LAKEPORT >> Candidates for the District 4 Supervisor seat made some earnest thrusts at opponents as some showed clearer grasp than others at local issues during a forum Tuesday at Lakeport City Hall.
In his introductory statement Scott Barnett said he spent countless years mapping bicycle trails and buildings in for public use. Meanwhile, for the past three years he served on the board of the Lake County Planning Commission. He is a third generation Lake County resident. “My family has been part of the community for many years, operating businesses and buildings many local businesses call home today,” he said.
Brad Rasmussen introduced himself as the Lakeport Chief of Police and he also has 14 years in that position. “I’m running for the Board of Supervisors because of my 34 years of government experience which qualifies me for that position,” he said. “I’ve built countless relationships. I’ve worked with virtually all of the agencies, throughout the county. I know the issues we face now; I know the issues we are going to face in the future.” He went on to state that his decades of government experience qualified him to uniquely hold that office. In addition, and most important to Rasmussen, he said he plans to being committed to residents and reach out to them and listen to their concerns before he makes important decisions.
Living in Lake County for the past 10 years, candidate Chris Read formerly served the community as an elementary school teacher. “Although I’m no longer teaching, I still want to help our community,” said Read. But what he is attempting to say is he does relate to most people around town. “But it’s frustrating to see the shortcomings of this county,” he said. “It has so much potential and (it) once was great, but it has fallen of its pedestal 30 years ago in my observation.”
Though he is not a part of the current county government, he maintains like some of the other candidates. “I’m only running to make our county a better place, particularly our District 4. I’ve knowledge and connections to make voters’ voice(s) heard.”
Maintaining a diverse background, Lake County CEO of the Chamber of Commerce Laura McAndrews Sammel has a human resources management and economic development experience along with a background in healthcare administration; which she said provides her with a broad base of experience.
“My background provides me with strategic planning ability, development skills and a commitment to community well-being is an ideal foundation, to effectively serve as supervisor of District 4”, Sammel said. “I lived here the last 18 years, ” she said. “I started a business here, worked for a large corporation in the non-profit sector and continue to serve on non-profits, the Rotary Club of Lakeport, the Lake County Economic Development Corporation, and the Arts Council.
And she added, “My work at all these agencies demonstrates my ability to be a collaborator, innovator and a connector, she said. “I’m an agent of change. positive change; with a commitment to be inclusive and transparent.” Sammel pledged to foster collaboration between residents.
There were six rounds of prepared questions posed to the candidates.
Working with the county’s multi-million-dollar budget.
“I’ve been managing a multimillion -dollar budget for the past 17 years,” he said. “The Police Department takes about 40 percent of the city’s General Fund, ” Rasmussen said. He added, “I’ve worked through challenging times and that budget still continues to provide top level of services to the people of Lakeport.”
Visionary ideas conceived by candidates
Read noted that the blueprint of the budget has already been in existence and it would not require any drastic changes. But he cautioned the No. 1 priority for the county should be saving Lake Pillsbury from ecological degradation. “If you’re not walking into that office trying to save Lake Pillsbury, then you’re $750 million in the hole,” he said in reference to loss of revenue if Scott Dam were decommissioned. “Once that money is gone, its gone, and other money as well.”
For her part, Sammel said her Masters in Business Administration helped her learn to navigate the budget preparation process. And along with accompanying continuous evaluation of all revenue and expenses.
Barnett admitted he was not a financial expert, yet he has managed multi-million dollar budgets and timelines for large construction companies that were required to be met. “Currently, I’m taking over a program for manufacturing facilities with a multi -million dollar budget and help it get back get on track,” said Barnett.
Laura Sammel’s Chamber of Commerce assisted with mentor programs that paired up youth for professional coaching with local business leaders. “These were 18 to 24 year olds receiving professional leadership coaching, working academically at our local community colleges, ” Sammel said. “One young woman who was on her way to a culinary career, actually found her true calling through this program. As a result, we now have an additional pre-school teacher in our midst. It was a great program, and I was proud to be a part of that.”
Barnett recalled after the 2015 Valley Fire, there was destruction of the Six Sigma (Hidden Valley) Mountain Bike Trails whose destruction eliminated the only place residents “could go ride mountain bikes,” recalled Barnett and the Allman Family gave permission to fix it up. A group of kids from Lakeport, Middletown and Kelseyville volunteered. “Now, the are four large mountain bike events held there, 15 miles of new bike trails and still adding trails to this day,” noted Barnett.
The problem of how to deal with homelessness.
Rasmussen noted the homeless situation is the most complex situation they deal with and recognized the county and police department could not arrest their way out of it. Five years ago Rasmussen recognized resources available on the street were not enough. “I knew then, we needed something other than a sworn police officer to respond,” Rasmussen said. “So, I brought in a crisis responder to work with officers, he said. “That program for the first two years was successful, we housed many people. And got people into psychological treatment. And I got people into housing, because before that we were losing over 100 calls for service in our community; and have impact on our economy, on business and on our neighborhoods.
But Sammel praised all the good the new Emergency 24/7 shelter was doing with the 35 beds. “But last I heard those 35 beds were full,” she said. “Some struggled with addiction, others (are) down on their luck. Lakeport has taken steps to afford a navigation system, help them with case management. Transitional housing can partner in that effort.
Barnett recommended the current homeless plan be re-evaluated. “We’re on our third or fourth (shelter) director,” Barnett said. “Crime is on the rise,” he said. “If the Sheriff needs more money to mitigate the situation, let’s make this a priority, My mom is afraid to walk out the Park. We should improve that, so all our people can enjoy the park.”
Read admitted he has not visited a homeless shelter. He recommended more resources for the shelter and transitional housing. He suggested expanding laundry services at the shelter in order not to constantly spend so much on clothing purchases for the homeless.
How to deal with issues related to water usage
Improve water quality of Clear Lake, (is the) most important water issue Barnett said. “I’ve worked on this for many years and enjoyed it,” Barnett said. “Working at the Dept. of Water Resources and Fish and Game we’ll start cleaning up the tributaries,” he said. “All the tributaries are flooding in winter because vegetation is all the water. Also the purity factor is why the Hitch aren’t able to go upstream to spawn. That’s a priority.”
“Agriculture needs water to run their operations and wildlife also needs water. If you are a Supervisor. “Fund the balance you need, we can provide sufficient need for all needs,” Rasmussen said. “Provide sufficient so we can fund all needs, ” he added.
Read noted if one lives on the Lake as he does, it is easy to see when its full and much lower in dry seasons. “It’ll probably have issues if we go through another dry spell.,” he said. :”But (we) need to truly address the regulations on that,” he said.
Sammel observed the Lake is overloaded with nutrients and fertilizers, so as to make it really impact the health. So as a Supervisor, securing more funding and work. Perhaps work to get more grants. But those projects need to get under way soon so, we have a healthier lake.”
The top three economic engines in the county
Rasmussen selected as the top economic engines the economy, healthcare systems and agriculture and tourism. The healthcare system puts a tremendous amount in the local economy. “What I’d like to do as Supervisor is support a lot of strong programs now, like the Tourism Improvement District with the wine tourism, a good program needs continuous support., ” he said, “Agriculture is very important. We have to support it, as they do face a lot of regulations from the state, they are greatly important to our economy here;” he noted the county received over $350 million just from agriculture.
Chris Read noted, what happened was, the Lake got dirty, and it is not what it should be. “We should have boat races out there, we should have water skiing events,” said Read. “All we unities And the only events that gives us a real sense of community, and we need to fix that.”
Sammel agreed with the others on the top economic engine drivers, but what she included others overlooked was the need for business to be supported by the Certified Tourist Ambassadors (CTA). “Through our training program, moving on to Ag, local farmers grow our food, she said. “We need the resources and need to strike a balance between water resources and everything. But we really need to make sure we seek collaboration.”
County Plan and a General Area Plan
“I want to make Lake County grow economically but not by population, ” said Read. “I think many people in the county, like it as it is. They want more prosperity to grow but not population. I was recently asked about how to make more housing affordable. More affordable means prices drop. But I don’t want the price of my house to drop in value. We can work on lake infrastructure and provide more services to voters. In fact, I’d love to see the district board have some sort of marina. Wouldn’t that be something and great for our area? An idea, that Mike McGuire, State Senator, agrees with. Read noted that preservation and conservation are important.
