LAKEPORT – The Lakeport Planning Commission will meet on Wednesday, June 10.

The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. in the council chambers at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St.

Agenda items include a public hearing to consider an application for a free-standing, off-site church directional sign at the northeast corner of 11th and Brush Streets on city-owned property. The applicant is United Christian Parish.

Community Development Department staff also will offer an update on the status of current and pending projects related to the Building Façade Enhancement Program.

The city of Lakeport will make available to members of the public any reasonable assistance necessary to participate in this meeting. Contact the Community Development Department at 707-263-5613 extension 25 to make such a request.

Notification 72 hours prior to the meeting will enable the city to make reasonable arrangements to ensure accessibility to this meeting.

Visit the city online at www.cityoflakeport.com .

Construction is expected to start on Lake Street in Clearlake Oaks on Monday, June 8, and continue from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday until July 17, holidays and weekends excluded.

During that time, single-lane controlled traffic will be expected, with delays of up to 20 minutes. Motorists are requested to use alternative routes during construction days and times. Those who do drive in the area should use caution.

Also beginning on June 8 and lasting until Aug. 28, Soda Bay Road between Blower Road and Cal Packing Road will be closed to all through traffic between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, weekends and holidays excluded.

The closure is planned in order to construct the realignment of two sharp curves in that section of roadway.

The road will be open to all traffic during nights and weekends, and access to local residents will be made available at all times during construction.

Signs and barriers will be in place to notify the public of the need to use alternate routes.

The Department of Public Works thanks the community in advance for its patience and understanding.

For more information call the Lake County Department of Public Works, 707-263-7748.

Included are Mendocino County projects that may impact Lake County commuters.

LAKE COUNTY

Highway 20

– A highway widening project from Polk Jones Cattlepass to Rancheria Road will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate

20-minute delays. Contractor – Argonaut Constructors of Santa Rosa.

– Caltrans will perform routine maintenance from Ogden Road to Island Drive beginning Monday, June 8. Work hours are 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

– A roadway realignment project from 1.4 miles east of the North Fork Cache Creek Bridge to 1.6 miles west of Walker Ridge Road will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate five-minute delays. Contractor – Argonaut Constructors of Santa Rosa.

Highway 29

– Bridge deck repairs at Kelseyville Creek Bridge will begin Wednesday, June 10. Work hours are 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 15-minute delays. Contractor – DeBruin Construction Inc. of Stockton.

MENDOCINO COUNTY

Highway 1

– Construction of a retaining wall about three miles north of Elk will continue. One-way traffic control with a temporary signal will be in effect 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays. Contractor – Granite Construction of Ukiah.

– Comcast of Ukiah has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for an aerial crossing between Little River Airport Road and Van Dam State Park on Friday, June 5. Work hours are 7 a.m. to noon.

Intermittent full road closures will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate five-minute delays.

– Helen O’Neal of Fort Bragg has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit to install a driveway near Simpson Lane beginning Monday, June 8. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., weekdays. A shoulder closure will be in effect. Motorists are advised to drive with caution through the area and may experience minor traffic slowdowns.

– PG&E of Eureka has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for pole replacement between Coast Highway Road and the junction of Route 1/20 on Wednesday, June 10. Work hours are 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction of travel. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns.

– The city of Fort Bragg has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for sidewalk and sewer upgrades from Walnut Street to Pine Avenue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., weekdays. Southbound traffic will be restricted to one lane. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns.

– Replacement of Ten Mile River Bridge will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Beginning Monday, June 8, at 5 a.m. one-way traffic control will be in effect 24 hours per day. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays. Contractor – Golden State Bridge of Martinez.

– Baile Oakes of Westport has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit to pave a road approach 1.5 miles north of Blue Slide Gulch. Work hours are 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate five-minute delays.

– Storm damage repair about nine miles north of Hardy Creek Bridge will continue. One-way traffic control with a temporary signal will be in effect 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Motorists

should anticipate five-minute delays. Contractor – Maggiora and Ghilotti Inc. Inc. of San Rafael.

Highway 20

– Bridge deck repairs at the Redwood Valley Undercrossing will continue through Tuesday, June 9. Work hours are 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 15-minute delays. Contractor – DeBruin Construction Inc. Of Stockton.

Highway 101

– Storm damage repair from 0.6 mile to .8 mile north of Comminsky Station Road will continue. Northbound traffic will be restricted to one lane 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Motorists may

experience minor traffic slowdowns. Contractor – Mendocino Construction Services of Willits.

– Bridge deck repairs at the Hopland Overhead Bridge will occur Monday, June 8, through Wednesday, June 10. Work hours are 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 15-minute delays. Contractor – DeBruin Construction Inc. Of Stockton.

– A pavement repair project from the West Road Overcrossing to Moore Avenue will begin Monday, June 8. Southbound traffic will be restricted to one lane 24 hours per day, from midnight Sunday to

midnight Thursday. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns. Contractor – Professional Concrete Services of Pleasant Hill.

– Roadway repair due to pavement deterioration and a slipout from 1.1 miles north of Reeves Canyon Road to 0.5 mile south of Ridgewood Ranch Road will continue. Traffic will be restricted to one lane

in each direction of travel 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns. Contractor – North Bay Construction of Petaluma.

– The city of Willits has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for utility repairs from Evergreen Shopping Center to Shell Road beginning Monday, June 8. Work hours are 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., weekdays. Traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction of travel. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns.

Highway 162

– A bridge widening project at Outlet Creek Bridge will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 15-minute delays. Contractor – Viking Construction Co. Inc. of Rancho Cordova.

Highway 175

– PG&E of Eureka has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for pole replacement between Harrison Street and Wooldrige Ranch Road on Friday, June 5. Work hours are 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate five-minute delays.

Highway 253

– A bridge widening project at Anderson Creek Bridge will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays. Contractor – Viking Construction Co. Inc. of Rancho Cordova.

– A bridge widening project at Soda Creek Bridge will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays. Contractor – Viking Construction Co. Inc. of Rancho Cordova.

For information pertaining to emergency roadwork or for updates to scheduled roadwork, please contact the California Highway Information Network (CHIN) at 1-800-GAS-ROAD (1-800-427-7623).

MIDDLETOWN – The Middletown Area Town Hall (MATH) will hold its next meeting on Thursday, June 11.

The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. at Loconoma High School located on Washington Street.

Agenda items include approval of MATH promotional materials, and road and sidewalk committee priorities.

Under new business, members will discuss the Snow Valley Berryessa Conservation District and the approval of the Economic Development Committee's farmers market proposal.

The group will meet next on July 9.

MATH meetings are subject to videotaping. Meeting proceedings may be available for viewing on public access television and/or the Internet.

MATH – established by resolution of the Lake County Board of Supervisors on Dec. 12, 2006 – is a municipal advisory council serving the residents of Anderson Springs, Cobb, Coyote Valley (includes Hidden Valley Lake), Long Valley and Middletown.

LAKE COUNTY – The county of Lake and the Lake County Fire Safe Council have released the public draft of the Lake County Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) and are inviting public review and comment until July 1.

A public meeting to discuss the CWPP will be held on Monday, June 8, at 6 p.m. in the Board of Supervisors Chambers, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.

Representatives of plan partners will provide an introduction to the plan, and be available to answer questions about the CWPP.

Development of the CWPP involved an extensive planning and development process, which was led by Registered Professional Forester Tracy Katelman of ForEverGreen Forestry.

TV host Huell Howser led the Sacramento rally by Association of California Water Agencies. Courtesy photo.

SACRAMENTO – “Action now on water” was the message to legislators late last month when more than 1,600 members of the Association of California Water Agencies (AWCA) rallied under a blistering sun on Sacramento’s capitol steps.

Renowned television host Huell Howser led the rally, attended also by children of farm workers in the Central Valley community of Mendota where unemployment is 40 percent.

“Every economic sector is impacted by the lack of water supply reliability,” said Timothy Quinn, ACWA executive director. “Whether it's farmers forced to abandon fields, agricultural workers losing their jobs, causing economic upheaval for rural communities, or businesses and development threatened by the inability to assure reliable water supplies. We need action now on water.”

The rally coincided with ACWA’s 2009 spring conference in Sacramento where a statewide issue forum discussed the impact of California’s water crisis on the state’s economy. Panelists spoke of the need for a comprehensive, long-term statewide water strategy and immediate action by the legislature and governor.

California Building Industry Association President and CEO Robert Rivinius said the lack of water infrastructure and available water impacts new housing.

“Construction is down 80 percent from 2005, with housing at 44,000 units, the lowest since WW II. Building trades unemployment is down 70 to 80 percent,” he said. “We support an $11 billion water bond to come to grips with California’s water needs.”

According to California Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Allan Zaremberg, the Peripheral Canal must be built. The canal would divert water from the Sacramento River to Central and Southern California.

California voters defeated a ballot initiative to build the Canal in 1982, but the idea of a Peripheral Canal has had a revival.

Water is currently pulled through the San Joaquin-Sacramento River Delta, turning the Delta, originally a fluctuating-salinity estuary, into a freshwater basin. It has also created unnatural north to south flows in the Delta, confusing native species such as the Delta Smelt and disturbing the ecosystem.

“We need safe drinking water. The solution is a bond that provides mitigation funding and public benefit,” said Zaremberg. “But, public distrust for state legislators is so high; I’m concerned a bond wouldn’t pass.”

California farmers were represented by panelist Dave Puglia, senior vice president, governmental affairs and communications, Western Growers Association.

“Farmers are at the front-end of this water crisis with $350 million lost this year. One-hundred-thousand acres went fallow because of a lack of water in 2008, next year it will be worse,” said Puglia. “The west aside of Fresno, Kings and San Joaquin counties is essentially a desert due to the erosion of top soil. It’s becoming another dust bowl.”

He added, “Growers anticipated shortened water deliveries and maximized water efficiencies. They’re resilient and take a lot before walking away from their businesses. It becomes impossible when they no longer can service debt on the water infrastructure they purchased.”

Puglia said agriculture provides fresh food and jobs. “Consumers increasingly get their produce from Mexico as California farmers move operations south.

“Without water, California looses out on local food and economic benefits provided by farmers,” he said.

For more information about AWCA or its 2009 spring conference, see www.acwa.com .

Hidden Valley Lake resident Susanne La Faver rallied for water action in Sacramento. Courtesy photo.

Over 1600 members of the Association of California Water Agencies demanded action on water from state legislators during a rally on Sacramento