On Wednesday, February 14, 2024, the County received a Letter from Congressman Mike Thompson inviting Community Project Funding requests. His letter noted final guidance from the Appropriations Committee had not been developed, and that remains the case; nonetheless, Congressman Thompson is asking that priorities be submitted by end of day March 15, 2024.
Staff quickly reached out to County Department Heads and staff seeking input on projects that should be granted priority for the County’s FY 2025 submittal(s).
As you will recall, past successful submittals have been well-established, community supported projects (Armory Repurposing Project, Middle Creek, update to the Full Circle Effluent Pipeline Project Feasibility Study and the Kelseyville Sidewalk Project, a Safe Routes to School Project that provides sidewalks that separate children walking/biking to school from vehicular traffic, and Clearlake Burns Valley Sports Complex/Recreation Center, which included a joint request with both Cities and the County; multiple more recent requests are still working their way through the process).
As noted in the attached Letter, “Members of Congress are limited to submitting 15 Community Project Funding requests,” responsive to needs across the entirety of their Districts. There is no guarantee all requests submitted will be funded, and strong local support for projects is frequently pivotal in the Committee on Appropriations’ competitive evaluation process. Congressman Thompson advises this year’s environment will be especially challenging, so it is critical only the highest priority projects are submitted for consideration.
Departmental staff submitted Project summaries for 7 potential submittals, which are attached to your Board’s Agenda. For all projects detailed here, collaboration with Congressman Thompson’s staff will be needed to determine the most appropriate subcommittee fit, and those determinations will drive additional considerations.
(1) The Developer Incentive and Engagement Project ($2,160,500) envisions a suite of services to encourage further housing development in Lake County, potentially to include completion of environmental studies for publicly-owned lands that could be developed for housing, and/or land acquisition. For this to be included among the County’s submittals, work with Congressman Thompson’s staff would be necessary to determine which elements can be eligible; as your Board will be aware, Community Project Funding cannot be directly provided to for-profit entities.
(2) The Flood Protection and Stream Channel Habitat Improvement Project ($1,000,000 Requested, $1,350,000 project) would seek to holistically and effectively manage in-stream channels in the Upper Lake area of Lake County to allow high flows through rainy winter months, and maintain baseline flows in spring to support Clear Lake Hitch spawning runs. Major tasks described envision working with agency and Tribal partners, and others, to ensure a comprehensive approach that promotes environmentally responsible flood protection.
(3) The Lake County Sheriff Administration and Operations Center Project ($10,000,000 Requested, ca. $20,000,000 project) seeks funding for the construction phase of repurposing the former Armory facility in N. Lakeport for use as the new Lake County Sheriff Administration and Operations Center. The preliminary design phase has been completed, including a facility assessment report, staffing and space needs analysis, conceptual and schematic design. Construction costs are anticipated to reach $20M, and Federal support would greatly enhance the County’s ability to complete this project.
(4) The Lower Lake Schoolhouse Museum and Events Center Seismic & Historic Restoration Project ($3,500,000 Requested) seeks to modify an existing multi-use facility to prevent catastrophic structural failure in the event of serious earthquake event, in alignment with FEMA disaster mitigation priorities and federal goals under the National Historic Preservation Act. Diverse and safer use of the space would be promoted by energy efficiency upgrades and aesthetic improvements, while preserving a long-time fixture in the Lower Lake community for future generations.
(5) The Rural Behavioral Health Clinic Expansion and Revitalization Project ($4,100,000 Requested) would complement previous State and Local allocations dedicated to expanding and renovating the Lake County Behavioral Health Services-owned and operated Clinic in Clearlake, CA. The greater access to mental health and substance use disorder treatment services this project would facilitate would powerfully improve local capacity to meet growing demand.
(6) The South Main Street/Soda Bay Road Widening and Resurfacing Project ($5,041,000 Requested) would provide for construction of a continuous center left-turn lane and bicycle lanes on both sides of the roadway for the entire South Main Street/Soda Bay Road Corridor. This is expected to reduce rear-end traffic accidents, and promote increased utilization of active transportation in the project area. This project is included in the current State Transportation Improvement Program, and the current engineer’s total construction cost estimate is $9.156M.
(7) The Spring Valley Lake Reservoir Recovery Project ($6,322,609 Project Total), intends to reclaim the original design capacity of the Spring Valley Lake reservoir, of approximately 320 Acre Feet (AF) from the current 43 AF. Reclaiming this capacity would allow for a redundant source of raw water for the treatment plant, to better mitigate drought conditions, as well as providing water for fire suppression.
The deadline for submittals is Sunday, March 15, 2024. Staff asks that your Board consider which of these projects should be further vetted for potential submittal as Community Project Funding Priorities.