LAKEPORT, Calif. – Hospice Services of Lake County's plans to remodel a Parallel Drive property to house its administrative offices and services for the community will be heard by the Lakeport Planning Commission this week.
The Lakeport Planning Commission's meeting will begin at 5 p.m. Wednesday, June 12, in the council chambers at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St.
The commission will consider Hospices Services of Lake County's application for architectural and design review and conditions of approval to allow the remodel of existing buildings and new site improvements at 1862 Parallel Drive.
All of the reports for the Hospice project can be found at http://www.cityoflakeport.com/departments/docs.aspx?deptID=68&;catID=220 .
The Parallel Drive location previously was the site of the Calvary Baptist Church, with a main, 5,700-square-foot building, a garage and a 1,600-square-foot residence on 4.5 acres, according to city planning documents.
Online property sales records show the building and associated property sold last December for $325,000.
Hospice Executive Director Anja Koot told Lake County News that the property's original asking price was $499,000.
“We've been looking to expand for a number of years because our daily patient load has doubled since 2009,” Koot said.
The organization, which has served Lake County for three decades, offers in-home palliative care for individuals with a life expectancy of six months or less, as well as a host of bereavement services, among them, individual and group counseling programs, and a grief camp for children.
Even before the recent increases in patients, finding a bigger location has been a goal for the organization.
In 2007, Hospice Services had been pursuing an agreement with Sutter Lakeside Hospital for a 50-year lease at the Wellness Campus in Lakeport, as Lake County News has reported. The idea later was abandoned.
The Baptist Church property has presented Hospice Services with a new opportunity to move forward with the needed expansion.
Koot called the project “very exciting,” and badly needed.
Hospice's administrative offices and clinical staff currently are located at 1717 S. Main St. – in the same building as its popular Lakeport thrift store – as well as a second Lakeport location.
Koot said Hospice Services has 28 clinical staffers, estimating that of those about 10 have been hired since 2009.
The organization also has additional thrift stores at 14290 Lakeshore Drive in Clearlake, 21257 Calistoga Road in Middletown and 6268 Highway 20 in Lucerne.
Koot said the thrift stores support important community bereavement programs, including the grief camps for children.
Once the new building is remodeled and 850 square feet of new space is added, Koot said it will offer 6,500 square feet, about double the organization's current Lakeport space.
When the administration shifts to the Parallel Drive property, that will allow the thrift store to expand into the rest of the building, Koot said.
Koot said it's estimated that the remodel and new build could take as long as seven months to complete, with hopes that it would be completed by 2014.
“Once the commission says OK, we'll be ready to go,” said Koot.
Hospice has committed to follow green building procedures, to recycle debris and any existing items that must be removed from the building.
It's also determined to hire all local contractors, subcontractors, consultants and suppliers, with the project financing to be contracted through a local bank, according to organization officials.
Following an advertisement for local contractors, they received interest from nine to 10 local businesses and prequalified four to submit bids, Koot said.
“We had really good response and we really want to keep everything that we can local,” she said.
She said the organization doesn't yet have a ballpark estimate for the remodel and new build, as the bids haven't come in yet.
The project is envisioned to be completed over three phases, with the first centered on the main building and garage, with the house to be renovated in the second phase and the third phase to work on landscaping, Koot said.
The large property will have a large conference room and other facilities for the bereavement program and space for the family bereavement day camps, which include outdoor activities and equine therapy, she said.
Koot said Hospice Services' goal is to provide the best for its patients and staff.
She said the work can be challenging for staff, and so they hope to create a comfortable environment in the new facilities.
City planning staff is proposing approval of the project, with 32 conditions to be required.
The proposed conditions run from installing a fire hydrant and submitting additional information about the property's septic system, to providing at least 27 parking stalls and frontage improvements, promotion of alternative transportation for employees, and reduction of glare impacts through selection of exterior paint and lighting.
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.