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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
LAKEPORT, Calif. — The effort to bring a new courthouse to Lake County had its milestone moment last week when state and court officials gathered to mark the groundbreaking for the new Lakeport court facility.
The new building will be located at 675 Lakeport Blvd., and will be three times the size of the current court facility, located on the fourth floor of the Lake County Courthouse at 255 N. Forbes St. in Lakeport.
Judge Andrew Blum, who opened the brief groundbreaking ceremony, was joined by colleagues Michael Lunas and Shanda Harry, and Commissioner John Langan. Judge J. David Markham was out of state.
The $83.8 million project is the work of the Judicial Council of California.
Pella McCormick, the Judicial Council’s director of facilities, thanked everyone for patiently waiting many years for the groundbreaking event.
She said the Judicial Council’s facilities program’s mission is working together to provide access to justice for all Californians.
McCormick said the new project will replace two antiquated facilities, and will provide four courtrooms and 46,000 square feet of space on a 5.7-acre site that will have parking for the public, jurors and court staff.
The project originally was conceptualized in the early 2000s. Then, in 2008, SB 1407 provided $5 billion in bond funding for new and renovated courthouses using court fees, penalties and assessments, McCormick said.
Lakeport’s courthouse was recognized then as one of most critically needed projects statewide, she added.
“In the intervening years, the project was started and stopped a couple of times,” McCormick said.
After several years’ delay, the 2021-22 state budget act included $83.8 million for the Lakeport courthouse project, including design and construction, she said.
McCormick said the new building will be beautiful, will relieve the current space shortfall, increase security, and provide a safe and efficient courthouse. It also will meet regulatory safety, seismic code and Judicial Council space standards.
She said it will have adequate space for a self-help center, jury assembly, attorney-client waiting rooms and separate secure hallways for in-custody defendants.
This project is a collaboration that McCormick said involved county and city partners over the course of many years. The Judicial Council worked closely with the Lake County Superior Court and an advisory group to determine the site.
“The new courthouse will be designed to address energy use and sustainability,” McCormick said, noting it will have water efficient landscaping and irrigation, LED lighting and solar arrays over the parking.
The project also will provide economic benefits to Lake County. McCormick said they made outreach to local subcontractors, and all qualified subcontractors were considered for work on the building.
Other benefits include improving in-custody transportation and detention, a state-of-the-art security system and improved public access to court services.
McCormick thanked Lake County’s judges, Court Executive Officer Krista LeVier, Judicial Council staff and the design-build team.
She said Lake County is an instrumental component of the state's history and economy.
“The new Lakeport courthouse will increase court efficiencies and improve access to justice for the people of the county for many decades to come,” McCormick said.
Judge Blum said the event was a long time coming, and had been in the works for 16 years.
“There were many times when we thought we would never get to this point today, so today is a real milestone,” Blum said.
He recognized retired Judge Art Mann, the only retired judge at the event, who was the presiding judge when the process started in 2008.
Blum also thanked retired judges Stephen Hedstrom, David Herrick and Rick Martin, all of whom put in a lot of effort into getting a new courthouse.
“This is not just a new building for the courts. It is a far better facility for the people of Lake County who use court services,” Blum said.
“Our current courthouse is officially the worst courthouse in the entire state of California. Yes, there is an official list, and we’re No. 1. So we do need a new courthouse,” Blum added.
Blum said he’d traveled to some of the new courthouses around California, finding them beautiful and well equipped.
“It’s time the people of Lake County had one of those facilities also,” he said.
Blum said the current courthouse on Forbes Street was built in the 1960s, when the county’s
population and caseloads were much smaller.
The new courthouse will be triple the size of the current facility, will have an on-site self-help center to help people file paperwork and there will be a comfortable place for jurors to wait before being called for service, as opposed to having to stand out in the hallway, Blum explained.
The building process is expected to take about two years, so Blum said the grand opening can be expected in 2026.
Before he and others picked up the ceremonial shovels for the groundbreaking, Blum recognized LeVier’s work.
“She has put more time into this project than the rest of us combined,” he said.
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Lauren Berlinn, spokesperson for the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, said the collision that night on Clear Lake involved two vessels and occurred shortly after the city of Lakeport’s fireworks display.
A 2019 Ranger bass boat, operated by a single individual, was traveling east on Clear Lake when it collided with a 2017 Sun Tracker Pontoon boat carrying eight occupants, Berlinn said.
As a result of the collision, the operator of the pontoon boat was ejected into the water, Berlinn said.
The sheriff’s office did not release the names of those involved in the crash.
The first call that came across the radio about the crash that night was just after 10:20 p.m.
Central Dispatch said multiple callers reported that people were in the water and at least one person was injured.
The location was given as Reeves Point, off of Reeves Lane near Konocti Vista Casino.
Dispatch sent Lakeport Fire personnel to the casino, where they were staging their units, while three Sheriff’s Marine Patrol boats responded. Cal Fire also was notified and staged, based on radio reports.
Fire personnel met the sheriff’s boat and responded out to the scene to conduct the rescue, while also requesting an air ambulance meet them at Lampson Field.
Radio reports indicated that it took nearly a half-hour to remove the injured boat driver from the water and transport them back to the waiting ambulance on shore.
Berlinn said the pontoon boat driver was transported by air ambulance to an out-of-county hospital for treatment.
The remaining seven occupants of the pontoon boat, as well as the operator of the bass boat, reported no injuries, Berlinn said.
At the time of Berlinn’s Monday report, alcohol was not suspected as having contributed to the boat collision.
She said the investigation into the incident is ongoing.
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Official nomination papers will be available, starting Monday, July 15, for candidates who are interested in running for the Lakeport City Council.
There are four seats available, three for a four-year term and one for a two-year term.
The seats up for election currently are held by Mayor Michael Froio, and council members Kenny Parlet, Kim Costa and Brandon Disney.
The reason there are four seats up for election, not the normal three, is that former Councilmember Mireya Turner resigned her seat in August 2022 after being hired as the county’s Community Development director.
While the remainder of that term was filled by former Councilman George Spurr, Turner was on the ballot for another term, and was elected.
In addition, at that time the council needed to fill the unexpired term of Michael Green, who was appointed to fill the empty District 4 supervisorial slot.
As a result, Costa and Disney were selected to fill those empty seats.
City Attorney David Ruderman said at the time that, while the council would make the appointment for Turner’s term, the law required that it would appear on the ballot during the next municipal election for voters to decide who will fill out the remaining two years, which is required by law.
The city reported that the candidates will indicate which seat they are running for — either the four- or two-year terms — at the time they declare their candidacy.
Interested candidates must be registered to vote and reside within the city limits of the city of Lakeport.
The deadline to file nomination papers for the above offices will be 5 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 8.
Each candidate must be nominated by not less than 20 nor more than 30 registered voters; therefore, it is recommended that you pick up your nomination papers well in advance of the deadline for filing to allow time to gather signatures.
If you are interested in running for Lakeport City Council, please contact City Clerk Kelly Buendia at 707-263-5615, Extension 101, or Deputy City Clerk Hilary Britton at 707-263-5615, Extension 102, for further information and to set up an appointment to pick up and review the nomination packet.
The election calendar with important filing dates is posted on the Election page of the city’s website, www.cityoflakeport.com.
For information on running for City Council, please see the page How to Run for City Council on the city’s website here.
City officials ask that candidates call ahead for an appointment with the clerk’s office during the nomination period. City Hall’s regular business hours are Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
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- Written by: LAKE COUNTY NEWS REPORTS
Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-04) announced Monday that his four town hall events in Vacaville, Santa Rosa, Yountville and Lakeport reached over 200 veterans, their families or survivors to support them in navigating health care benefits.
Attendees at each town hall were assisted with questions about their health care benefits and registering for PACT Act benefits.
“The PACT Act is delivering overdue health care benefits to millions of veterans and their families. It’s essential that every veteran knows about what is available to them,” said Thompson. “I held town halls in our district to connect veterans with representatives from the Department of Veterans Affairs and to answer their questions about accessing their health care benefits. Thanks to these town halls, we were able to reach over 200 veterans, their family members, and survivors to help them access the resources they deserve.”
Veterans in attendance at each town hall heard about how to register for health care benefits and learned about recent expansions and improvements in veteran health services.
This includes The Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics, or PACT, Act benefits.
The PACT Act is one of the largest health care and benefit expansions in VA history, providing VA health care benefits for veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic substances, as well as their survivors and dependents.
The PACT Act:
• Expands and extends eligibility for VA health care for Veterans with toxic exposures and veterans of the Vietnam, Gulf War, and post-9/11 eras.
• Adds 20+ more presumptive conditions for burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic exposures.
• Adds more presumptive-exposure locations for Agent Orange and radiation.
• Requires VA to provide a toxic exposure screening to every Veteran enrolled in VA health care.
• Helps improve research, staff education, and treatment related to toxic exposures.
If you’re a veteran or survivor, you can file claims now to apply for PACT Act-related benefits.
Beginning March 5, the VA made millions more veterans eligible for VA health care years earlier than called for by the PACT Act.
Now, all veterans who served in the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan, deployed in the War on Terror; exposed to toxins or hazards while training or on active duty here at home or deployed to any other combat zone after 9/11 are eligible to apply for PACT Act benefits.
Click here to learn more about the PACT Act and to file a benefits claim.
Thompson represents California’s 4th Congressional District, which includes all or part of Lake, Napa, Solano, Sonoma and Yolo counties.