission success.

The Landing and Recovery team, led by Exploration Ground Systems at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, is prepared to safely recover Orion and attempt to recover the jettisoned hardware.

A four-person team of engineers from NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston will also be onboard the U.S. Navy recovery ship with a “Sasquatch” — no, not an elusive hairy creature, but a very important software tool created specifically for Orion.

“Sasquatch is the software NASA uses to predict large footprints — that’s why we call it Sasquatch — of the various debris that is released from the capsule as it is reentering and coming through descent,” said Sarah Manning, a Sasquatch operator and aerospace engineer from the Engineering Directorate at Johnson.

The hardware jettisoned, or released, during parachute deployment includes drogue and pilot parachutes that help initially slow and stabilize Orion, along with other elements necessary for the parachute sequence to deploy.

The primary objective for the Sasquatch team is to help get the ship as close as possible to recover Orion quickly. A secondary objective is to recover as much hardware as possible.

Incorporating wind data gathered from the balloons with Sasquatch’s information about the debris, such as how quickly it falls, will show how the debris will spread based on the winds that day — scenarios the team has practiced for years in the Arizona desert where the Orion program conducted parachute testing.

That’s where Sasquatch and eight weather balloons, released from the recovery ship by a team from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida and Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, come into play.

They will use that information to position the recovery ship, small boats and helicopters outside the debris field to avoid injuries or damage.

“The upper-level wind speed and direction are critical in modeling the debris trajectories,” said Air Force Maj. Jeremy J. Hromsco, operations officer, 45th Weather Squadron at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. “Data provided to U.S. Navy and NASA forecast teams will allow them to accurately characterize and forecast the atmosphere during recovery operations.”

Positioning is paramount to recovering the hardware before it sinks. The team will first focus on recovering the capsule’s forward bay cover, a protective ring that covers the back shell of the capsule and protects the parachutes during most of the mission, as well as the three main parachutes. If they are successful, engineers can inspect the hardware and gather additional performance data.

About five days before splashdown, the Landing and Recovery team heads to a midway point between shore and where Orion is expected to land.

As the spacecraft approaches, the Navy ship with the team continues its approach. How close they can get — and how quickly they can get to the capsule — depends on the work of the Sasquatch team.

“We have locations ready two hours before splashdown, but anything could change,” Manning said. “Then we have to make real-time decisions and people need to move.”

Helicopters that capture valuable imagery during descent and landing take off about an hour before splashdown. These aircraft set their flight plans based on the latest information from the Sasquatch team.

Artemis I will be an uncrewed flight test of NASA’s Orion spacecraft, Space Launch System rocket, with the newly upgraded ground systems at Kennedy. During future Artemis missions, crew will be onboard. The recovery team intends to recover the crew and capsule within two hours of splashing down.

“Safety is absolutely very important,” Manning said. “We want to get as close as we can — far enough away that the recovery team is safe, but close enough that they can get there quickly.”

Jim Cawley works for NASA's Kennedy Space Center.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Rodeo has become the latest local event to be canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Friday, the Lake County Rodeo Association reported it had decided to cancel this year’s event, which had been set for July 10 and 11.

The association board of directors made the decision to cancel the 91st annual event after “much heartfelt discussion,” said President Adam Peters in a Friday statement.

“This decision has not come easily but with all the current restrictions in place due to the coronavirus pandemic we see no way to hold the rodeo this year,” Peters said.

Peters thanked the groups and local businesses that have made the rodeo possible over the years, including the California Cowboy Professional Rodeo Association, as well as the local barrel racing, team roping and queen competitions, and the children’s events for cutest cowpoke and mutton bustin’.

Peters said that the board believes that with a year to heal the communities from the impacts of the pandemic, the 91st annual Lake County Rodeo can be rescheduled and take place on July 9 and 10, 2021, at its usual location, the Lake County Fairgrounds in Lakeport.

“Our all-volunteer board, comprised of a variety of private residents of the county, takes great pride in bringing this community event to you every year,” Peters said.

Peters said they plan on returning with all the events connected to the rodeo – including the Saturday evening Rodeo Dance – plus great vendors in 2021.

The California Cowboy Professional Rodeo Association reported that several other rodeos have been canceled so far this season, but plans are still on for nearly 20 rodeo events between now and the association’s finals in September.

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.