LAKEPORT >> The three Lake County Board of Supervisors meetings which were approved to be canceled through a three-month trial period have been determined.
On Tuesday, the supervisors unanimously approved a motion to cancel their Feb. 10, March 10 and April 14 meetings in order to save money and time.
The board had unanimously approved reducing meetings on a temporary basis during its Jan. 13 meeting. However, the exact meetings to be bumped from the schedule were not part of that discussion.
This is not the first time the board has taken such a step. Last year, supervisor’s meetings were canceled on several occasions because of a lack of agenda items. “Reducing the number of regularly scheduled meetings per month would help relieve staff of the time spent preparing the agenda, preparing minutes and attending Board meetings,” observed Lake County Administrative Officer Matt Perry during the Jan. 13 meeting. “Most northern California rural counties the size of Lake County meet less than four times per month.”
At the end of three months the board will revisit the issue.
The board had also in previous sessions discussed holding evening meetings at different locations throughout the county in hopes of garnering more public attendance. Regular meetings of the Board of Supervisors are held at 9 a.m. on Tuesdays at the Lake County Courthouse in Lakeport.
But after three supervisors balked, the board decided against the idea. District 1 Supervisor Jim Comstock, District 2 Supervisor Jeff Smith and District 3 Supervisor Jim Steele informed the board they didn’t think rotating the meetings would be beneficial, unless there were a specific purpose.
“I was thinking we hold them in each district once or twice a year,” Smith said. “As long as the agenda items pertain to that district.”
If approved the Feb. 24 supervisor’s meeting would have been held in the evening in Middletown.
Comstock said he would not be able to attend that meeting. Additionally, he said the only place to hold the meeting would be at the Middletown Library and Senior Center, located on Washington Street.
The problem is, according to Comstock, the facility is used frequently for multiple meetings and groups, which would make scheduling a board meeting difficult without removing a group to make the time slot available.
Future meetings may still be held at different locations if an issue regarding a particular district arises, at which time the board will discuss when and where to hold said meeting.
Contact J. W. Burch, IV at 900-2022.
