LAKEPORT — State, county and city officials traveled to Lakeport”s Vista Point overlook Monday afternoon as volunteers used mounted tarp to demonstrate the visibility impact of a proposed placement for the new county courthouse.
The state plans to build the new courthouse on a nearly six-acre parcel on Lakeport Boulevard, immediately east of the Vista Point visitor center.
The final placement of the two-story, 50,000-square-foot building has not been determined, according to the state”s Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) but one proposed location, the “North option,” could see the courthouse rise as many as 10 feet above the overlook parking lot.
The Lake County Board of Supervisors (BOS) indicated in April that it would oppose any placement that would block the view of Clear Lake from the parking lot, and the Lakeport City Council in May urged the AOC to take local concerns into consideration.
Some local members of the Courthouse Project Advisory Committee organized Monday”s site visit, during which volunteers stood along the fence-line nearest the lake and held up three 30-foot pieces of black tarp that were attached to wood planks and stood 10 feet high.
The purpose of the demonstration was to “simulate what you can”t see if they build a courthouse 90 feet wide (at the ?North option”),” Melissa Fulton, chief executive officer of the Lake County Chamber of Commerce, said.
More than 25 people attended the simulation, including AOC representatives, Lakeport city officials, four Lake County Superior Court judges, District 4 Supervisor Anthony Farrington, other advisory committee members and a few invited members of the public.
“I think the wall speaks for itself,” Farrington said of the simulation. “Don”t build it here.”
The mock wall did impede the lake view from that area of the parking lot, but AOC representative Rona Rothenberg called the simulation “inaccurate” and “over-dramatized” because it did not incorporate key aspects of the preliminary “North option,” such as the proposed 50-foot setback from the base of the overlook.
Farrington countered such criticisms about the simulation, saying, “This is the best we could do.”
Rothenberg reiterated the AOC”s recent position that the “North option” has not been finalized. “We”re taking all the concerns under serious advisement and studying all options,” she said.
Farrington said he would not oppose the “North option” if it would incorporate excavation to lower the building below the overlook parking lot. If earth moving is not an option, Farrington said he would prefer the courthouse be placed at the southern portion of the property to minimize viewshed impact.
The preliminary “South option” could present issues related to entry roadway access, according to the AOC.
State senator Noreen Evans recently sent a letter to the AOC, urging it to design a courthouse that does not negatively impact the overlook view.
“A court building that blocks an irreplaceable view will be a continual public irritant and will unnecessarily erode community support,” Evans wrote.
Though building location has been a recent debate topic, few have argued that Lake County does not need a new courthouse.
In April, Rothenberg told the BOS that the Lakeport courthouse on North Forbes Street ranked among the most poorly equipped in the state. The new courthouse would house only courtrooms and other court-required spaces, which are now primarily located on the fourth floor of the current courthouse.
The project is currently in the initial architectural design phase, which could take up to one year, according to the AOC. The projected construction start date is fall 2012, with a potential mid-2014 completion date for the $53 million project.
Contact Jeremy Walsh at jwalsh@record-bee.com or call him at 263-5636, ext. 37.
