Hoping to prove the pen is mighty

Olga Martin Steele gathers signatures in Lucerne from residents unhappy with their water rates Tuesday morning in front of Lakeview Market & Deli. The average rate payer in the town pays triple the state average at nearly $1,300 annually to privately owned, for-profit CalWater. Petitioners hope to collect signatures from 100 percent of Lucerne’s roughly 3,000 residents and present them to the Lake County Board of Supervisors, special districts, CalWater, California Public Utilities Commission and state representatives. Petitioners will be at the market, located at 6068 Highway 20 in Lucerne, for the rest of the week, weather permitting. Later in the month, they will begin door-to-door canvassing. ‘We want to make a very loud statement about problems with water in Lucerne and show a united effort, that’s really the goal,’ Steele said. - Berenice Quirino — Lake County Publishing