Memorandum
Date: April 21, 2026
To: The Honorable Lake County Board of Supervisors
From: Susan Parker, County Administrative Officer
Stephen L. Carter, Jr., Assistant County Administrative Officer
Matthew Rothstein, Chief Deputy County Administrative Officer
Subject: Consideration of a Letter from the United States General Services Administration Requesting Response from County of Lake Regarding Transfer of Property Surrounding former US Coast Guard LORAN-C Station
Executive Summary:
As members of your Board will be aware, Section 1113 of Public Law 106-554 (106 H.R. 5666) (2000), authorized the Administrator of General Services to convey to Lake County, California, without consideration, all rights, title, and interest of the United States to such portion of the Coast Guard LORAN Station Middletown as has been reported to the General Services Administration (GSA) to be excess property, consisting of approximately 733.43 acres (an area surrounding what was, at the time, the still-operating station building, itself). Enactment of this law culminated expressed interest of the County of Lake in acquiring the property for an Emergency Operations Center, which began in or around 1996.
While no initial payment was required by Public Law 106-554 in consideration of the value of the property, conveyance to the County would have carried certain conditions (see Appendix D, Section 1113, attached), including the following:
1) That the County (at its own cost) conduct a survey to determine, “The exact acreage and legal description of the property… and any easements or rights-of-way reserved by the United States…” (a June 19, 2008, Letter from the United States General Services Administration, GSA, providing requirements for said survey, is likewise attached, for your review and public inspection);
2) That the “County and the Coast Guard enter into an agreement with the Administrator under which the County [would be] required to…” build and maintain firebreaks, construct a fence separating the property conveyed to the County from the area of the LORAN Station, itself. The fence was to be constructed with materials provided by the Coast Guard Commandant, but all other costs were to be borne by the County; and
3) The Administrator would have retained the option to revert ownership of the property to the Federal government, should the County sell, convey, assign, or exchange all or a portion of the property, for example, or conduct commercial activities without approval.
Because these conditions would have carried considerable County cost, your predecessor Boards did not elect to pursue transfer of the property. Ultimately, in August of 2016 (Letter attached), the Lake County Board of Supervisors authorized the County Administrative Officer to send a letter to the GSA, to inform that office the County did not intend to acquire the property, noting “the County [had] no specific plans for use of the property.”
Subsequent to the County’s decision not to pursue transfer of the property surrounding the LORAN Station, Middletown Rancheria expressed their interest in acquiring the property, noting it was part of their original aboriginal territory, and their willingness to fulfill the conditions imposed by the GSA, submitting a Letter to the Board of Supervisors in November 2024 (a similar letter had been sent in 2014, attached). In December 2024, Congressman Mike Thompson affirmed his intent to support transfer of the 1,200-acre site to Middletown Rancheria; his letter referenced the fact the County of Lake had decided not to acquire the property.
In early 2025, staff informed Supervisor Helen Owen (in whose District the property is situated) of the request from Congressman Thompson for the County to facilitate acquisition of federally-owned property surrounding the LORAN station by Middletown Rancheria. Supervisor Owen expressed a desire to conduct further research into this matter. Given the potential complexity, Administrative Office staff recommended Supervisor Owen bring forth a request for use of staff time in excess of 8 hours to assist with research. During the Board of Supervisors’ Regular Meeting of April 15, 2025, Supervisor Owen ultimately voiced a preference to conduct research on her own.
On March 18, 2026, the County Administrative Office received notice (attached) the U.S. General Services Administration intended to declare surplus all property surrounding the LORAN Station, including the parcel on which the now-decommissioned LORAN Station sits. In this Letter, GSA asked whether the County, “would like to change their acquisition stance,” and requested a response by May 15, 2026.
For clarity, GSA is seeking County input on the 733-acre area previously authorized for transfer by Public Law 106-554; the LORAN Station building, itself, is not included in that parcel.
Staff is seeking your Board’s direction, as a whole, on this matter. Potential Direction to staff could be to prepare a letter to the GSA re-affirming your predecessor Board’s 2016 Letter, or alternative direction, based on your Board’s consensus.
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Estimated Cost: ________ Amount Budgeted: ________ Additional Requested: ________ Future Annual Cost: ________
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☐ Fully Article X. <https://library.municode.com/ca/lake_county/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=COOR_CH2AD_ARTXPU_S2-38EXCOBI>- and/or Consultant Selection Policy <http://lcnet.co.lake.ca.us/Assets/Intranet/Policy/Policies+$!26+Procedures+Manual/Ch4_2021v2.pdf>-Compliant (describe process undertaken in “Executive Summary”)
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Recommended Action: Direction to staff.