LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Kelseyville Riviera Community Association, one of the largest community associations in the state with over 2,800 members, is actively developing a comprehensive strategic plan to incorporate actions that address safety, quality of life, and establish a clear, enduring vision for the community’s future.
Kelseyville Riviera Community Association members and residents are invited to participate in the upcoming town hall meeting on Thursday, Jan. 25, from 6 to 7 p.m.
The meeting will be held in the association clubhouse, located at 9689 State Highway 281, across from the Riviera Foods Market.
Lake County Community Development Department Director Mireya Turner will attend the town hall meeting to learn how Community Development may align with the association to develop new amenities within the community such as parks and other recreational facilities, as well as opportunities regarding improvements to community infrastructure.
The association’s town hall meeting, organized by community members, will provide an overview of the draft strategic plan.
Facilitated break-out discussions will provide attendees the opportunity to share with the association their suggestions and priorities for ensuring a safer, more enjoyable and more vibrant community.
“The association staff and leadership are committed to continually exploring strategies to enhance the quality of life for our residents, increase property values, and strengthen partnerships with local leaders and entities that are or wish to become invested in our Community,” said Board President Moses Ornelas Valdez. “A united approach with community stakeholders will ensure that we are aware of and properly accessing available resources to refine and achieve our goals.”
Established in 1964, the Kelseyville Riviera Community Association includes 1,543 homes, 1,246 undeveloped parcels, 19 commercial properties and covers over five square miles of land.
The association is governed by a five-member board of directors who are elected through an annual election with staggered terms.
Numerous committees, spearheaded by volunteer members, work to address issues and pursue ideas.
Together, their common goal is to seek meaningful ways to advance community safety, develop additional amenities and bring greater value to the community.
Kelseyville Riviera Community Association members are highly encouraged to get involved in their community and to be part of its strategic plan implementation.
For more information about the town hall meeting, contact Janine Smith Citron at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 707-413-9028 community to learn more about the Kelseyville Riviera Community Association call 707-277-7281 or visit the website at kelseyville-riviera.com.
The California Water Commission on Wednesday approved a white paper that contains potential strategies to protect communities and fish and wildlife in the event of drought.
The white paper is in support of Water Resilience Portfolio Action 26.3, and will be shared with the Secretaries for Natural Resources, Environmental Protection, and Food and Agriculture, who requested the commission’s engagement on this topic.
California is a drought-prone state. Climate change exacerbates drought conditions in California by creating hotter and drier baseline conditions, leading to more intense droughts.
Additionally, climate change is creating the conditions for “weather whiplash” — a phenomenon California experienced in the 2022-2023 water year, swinging rapidly from severe drought to record-breaking precipitation events and flooding.
To ensure California’s people and environment have sufficient water during times of drought, the State will need to adapt to this new normal of ongoing weather extremes.
“California has experienced two of the worst droughts in our state’s history in the last decade alone,” said Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot. “While we’ve invested billions across the state to become more drought resilient in light of this new reality, there’s more we need to do to prepare for the next drought, whenever it comes. These thoughtful recommendations by the Water Commission point the way forward and I’m eager to explore how these ideas can be applied in coming years.”
The commission’s work on drought is forward-looking. The strategies proposed by the commission integrate months of conversations with state agencies, experts, tribes, water users, interest groups, interested parties and the public.
The commission has taken the input it received and charted a through-line, developing four key strategies for augmenting California’s communities’ and fish and wildlife species’ drought resilience.
Those strategies are:
• Scale up groundwater recharge. During flood events, when all other water rights and environmental needs are met, channeling excess flows to groundwater recharge can build drought reserves. The State can help scale up groundwater recharge by planning and preparing for recharge during times of high flow, promoting recharge efforts through outreach and financial incentives, efficiently permitting recharge projects, supporting the infrastructure needed to conduct recharge, and continuing to apply lessons learned.
• Conduct watershed-level planning to reduce drought impacts to ecosystems. To enable fish and wildlife to be more resilient to drought, the State must support fish and wildlife during drought and work to recover ecosystem function during non-drought periods, supporting viable populations that can weather the next drought period. The State can help reduce drought impacts to fish and wildlife by improving water availability for species, advancing habitat restoration and conservation projects, integrating forest management into drought planning, and creating a plan to protect species during drought emergencies.
• Better position communities to prepare for and respond to drought emergencies. During drought, communities need resources to ensure that vulnerable community members are safe in times of crisis. In advance of drought, they need support to help abate future vulnerabilities to water scarcity by improving water systems and integrating water use into land use planning. The State can help communities prepare for and respond to drought by offering climate disaster funding, ramping up efforts to improve water system resilience and regional water solutions, and supporting integrated land and water planning.
• Support improved coordination, information, and communication in drought and non-drought years. In California, droughts need to be dealt with as a chronic phenomenon and not an occasional emergency. The State needs to continue to align its staff capacity, improve its data collection, and contextualize its drought communication, moving from a crisis mindset to recognizing drought as a natural and inevitable element of the state’s hydrologic cycle.
“Groundwater recharge to replenish our aquifers is a key water strategy for a hotter, drier future,” said California Department of Food and Agriculture Secretary Karen Ross. “It provides important ecosystem benefits, protects drinking water wells, and supports climate-resilient agriculture for healthy food production and thriving rural communities.”
The strategies and actions outlined in this paper are additive to the important work already underway by state agencies. The commission expects state decision-makers to weigh whether and when to move forward with these suggested strategies.
“Drought impacts all of California’s water users, but some — small, rural communities and fish and wildlife — are particularly vulnerable,” said Commissioner Sandra Matsumoto. “The strategies proposed by the commission will help the state protect these vulnerable water users in the event of drought. To move forward, water sectors, users, and managers must work together to minimize the impacts of drought on all Californians.”
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Lake County Behavioral Health reported that its Mobile Crisis Response Team is now active.
The agency said this new crisis response team will be able to respond to where a crisis is happening, throughout Lake County, 24 hours a day.
At the September town hall Lakeport officials held on addressing the homeless crisis, Behavioral Health Director Elise Jones called the team “a whole new paradigm” that will go into the community in real time and help people in their homes.
The team — which will be accompanied by a therapist or able to contact one virtually — will offer support to people in crisis in a safe environment to help them stabilize.
To report such crises and ask for assistance, call 800-900-2075 to reach a local dispatcher.
You can also call or text 988 to reach someone today.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The National Weather Service said another round of storms headed to the North Coast is expected to bring more rain through the end of next week.
The agency’s Eureka office, which provides forecasts for Lake County, said the incoming rainfall will be more moderate than this past weekend’s.
However, forecasters warned that flooding will be possible in some areas where soils are already saturated.
Rainfall levels for Lake County for Friday afternoon through Sunday are predicted to range between 2 to 3 inches from Lakeport to the Northshore and between 4 and 6 inches in the south county.
While much of the rest of the country is facing plunging temperatures, Lake County’s forecast appears more moderate.
Daytime temperatures will hover in the 50s while at night will remain in the mid to high 40s, based on the forecast.
Winds with gusts close to 30 miles per hour are forecast for Saturday and more than 20 miles per hour on Sunday.
The forecast calls for rain or chances of rain through Thursday.
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.
Four recent catastrophic building collapses and a near miss are raising concerns about the state of America’s aging buildings and questions about who, if anyone, is checking their safety.
As a civil engineer, I study building failures, and I have seen how crucial structural inspections and careful maintenance are – and how often the signs of trouble are ignored in the U.S. until a problem becomes a crisis. Too often, it is up to residents to call attention to the risks.
Many disasters had clear warning signs
There were two common threads prior to many of the recent building collapses: visible signs of the defects that eventually led to the building’s demise and a history of documents submitted to city building departments clearly showing deteriorating conditions.
For example:
In June 2021, the sudden collapse of the Champlain Towers South condominium in Surfside, Florida, killed 98 people and stunned the nation. Three years earlier, an engineers report had raised concerns about the structural integrity of concrete in the pool deck area that later collapsed, but the strength of the pool deck slab was not thoroughly investigated. Federal investigators in a 2023 preliminary report found that the original design of the pool deck did not follow building standards.
In May 2023, three people died when part of a 116-year-old apartment building in Davenport, Iowa, collapsed. Inspectors pointed to a history of improper maintenance, and photos show clear signs of trouble, such as walls that were bowed.
In April 2023, one person was killed when a New York City parking garage collapsed. The nearly-100-year-old building had several past violations, and its collapse triggered a swift check of similar garages that turned up more potential hazards.
Many buildings today are designed to last from as little as 50 years to over 100 years, depending on the materials used and assuming periodic maintenance and repairs.
Just as human beings need to see their physicians on a more regular basis as they age, older buildings also require more care and attention. That is even more important when they are exposed to adverse environmental conditions, such as corrosive de-icing salts in the Northeast and saltwater and salt air moisture in coastal regions.
Yet, inspections of buildings primarily happen only as they are being built, resold or remodeled. Policies vary by state, but there are currently few widespread mandated rules for structural inspections of entire existing buildings. Some exceptions are in Florida, where structural inspections are required for condominium and co-op buildings statewide at age 25 to 30 years, and every 10 years thereafter, and Jersey City, New Jersey, where periodic structural inspections are required every 10 years for all buildings. Several Florida cities and counties have extended the state-mandated periodic inspections to commercial buildings.
Some cities have enacted ordinances governing periodic inspections of specific structural elements, such as balconies and facades. And a few require periodic inspections or condition assessments for parking garages. After the Surfside condo tower collapse, the International Code Council initiated efforts to develop condition-assessment guidelines for existing buildings that local governments could choose to adopt.
Cities need to prioritize inspections
In each of the recent collapses, there were signs of the problems that, had they been addressed, might have prevented the tragedy.
In the New York City apartment building, a visible, vertical crack in the corner column, which should have been a glaring red flag, was ignored. The NYC Buildings Department commissioner recently said that “The Department of Buildings does not have enough of its own staff to inspect every building in New York City.”
If increasing budgets for municipal inspection departments is not an option, another route is to contract with structural engineering firms to review submitted documents. While this comes at a cost, so do legal settlements after building disasters.
If cities and states enact periodic structural condition assessment rules for existing buildings within their jurisdiction, problems could also be spotted by expert inspectors before they develop into failures.
Insurance companies could also be a partner in this effort by requiring periodic inspection and maintenance by licensed design professionals as a condition of continuing coverage.
If you see something, say something
Residents also must adopt a more vigilant and proactive approach to identify and prevent structural problems.
Anyone can learn to identify the telltale signs of building deterioration and defects, though there may be some hidden structural deterioration behind architectural finishes that may not be visible. If these problems are spotted and addressed in a timely manner, that could help reduce the likelihood of structural failures and more costly repairs in the future.
If you see any of the following problems, report them to your landlord or the city building department – they could be signs of structural trouble:
Cracks that are expanding in elevated floors or roof slabs, walls, beams and columns.
Cracks on a floor slab that create a trip hazard, or wall cracks, which may be the result of the foundation settling.
Chunks of concrete falling from slabs, beams, walls and columns; and exposed rusted steel reinforcement.
Rusting or corroded steel beams and columns.
Balconies where the rainwater drains toward the interior of the building, rather than away from it.
Rotted wood structural parts, such as floor joists or wall studs.
Everyone needs to understand the warning signs and be willing to speak up so officials and building owners take the necessary steps to stem this scary tide and protect residents.
Our buildings are talking to us, and in some cases crying out for help – it’s time everyone listened.
Continuing to protect public safety, safeguard natural resources, and advance the integrity of the licensed cannabis market, the Unified Cannabis Enforcement Taskforce, or UCETF, seized more than $312 million in unlicensed cannabis during its first calendar year of operation.
Among the highlights from the operations in 2023 was the seizure of almost 190,000 pounds of illegal cannabis, the eradication of almost 318,000 plants and the seizure of 119 illegally-possessed firearms.
“California is effectively decreasing the illegal cannabis market by leveraging the strengths and knowledge of over 20 state agencies and departments alongside our local and federal partners. The UCETF’s progress in 2023 reflects California’s ongoing commitment to disrupting and dismantling illegal cannabis activity,” saidd Director Nicole Elliott of Department of Cannabis Control. “I look forward to working with all our partners in 2024 to build on this progress.”
“Since its inception in late 2022, California’s Unified Cannabis Enforcement Taskforce has hit the ground running with year-round operations that spanned from the Oregon state line all the way down to San Diego,” said CDFW Director Charlton H. Bonham. “We’ve sent a strong message that illegal operations that harm our natural resources, threaten the safety of workers, and put consumer health at risk have no place in California. While there is more work to be done, we made progress last year and I look forward to going further alongside our county, state, and federal partners.”
The results of UCETF’s FY 2023 and Q4 2023 enforcement actions are:
UCETF Operations Q4 2023 CY 2023
Search Warrants Served 24 188
Pounds of Cannabis Seized 13,393.65 189,854.02
Retail Value of Cannabis Seized $22,294,571.41 $312,880,014.35
Cannabis Plants Eradicated 20,320 317,834
Firearms Seized 26 119
Money Seized $35,195.25 $223,809
In addition to releasing the Q4 and yearly totals for 2023, the taskforce announced the top five counties for enforcement activity (according to value of cannabis seized) in calendar year 2023.
They are:
County Value of Cannabis Seized
Alameda $77,828,338.50
Siskiyou $70,747,875.00
Mendocino $48,073,113.00
Los Angeles $28,317,139.69
Kern $21,578,438.25
Since inception, UCETF has seized $317,578,792.29 in unlicensed cannabis through 218 search warrants. The taskforce has also eradicated 347,321 plants and seized 128 firearms.
Created by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2022, the Unified Cannabis Enforcement Taskforce has been charged by the Governor to further align state efforts and increase cannabis enforcement coordination between state, local and federal partners.
UCETF’s enforcement actions protect consumer and public safety, safeguard the environment, and deprive illegal cannabis operators and transnational criminal organizations of illicit revenue that harms consumers and undercuts the regulated cannabis market in California.
The taskforce is co-chaired by the Department of Cannabis Control and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and coordinated by the Homeland Security Division of the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.
The taskforce includes more than two dozen local, state and federal partners working together to disrupt the illegal cannabis market.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Lake County Library is kicking off its Winter Reading Challenge on Friday, Jan. 19, inviting residents of all ages to embark on a challenge to read more in the new year.
The Winter Reading Challenge is an opportunity for participants to embrace the many benefits of reading, fostering positive impacts on their lives. The challenge is available for pre-K, kids, teens and adults.
Even the smallest readers, unable to venture through books alone, can join with parents recording their shared reading experiences.
Registration for the challenge is available on the library’s website, allowing residents to sign up at their convenience until the challenge concludes on March 16. Locals are also invited to register at their nearest library branch.
Once registered, residents can start accumulating points by reading a diverse array of materials available at the library, from eBooks and audiobooks to print books, comics, and magazines. Every page read and logged with the library contributes to the challenge's goal of 1,000 points.
Completing the challenge brings a special reward: the chance to select a brand-new book and be the first to check it out.
The chosen book, adorned with the reader's name, will become part of the library's collection, courtesy of the Friends of the Lake County Library — a dedicated community non-profit membership organization.
Children can collect stickers and small toys throughout their reading journey, while adults and teens stand a chance to win a prize basket filled with books.
Beyond the thrill of the challenge, the Winter Reading Program emphasizes the critical role of reading in building literacy skills.
A well-developed literacy foundation extends beyond the ability to read and write, aiding in the comprehension of complex ideas and effective communication with the world.
In addition to fostering literacy, making reading a habit boasts numerous advantages, including stress relief, empathy development, and sustaining mental sharpness throughout life.
Join us in celebrating the joy of reading this winter! For more information and to sign up, visit the Lake County Library Website at https://library.lakecountyca.gov.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta on Wednesday joined a coalition of 26 attorneys general in filing a comment letter responding to the Federal Communications Commission’s notice of inquiry related to the potential impact of emerging artificial intelligence, or AI, technology on efforts to protect consumers from illegal robocalls or robotexts.
The multistate coalition argues that AI-generated technologies that mimic human voices are a form of “artificial voice” as that term is used in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and that consumers therefore cannot be sent AI-generated robocalls that mimic a live caller without the consumer’s prior express written consent.
“In addition to being a daily annoyance, robocalls are often used by scammers to cause real financial damage,” said Attorney General Bonta. “AI technology presents opportunities for new levels of deception by bad actors. The FCC should take this opportunity to underscore that existing laws, like the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, can be used to protect consumers against this threat. Classifying AI-generated human voices as a type of artificial voice is a step in the right direction in preventing consumers from receiving unwanted and potentially dangerous robocalls.”
For Californians, the impact of illegal and unwanted robocalls can range from a momentary nuisance to serious fraud involving identity theft or life-changing financial losses.
Phone calls and text messages are by far the most common contact method for fraud, and in 2022 alone, fraudulent phone calls and texts led to more than $1.13 billion in reported financial losses nationwide, according to the Federal Trade Commission, or FTC.
In the comment letter, the attorneys general argue that considering AI-generated human voices an “artificial voice” is consistent with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and with the FCC’s treatment of prior technological developments.
Robocalls are typically the number-one consumer complaint to the FTC each year. AI technology has the potential to make phone scams more sophisticated and believable, as scammers have already begun using the technology to mimic live voices, including those of celebrities and distressed family members.
Wednesday’s action is consistent with Attorney General Bonta’s commitment to protect consumers by cracking down on robocalls:
In January 2022, Attorney General Bonta, as part of a bipartisan multistate coalition, urged the FCC to stop the flood of illegal foreign-based robocalls that “spoof” U.S. phone numbers. In August 2022, Attorney General Bonta announced the launch of a bipartisan nationwide Anti-Robocall Litigation Task Force to investigate and take legal action against the telecommunications companies responsible for bringing a majority of foreign robocalls into the U.S.
In May 2023, Attorney General Bonta, as part of a bipartisan coalition of 49 attorneys general, announced a lawsuit against Avid Telecom for allegedly initiating and facilitating billions of unlawful robocalls that included Social Security Administration scams, Medicare scams, and employment scams.
In filing the comment letter, Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general of Pennsylvania, Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia.
The battle to keep the government open may feel just like the crisis of the day. But these fights pose immediate and long-term risks for the U.S.
The federal government spends tens of billions of dollars every year to support fundamental scientific research that is mostly conducted at universities. For instance, the basic discoveries that made the COVID-19 vaccine possible stretch back to the early 1960s. Such research investments contribute to the health, wealth and well-being of society, support jobs and regional economies and are vital to the U.S. economy and national security.
If Congress can’t reach an agreement, then a temporary government shutdown could happen on Jan. 19, 2024. If lawmakers miss a second Feb. 2 deadline, then automatic budget cuts will hit future research hard.
Even if lawmakers avoid a shutdown and pass a budget, America’s future competitiveness could suffer because federal research investments are on track to be billions of dollars below targets Congress set for themselves less than two years ago.
Our data shows how endangering basic research harms communities across the U.S. and can limit innovative companies’ access to the skilled employees they need to succeed.
A promised investment
Less than two years ago, in August 2022, university researchers like me had reason to celebrate.
The CHIPS act authorized US$81 billion for the agency, promised to double its budget by 2027 and directed it to “address societal, national, and geostrategic challenges for the benefit of all Americans” by investing in research.
But there was one very big snag. The money still has to be appropriated by Congress every year. Lawmakers haven’t been good at doing that recently. The government is again poised to shut down. As lawmakers struggle to keep the lights on, fundamental research is likely to be a casualty of political dysfunction. The budget proposals released so far fall $5 billion to $7.5 billion short of what the CHIPS act called for in fiscal year 2024. Deal or no deal, science is on the chopping block in Washington.
Research’s critical impact
That’s bad because fundamental research matters in more ways than you might expect.
Lagging research investment will hurt U.S. leadership in critical technologies like artificial intelligence, advanced communications, clean energy and biotechnology. Less support means less new research work gets done, fewer new researchers are trained and important new discoveries are made elsewhere.
Businesses nationwide thrive by selling the goods and services – everything from pipettes and biological specimens to notebooks and plane tickets – that are necessary for research. Those vendors include high-tech startups, manufacturers, contractors and even Main Street businesses like your local hardware store. They employ your neighbors and friends and contribute to the economic health of your hometown and the nation.
Nearly a third of the $10 billion in federal research funds that 26 of the universities in our consortium used in 2022 directly supported U.S. employers, including:
A Detroit welding shop that sells gasses many labs use in experiments funded by the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Department of Defense and Department of Energy.
A Dallas-based construction company that is building an advanced vaccine and drug development facility paid for by the Department of Health and Human Services.
More than a dozen Utah businesses, including surveyors, engineers and construction and trucking companies, working on a Department of Energy project to develop breakthroughs in geothermal energy.
When Congress’ problems endanger basic research, they also damage businesses like these and people you might not usually associate with academic science and engineering. Construction and manufacturing companies earn more than $2 billion each year from federally funded research done by our consortium’s members.
Jobs and innovation
Disrupting or decreasing research funding also slows the flow of STEM – science, technology, engineering and math – talent from universities to American businesses. Highly trained people are essential to corporate innovation and to U.S. leadership in key fields, like AI, where companies depend on hiring to secure research expertise.
In 2022, federal research grants paid wages for about 122,500 people at universities that shared data with my institute. More than half of them were students or trainees. Our data shows that they go on to many types of jobs, but are particularly important for leading tech companies like Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Intel.
More comprehensive numbers don’t exist, but that same data lets me estimate that over 300,000 people who worked at U.S. universities in 2022 were paid by federal research funds. Threats to federal research investments put academic jobs at risk. They also hurt private-sector innovation because even the most successful companies need to hire people with expert research skills. Most people learn those skills by working on university research projects, and most of those projects are federally funded.
Lasting stagnation or shrinking investments would have even more pronounced effects. Over time, companies would see fewer skilled job candidates, academic and corporate researchers would produce fewer discoveries, and fewer high-tech startups would mean slower economic growth. America would become less competitive in the age of AI. This would make one of the fears that led lawmakers to pass the CHIPS and Science Act into a reality.
Ultimately, it’s up to lawmakers to decide whether to fulfill their promise to invest more in the research that supports jobs across the economy and American innovation, competitiveness and economic growth. Whether the current budget deal succeeds or fails, basic research is on the table and the stakes are high.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The California Highway Patrol’s Clear Lake Area office is welcoming a new officer.
Officer Alex Zazueta is a newly promoted officer from the CHP Academy in West Sacramento.
Officer Zazueta was among more than 90 officers who graduated from the academy after 26 weeks of intense training on Jan. 5.
The CHP’s Clear Lake Area office said Officer Zazueta will receive extensive in-field training with experienced officers for approximately four months and later be on his own.
“Lake County is a unique area, different than larger metropolitan areas, with its own unique landscape and rural roadways that will test this officer’s skills. Our ultimate goal is to get all newly promoted officers ready to face the challenges they will encounter on a day-to-day basis so they can provide the highest level of Safety, Service, and Security to the people of California,” the agency said.
The CHP is hiring. For more information visit www.chpmadeformore.com.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. — The five candidates running for the District 1 supervisorial seat made another campaign appearance to answer questions from the community.
The Lower Lake Community Action Group, the city of Clearlake and Lake County News sponsored a District 1 candidates’ forum at Clearlake City Hall on Tuesday night.
For nearly two hours Bren Boyd, John Hess, Sean Millerick, Helen Owen and Bryan Pritchard answered a series of questions with a focus on the Clearlake and Lower Lake areas.
Due to the 2021 redistricting, the District 1 supervisor now represents a small portion of the city of Clearlake as well as Lower Lake, and the city and the Lower Lake Community Action Group wanted to host an event to consider the unique challenges of their community.
Lake County News Editor/Publisher Elizabeth Larson moderated the forum, with Middletown Area Town Hall Chair Monica Rosenthal offering time keeping and organizational assistance and Clearlake City Councilman Russell Cremer, also a Lower Lake Community Action Group member, assisting with organizing the event.
The five candidates also were featured in a forum on Thursday at the Middletown Area Town Hall meeting.
The candidates will make another appearance at the Middletown Luncheon Club at noon on Wednesday at the Middletown Senior Center, 21256 Washington St.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. — The Clearlake City Council this week is set to consider a group of contracts for the environmental study of the city’s major new commercial development at its former airport.
The council will meet at 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 18, in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.
Comments and questions can be submitted in writing for City Council consideration by sending them to City Clerk Melissa Swanson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
To give the council adequate time to review your questions and comments, please submit your written comments before 4 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 18.
On the agenda is the discussion and consideration of contracts related to the preparation of environmental review for the Clearlake Airport Redevelopment Project.
The council will consider waiving competitive bidding requirements and approve the contracts with Gary Price Consulting, California Engineering Company and LSW Architects and authorize City Manager Alan Flora to sign the agreements.
The project is located on the former Pearce Field airport property.
The staff report shows that the contracts will total $602,875.50.
Also on the agenda is the review, approval and submittal of the fiscally year 2024-25 Recognized Obligation Payment Schedule for the period of July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025; a presentation of January’s adoptable dogs; the presentation of the Public Safety Recognition Award to Officer Eagle; presentation by Public Works Director Adeline Leyba of Public Works projects; and presentation of certificates of appreciation for Breakfast with Santa volunteers.
On the meeting's consent agenda — items that are considered routine in nature and usually adopted on a single vote — are warrants; authorization of an amendment of on-call contract with LACO Associates in the amount of $45,585 for the MIT Storm Drain Plan; minutes of the Dec. 13 Lake County Vector Control District Board meeting; approval of Code Enforcement supervisor and chief building inspector positions and update of the 23/24 FY Salary Schedule; and approval of the purchase from National Food Equipment of walk-in freezer unit for the senior/community center not to exceed $88,500.
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.