Memorandum
Date: 09/28/2021
To: The Honorable Lake County Board of Supervisors
From: Todd Metcalf, MPA, Director
Subject: Consideration of (a) Lease for Commercial Property Located at 525 N. Main Street, Lakeport and (b) authorize the Department Head to Sign
Executive Summary:
Lake County Behavioral Health Services identified a need for a new location for the Circle of Native Minds (CNM) Community Peer Support Center. The previous location at 845 Bevins Street in Lakeport has been occupied by CNM since September 2016. This location was identified and selected through a process that included community and stakeholder feedback. Initially, it was thought that the location’s proximity to the Lake County Tribal Health Clinic would be beneficial to engaging members of the tribal community. Over time, LCBHS observed that proximity to the clinic did not appear to be a driver of engagement with the center. Additionally, an establishment serving alcoholic beverages opened up next door (O’Meara Brothers Brewing Company) and this raised concerns, as CNM hosts meetings for the NA and AA community. Additionally, CNM has been experiencing network connectivity issues. The initial problem was with Wifi. There is a metal roof on the building which inhibited a steady connection via the internet provider. Also, there were problems with the location of the access point on the top of the building. The satellite path from the building to the receiver at the top of Mt. Konocti was obstructed by overgrown trees. The access point on the building could not be moved by IT to accommodate this issue because the metal roof allowed limited location of the device. Lastly, parking is a challenge at the Bevins street location, as CNM shares community parking with several other businesses.
In the beginning of 2021, with the term of the lease on the Bevins Street location drawing to a close, CNM staff proposed a change in location to LCBHS leadership. Staff conducted outreach to the community and hosted a listening session to determine 1. if a new location would be desirable 2. what issues, if any, the community experiences with the current location, and 3. where would the optimal location of CNM be. This session was facilitated by LCBHS’ cultural specialist and CNM lead staff, Thomas Brown, who is a member of the Elem Tribe. Mr. Brown held a stakeholder meeting comprised of elders/leaders of all the local tribes in Lake County with these questions. The feedback indicated that the community would welcome and support a move to a new location, but still wanted the location to be in the City of Lakeport. Receiving this feedback, LCBHS leadership took the proposed move to the County of Lake space committee for approval. Following approval from the space committee, LCBHS staff canvased the Lakeport area for approximately two months in search of a location more centralized to downtown Lakeport. Notice was also given to the property owner of the Bevins Court location that LCBHS would not be renewing the lease, set to term on August 31. We ultimately viewed three (3) potential locations; one in Nice and two in Lakeport. We viewed a location in Nice for the purposes of comparison. The space in Nice needed a significant amount of work (ADA bathrooms, no network setup, no flooring). The second location we viewed in Lakeport was not habitable (completely gutted, no HVAC, no ADA compliant bathroom) and was also too small for our needs. The third location at 525 N. Main Street needed minimal work to be compliant and meet the Department’s needs. This location has previously been occupied by a County Department (Child Support). There is street parking available. It is within walking distance to the Courthouse, bus stop, and many downtown businesses. It has a courtyard space which will be ideal for a community garden and also for other cultural events.
Of course, cost was a salient factor in the decision making regarding a new space. The monthly rent for the Bevins Street location was $1,800.00/month at $0.99 SF. Property operating expenses, including utilities, insurance, landscaping, and irrigation are approximately $0.03 SF for a total of $1.02 SF. This amount represented the ceiling of our budget for a property. The space at 525 N. Main Street is $1670.23/month at $0.84 SF. The owner is installing new flooring and paint prior to move in. Annual rent increases will be based on the consumer price index for California (Wall Street Journal, Northern California) and have been averaging around 2% for the past few years. We entered into lease negotiations with the property manager/owner in the end of May. A first draft of the lease was reviewed by County Counsel. This draft contained the following, additional terms:
1. Tenant shall, at Tenant’s expense, maintain property in compliance with all health and safety, fire and ADA codes, including but not limited to smoke and fire detection equipment, fire-fighting-extinguishing equipment, internal egress signage and lighting, and any other equipment required under Federal, State, or local ordinance law
2. Landlord shall be responsible for one-half (50%) of any major expense incurred by failure of any existing HVAC equipment on premises. Major expenses shall be deemed as any repair or replacements required which exceed $3000.00.
At the direction of County Counsel, LCBHS was able to negotiate with the owner on item number 2, where the property owner/landlord will pay 100% of all HVAC repairs.
If not budgeted, fill in the blanks below only:
Estimated Cost: _$23,042.76_ Amount Budgeted: _$23,042.76_ Additional Requested: _N/A_ Future Annual Cost: _$20,443.61_
Consistency with Vision 2028 (check all that apply): ☐ Not applicable
☒ Well-being of Residents ☐ Public Safety ☐ Disaster Prevention, Preparedness, Recovery
☐ Economic Development ☐ Infrastructure ☐ County Workforce
☐ Community Collaboration ☐ Business Process Efficiency ☐ Clear Lake
Recommended Action:
Approve lease for 525 N. Main Street, Lakeport, and authorize the Department Head to sign.