How to resolve AdBlock issue? 
News
- Details
- Written by: Lake County News reports
On Wednesday, Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-05) lauded the House passage of the Great American Outdoors Act, a bipartisan bill he coauthored and voted to pass that makes significant investments in the conservation of public lands, including fully and permanently funding the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
Thompson spoke on the House floor in favor of this bill.
“We are a nation full of incredible public lands and beautiful open spaces that we must work to preserve for generations to enjoy. That’s why today I was proud to vote to pass the Great American Outdoors Act, bipartisan legislation to do this important conservation work,” said Thompson. “This bill fully funds the Land and Water Conservation Fund, a proven method of preserving public lands while also supporting local economies. And it’s a win for our district, providing funding for preservation and park expansion projects in our communities and on our public lands. I look forward to this bill becoming law so we can continue protecting our great outdoors for our children and grandchildren,” he said.
Coauthored by Thompson, the Great American Outdoors Act will help fund many projects in California’s Fifth Congressional District.
The bill will help Napa and Sonoma Counties expand the existing parks in the Mayacamas Mountains and would help with the acquisition of the 200-acre Fitzsimmons Property and the McCormick Ranch.
Funding through the Land and Water Conservation could also assist with land protections in the Cedar Roughs Wilderness Area and the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument.
The legislation would also help with projects to restore wetlands in the Sonoma Baylands and restoring public lands like Skaggs Island. Land and Water Conservation Fund was an important part of funding open spaces in the district, such as the San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge and the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument.
The Great American Outdoors Act is a sweeping and bipartisan conservation bill that includes the following:
– Fully funding the Land and Water Conservation Fund at $900 million annually; and
– Establishing the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund to provide resources to the National Park Service, the U.S Forest Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Indian Education.
This legislation now heads to the president’s desk to be signed into law.
You can click here for a fact sheet on the Great American Outdoors Act.
Thompson represents California’s Fifth Congressional District, which includes all or part of Contra Costa, Lake, Napa, Solano and Sonoma counties.
- Details
- Written by: Lake County News reports
Check with local National Forests for any additional fire restrictions in place for specific locations.
Forest Service officials are taking this necessary step to ensure that firefighters are available to safely respond and manage incidents.
Ninety-five percent of all wildfires in California are human-caused, and many are a result of unattended campfires.
With the above-average fire season projected in much of California, and the combined potential for wildfires and smoke to impact communities and firefighters during this unprecedented pandemic, there is a need to focus on reducing or eliminating this large ignition source and do all we can to preserve firefighting resources.
“We need everyone now, more than ever, to help reduce the number of preventable wildfires,” said Deputy Regional Forester Anthony Scardina, for the USDA Forest Service Pacific Southwest Region. “We are in state-wide fire restrictions, yet illegal campfires continue to be an issue, putting a strain on firefighters and threatening communities.”
Forest visitors will still be able to use pressurized liquid or gas devices (stoves, grills or lanterns) with shut-off valves outside of developed campgrounds with a valid California Campfire Permit, which can be found at CA Campfire Permit.
The Forest Service manages 18 National Forests in the Pacific Southwest Region, which encompasses over 20 million acres across California, and assists State and Private forest landowners in California, Hawaii and the U.S. Affiliated Pacific Islands.
National forests supply 50 percent of the water in California and form the watershed of most major aqueducts and more than 2,400 reservoirs throughout the state.
For more information, visit www.fs.usda.gov/R5 .
- Details
- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
In January, the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a resolution declaring the property at 7175 South Center Drive as surplus and authorizing the sale of a portion of the land to Lake Transit.
That resolution, and a letter the board approved sending at the same meeting, were meant to help Lake Transit with a grant application Lake Transit made that same week to California’s Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program, or TIRCP.
In April, Lake Transit received notification from TIRCP that it was receiving the $13 million grant it had sought, which will fund the transit hub and four hydrogen buses.
At Tuesday’s meeting, Deputy County Administrative Officer Susan Parker said the board had tasked staff with negotiating the property sale and determining the in-kind value of the direct public benefit from Lake Transit’s services.
Parker said the direct public benefit was determined to be $769,510. The appraised value of the property was $300,000 and the county agreed to sell the property to the agency for $200,000.
Supervisor Bruno Sabatier, whose district includes Clearlake, said he was very pleased the matter was before them.
He said the project won’t be just a transit hub for Lake County but an interregional hub connecting the county to Shasta County, Interstate 5 and the Bay Area. Sabatier added that he believes the hub will help move other projects along.
James Sookne, program manager for Lake Transit, said he was happy that the county and Lake Transit had come to the agreement, and he added that, like Sabatier, he believes it will be a huge project for Lake County.
In explaining the direct public benefit, Sabatier said Lake Transit gave emergency rides during the county’s wildland fires, provides rides for college students and a summer transportation program for youth, and also works with Social Services and Behavioral Health.
Board Chair Moke Simon, who also sits on the Lake Transit Authority Board of Directors, said the county’s low income residents really rely on the services.
“During the fires they were critical,” Simon said, adding they continued to give free rides to those in need following the fires.
Simon said Lake Transit offers great community benefit, and the transit hub will enhance the opportunity for growth throughout the entire county.
Lake Transit Executive Director Lisa Davey-Bates thanked the board and staff. “It’s a great project and we couldn't have done it without your support.”
Referring to the $13 million grant, Davey-Bates said Lake was the only rural county to receive so much funding for a transit project.
“We have a great project ahead of us,” she said explaining that it will build the transit hub and buy the new buses, adding there isn’t another rural county slated to get hydrogen buses.
She said they will work with community colleges on workforce development.
“It is a big project with a lot of opportunity,” Davey-Bates said.
Davey-Bates said the hub will connect as far north as Shasta County and down to Sacramento, with buses also to provide service to Mendocino County and down Highway 101 to Santa Rosa, connecting to other transit systems that go to the Bay Area. Two hydrogen buses also will travel Highway 29 to Napa County.
She said Lake Transit will hold a kickoff meeting with representatives of the grant program in the next couple of months, with hopes of getting the first allocation from the grant either later this year or early in 2021.
County Counsel Anita Grant pointed out that the resolution approving the sale also resolves outstanding issues with the remaining portions of the property.
The resolution explains that in 2019 the county hired a private survey firm to split Assessor’s Parcel No. 010-043-052 into three separate parcels “and by doing so, will, in cooperation with other public entities, advance multiple benefits to the public.”
The resolution does not give a size for the property, but the county GIS shows the total assessor’s parcel totals nearly seven acres.
A map – attached to the resolution – of the land designated for the transit hub appears to show it is approximately 2.88 acres.
The resolution said that of the two remaining parcels created by the parcel split the county began last year, one that runs along Highway 53 will be sold to the city of Clearlake to be used to develop future transportation routes and the other, which is where the Lake County Public Health Center is located, will be maintained by the county.
No public input was given and Sabatier moved to approve the resolution declaring the property as surplus and made a separate motion to authorize County Administrative Officer Carol Huchingson to execute the land purchase agreement with Lake Transit. Both motions passed with full board approval.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
- Details
- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Police Chief Brad Rasmussen introduced the proposed adoption of a resolution accepting grant funding and joining the Lakeport Police Department into partnership with the State of California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, or ABC, as part of the city being awarded a state grant.
However, Rasmussen handed off the item to Officer Andrew Welter, who did the grant application and explained it to the council.
Welter said the Lakeport Police Department, in partnership with the Clearlake Police Department, submitted a joint application to ABC.
“We were awarded that grant,” in the amount of $24,975, Welter said.
Welter said the grant will allow officers to work overtime assignments on alcohol education and enforcement in both cities in partnership with ABC. The activity includes the “minor decoy” and shoulder tap operations in which people are asked to purchase alcohol for a minor.
Rasmussen said his department will do the fiscal management on the grant.
He said the main thing is managing alcohol sales, and reducing alcohol to minors and alcohol-related crime.
Another big effort will be focusing on educating the community, including offering training to licensees on how to make sure they're not running afoul of any alcohol sales laws, he said.
Councilman Kenny Parlet, who owns Lakeview Supermarket and Deli in Lucerne, said most of the licensees aren’t the problem, it’s their employees, some of whom may be in their job a short time.
He said it is important to offer education. “Enforcement is going to go on one way or the other.”
Rasmussen said that under the grant’s education component, they plan to offer training courses. He said such courses are well-received; the last time they held one a few years ago, they had as many as 60 people in attendance.
“I think it will be beneficial,” Rasmussen said.
Parlet asked that the city emphasize in its communications with the public that the program is about education, not trying to catch people doing things wrong.
Mayor George Spurr agreed. “It’s more about education than anything else.”
Councilwoman Mireya Turner moved to approve the grant resolution, with Councilwoman Stacey Mattina seconding and the council approving the motion 4-0. Councilman Tim Barnes was absent from the meeting.
Following the vote, council members congratulated Welter for his work on getting the grant.
The council then went on to consider Assistant City Manager Kevin Ingram’s request to approve a professional service agreement with 4LEAF Inc. for the provision of supplemental building services in the amount not to exceed $25,000.
Ingram said the contract was necessary to fill service gaps following the retirement of longtime city Building Official Tom Carlton. He said the funding will come from fees charged for the services, including inspections and plan examinations.
The council approved the contract 4-0.
Next, Public Works Director Doug Grider presented a contract with Leete Generators in the amount of $263,536 for four standby generators to replace current units at the police department, City Hall and the city’s corporation yard, where generators have had mechanical and capacity issues. A new generator also will be installed at the Silveira Community Center.
He said the generators – along with separate costs for installation and transfer switches – will be funded by the $300,000 Public Safety Power Shutoff Resiliency Allocation Grant the city received from the state.
In anticipation of regulation changes from the California Air Resources Board, Grider said the city sought bids from companies for generators with Tier 4 engines, as Tier 3 engines – which were less expensive to purchase – will no longer be compliant within the next three to five years.
Among the five bids the city received, Grider said only Leete responded to the request for Tier 4 engines.
“I think it’s going to be a good thing getting these things installed,” Grider said, adding they are pushing the envelope to get the generators installed before September. That’s the season when public safety power shutoffs take place.
Spurr asked about plans for the old generators. Grider said they haven’t made a decision yet but are considering mounting them on trailers so they could be transported and used as backup units if necessary.
Parlet thanked Grider and his staff for getting the grants. “Our team is doing a great job,” Parlet said.
City Manager Margaret Silveira also recognized Public Works staffer Ron Ladd and Utilities Superintendent Paul Harris for their efforts with the grant.
Mattina moved to approve the contract, with Parlet seconding and the council voting 4-0.
The council finished its main agenda items by voting unanimously to appoint Turner as the voting delegate for the League of California Cities Annual Conference, which will be held virtually Oct. 7 to 9. Parlet was selected to be the first alternate and Spurr the second alternate.
Council finishes with a farewell
Council members also congratulated Silveira on her last council meeting. She retires July 31.
“You will be sorely missed and I don't think it will be the same,” said Parlet.
“You’ve just been a real asset to the community and will never be forgotten, especially now that your name will be on the building,” Parlet added, referring to the council’s action at its July 7 meeting to name the community center in Silveira’s honor.
Silveira thanked the community, staff, business and elected officials for their support during her tenure as city manager.
“It’s been a quick 10 and a half years with the amazing support I’ve had from everyone here in Lakeport,” she said.
She thanked all of the council members who have served during her tenure, explaining that their leadership is crucial.
Silveira also thanked the council for the “amazing honor” of naming the community center after her. “
“That was just unbelievable,” and totally humbling, she said.
She said she also wanted the community to understand that it is getting an excellent city manager in Ingram, who the council has tapped to be her successor. Silveira thanked the council for that decision.
Ingram has knowledge of the community and planning, and a master’s degree in public administration, Silveira said.
“He’s really ready for the job,” she said. “I think he’s going to make a great leader.”
Silveira added, “I’ve been truly blessed with this opportunity to work here in Lakeport.”
Email Elizabeth Larson at