MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – Lodging operators in Lake County are coming together to form a new assessment district solely devoted to marketing the county as one of Northern California’s newest tourist destinations for wine, recreation and natural beauty.

The new entity will be known as the Lake County Tourism Improvement District, or LCTID, and will join 105 other Tourism Improvement Districts – also known as TIDs – in California, and 172 nationwide, which provide dedicated funds for the promotion of the destination and expanding tourism efforts.

Lodging establishments in the unincorporated area of Lake County and the cities of Lakeport and Clearlake will pay an assessment of 1.5 percent of gross room rental revenues to fund the new district.

“Lake County is within a few hours drive from all the major cities in Northern California,” said Lake County Administrator Officer Carol J. Huchingson. “As a community we are making great strides to enhance our tourism offerings, recreational activities and festivals. We see great potential in growing Lake County as a tourist destination through the marketing efforts the LCTID will fund.”

A TID Board of Directors was appointed at an organizational meeting held at Twin Pines Casino on Nov. 20.

The LCTID by-laws require that the board be comprised of representatives of businesses paying the assessment, Indian gaming entities, other tourism related businesses and local government officials.

The new directors include the following individuals:

· Brian Fisher (Suite on Main, Kelseyville);
· Michelle Scully (County of Lake);
· Greg Folsom (City of Clearlake);
· Lynne Butcher (Tallman Hotel, Upper Lake);
· Jitu Ishwar (Anchorage Inn, Lakeport);
· Maryann Schmid (The Lodge at Blue Lakes, Upper Lake);
· Larry Galupe (Twin Pine Casino & Hotel, Middleton);
· Havi W. (Skylark Shores Resort, Lakeport);
· Arnna Egan (Saratoga Springs Retreat Center, Upper Lake).

More than 100 tourist destinations have formed tourism improvement districts in California.

As the newest TID in the state, LCTID is expected to have a budget of about $170,000 in the first year to supplement existing county funding for tourism promotion.

“The LCTID Board of Directors is a talented group of tourism professionals,” said Board Chair Larry Galupe. “As we join together to market Lake County as the next 'must visit destination' in California, all of our businesses and communities will benefit.”

The next meeting of the LCTID Board of Directors is scheduled to take place on Thursday, Dec. 13, upstairs in the Courthouse Museum.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The Clearlake City Council is planning a special meeting to discuss several items of business.

The council will meet at 5 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 6, in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.

On the agenda is consideration of a contract for the OpenGov cloud software and services, at a cost of $160,000 over five years.

City Manager Greg Folsom said the software will help with budgeting and planning, performance management and strategic planning, and citizen engagement.

The council also will consider a letter of appreciation to Adventist Health.

Folsom’s report to the council on the proposed letter said that Adventist Health recently held its 50th anniversary and raised $100,000 that it intends to donate to the city for a children’s park.

In other business, the council will consider offering a letter in support of a proposal to the United States Department of Agriculture to relocate the National Institute of Food and Agriculture and the Economic Research Service to Lake County.

On the consent agenda – items considered noncontroversial and usually accepted as a slate on one vote – is consideration of continuation of a local emergency issued on Oct. 9, 2017, and ratified by council action Oct. 12, 2017.

After the open portion of the meeting the council will hold a closed session to discuss an evaluation of Folsom and property negotiations for 14130 Tuli Lane.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This story contains graphic descriptions of sexual assault, human trafficking and related crimes.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – On Tuesday a Lakeport man was sentenced to prison for human trafficking as the result of a plea agreement he reached in October with the District Attorney’s Office, a deal that two of his victims objected to as far too lenient and asked the judge to reject.

Sam Lindsey Massette, 37, was sentenced to the upper term of 20 years for two counts of human trafficking for the purposes of prostitution and two counts of pimping women in prostitution, and ordered to register as a sex offender for life.

Judge Michael Lunas, who handed down the sentence, explained in court that, with credits and time served, Massette is expected to serve about nine years in prison.

In victim impact statements read in court, two of Massette’s victims objected to the plea agreement.

“I spit on this plea deal. My justice has been stolen,” wrote a young woman who also stated that the District Attorney’s Office had made her promises in the case that were broken.

Judge Lunas concluded he had little latitude in the matter and that it ultimately was up to the district attorney to decide how to prosecute a case.

Massette and his wife, 28-year-old Krystina Marie Pickersgill, were arrested on June 5 on allegations of selling teenage girls into prostitution in the Bay Area, as Lake County News has reported.

Investigation into the allegations began two months before the arrests after a young woman who had been one of the couple’s victims approached District Attorney Don Anderson following a production in Lakeport of the play “Jane Doe in Wonderland,” a play written for young adults that explains how victims are lured into human trafficking.

Following the couple’s arrests, more victims came forward and were added to the case, the District Attorney’s Office said.

Altogether, Massette and Pickersgill were charged with 10 counts the included human trafficking, pimping and pandering for their crimes against five young women, identified as Jane Does one through five in court records.

However, it was explained in court on Tuesday that the plea agreement involved four charges for only four of the victims.

The charging documents said Massette and Pickersgill posted Internet ads to solicit sex with the victims, transported them to San Francisco, kept them in hotel rooms where the prostitution activities were conducted and received the money individuals paid to have sex with the victims.

Massette also was alleged to have had a prior serious felony conviction for vehicular manslaughter as a result of an incident in San Francisco in February 2002 during which he ran over and killed 16-year-old Nicholas Artola in a Safeway parking lot during a gang fight.

In October, Pickersgill reached an agreement with Anderson in which she pleaded guilty to one count of human trafficking and will receive three years of probation, credit for the four months she served in the Lake County Jail after her arrest and strict mental health treatment. She faces up to 12 years in prison if she does not complete the terms of her probation.

Anderson said he believed that when Pickersgill met Massette she was on medication for mental health issues. He said Massette took her off of the medication and coerced her into prostitution. While Anderson believed Pickersgill initially was a victim, he said she later became “a willing participant.”

Pickersgill’s plea agreement resulted in a backlash of public opinion for Anderson, with community members calling it too lenient.

Anderson said Tuesday that Pickersgill is expected to be sentenced next week.

Victims describe crimes, criticize plea agreement

Leniency would again be a concern during Massette’s Tuesday afternoon sentencing, which ran about a half hour in Lunas’ courtroom. In addition to Anderson, the hearing was attended by his successor, District Attorney-elect Susan Krones.

A District Attorney’s Office staffer read three victim impact statements which explained in stark detail what the young women suffered, their response to Massette’s sentencing and fears of retaliation.

The first statement was from a young woman who was 16 when she first met Massette. She described a problematic home life. “Sam was aware of the hard time I was having,” she said, explaining that he used it to groom her for his plans.

He gave her drugs and alcohol and, after only two weeks of knowing her, he offered her a job in San Francisco. When she went with him to San Francisco, she said he took her to a friend's house, told her to take off her clothes and began taking pornographic pictures of her.

What followed was four months of Massette selling her as a prostitute on the weekends. She said both Massette and a friend also had sex with her.

Throughout this time, the young woman said Massette kept her high on methamphetamine and alcohol. She would be an addict for several years as a result. She said she felt dirty.

She asked for the court to give Massette the maximum punishment so he can’t get out of prison and commit the same crimes again.

The second letter came from a young woman who called herself “the last Jane Doe.”

“Half a year is all it took for Sam Massette to turn my life upside down,” she said, describing how Massette shared with her his desire to create a prostitution empire. He had violent tendencies and what she called a bipolar character.

Massette, who worked as a counselor – and has a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology he earned from Marymount California University in 2016 – “used his profession to get inside the minds and heart of his victims, including me,” she said.

She called Massette a “monster” who has never shown compassion or mercy. “He deserves nothing. Prison is too good for him.”

The young woman also said the punishment didn’t fit the crime. “How could this sentence ever been seen as just or fair?” she asked, noting he had even victimized his own wife.

“Sam Massette made me feel like an object,” she said, explaining that when he looked at women he only saw price tags on their heads.

Had he not been caught, he would have continued his crimes, she said, adding, “This parasite deserves no mercy, no compassion and no respect.”

The third letter was from a young woman who said she was 17 when Massette and another man transported her to a cheap hotel in San Francisco, where she was subjected to one night of prostitution before she told them her self respect was not for sale.

She said she didn't know if she would be killed for refusing. “Luckily, I was unharmed.”

Over the years, she said she told people about Massette but nothing was done. However, after his June arrest, she reached out to a District Attorney’s Office investigation about her experiences and those of another young woman. She said Massette targeted children.

She voiced betrayal and anger at the plea agreement. “I was given promises in return for my cooperation,” she said. “Those promises have been broken.”

She said the prosecution has physical evidence, four victims willing to testify and yet still only offered a deal with a total 20-year term. Most disgusting to her was that she said the plea was not presented to the victims.

The young woman recounted watching a 15-year-old child cry and beg Massette not to force her to have sex with more men due to pain. Massette, in response, laughed and told the girl, “You can be done when the phone stops ringing.”

She said she spit on the deal, that her justice had been stolen. “This is not justice for a repeat offender. This is not justice for a man who killed someone and joked about it,” she said in reference to the 2002 San Francisco vehicular manslaughter case in which Massette was convicted.

The woman said Massette is a career criminal who talked openly about his criminal lifestyle, and had sports cars and mink coats.

“Please do everything in your power to give justice to the victims,” she wrote.

Judge moves forward with sentencing despite concerns of victims

Massette, who has remained in custody since his June arrest, sat facing Judge Lunas from the courtroom’s jury box while wearing a black and white jumpsuit. He was seated alongside his attorney, Tom Quinn.

Following the reading of the victim impact statements, Quinn told the court that Massette did have remorse. Quinn cited a letter Massette had submitted to the court, and added that the victims had been in contact with Massette more than 10 years ago.

Anderson countered that Massette has been on a continuing course of conduct over the past 10 years.

Lunas said he had reviewed the case. “I take issue with the representation that Mr. Massette shows remorse.”

The judge cited Massette’s own words in the letter that was included in the probation report, in which Massette claimed no one forced anyone to work with him and his wife.

“That, to the court's mind, does not recognize accountability or remorse,” and certainly not any sympathy for the harm left in Massette’s and Pickersgill’s trail, Lunas said.

In that letter, a copy of which was obtained by Lake County News, Massette said that he had fallen on hard times and that his wife, who was working as a “webcam model” and a hairdresser, was supporting him.

Yet, in the next paragraph, he wrote that no one was forced to work with his wife, but that “they were attracted to us and the life style,” and made the choice to work with them.

He said human trafficking “is something far more involved and sinister,” and that he and his wife were not a criminal organization or gang. “I feel hurt and sorry, as well as my wife Krystina about any hurt, distress, we/I had caused for anyone that was overwhelmed, or misunderstood what we were doing.” He claimed they went to great lengths to tell the women what they were doing.

“We are a loving couple unlike what has been said in the papers,” he said, adding later, “The human trafficking charges were far over blown.”

Lunas said the issue for the court was whether the plea agreement be accepted, which it had been by another judge.

That led to the question before him, specifically – whether to follow through. “There are certainly reasons not to,” Judge Lunas acknowledged, citing the harm the victims had suffered and how Massette had targeted vulnerable girls.

Lunas said it would be problematic for him to second guess the District Attorney’s Office in evaluating strengths and weaknesses of a case, noting that it’s the district attorney’s job to set aside emotion and feelings and make a determination on how to try a case. “I have a reason to believe that has occurred in this case.”

While he understood the call for additional punishment for Massette, Lunas said he didn’t believe the court had that ability at this point, and trying to take that action would start the proceedings anew, which he wasn’t willing to do.

Lunas pointed out that the court at one point would have possibly had some discretion in making the counts run consecutive rather than concurrent, which could have added another 10 years to Massette’s sentence.

Quinn pointed out that Massette and Pickersgill had given up a few hundred thousand dollars’ worth of assets, among them them, several vehicles – including two newer Jaguars – and $14,000 in cash.

Anderson countered that two vehicles were returned to the bank and the others seized were not worth as much as originally thought.

Lunas then passed sentence, denying Massette probation and ordering him to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life. Massette also was ordered to pay a $6,000 restitution fine and several hundred dollars in court-related fines and fees.

At the same time, the remaining six counts in the complaint against Massette were dismissed by Lunas.

After the sentencing had concluded, Anderson told Lake County News he had met with some of the victims to tell them about the plea agreement.

While all of the charges against Massette could have resulted in a life sentence had he been convicted, Anderson said he didn’t think he could have won that case at trial.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – On Tuesday, District Attorney Don Anderson and members of his staff went before the Board of Supervisors to respond to allegations raised at a meeting last month about his use of county resources, including his vehicle and credit card, for personal uses.

The board had initially asked Anderson to respond to allegations raised by Supervisor Rob Brown at the meeting on Nov. 20, as Lake County News has reported.

Anderson said Tuesday that he had been in San Diego in the days before the Nov. 20 meeting and had gotten back on the afternoon of Nov. 19. He also said he had another appointment he didn’t want to change. He had told Lake County News last week that he didn’t return until the afternoon of Nov. 20.

Due to not being able to answer the questions raised by Brown, the board had voted on Nov. 20 to subject Anderson’s spending on training and travel to preapproval by County Administrative Officer Carol Huchingson until Dec. 4 when he had another chance to appear. Had he not gone before the board on Tuesday, the spending limit could have been extended through the end of his term, which ends this month.

By the end of the discussion, the majority of the board didn’t support continuing the spending limits on Anderson.

Anderson’s successor, District Attorney-elect Susan Krones, was in the audience for the discussion.

For his Tuesday appearance before the board, Anderson provided a 117-page report for the board with spending details that his staff had compiled. He was accompanied to the meeting by his administrative coordinator Doris Lankford and Chief Investigator Bruce Smith. The introduction and summary of the report is below.

Anderson presents responses

In response to various allegations made at the last meeting Anderson said he hadn’t used his county credit card to gas up his daughters’ vehicles – that he would use his own credit card to do so while he was at gas stations using his county credit card for his county issued vehicles.

Anderson said that 2,087 gallons of gas have been used since his county car was bought in 2016, with mileage totaling 71,000 miles at an average 25 miles per gallon.

He said he’s taken on private cases for friends over the years. Anderson said state law allows him to do private cases, but he can’t do criminal cases, cases that go against county or eminent domain.

In eight years he said he’s only taken 28 days off for personal time and when he’s done private cases he’s combined trips out of county with county-related work, like a meeting with district attorneys in other counties in Napa County earlier this year regarding the Sulphur fire.

He acknowledged mixing “business with pleasure” when using the county car.

Regarding allegations about drinking and then driving his county vehicle, Anderson said, “That’s bull****.”

He said he saw Brown at Angel’s restaurant in Finley while he was there having dinner, and he accused Brown of having called the California Highway Patrol on him, which Brown later denied in the meeting. Anderson said he called CHP himself and an officer responded, giving him – at his request – a field sobriety test to provide he wasn’t inebriated.

Anderson also denied speaking with criminal defendants about their cases and said he had gone to a conference in San Diego last month to meet with four instructors with a company which is offering to provide free training on search warrants and police officer testimony in Lake County, as Anderson had told Lake County News last week.

Anderson said at one time he and Brown had been friendly and could talk. For one reason or another, “That’s gone south.”

Brown responds to Anderson’s explanations

Brown agreed the men had been friendly at one time and said it hadn’t been meant to get this far, but the situation had resulted from the failure to respond to Public Records Act requests.

He said he has an obligation to bring things forward when they are reported to the county counsel and the department. Over the years, he said he’d had 12 occasions where he had raised issues similar to this, and they didn’t all end this way.

Brown said he submitted a Public Records Act request to County Counsel Anita Grant on June 4. Grant in turn explained that he had submitted it to her and to the auditor-controller, and that she then went to Anderson’s staff to ask questions and get information.

While Anderson’s report said Brown’s efforts started when his son Steven Brown started running for district attorney earlier this year, Brown said he actually had started looking into the spending in May of 2017. He said he had tried to be careful to not do anything around the election in order to not make it political.

Brown denied Anderson’s accusation about contact his ex-wife for dirt on him, explaining that they exchanged Facebook messages at the time of the Tubbs fire, when Brown had contacted her to see how she was doing.

He also said he wasn’t mad about Anderson not firing a deputy district attorney who had made derogatory comments about his daughter-in-law. Brown had reported the issue to Anderson, along with a vandalism that individual had been involved with, and raised issue with that deputy district attorney possibly doing a favor for a friend who wasn’t prosecuted after being arrested by the CHP for felony evasion.

Brown wasn’t impressed with Anderson’s report or explanations, noting Anderson had investigated himself and found nothing. “So that’s the comfort we have in that.”

He presented a slide show showing Anderson’s vehicle parked at various bars and restaurants on specific dates to back up his assertions about Anderson drinking and driving. Brown also showed court documents and letters to the editor relating to Anderson’s doing private casework.

Brown then showed a Public Records Act request Anderson himself had filed with the county to get records of any communications between Brown and District Attorney’s Office employees, which he called “chilling” because he said it’s about retaliation. He said he would not comply with any such records request to give up employees trying to do the right thing.

Board members don’t agree to further action

Board Chair Jim Steele asked Anderson if he keeps regular office hours. Anderson said yes and no, that he tries to be there from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and he often works late and on weekends. He added that there’s actually no requirement that he ever actually show up for work.

Steele followed up by asking if Anderson had ever had a DUI or been pulled over for one. Anderson said no.

Huchingson said during the discussion that county policy is clear that county vehicles can’t be used for any private business.

Ultimately, the board as a whole didn’t support taking any further action. Both Tina Scott and Moke Simon said the board was the wrong venue to explore the concerns.

Brown made a motion to continue preapproving Anderson’s spending through the end of his term, which died for lack of a second.

Anderson said he wished there could be communications to avoid such a situation. Brown said he had asked the questions and been refused answers, which Anderson denied.

Steele said it was his decision to bring the matter forward in an effort to be transparent. Anderson said Steele did everything right, and that they needed to respond to the allegations.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

120418 Anderson Report to the BOS by LakeCoNews on Scribd

LAKEPORT, Calif. – On Tuesday Lakeport Police officers arrested a Lakeport woman for drunk driving, later finding out her blood alcohol level was five times the legal limit.

Angela Fife, 44, who has several previous DUIs on her record, was taken into custody early Tuesday evening, according to Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen.

Rasmussen said that at 5:15 p.m. Tuesday an off-duty Lakeport Police officer was driving a personal vehicle on Lakeshore Boulevard in the 2000 block when the officer saw a silver Chevrolet Impala driving south on Lakeshore Boulevard and noticed it was weaving and in the bicycle lane and on the roadway shoulder.

Rasmussen said the officer then saw the vehicle go into the opposite lane head on toward another vehicle.

Not being able to stop the Impala, the officer called in the vehicle and requested assistance for a drunk driver stop. While waiting for other LPD officers, Rasmussen said the off-duty officer continued to follow the Impala and make observations.

Rasmussen said the Impala continued to travel dangerously and in the area of South Main Street and Lupoyoma Avenue it went through a crosswalk with a pedestrian trying to cross.

On-duty officers were responding in an emergency manner in order to get into position to stop the Impala and were able to stop it in the 300 Block of Lakeport Boulevard, Rasmussen said.

The driver and sole occupant of the vehicle was identified as Fife, who officers determined was in fact intoxicated with a blood alcohol level of .40 percent. Rasmussen said that level is five times .08 percent, which is the limit where a person is presumed to be intoxicated while driving in California.

Because of her high blood alcohol content, Fife had to be taken to a local hospital for medical clearance before she could be booked into the jail, Rasmussen said.

After clearance, Fife was transported to the Lake County Jail and booked for driving under the influence, driving with .08 percent or more alcohol in the blood, driving with alcohol in the blood while on probation for driving under the influence of alcohol, driving with a driver's license suspended for a previous driving under the influence arrest, for having a third driving under the influence arrest within the past 10 years, for driving a vehicle not equipped with an ignition interlock device as previously ordered by a court to insure she did not drive while under the influence and for an outstanding warrant from Sonoma County for driving with a license suspended for driving under the influence, according to Rasmussen’s report.

“We appreciate our officers’ work to remove as many intoxicated drivers as we can from our roadways and are glad this driver was not able to hurt or kill someone,” Rasmussen said.

Rasmussen said that during the the Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year season his agency tends to see increases in drunk driving.

As such, Rasmussen said the Lakeport Police Department will be increasing its efforts to arrest drunk drivers.

“We ask for the public’s assistance in being alert for drunk drivers and calling 911 to report them when observed,” he said.

NORTH COAST, Calif. – California State Senator Mike McGuire took the oath of office again on Monday in Sacramento, kicking off his second term as the North Coast’s senator as family members, friends and supporters looked on.

“Words alone cannot express our deep appreciation and gratitude. Working for and with the hard working folks of the North Coast has been the honor of my lifetime,” McGuire said. “We’re excited to get back to work protecting our coast from new offshore oil drilling, investing record amounts in our kids and public schools, making sure every Californian has access to health care, creating good jobs and building housing that is affordable to working families and seniors.”

Sen. McGuire was first elected to the State Senate to serve the North Coast, from Marin County to the Oregon border, in 2014. He was re-elected to a second four-year term in November by a margin of more than two to one.

California legislators were sworn into office on Monday during a ceremony at the State Capitol.

Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. and First Lady Anne Gust Brown joined the California Museum to award the Spirit of California medal to eight Californians inducted into the 12th class of the California Hall of Fame on Tuesday evening.

The inductees of the California Hall of Fame 12th class are musician Joan Baez, mountaineer and scientist Arlene Blum, journalist Belva Davis, Chef Thomas Keller, former San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee, public servant Nancy McFadden, Hollywood icon and environmentalist Robert Redford and former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela.

“We are honoring people who did their utmost and exceeded the ordinary,” said Gov. Brown at the ceremony. “Whatever you folks have done, don’t stop now, keep going – and I say the same thing about California.”

During the ceremony, Inductees and family members of posthumous inductees received the Spirit of California medal from the governor and first lady.

In addition to the ceremony, inductees will be commemorated with an exhibition of artifacts highlighting their lives and achievements, which opens to the public at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 5 at the California Museum.

This year’s recipients join 113 inspirational Californians previously inducted for making remarkable achievements across a variety of California industries and areas of influence, including science, philanthropy, sports, business, entertainment, the arts, literature, technology, activism and politics.

For more information on the California Hall of Fame, visit http://www.californiamuseum.org/california-hall-fame.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Rain, a brief midweek sunshine break and then more showers are on tap this week ahead of another cold weather system arriving in the week to come, according to the National Weather Service’s latest forecast for Lake County.

The National Weather Service said chances for light rain – up to half an inch across Lake County – and snow in higher elevations are forecast through Wednesday thanks to a weaker storm system.

A weather model produced by the National Weather Service shows rain falling most heavily in Lake County on Tuesday night into Wednesday morning.

Winds with gusts into the 30s are forecast through Wednesday night. Heavy wind gusts occurred in the county late Monday and into early Tuesday, including on the Northshore.

On Thursday and Friday, mostly sunny conditions are predicted to return to Lake County before a new, weak weather system arrives to bring rain over the region beginning on Saturday and continuing into next week.

The forecast also calls for nighttime temperatures this week ranging between the low 30s and low 40s and daytime temperatures from the low to mid 50s.

On Sunday night, another weather system will move over Northern California and forecasters said it’s looking like it will be another cold one that could bring heavy snow to higher elevations.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

NORTH COAST, Calif. – Senators Jim Beall and Mike McGuire have been working for months to develop comprehensive policy and funding legislation focused on housing that is affordable for seniors, nurses, teachers, veterans and low- and middle-income Californians.

The legislation, which will take an aggressive and in-depth approach to the state’s affordable housing crisis, will be introduced in the coming weeks as a series of bills.

The first bill introduced today – SB 5 – is focused on funding that will build affordable housing for working families and seniors and revitalize neighborhoods in communities big and small in every corner of the Golden State.

Sen. Jim Beall, chair of the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee, and Sen. Mike McGuire, chair of the Senate Governance and Finance Committee, are partnering to create innovative programs that won’t rely on one-size-fits-all approaches, but will incentivize communities of all sizes across California to advance solutions that address the housing crisis.

“All across our state, from rural cities of the North Coast to the bustling suburbs of greater Los Angeles, every community is facing an affordable housing crisis,” Sen. McGuire said. “Our affordable housing bills will help working families and seniors live and thrive in the communities they call home by providing funding and innovative solutions to one of this state’s most significant challenges. Senator Beall and I look forward to continuing to work with residents and community leaders across California on this critical legislation in the months to come.”

One of the hallmark bills of McGuire and Beall’s housing legislation will launch an updated approach to the funding for local governments that was lost with the dissolution of redevelopment agencies – which at the time was the largest single source of funds for affordable housing.

Beall and McGuire’s bill – The Affordable Housing and Neighborhood Revitalization Act – will support affordable housing, transit-oriented development, strong neighborhoods, and resiliency from sea-level rise, while providing rigorous state oversight and taxpayer protections to ensure that affordable housing construction occurs quickly and local governments are accountable for the expenditure of funds.

“When voters overwhelmingly passed Proposition 1, they sent a message to the Legislature that we are in a housing crisis, and that building more affordable homes is a statewide priority,” said Sen. Beall. “This bill supports their voice by establishing a replacement tool for redevelopment agencies through a state and local partnership funding mechanism to create affordable housing through all corners of the state. Its goal is to thoughtfully tackle housing by also alleviating poverty, creating jobs, and meeting our statewide environmental goals without impacting school funding. Today, we have an opportunity to establish a renewed partnership between the state and cities, with strict accountability measures, to ensure more affordable housing gets built.”

The affordable housing and neighborhood revitalization bill that Beall and McGuire are advancing will be part of a series of housing bills that will create inclusive neighborhoods by streamlining permitting and enabling strategic density without taking a one size fits all approach in communities, along with updating surplus property identification.

The aim of the legislation is to be responsive to the needs of cities and counties, while creating desperately needed housing opportunities for hard-working Californians.

McGuire and Beall are committed to continuing to work with stakeholders and residents from across California in the months to come.

“Housing California is pleased to see state lawmakers already putting forth bold ideas to incentivize and expand development of affordable homes and simultaneously address the inequity of state investment in families earning low incomes or experiencing homelessness,” said Lisa Hershey, executive director, Housing California. “Senators Jim Beall and Mike McGuire are proposing a creative solution to replace the $1 billion per year lost when California eliminated redevelopment funds for affordable homes. This proposal includes the assurance that the money will be used to construct affordable homes. State data reveals that the loss of redevelopment and expended housing bonds contributed to a dramatic 14 percent increase in homelessness statewide in just one year. We are thrilled to see such an innovative state and local partnership proposal early in this legislative session that will take a bite out of this devastating trend.”

“California’s lack of affordable housing, especially in metropolitan areas, is worsened by rising levels of income inequality. These are persistent challenges facing working families which require immediate solutions by policymakers,” said Cesar Diaz, State Building and Construction Trades Council, AFL-CIO. “We thank Senators Jim Beall and Mike McGuire for this legislative proposal to establish a permanent source of funding for affordable housing projects that will provide economic relief to working families while also creating good paying construction jobs in communities throughout our state.”

“The League of California Cities applauds Sen. Beall and Sen. McGuire’s leadership in the effort to restore a more robust form of tax increment financing tool that cities have lacked since the elimination of redevelopment,” said Carolyn Coleman, executive director, League of California Cities. “This effort will help restore and make available resources to communities to help build transit-oriented development, affordable housing, repair infrastructure and revitalize our neighborhoods and downtowns.”


“California’s housing shortage is staggering. This is a clear crisis that has to be addressed and we believe this bill is a solid start. We applaud Senators Beall and McGuire and we look forward to working with them to help not just the homeless but the growing number of working people and their families who can no longer afford even modest housing,” said Daniel M. Curtin, director, California Conference of Carpenters.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif – Operation Tango Mike and the Kelseyville Lions will co-host “Hotcakes For Heroes” on Sunday, Dec. 9.

The breakfast will feature hotcakes, along with choices of sausage, eggs, biscuits and gravy. Beverages include juice and coffee. You may also order the deluxe version, by simply requesting “the works.”

Operation Tango Mike volunteers will take orders and serve patrons.

Santa and Mrs. Claus will be at the event, so bring your camera!

The event will run from 8 to 11 a.m. at the Kelseyville Lions Club, 4335 Sylar Lane, with a suggested donation of $8.

Proceeds benefit Operation Tango Mike in the ongoing effort to ship monthly care packages to deployed military personnel.

Operation Tango Mike is approaching 16 years of supporting the troops and having shipped nearly 21,000 care packages.

Currently, monthly shipping fees alone average $1,900. Coupled with the expense of care package supplies, the all-volunteer non-profit spends nearly $4,000 per month to send the much needed and appreciated care packages.

For further information call 707-349-2838 or e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The California Highway Patrol joins the American Occupational Therapy Association, or AOTA, in recognizing Dec. 3 to 7 as Older Driver Safety Awareness Week.

According to the AOTA, with increasing age come changes in physical, mental, and sensory abilities that can challenge a person’s continued ability to drive safely.

Family and friends play a major role in identifying changes in driving behavior and beginning discussions about older driver safety.

It is important to start these conversations early and discuss any needed changes in driving habits before it becomes a problem, allowing older drivers to be actively involved in the planning.

“Driving also means independence and the thought of losing that can be troublesome for many,” CHP Commissioner Warren Stanley said. “As a friend or family member, having the discussion with an aging driver about how long it is safe for them to continue driving can be difficult, but it is necessary.”

Last year, more than 3,400 fatal collisions were recorded in California. Preliminary data from the CHP’s Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System indicates drivers aged 65 and older were involved in 13.5 percent of the fatal collisions in California in 2017.

As part of our efforts to help California’s seniors drive safely for as long as they can, the CHP offers a free, two-hour Age Well, Drive Smart course.

Through this program, seniors can sharpen their driving skills, refresh their knowledge of the rules of the road, and learn how to adjust to typical age-related physical and mental changes.

Information about the free class is available at CHP Area offices throughout the state or at www.chp.ca.gov .

The CHP’s Clear Lake Area office can be contacted at 707-279-0103.

www.shutterstock.com

Beginning on the evening of Dec. 2, Jews will celebrate the eight-day festival of Hanukkah, perhaps the best-known and certainly the most visible Jewish holiday.

While critics sometimes identify Christmas as promoting the prevalence in America today of what one might refer to as Hanukkah kitsch, this assessment misses the social and theological significance of Hanukkah within Judaism itself.

Let’s consider the origin and development of Hanukkah over the past more than 2,000 years.

Early history

Though it is 2,200 years old, Hanukkah is one of Judaism’s newest holidays, an annual Jewish celebration that does not even appear in the Hebrew Bible.

The historical event that is the basis for Hanukkah is told, rather, in the post-biblical Books of the Maccabees, which appear in the Catholic biblical canon but are not even considered part of the Bible by Jews and most Protestant denominations.

Based on the Greco-Roman model of celebrating a military triumph, Hanukkah was instituted in 164 B.C. to celebrate the victory of the Maccabees, a ragtag army of Jews, against the much more powerful army of King Antiochus IV of Syria.

In 168 B.C., Antiochus outlawed Jewish practice and forced Jews to adopt pagan rituals and assimilate into Greek culture.

The Maccabees revolted against this persecution. They captured Jerusalem from Antiochus’s control, removed from the Jerusalem Temple symbols of pagan worship that Antiochus had introduced and restarted the sacrificial worship, ordained by God in the Hebrew Bible, that Antiochus had violated.

Hanukkah, meaning “dedication,” marked this military victory with a celebration that lasted eight days and was modeled on the festival of Tabernacles (Sukkot) that had been banned by Antiochus.

How Hanukkah evolved

The military triumph, however, was short-lived. The Maccabees’ descendants – the Hasmonean dynasty – routinely violated their own Jewish law and tradition.

Even more significantly, the following centuries witnessed the devastation that would be caused when Jews tried again to accomplish what the Maccabees had done. By now, Rome controlled the land of Israel. In A.D. 68-70 and again in A.D. 133-135, the Jews mounted passionate revolts to rid their land of this foreign and oppressing power.

The first of these revolts ended in the destruction of the Second Jerusalem Temple, the preeminent center of Jewish worship, which had stood for 600 years. As a result of the second revolt, the Jewish homeland was devastated and countless Jews were put to death.

War no longer seemed an effective solution to the Jews’ tribulations on the stage of history.

In response, a new ideology deemphasized the idea that Jews should or could change their destiny through military action. What was required, rabbis asserted, was not battle but perfect observance of God’s moral and ritual law. This would lead to God’s intervention in history to restore the Jewish people’s control over their own land and destiny.

In this context, rabbis rethought Hanukkah’s origins as the celebration of a military victory. Instead, they said, Hanukkah should be seen as commemorating a miracle that occurred during the Maccabees’ rededication of the temple: The story now told was how a jar of temple oil sufficient for only one day had sustained the temple’s eternal lamp for a full eight days, until additional ritually appropriate oil could be produced.

The earliest version of this story appears in the Talmud, in a document completed in the sixth century A.D. From that period on, rather than directly commemorating the Maccabees’ victory, Hanukkah celebrated God’s miracle.

This is symbolized by the kindling of an eight-branched candelabra (“Menorah” or “Hanukkiah”), with one candle lit on the holiday’s first night and an additional candle added each night until, on the final night of the festival, all eight branches are lit. The ninth candle in the Hanukkiah is used to light the others.

Throughout the medieval period, however, Hanukkah remained a minor Jewish festival.

What Hanukkah means today

How then to understand what happened to Hanukkah in the past hundred years, during which it has achieved prominence in Jewish life, both in America and around the world?

The point is that even as the holiday’s prior iterations reflected the distinctive needs of successive ages, so Jews today have reinterpreted Hanukkah in light of contemporary circumstances – a point that is detailed in religion scholar Dianne Ashton’s book, “Hanukkah in America.”

Ashton demonstrates while Hanukkah has evolved in tandem with the extravagance of the American Christmas season, there is much more to this story.

Hanukkah today responds to Jews’ desire to see their history as consequential, as reflecting the value of religious freedom that Jews share with all other Americans. Hanukkah, with its bright decorations, songs, and family- and community-focused celebrations, also fulfills American Jews’ need to reengage disaffected Jews and to keep Jewish children excited about Judaism.

Poignantly, telling a story of persecution and then redemption, Hanukkah today provides a historical paradigm that can help modern Jews think about the Holocaust and the emergence of Zionism.

In short, Hanukkah is as powerful a commemoration as it is today because it responds to a host of factors pertinent to contemporary Jewish history and life.

Over two millennia, Hanukkah has evolved to narrate the story of the Maccabees in ways that meet the distinctive needs of successive generations of Jews. Each generation tells the story as it needs to hear it, in response to the eternal values of Judaism but also as is appropriate to each period’s distinctive cultural forces, ideologies and experiences.

Alan Avery-Peck, Kraft-Hiatt Professor in Judaic Studies, College of the Holy Cross

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.