LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Board of Supervisors this week will discuss a letter from Harbin Hot Springs regarding difficulties the resort’s management said it is encountering with the Community Development Department in the effort to rebuild in the wake of the Valley fire.
The board will meet beginning at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 12, in the board chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.
The meeting can be watched live on Channel 8 and online at https://countyoflake.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx. Accompanying board documents, the agenda and archived board meeting videos also are available at that link.
At 9:30 a.m. the board will discuss and consider the letter from Heart Consciousness Church, which owns Harbin Hot Springs.
The south county resort was destroyed in the September 2015 Valley fire.
Now, as they’re attempting to rebuild, resort officials said in a letter to District 1 Supervisor Moke Simon that they are experiencing challenges with Lake County Community Development, and they lay those issues at the feet of department head Robert Massarelli.
Sajjad Mahmud, senior vice president and managing director, and Julie Adams, vice president and managing director, said in the letter that they have encountered a burdensome and bureaucratic planning process with repeated obstacles that to them seem extreme.
Mahmud and Adams said they had anticipated the entire process for the resort’s general plan/amendment application would be completed by the end of this year, but that they’ve received a letter from Community Development dated Nov. 16 with an extensive list of old and new items required and a meeting date this Wednesday, which pushes the project back much further.
The letter notes that Lake County residents and the resort’s guests are waiting for progress on the rebuild, and the county is losing $150,000 per year in room tax, sales tax and additional property taxes.
In more than 40 years of dealing with the county, Mahmud and Adams said the resort found the county “practical, fair and effective,” adding, “This has been missing in the last year.”
They added that working with Community Development on the rebuild has been “deeply demoralizing.”
“Experientially, going through the Lake County Community Development Department in the last year has been worse than going through the Valley Fire,” Mahmud and Adams wrote.
Simon requested that the matter be placed on the agenda. In his memo to the board for item, he asked for the board to discuss the concerns “and consider giving direction to staff.”
In other business, in untimed items the board will consider a resolution of intent to amend Article 72 of the Lake County Zoning Ordinance related to commercial cannabis and will consider the 2016 Lake County Crop Report prepared by the agricultural commissioner.
At 9:45 a.m., the board will get a report and status update on the CalHOME program for Valley and Clayton fire survivors, and at 10 a.m. will consider accepting a cannabis work plan commencing in early 2018 and giving direction to stakeholder department heads.
The full agenda follows.
CONSENT AGENDA
7.1: Adopt resolution establishing salaries and benefits for employees assigned to Confidential Unit “A” for the period from July 1, 2017, through June 30, 2018.
7.2: Adopt resolution establishing salaries and benefits for employees assigned to Confidential Unit “B” for the period from July 1, 2017, through June 30, 2018.
7.3: Approve ground lease agreement between the county of Lake and Personal Network Computing Inc. (DBA Valley Internet) for an initial term of 15 years and monthly rent of $1,200 per month and authorize the chair to sign.
7.4: Approve Amendment 2 to the agreement between the county of Lake and Restpadd Inc. for Acute inpatient psychiatric hospital services and professional services associated with acute inpatient hospitalizations for Fiscal Year 2017-18 in the amount of $180,000 and authorize the board chair to sign amendment 2.
7.5: Approve Amendment 1 to the agreement between the county of Lake and Davis Guest Home for Fiscal Year 2017-18 for an increase of $41,675 and a new contract maximum of $80,000 and authorize the board chair sign the amendment.
7.6: Approve Amendment 1 to the agreement between the county of Lake and Kings View Corp. for professional consulting services for Fiscal Year 2017-18 for an increase of $18,800 and a new contract maximum of $28,795 and authorize the board chair to sign the amendment.
7.7: Approve resolution of the board of directors, Northshore Fire Protection District, calling a special election on April 10, 2018 for the purpose of imposing a special tax increase for fire protection and prevention, rescue, emergency medical services and transportation, hazardous material, and other services related to the protection of lives and property, and approving an increase in the district's spending limit.
7.8: Approve contract between county of Lake and Industrial Employers and Distributors Association for public authority labor negotiations consultant, annual rate of $22,588 beginning July 1, 2017, through June 30, 2018; and authorize the chair to sign.
TIMED ITEMS
8.2, 9:10 a.m.: (a) Consideration of continuation of a proclamation of a local health emergency reaffirmed by the interim county health officer for the county of Lake; and (b) update and discussion on Sulphur fire recovery.
8.3, 9:15 a.m.: Hearing, appeal of nuisance animal abatement, Case Number 2017-11-0037, located at 6687 Blue Heron Drive #E, Upper Lake, Ca (Andrew Nickerson).
8.4, 9:30 a.m.: Discussion/consideration of letter from Heart Consciousness Church DBA Harbin Hot Springs.
8.5, 9:45 a.m.: Report/status update on CalHOME program for Valley Fire and Clayton fire survivors.
8.6, 10 a.m.: (a) Consideration of cannabis work plan commencing in early 2018; and (b) consideration of direction to stakeholder department heads.
UNTIMED ITEMS
9.2: Discussion and consideration of amendments to 2018 Board of Supervisors regular meeting calendar.
9.3: Consideration of the 2016 Crop Report for Lake County from the agricultural commissioner.
9.4: Consideration of resolution of intent to amend Article 72 of the Lake County Zoning Ordinance.
9.5: Consideration of approval of revisions to the county’s harassment policy and Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Plan to conform to California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act.
CLOSED SESSION
10.1: Conference with legal counsel: Existing litigation pursuant to Gov. Code Sec. 54956.9(d)(1): McCarty, et al v. Lake County, et al.
10.2: Conference with legal counsel: Existing Litigation Pursuant to Gov. Code sec. 54956.9(d)(1): Shikman v. County of Lake, et al.
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Supervisors to consider letter from Harbin Hot Springs about rebuilding obstacles
- Elizabeth Larson
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