Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.
Office hours are Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.
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.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The manager of the Hoberg's Resort property began serving a jail sentence on Wednesday for an environmental conviction last year.
Dan Nelson, 54, surrendered himself at the Lake County Jail at 9 a.m. Wednesday and was booked, according to jail records.
Nelson, a Gilroy resident, has been involved with the Hoberg's Resort and Spa property since 2010.
In April he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for willfully violating a Cal/OSHA standard for potentially exposing his employees to asbestos during a 2012 renovation project, as Lake County News has reported: www.bit.ly/1OSXFwk .
The plea deal Nelson reached with a circuit prosecutor included three years’ probation, 60 days in the county jail, 340 hours of community service, a $5,000 fine and a nondeductible sum of $20,000 to the Lakeside Health Clinic of Lake County.
Since the sentencing, much of the historic resort buildings burned in the Valley fire in September.
Hoberg's has since then been a staging area for trees removed by PG&E and other entities in the Valley fire area, which has caused concern for county officials and area residents.
Nelson had planned to run a milling operation at the resort, but county officials closed the project down due to conditions and ordered that the property be cleaned up.
As of Wednesday, a large number of logs still remained at the property, which has not been cleaned up to the county's specifications, according to Supervisor Rob Brown.
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.
U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-5) introduced H. Res. 629, a bipartisan resolution honoring March as Women’s History Month and recognizing this year’s theme, “Working to Form a More Perfect Union: Honoring Women in Public Service and Government.”
“Women’s History Month, now a national movement, began right here in our district,” said Thompson. “I’m proud to continue the legacy of recognizing and celebrating the many contributions women have made to our country and our local community by introducing this resolution.”
In his address on the floor of the House, Thompson noted that the roots of Women's History Month come from his district, Santa Rosa specifically.
In 1978, the Education Taskforce of the Sonoma County Commission on the Status of Women initiated a “Women’s History Week” celebration to encourage the inclusion of women’s history in K-12 curriculum.
With the help of the National Women’s History Project, which was founded in Sonoma County, thousands of schools and communities joined in the commemoration of Women’s History Week.
In 1981 Congress gave Women’s History Week national recognition by designating it a national observance, and by 1987 Congress had expanded the national observance from a week to a month.
The National Women’s History Project (NWHP) is based in Santa Rosa and chooses the theme of National Women’s History Month each year.
This year, National Women’s History Month celebrates “Working to Form a More Perfect Union: Honoring Women in Public Service and Government.”
“This year we honor women who have shaped America’s history and its future through their public service and government leadership,” said Molly Murphy MacGregor, executive director and co-founder of the National Women's History Project. “Although often overlooked and undervalued, collectively they have dramatically influenced our public policy and the building of viable institutions and organizations. From championing basic human rights to ensuring access and equal opportunity for all Americans, they have led the way in establishing a stronger and more democratic country. We are proud to recognize their work not just in March, but throughout the year.”
In celebration of National Women’s History Month, Rep. Thompson is recognizing five extraordinary women, one from each of the five counties that make up the Fifth Congressional District.
“I am privileged to work with incredible women throughout our district,” said Thompson “And while honoring women should not be limited to one month out of the year, the good work these women have done for our district should be recognized. They are leaders in their community and thanks to their efforts, our community is stronger today.”
The women recognized are:
Monica Rosenthal, Lake County Woman of the Year: Rosenthal has been a Middletown resident for two decades, where she grows winegrapes, owns a small business and is an active member of several local community organizations. Rosenthal served as the District 1 representative on the Lake County Planning Commission from 2007 to 2009, she has represented the First District on the Lake County Farm Bureau Board of Directors for the past five years and she is currently serving her second term on the Napa/Lake Work Force Investment Board to promote employment training and job opportunities in Lake County. After the Valley fire, Rosenthal worked tirelessly to help Lake County recover and ensure that the needs of residents were met.
Josephine Orozco, Contra Costa County Woman of the Year: Orozco has been a resident of the city of Rodeo for more than 20 years. She has served on the Recreation Advisory Board, the R10, the Rodeo Chamber of Commerce and the Rodeo Christmas Tree Lighting Committee. She has supported local youth with scholarships through the Rodeo Crab Feed and Chili Cook-Off/Car Show events. As a small business owner, Orozco has worked with our local business community to improve Downtown Rodeo and never hesitates to donate food and refreshments to local charity events.
Maria Guevara, Solano County Woman of the Year: Guevara is the founder of Vallejo Together, which serves the homeless population in Vallejo by providing meals, connecting homeless individuals to resources and hosting several community events including “Unity Day” and the “Youth and Parent Expo.” Guevara tirelessly devotes her time and talents to those most in need in our community. She previously worked on the staff of Fighting Back Partnership in the Solano Mentor Collaborative Program, with Filipino American Social Services and as a board member of Youth & Family Services.
Evelyn Cheatham, Sonoma County Woman of the Year: Cheatham founded Worth our Weight (W.O.W.), a culinary and food service training program offered free of charge to young people ages 16 to 24 who have dealt with significant challenges such as foster care, homelessness or trouble with the law. W.O.W. helps these young people develop a useful skill and worthwhile passion in addition to instilling valuable lessons such as the importance of teamwork, hard work, and respect for oneself and others.
Linda Parks, Napa County Woman of the Year: Parks is the president and chief executive officer of Lixit Animal Care Products in Napa. Founded in 1968, Parks joined Lixit in 1971 as a buyer. At the time, Lixit only had 10 employees. In 1994 the original owner retired and the employees bought the business using a qualified employee stock ownership plan. Today, under Parks' leadership Lixit is a thriving business with more than 100 employees, many of whom are adults with disabilities. Lixit is of tremendous value to the community as it enables adults with disabilities to find employment and thereby gain independence. The average tenure of Lixit’s staff is seven to 15 years. Parks was named as one of the North Bay Business Journal's 2015 Women in Business award winners.
Thompson represents California’s Fifth Congressional District, which includes all or part of Contra Costa, Lake, Napa, Solano and Sonoma counties.
“The children are listening,” Congressman John Garamendi (D-CA-3) told his fellow Representatives during a special order hour on Tuesday about the issue of bullying in our schools and in our politics.
“Today, I rise to shed light on the epidemic of bullying in our schools, and the harmful effects it has on our nation’s children. Bullying is the reason that 160,000 American children do not go to school each day because they cannot endure another day of verbal and physical attacks from their peers. All too often horrific shootings on our school campuses are done by students who have been bullied,” he said.
Last year, 70 percent of students admitted they witnessed bullying in their school and more than 20 percent of teenagers report that they have been bullied or victimized by their peers.
What’s more, more than 80 percent of LGBTQ youth were bullied last year because of their sexual orientation and more than half of Muslim students have experienced religion-based bullying at school.
“Unfortunately the presidential campaign has descended into political discourse that is vulgar and demeaning personal attacks. What we are seeing and hearing from people who want to be our leader is schoolyard bullying. Unfortunately this political discourse is legitimizing this sort of behavior. The children are listening and they are going to copy it,” said Garamendi.
“Bullying harms people. Their lives are disrupted. They can become fearful and depressed. Individuals who are bullied sometimes strike out in acts of violence, both self-inflicted and against others. We need to take actions that help our children understand the result of bullying, and teach our students to express their feelings constructively and communicate with each other in the spirit of caring and compassion,” he added.
Congressman Garamendi is a founding director of Operation Respect, a national movement against bullying dedicated to creating respectful, safe, and compassionate climates of learning that are free of bullying and prejudice.
Operation Respect is currently active in 22,000 schools across the United States.
Part of Operation Respect’s efforts include disseminating its “Don’t Laugh At Me Program,” which includes a series of interactive videos and songs that help teachers and elementary students alike address the issue of bullying in their classrooms.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Pit bulls and pit bull mixes have a bad reputation in some circles, but this friendly girl shows off the best of her breed.
Staff at Lake County Animal Care and Control call her “Momma” because it's clear she's had litters of pups before arriving at the pound.
She is an energetic female with a brown brindle coat and white markings, and a very playful attitude. She would do best in a home with no cats.
Her great personality has led to her being used as a tester dog with other canines coming into the shelter, and shelter staff play with her whenever they can. She's one of their favorites, thanks to her sunny disposition and adorable play bows.
But, like a lot of the pit bulls who enter the local shelter, she needs a home soon, as she's been waiting awhile, through no fault of her own.
Are you looking for a great dog? Visit this girl. Because she's just that delightful.
Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.
Office hours are Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.
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.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – A multifamily residence in Lakeport sustained damage in a fire Monday night but all of the people living there were unharmed.
The fire was first dispatched at 11:42 p.m. Monday at 2917 Meadow Drive, according to Lakeport Fire Chief Doug Hutchison.
He said a neighbor hit the fire with a garden hose, which kept it in check as firefighters arrived on scene and forced the door open to get inside.
There were two occupants of the building, which Hutchison appeared to be a triplex.
“All of the occupants were able to escape without injury,” Hutchison said.
Lakeport Fire responded with two engines, a water truck and a commanding officer – Hutchison himself – while Kelseyville Fire sent an engine. A total of 14 firefighters worked the incident.
He said the fire was confined in one bedroom, with the remainder of the downstairs area having extensive smoke damage.
As a result, the downstairs residents were temporarily displaced, although the upstairs occupants was able to stay in the home, Hutchison said.
He estimated that structural damage totaled about $25,000.
“The cause is still under investigation,” Hutchison said Tuesday.
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.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – An Upper Lake man has been arrested for robbery, theft and other charges after he threatened a Northshore couple and took boats and tools from their home.
Cory Lynn Bush, 41, was taken into custody Thursday morning, according to Lt. Steve Brooks of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
Shortly after 7 a.m. Thursday, Lake County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a residence located in the 4000 block of E. State Highway 20 in Nice for a report of a prowler, Brooks said.
He said Central Dispatch advised that the subject could be seen by the homeowner going back and forth from the backyard to their boat.
While the deputies were still responding, the homeowner told Central Dispatch she thought the subject was now inside the house attacking her husband. She said the subject had threatened both her and her husband with a screwdriver, according to Brooks' report.
Upon arrival, the deputies contacted the homeowners, who said they had confronted the subject, later identified as Bush, Brooks said.
Brooks said the husband found and confronted Bush, who was inside his garage. When he yelled at Bush, he said Bush turned towards him with his arm raised and appeared to be holding a screwdriver or a knife.
The homeowner tried to step away from Bush and fell to the ground. Brooks said Bush then ran out the side door of the residence toward the pier.
Brooks said the homeowner said he watched as Bush got into their 22-foot Crownline boat, started it and took off across the lake towards Lakeport.
After Bush stole the boat the homeowner discovered that he was also missing a kayak, multiple power tools, an outboard motor and additional items from the garage, Brooks said.
At 8 a.m. Thursday Bush was located with the boat and stolen property in a canal behind Sears, which is located at 2570 S. Main St. in Lakeport, according to Brooks.
Brooks said Bush admitted to stealing the boat, the kayak, outboard motor and multiple tools. Central Dispatch advised that Bush was currently on probation out of Mendocino County for grand theft.
Bush was arrested for robbery, burglary, possession of stolen property, grand theft and for violating his probation, and transported to the Hill Road Correctional Facility and booked on the charges, Brooks said.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – As of Feb. 25, the city of Clearlake is using the Nixle alert system for emergency notifications.
Nixle is a Web-based application that allows emergency personnel to provide official emergency notifications and updates to subscribers who are signed up to be notified.
“I first learned about the Nixle application during the Rocky fire when Lake County was using it to provide emergency updates and notifications about the fire,” said City Manager Greg Folsom. “We were so impressed by the features and potential benefits to our citizens that we requested money from the City Council to move forward with the purchase.”
“During the fires, people were getting false information from social media sources that were spreading and potentially putting people at risk,” said Lt. Tim Celli, the Clearlake Police Department's interim chief. “We saw first hand how Nixle could be used to put out official information in order to help keep our citizens safe and informed.”
“Based on the benefits to the community and the potential to save lives, approving Nixle was a no-brainer and I highly encourage all citizens of Clearlake to sign up so that we can keep you informed during emergencies,” said Mayor Russ Perdock.
Interested residents can sign up for Nixle at www.nixle.com or by texting “CLEARLAKEPD” to 888777.
The statewide snowpack – source of much of the California’s water supply – is only 83 percent of the March 1 average, the result of moderate precipitation since last October and relatively warm temperatures.
“Mother Nature is not living up to predictions by some that a ‘Godzilla’ El Niño would produce much more precipitation than usual this winter,” said DWR Director Mark Cowin. “We need conservation as much as ever.”
The Department of Water Resources (DWR) conducted its third media-oriented snowpack survey of the season Tuesday 90 miles east of Sacramento just off Highway 50 in the Sierra Nevada. Phillips Station is one of about 250 snow courses measured manually several times each winter.
Frank Gehrke, chief of the California Cooperative Snow Surveys Program, and his survey team measured snow that was 58.3 inches deep at Phillips with a water content of 27.1 inches.
The Phillips readings are the best for early March since 2011, but individual snow courses are not generally representative of the entire mountain snowpack.
The statewide readings suggest this may not be a drought-busting year unless California receives heavy rain this month as it did during the “March Miracles” of 1991 and 1995.
“Right now, we’re obviously better than last year but still way below what would be considered adequate for any reasonable level of recovery at this point,” Gehrke said.
Electronic readings of northern Sierra Nevada snow conditions found 23.1 inches of water content 83 percent of normal for March 1), 212.7 inches in the central region (85 percent of normal) and 16.6 inches in the southern region (73 percent of normal).
Tuesday's snow measurements at Phillips were markedly improved compared to March 2015, when the depth was only 6.5 inches and the water content just 1 inch.
Dry conditions persisted in March, and Gov. Jerry Brown stood on bare ground on April 1 when he mandated a 25-percent reduction in water use throughout California.
Traditionally, half of the state’s annual water falls as rain or snow during December, January and February.
Precipitation in December and January measured at weather stations monitored electronically by DWR was 170 percent of the two-month average, but October, November and February rainfall was far below normal. Snowfall since Dec. 1 has mirrored that pattern.
In normal years, the snowpack supplies about 30 percent of California’s water needs as it melts in the spring and early summer.
The greater the snowpack water content, the greater the likelihood California’s reservoirs will receive ample runoff as the snowpack melts to meet the state’s water demand in the summer and fall.
Among the eight reservoirs with capacities of one million acre-feet or more tracked by DWR, all are currently below average storage for this date, from New Melones (31 percent) to Lake Shasta (83 percent).
The only major reservoir with current storage above its historical average on this date is Folsom Lake (111 percent).
MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – Despite the continuing impacts of the Valley fire on both the south county's people and landscape, the EcoArts: Lake County Sculpture Walk exhibition will go on in 2016 and take up the challenge of using art to tell new and poignant stories.
EcoArts will open in the Middletown County Trailside Park on June 5 with a reception beginning at 10 a.m.
The 107-acre park which has, for many years, been the exhibit's annual home burned in the Valley fire last year.
Despite the damage, the park will again play host to the sculpture walk.
Organizers said that this year's exhibit will be “exceptionally challenging but also an immense opportunity.”
The park is located off Dry Creek Cutoff on Highway 175 approximately a mile north of Middletown.
The Sculpture Walk exhibit itself is located along the center trail of the park and runs along approximately one third of a mile of trail once dotted with trees, shrubs and meadows.
There are two parts to the Sculpture Walk this year. Firstly, with the annual exhibit, organizers have decided to go “back to our roots” and focus on stewardship and a more disciplined approach to the Ecological and environmental part of our annual sculpture walk art.
Organizers hope there will be works that help address the devastation of the park through creative, thought provoking problem solving.
The second part of the Sculpture Walk has to do with the fires. The community has lived through and understands the tragedies of the past year. A special “tribute to our resiliency” section will acknowledge the collective experiences the community went through during the fires.
Community members are invited to join in providing artwork for this special section. Whether a professional artist or someone who has never made a work before, if you have been impacted by the fires and created an artwork that speaks to you, EcoArts would like to consider your work for the “tribute to resiliency” section of the Sculpture Walk.
Nine of 10 directors of EcoArts and Middletown Art Center lost their homes. The park venue is burned. But, part of processing and healing can be through creation.
EcoArts encourages you to create and to view creations.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – On Tuesday, the Napa County Public Health Division received confirmation from the California Department of Public Health of the first positive Zika virus case in Napa County.
The case is a pregnant woman who traveled to Central America and is not showing symptoms of Zika virus infection at this time.
Napa County’s priority is to protect the identity of the woman and her unborn child.
“This Zika virus case is not a threat to public health. There is no active transmission of Zika virus in Napa County, and the two kinds of mosquitoes that transmit the virus have not been found here,” said Dr. Karen Relucio, Napa County health officer. “Anyone who is planning to travel to a country with active Zika virus transmission should consult with their health care provider before leaving, especially if they are pregnant or are considering becoming pregnant.”
Napa County Public Health is working together with local health care providers to actively test for cases of Zika virus among pregnant women who have traveled to countries with Zika virus transmission or who have sexual partners who have traveled to countries with Zika virus. Public Health officials expect to see more cases as testing for Zika virus continues.
Napa County Public Health continues to promote Zika virus prevention messages:
· Women who are pregnant or may become pregnant are advised to avoid travel to areas with Zika.
· Women who are pregnant and have sexual partner(s) that have traveled to areas with Zika are advised to abstain from sex or use condoms consistently for the duration of the pregnancy.
· Pregnant women or sexual partner(s) of pregnant women who cannot avoid travel to areas with Zika are advised to take precautions to avoid mosquito bites (Spanish).
MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The California Highway Patrol will host “Coffee with a Cop” in Middletown this week.
The event will take place from 7 to 10 a.m. Wednesday, March 2, at the Cowpoke Café, 21118 Calistoga Road.
Community members will have the chance to sit down with the CHP and other members of law enforcement and talk about local issues.
Lt. Hector Paredes, commander of the CHP's Clear Lake Area office based in Kelseyville, said engaging with the community and finding ways to enhance public trust are top priorities for the CHP.
“'Coffee with a Cop' is a wonderful program that allows members of the public to meet and speak with its officers about any public safety issue in an informal setting,” he said. “We are grateful to Cowpoke Café for hosting this special event and I look forward to speaking to our community with a good cup of Joe!”
CHP Officer Kory Reynolds said future 'Coffee with a Cop' programs are planned around the county.
“Coffee with a Cop” is a program that began in Hawthorne in 2011 as a way to interact more successfully with the community.
Since then it has since spread across the country and to Canada, Europe, Australia and Africa.
“The key to Coffee with a Cop’s growing success is that it opens the door for interactions outside of the crisis situations that typically bring law enforcement officers and community members together,” according to the organization's Web site.