LAKEPORT >> Now that FEMA has arrived and communication between many disaster relief organizations is clearer, the Lake County Board of Supervisors unanimously rescinded its previous urgency housing ordinance at its regular meeting on Tuesday.
The ordinance was no longer necessary, Community Development Director Richard Coel said, because the Federal Emergency Management Agency — FEMA — is operating under health and safety requirements for temporary housing similar to the one passed by the BOS.
“We’re confident now that our criteria and our policies are all in alignment,” Coel said. “We want to make darn we sure that it’s a level playing field and that everyone is treated equally.”
Many voices, including District 3 Supervisor Jim Steele, expressed concerns of the ordinance’s fairness when it was passed Oct. 13 because it excluded smaller properties. It only allowed homeowners with properties of 40,000 square-feet or more to return to their lot with an RV or FEMA built housing.
All properties damaged by the Valley Fire are now subject to the original temporary housing guidelines of the county, but according to Health Officer Karen Tait, many of them still face health hazards. Under her recommendation, the BOS unanimously extended the Local Health Emergency Proclamation by another two weeks.
The Health Services Department reported that assessment checks of properties damaged by the Valley, Rocky, and Jerusalem fires are more than 60 percent complete. Clean up is also progressing, the department said. They approximated debris and hazard removal at about 135 properties or 12 percent.
FEMA has approved almost $10 million in recovery funds for the Valley and Butte fires. The agency also has more than 100 one, two and three bedroom temporary housing units available, with more ready if necessary.
Approving every item unanimously brought to motion, the BOS also made some other changes to the county, especially the sheriff’s office. It passed a resolution that moved the Office of Emergency services to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office and followed that up with another one that increased the salary of the Emergency Services Manager by 7.5 percent.
The board also approved the sheriff’s request to open up another lieutenant position.
