LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The cities of Clearlake and Lakeport are gearing up for a summer in which officials are planning for more of Lake County’s traditional events while also adhering to health and safety standards developed over the past year.
Leaders from both cities said planning is now underway.
There are still some unknowns about what many events in the coming summer and fall months may look like.
That’s because rules could change more once California fully reopens — which is still on track to take place on June 15 — at which time the state’s COVID-19 Blueprint for a Safer Economy is expected to end.
In the city of Clearlake, city leaders said they’re now putting together plans for the Independence Day celebration.
Last year, Clearlake conducted a drive-in July 4 celebration last year, but without the parade and the festival.
This year, however, the city’s festivities, which will be held on Saturday, July 3, will once again include the parade, a classic car show at Austin Park and a Carnival, along with the evening fireworks.
They’re also planning a Saturday evening concert at the new Austin Park bandshell, ahead of the fireworks display. The bands to perform are still being determined, said Deputy City Clerk Tina Viramontes.
On the other side of the lake, the city of Lakeport is preparing for the summer events that the pandemic caused to be canceled in 2020.
The Lakeport City Council last month directed staff to process summer event applications in collaboration with Lake County Public Health.
City Manager Kevin Ingram said that means that summer events canceled in 2020 due to the pandemic may be back on the calendar for 2021.
However, he said some of the events may look a little different with COVID-19 prevention measures in place, including masking, social distancing and using available hand-washing stations.
In addition to giving staff the go-ahead to process events, the Lakeport City Council at its April 20 meeting approved the Lake County Farmers’ Finest downtown farmers markets on Tuesdays, which start this week in Library Park, and the city’s July 4 celebration, which was canceled in 2020.
Ingram said that staff believes that many of the summer events that Lakeport has been known for can still be held if additional changes are adhered to and that they’re confident they can appropriately review event applications.
At the same time, Ingram said the state’s guidance doesn’t always address the kinds of events the city has, specifically, large events that are unticketed and held in open spaces.
Ingram said when it comes down to enforcing safety measures, the city will be heavily dependent on event organizers and people doing the right thing.
“It’s really nice to see the light at the end of the tunnel and think about some of these events happening for us,” said Councilwoman Stacey Mattina.
Lakeport’s July 4 celebration will return with the big fireworks display, which didn’t take place last year. Pyro Spectaculars North Inc. of McClellan will provide the show for $21,500, up by about $1,000 from the cost of the last show in 2019, the city reported.
In order to ensure enough space in the downtown — which in years past had been crowded with several thousand people — Ingram said they are considering having the fireworks barge move toward Fifth Street, north of its usual spot, to broaden the viewing area.
This year they’re also prohibiting alcohol sales as a measure of making sure people adhere to social distancing and masking, and as an effort to keep down the number of fights that police often have to respond to during the event.
Ingram cautioned that, “It’s not going to be the same as it has been in the past,” but that it’s the start to getting back to normal.
At its meeting Tuesday, the council is expected to approve event applications for the Memorial Day Parade on May 29 and the Home Amateur Winemakers WineFest on Sept. 18.
Community groups make decisions about events
While California is moving toward reopening, the timing of planning and organizing events has challenged a return to a more recognizable schedule for some county groups.
Last week, the Lake County Fair Board voted to hold the fair this year over Labor Day weekend, as Lake County News has reported. Details of the fair are being developed over the coming months but anticipated modifications could include smaller crowd size.
However, for other groups, events have had to once again be postponed or canceled for the year because of either lack of time to plan or the necessary funding.
At the start of April, the Kelseyville Business Association announced it would not hold the June Beer, Wine and Swine Festival or the Kelseyville Pear Festival in September, but they’re hoping to hold their summer street dances and Christmas in the Country.
For the association, fundraising — the Pear Festival costs tens of thousands of dollars — and planning for the event would have had to be underway months earlier, while the pandemic was still surging and the situation was unclear of when events could again go forward.
Last year, the Clearlake Oaks/Glenhaven Business Association was one of the first groups in Lake County to have to cancel a major event when it at first postponed and then canceled its famed May Catfish Derby.
However, with the Catfish Derby being the association’s one and only annual fundraiser, last year’s cancellation is impacting this year’s event plans, said association President Camille Gouldberg.
Goldberg said they are planning for the Catfish Derby this month — and they are expecting a nice turnout — but they don’t have sufficient funds to sponsor the Maxine Sherman fireworks display, which will be canceled for a second year.
Dennis Locke, a stalwart member of the Catfish Derby team, said they’re working hard to get the derby together. It’s scheduled to take place from May 14 to 16.
He said they’ve scaled things back to just fishing and won’t be doing some of the other aspects that usually bring a lot of people together.
“We were expecting a light turnout because of that. But advance sign-ups have actually been higher than usual so maybe we’ll see something near normal. People are ready to get out, I guess,” Locke said.
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