LAKE COUNTY >> Slowly but surely parks and docks have been reopening as the worse of the flooding has ebbed. But there still are a few areas local officials deem unsafe.
A couple of parks that still remain closed are Library Park and the County Park. Both have issues that go beyond extreme saturation and involve further inspection.
Both city and county Public Works departments have been working hard to get these parks cleaned up and reopened to the public, but damage, staff shortage, or large amounts of debris have prolonged the time needed for the reopening.
An example of this is Library Park in Lakeport. Doug Grider Public Works Director in the city said some parts of the park may be opened sooner than others. A hold up is making sure that the park is safe — not only free from dangerous bacteria and hazardous material that could extremely affect someone’s health, but also patched and secure.
“During the flood, sewers got backed up and other ground garbage was in the water. When the water left, it left behind all the waste and for the safety of the people we want to keep it closed off until we can make sure it is all cleaned up before we reopen it,” Grider said.
The grass is still saturated from the flood water soaking deep in the ground Grider said. The grass areas remain closed off because if people walk on the area, it causes further damage to the grass and making repairs to the park more costly.
“We try to keep it closed because we don’t have the budget to make every little repair and want to keep people safe and get the park opened as quickly as possible. If people walk on the grass and destroy it, it just causes more problems,” Grider said.
They are looking at having the grass area opened where the gazebo is by the end of next week and other grass areas in the next two to three weeks depending on how much it rains.
The playgrounds and other severely damaged areas may take longer to reopen Grider said.
The playgrounds could potentially open on May, but sidewalk areas are indefinite. The playgrounds need to follow specific state regulations before it can be used. Meanwhile the sidewalk along the shore is cracked in many places and missing chunks of concrete.
Some of the damage is from the water dam that was put in place to help reduce the pounding of waves. When it failed, it allowed the tanbark in the playground areas to wash away and potentially put other hazardous material in its place.
“When the flood came in, it completely destroyed our water dam we had, just tearing away at it,” Grider said. “So you can understand how powerful the water can be and I think people underestimate that.”
The aqua dam is not the only thing the storms destroyed; it also took a toll on the sea wall that is in place underneath the sidewalks. This caused water to flow underneath sidewalks, destroying the concrete and causing it to collapse.
“Water and concrete don’t mix so well,” Grider added.
The sidewalks as well as some of the docks need to be examined by specialist to assess the damage and decide what the cost will be, Grider said. As the park reopens in some areas, the city will move around the tape barriers, making a majority of it useable.
The County Park, which suffered less damage but still took a pounding by the flood and storms, is expected to be reopened on March 27, District 4 Supervisor Tina Scott said.
Deputy Public Service Director in Lake County Kati Galvani said Park Superintendents and Park Maintenance Workers are clearing out debris, fixing ramps, fences and potholes in parks under the direction of the County Public Works Director Lars Ewing.
“Once they are cleaned, cleared, and repaired enough for safe public use they are reopening,” Galvani said.
Public Works Director for Clearlake, Doug Herran said the city of Clearlake has reopened all docks and parks since the storms and floods have subsided. These include Thompson Harbor/Redbud Park, Highlands Park and Austin Park.
“Usually I make the recommendation to the manager if we have potential safety issues related to public use or if I determine that the city could have potential costly infrastructure damage,” Herran said.
Notices will be sent out as parks are partially or fully opened.
