LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Clearlake’s city manager reported that local sales tax revenues are slipping, new businesses are coming on line and efforts are still under way to develop a regional shopping center in the city.
City Manager Alan Flora gave the update to the Clearlake City Council at its July 11 meeting, a day after he met with a sales tax consultant.
“The snapshot is, growth here in Lake County and including the city of Clearlake is very slight,” he said.
He said the areas where they are seeing the most significant drops are in retail and auto sales, which impact the city’s two transactions and use taxes – Measure P, for police, and Measure V, for the roads.
New businesses have helped prop up the city’s sales tax revenue, said Flora.
He said the new businesses having the most impact include Big 5 and Tractor Supply. This past quarter was the first time the city received sales tax reporting from Tractor Supply, and while the specifics are confidential, Flora said Tractor Supply has moved well toward the top of sales tax producers in the city.
Another new business having a big impact is the Clearlake Growth Fund, a delivery only cannabis dispensary on Ogulin Canyon Road. Flora said the company has moved into the top 10 in the city’s sales tax producers, which excludes the development fee they’ve been paying the city.
Flora also provided an update on the former Pearce Field airport property at the request council members.
On April 11, the council had directed Flora to sign a letter of intent with Village Investment Partners, led by Barry Johnson and John Glikbarg, which is interested in purchasing and developing the 27-acre property, as Lake County News has reported. The letter of intent is in effect for six months.
Flora said he got an update from the firm in the hours before the council meeting.
He said the company is hesitant to publicly release the names of the companies they are targeting as occupants of the center.
Village Investment Partners is negotiating with the previous developer who had proposed a project on the property to get that firm’s work product to help them move forward, Flora said.
For the Pearce Landing project, as it’s now being called, Flora said Village Investment Partners is looking at home improvement stores and has made contact with regional players as a backup option if larger national chains don’t show interest.
“We’re halfway through the six-month process at this point,” said Flora.
He said the Village Investment Partners leadership has indicated that they are optimistic that in late August or early September there will be site visit with some of the retailers they are working to recruit.
In the meantime, Flora said the firm is recommending that the city begin the process to construct road improvements, including a connection between 18th Avenue to Old Highway 53, which gives credibility to the project.
Flora said the city has held off on putting in a design for those road improvements that could impact how the airport property is developed.
He added that staff recommended that the city hold off on working on that road project until there is more clarity on what the Pearce Landing project looks like.
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