Tuesday, Dec. 1, began like most of my days; 5:30 a.m., wake up, get ready, wake my three children, make breakfast and then hand off the remaining morning duties to my husband and walk to work before 7 a.m. The one difference in this day was my planned appointment to attend the Board of Supervisors meeting in support of Upper Lake’s town clock. Unbeknownst to me the appointment wasn’t going to go according to plan.

Quite honestly, I fully anticipated the community, including myself, would stand before the lectern and express support in favor of the board’s approval of the use of some remaining redevelopment funds for the purchase of a town clock, after which the board would then approve it. Instead, a debate of aesthetics verse infrastructure, one town apposed to another – it was the sort discussion I had not anticipated.

If you’re interested in a bit of history, the first Upper Lake town clock was installed in 1914 by the Upper Lake Women’s Protective Club, a club still in existence today. In the 1970s the rising repair costs due to routine vandalism forced the club to remove and sell the clock. If you were in the county in the 1970s you’ll remember what Upper Lake had become and I pray will never be again.

It’s important to point out that redevelopment funds are designated for very specific uses and, like stamped sidewalks and decorative lighting, a clock will further enhance the image of Upper Lake.

Two of the four board members present that day believe strongly that a clock is purely aesthetic. I beg to differ. Think about your most fond travel or vacation memories. What do you remember? (Take a moment to really think about this.) How do you describe this place to friends? So is it that your destination had the smoothest road ways or most efficient sewer system? Not likely.

We should all be so thankful for local people like Jim Fetzer who cared enough about aesthetics to create Ceago Vinegarden; or Lynne and Bernie Butcher for every single aesthetic detail they invested in the Tallman Hotel and Blue Wing Saloon. No matter how hard one might try, we are all judged by our appearance and so will our town.

The placement of a town clock is like the cherry atop a sundae. Whether you like cherries or not everyone has to agree that a picture of a sundae without the cherry just doesn’t seem right.

It would be a shame if the Upper Lake redevelopment project fell short of being completed. Due to the board's decision this week, it is now up to our community to raise 25 percent of the cost of a new clock. This is our chance to show just how much we care about the look and feel of our town. We need to raise $3,000 to $4,000.

Ninety-five years after the installation of the first clock the Women’s Protective Club voted this week to spearhead the effort to erect a new landmark clock and raise the necessary funds specified by the Board of Supevisors.

If you or someone you know can donate, please make a check payable to Women’s Protective Club – Town Clock. Contributions are tax-deductible.

Mail contributions to PO Box 508, Upper Lake, 95485 or donate directly to the Women’s Protective Club account at the Upper Lake Branch of Westamerica Bank.

Shalean Smith is a resident and business owner in Upper Lake.