LAKEPORT >> The closure of a portion of Clear Lake has been approved by the Board of Supervisors for the 3rd annual Lakeside Car and Boat Show.
The closure will be around 500 feet from the shore in Library Park and will be about one mile long extending north of the park. This will take place during the morning half of the show on August 19.
The Lakeside Car and Boat Show is an event to raise funds for Operation Tango Mike, a non-profit organization that helps benefit veterans and military. All proceeds made from this event will go to this organization.
Tony Barthel, who is hosting the event for his second year, said the show has become increasingly popular each year. He asked for the closure on the lake to allow for high-speed boat passes and demonstrations of each vessel’s speed.
This area will be marked by buoys and monitored by Coast Guard Auxiliary, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office Marine Patrol and event volunteers to ensure the safety of the community.
“We have 200 cars already registered for the show and 50 boats, some coming from Southern California, some from Portland and Nevada. We have huge attendance for this show,” Barthel said.
This event will award 38 different car and truck trophies and 12 boat trophies. Barthel said although the event does not create any profit for him, the county gains greatly from the traffic that it brings.
This year they are marketing this show as a three day event starting off with the concert in Library Park in Lakeport. On Saturday, the car and boat show in Lakeport will run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday there will be miniature golfing at The Spot in Clearlake.
“We are generating two nights of hotel stays for one show. I have filled up most of the hotels in Lakeport from the calls and Mount. Konocti said they’re getting calls like crazy along with the Featherbed and Super 8 so we are generating a huge amount of hotel sales,” Barthel said.
To further encourage people who are staying in the county to go into local shops, Barthel said he is incorporating a Downtown Poker Walk where attendees can go inside local shops to pick up a playing card and whoever has the best hand at the end of the day wins a prize.
“With one big car show we hope to generate a lot of room tax and sales tax for the county,” Barthel said.
The costs to put on this show are much greater this year than they were last year. This is because of a county Lakebed Encroachment Permit and the insurance.
Last year Barthel said he only paid $450 for insurance and the permit was waived. This year he paid $785 for the permit and around $3,300 for the insurance.
Despite the extra costs, Barthel hopes to make a significant donation to the charity and be able to continue hosting the event for future years.
Even though the show does have sponsors that will help contribute to some of the cost, Barthel said he is still looking for more to help with providing funds for the event.
Further consideration to waive permit fees for this event and others will be looked into and brought up in a future Board meeting.
