LUCERNE
Outdoor trail and fitness stations now available at Lucerne Creek Park
Regular physical activity is a cornerstone of a healthy, well-balanced life. Outdoor adult fitness facilities are increasingly understood to be vital to realizing community health and wellness goals.
The County of Lake Parks and Recreation Division recently constructed an outdoor trail and installed multiple fitness stations at Lucerne Creek Park. Located along the shores of Lucerne Creek, this is an outstanding expanded recreational and fitness opportunity for North Shore residents.
Additional facilities will soon be developed at Hammond Park in Nice and Kelseyville Community Park.
“We are working to make physical activity and exercise more available, accessible and enjoyable for all Lake County residents,” emphasizes Lars Ewing, Lake County’s Public Services Director, and a key leader in countywide parks, trails, and recreation planning efforts. “Our new Lucerne Creek Park facility and others already in place are a great start. More amenities are planned for the future, and we are grateful to all of the members of the public who have recently engaged in visioning activities.”
“We all know physical activity is great for overall health, brain health, and reducing risk factors for disease,” adds Jonathan Portney, Lake County’s Health Services Director. “And research shows being outdoors may have emotional and cognitive benefits. Here we have the best of both! The newly installed equipment is a healthful addition to Lucerne Creek Park and our beautiful County!”
Please contact the Public Services Department at (707) 262-1618 if you have any questions.
—Submitted
LAKE COUNTY
Lake County Probation awarded $220,638 grant to establish mobile service center
We are very pleased to announce, the Lake County Probation Department was recently awarded a $220,638 grant to establish a Mobile Probation Service Center.
This will facilitate purchase of a vehicle to provide unhoused Probation clients access to all services, including remote court appearances, probation programs, check-ins with their officers, and access to service providers and partner agencies. The Probation team will use this tool to reduce technical violations and decrease recidivism.
“Currently, approximately 25 percent of those on high-risk probation in Lake County are unhoused,” notes Wendy Mondfrans, Chief Probation Officer. “The Mobile Service Center will allow us to more effectively work with partners to meet the needs of those we serve, and help them successfully complete probation. This will support critical public safety priorities, while ensuring more equitable access to available supports.
Funding for the Mobile Service Center stems from Assembly Bill 178, which established a competitive grant program to allow county Probation Departments to purchase vehicles and telecommunications and other associated equipment to assist those on probation, with particular emphasis on supporting unhoused individuals struggling to meet probation requirements.
Mondfrans emphasizes, “We are very excited to better serve people on probation and Lake County’s communities with our Mobile Service Center, and grateful for the State of California’s support!”
Further questions can be directed to the Probation Department, at (707) 262-4285.
—Submitted
KELSEYVILLE
Kelseyville schools seek to balance elementary school enrollment
Kelseyville Unified School District (KVUSD) recently announced that because student enrollment is up districtwide, it may not be able to accommodate all families’ requests for intradistrict transfers at the elementary school level.
Superintendent David S. McQueen said, “We have room for all Kelseyville students, but right now, our two elementary campuses are out of balance: Kelseyville Elementary is over-enrolled and Riviera Elementary is under-enrolled.”
In accordance with KVUSD board policy, families of all students who do not live in their school’s local attendance area must request an Intra District transfer, even if the student has been attending an out-of-neighborhood school. Transfer request forms are available at kvusd.org/portal/registration and are due May 31, 2023.
McQueen said, “In fairness to all students, we must even out our enrollment. Right now, Kelseyville Elementary’s classrooms are more crowded than at Riviera Elementary. Both schools have equally great leadership, faculty and staff, and facilities. Both offer after-school programs and, starting with the 2023-24 school year, both will offer all-day transitional kindergarten (TK) classes. You can’t lose!”
—Submitted
SACRAMENTO
A big step for legislative union
Is this the year the Legislature will finally allow staff to unionize?
On Wednesday, the effort moved one big step closer as it cleared the Assembly’s Public Employment and Retirement Committee. That’s the committee where the bill died on the last day of the 2022 session despite passing the state Senate.
Assembly Bill 1 is helped this year by the fact that it is authored by the committee’s chairperson, Inglewood Democrat Tina McKinnor, who is a former staffer herself, and has the support of Assembly Speaker Rendon.
McKinnor also agreed to amendments that may boost its prospects among some Republicans. The provisions by Assemblymember Tom Lackey, a Republican from Palmdale and member of the committee, would ensure minority party staffers aren’t placed into separate bargaining units.
But the bill is still likely to meet resistance from some, including James Gallagher, the Assembly Republican Caucus chairperson from Chico.
Besides the potential of higher pay and better benefits, supporters of the unionization effort point out that the Legislature has supported labor and argue that legislative staffers deserve the same workplace protections.
Assemblymember Pilar Schiavo, a member of the committee and labor movement veteran, through tears: “It’s so critical for our staff to have advocates, to have people who have their back when they’re in really difficult positions…. I know a lot of people have sacrificed a lot to speak up. And they should have protections doing that. And that is exactly what a union will do.”
Lorena Gonzalez, head of the California Labor Federation, a co-sponsor of the bill and a former Assemblymember who helped shepherd past versions: “It was the brave voices of current and former legislative staffers today that finally forced progress on this issue. Today’s victory belongs to them. We will continue to stand in solidarity with these staffers and the author to get this bill across the finish line this year.”
—Sameea Kamal, CALMatters
