Following a closed session discussion Tuesday night after the regular council meeting, Mayor Roy Parmentier and Councilmen Bob Rumfelt and Ron Bertsch voted to sell the nine-acre Vista Point property on Lakeport Boulevard to Matt Riveras for $1,001,000 in cash.

The sale does not include the shopping center’s buildings, which belong to lease holder Meridian Investments of Oakland.

Jeff Walters of Meridian Investments approached the council earlier this month and again on Tuesday to ask for the chance to submit a proposal, although the deadline had passed and the city already had begun negotiations with Riveras in early August.

Councilmen Buzz Bruns and Jim Irwin recused themselves from the discussion. In Bruns' case, his recusal was due to Riveras being his son-in-law; Irwin had a contractual obligation with Riveras over a fence shared by two homes he and Riveras built in Lakeport.

The terms of the sale changed slightly Wednesday, according to Lakeport City Manager Jerry Gillham.

According to Parmentier’s statement Tuesday night, Riveras had seven days – beginning Wednesday – to accept the purchase agreement and deposit $90,000 into an escrow account. The city then wanted escrow to close in another two weeks, for a 21-day turnaround.

Gillham said he met with the title company Wednesday and its representatives stated that they needed 30 days for the escrow.

Riveras told Lake County News that it’s premature for him to disclose his plans for the shopping center property. Nor would he say if he had accepted the city’s terms or not.

Of his plans, he said, “Within 12 months it will definitely become clear.”

Riveras explained, “All I’m able to control right now is the dirt.”

He said Meridian’s last-minute appeal to the council was “too little, too late.”

“Meridian has had ample time to come forward‚” said Riveras.

Riveras said his interest in the shopping center isn’t new. For the past two years he has watched and waited for his opportunity to make an offer. The city couldn’t entertain offers on the land until earlier this year because it didn’t yet have a parcel map, he said.

He said he also went to Meridian two years ago and offered them $3.2 million for their lease, an offer not contingent on him owning the land. The late Bill Walters, Jeff Walters’ father, turned down the offer in writing, said Riveras, citing a deal with Barry Johnson, owner of Willopoint Resort.

Johnson was the only other individual to submit an offer for Vista Point to the city, as Lake County News previously reported. When he made a presentation to the council in August, he took with him a letter of support from Meridian.

After the City Council accepted his bid and opened negotiations, Riveras said he and Walters met to discuss the property. But it was a meeting that Riveras said he cut short after Walters began firing off questions in order to get details about the project.

“I could see where the meeting was going and what his agenda was‚” said Riveras.

Weeks later Walters approached the council to ask for the chance to make a bid.

Next steps in the process

Vista Point has not been utilized to its fullest potential, said Riveras, and in the center he saw an opportunity.

“That’s what I do. I buy properties and make them look better,” he said.

After improving them, he keeps some properties and sells others, he said.

Some of his other projects include an office building and a small retail center, both in Sonoma County.

But he said those projects are irrelevant to the project he wants to take on with Vista Point.

“This would be the largest scale project that I'd be involved in‚” he said.

Riveras said he’s forming a consortium of people who have completed much larger projects than Vista Point to come up with a project that’s a good fit. Several of those individuals already have visited the property, he said.

“The first step is to have control over the property‚” said Riveras.

That means finalizing the process with the city, he said.

Once that is complete, Riveras said it will be time to negotiate with Meridian about purchasing their lease holding or negotiating for a longer lease. Meridian's current agreement has 21 years remaining on it.

Riveras said the lease he is purchasing from the city clearly states – “in black and white” – that Meridian has to perform to a certain standard and remain in compliance with the lease terms or they must sell.

“Right now, they’re not in compliance,” said Riveras, pointing to the rundown condition of the center.

Riveras said he’s willing to buy the lease or simply let Meridian out of it.

Meridian currently makes $25,000 in rents each month, Riveras reported. Meridian has made annual lease payments to the city which grow by 5 percent each year. In the 2006-07 fiscal year, the payment was $42,337.37.

The shopping center has a lot of potential, Riveras said, but it also needs a lot of help. “There's a lot of money that needs to be spent there,” he said.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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The National Weather Service in Sacramento (NWS) believes that a strong low pressure system from Canada will move southward into Lake County today bringing an increase in clouds, breezy conditions, lower daytime temperatures and a 30-percent chance of rain and thunderstorms.

With today's high temperature only predicted to reach 67 degrees, and 69 degrees the expected high on Thursday, this will be a significant change, the NWS says. Low temperatures on both days will be in the high forties.

The chance of thunderstorms will decrease on Thursday according to the NWS, with a 20-percent chance of showers throughout the day. Warmer daytime temperatures are expected on Friday, but a chance of showers Friday evening remains.

The weekend forecast is mostly sunny and warm, with highs in the upper 70s, the NWS states.

Remember to use caution when driving, the NWS advises, as even a small amount of rain will cause oil residue on roads to rise to the surface and cause slippery conditions.

E-mail Terre Logsdon at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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In honor of that special occasion in US history, Lake County News offers the following transcription of the U.S. Constitution in its original form, completed by the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration.

Items that are underlined have been amended or superseded.

THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES

PREAMBLE

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Article. I.

Section. 1.

All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.

Section. 2.

The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the People of the several States, and the Electors in each State shall have the Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the State Legislature.

No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.

Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons. The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct. The Number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty Thousand, but each State shall have at Least one Representative; and until such enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled to chuse three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode-Island and Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, New-York six, New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten, North Carolina five, South Carolina five, and Georgia three.

When vacancies happen in the Representation from any State, the Executive Authority thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies.

The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.

Section. 3.

The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, chosen by the Legislature thereof for six Years; and each Senator shall have one Vote.

Immediately after they shall be assembled in Consequence of the first Election, they shall be divided as equally as may be into three Classes. The Seats of the Senators of the first Class shall be vacated at the Expiration of the second Year, of the second Class at the Expiration of the fourth Year, and of the third Class at the Expiration of the sixth Year, so that one third may be chosen every second Year; and if Vacancies happen by Resignation, or otherwise, during the Recess of the Legislature of any State, the Executive thereof may make temporary Appointments until the next Meeting of the Legislature, which shall then fill such Vacancies.

No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty Years, and been nine Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen.

The Vice President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no Vote, unless they be equally divided.

The Senate shall chuse their other Officers, and also a President pro tempore, in the Absence of the Vice President, or when he shall exercise the Office of President of the United States.

The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two thirds of the Members present.

Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States: but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law.

Section. 4.

The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by Law make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places of chusing Senators.

The Congress shall assemble at least once in every Year, and such Meeting shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they shall by Law appoint a different Day.

Section. 5.

Each House shall be the Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Members, and a Majority of each shall constitute a Quorum to do Business; but a smaller Number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the Attendance of absent Members, in such Manner, and under such Penalties as each House may provide.

Each House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Behaviour, and, with the Concurrence of two thirds, expel a Member.

Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such Parts as may in their Judgment require Secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the Members of either House on any question shall, at the Desire of one fifth of those Present, be entered on the Journal.

Neither House, during the Session of Congress, shall, without the Consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other Place than that in which the two Houses shall be sitting.

Section. 6.

The Senators and Representatives shall receive a Compensation for their Services, to be ascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States. They shall in all Cases, except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.

No Senator or Representative shall, during the Time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil Office under the Authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the Emoluments whereof shall have been encreased during such time; and no Person holding any Office under the United States, shall be a Member of either House during his Continuance in Office.

Section. 7.

All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with Amendments as on other Bills.

Every Bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it become a Law, be presented to the President of the United States: If he approve he shall sign it, but if not he shall return it, with his Objections to that House in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the Objections at large on their Journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such Reconsideration two thirds of that House shall agree to pass the Bill, it shall be sent, together with the Objections, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of that House, it shall become a Law. But in all such Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be determined by yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons voting for and against the Bill shall be entered on the Journal of each House respectively. If any Bill shall not be returned by the President within ten Days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the Same shall be a Law, in like Manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by their Adjournment prevent its Return, in which Case it shall not be a Law.

Every Order, Resolution, or Vote to which the Concurrence of the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary (except on a question of Adjournment) shall be presented to the President of the United States; and before the Same shall take Effect, shall be approved by him, or being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two thirds of the Senate and House of Representatives, according to the Rules and Limitations prescribed in the Case of a Bill.

Section. 8.

The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;

To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;

To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;

To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;

To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;

To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;

To establish Post Offices and post Roads;

To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;

To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;

To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offences against the Law of Nations;

To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;

To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;

To provide and maintain a Navy;

To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;

To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;

To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;

To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;--And

To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.

Section. 9.

The Migration or Importation of such Persons as any of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the Year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a Tax or duty may be imposed on such Importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each Person.

The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.

No Bill of Attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed.

No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census or enumeration herein before directed to be taken.

No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State.

No Preference shall be given by any Regulation of Commerce or Revenue to the Ports of one State over those of another; nor shall Vessels bound to, or from, one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay Duties in another.

No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.

No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.

Section. 10.

No State shall enter into any Treaty, Alliance, or Confederation; grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal; coin Money; emit Bills of Credit; make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts; pass any Bill of Attainder, ex post facto Law, or Law impairing the Obligation of Contracts, or grant any Title of Nobility.

No State shall, without the Consent of the Congress, lay any Imposts or Duties on Imports or Exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing it's inspection Laws: and the net Produce of all Duties and Imposts, laid by any State on Imports or Exports, shall be for the Use of the Treasury of the United States; and all such Laws shall be subject to the Revision and Controul of the Congress.

No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay.

Article. II.

Section. 1.

The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his Office during the Term of four Years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the same Term, be elected, as follows:

Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or Person holding an Office of Trust or Profit under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector.

The Electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by Ballot for two Persons, of whom one at least shall not be an Inhabitant of the same State with themselves. And they shall make a List of all the Persons voted for, and of the Number of Votes for each; which List they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the Seat of the Government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate. The President of the Senate shall, in the Presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the Certificates, and the Votes shall then be counted. The Person having the greatest Number of Votes shall be the President, if such Number be a Majority of the whole Number of Electors appointed; and if there be more than one who have such Majority, and have an equal Number of Votes, then the House of Representatives shall immediately chuse by Ballot one of them for President; and if no Person have a Majority, then from the five highest on the List the said House shall in like Manner chuse the President. But in chusing the President, the Votes shall be taken by States, the Representation from each State having one Vote; A quorum for this purpose shall consist of a Member or Members from two thirds of the States, and a Majority of all the States shall be necessary to a Choice. In every Case, after the Choice of the President, the Person having the greatest Number of Votes of the Electors shall be the Vice President. But if there should remain two or more who have equal Votes, the Senate shall chuse from them by Ballot the Vice President.

The Congress may determine the Time of chusing the Electors, and the Day on which they shall give their Votes; which Day shall be the same throughout the United States.

No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.

In Case of the Removal of the President from Office, or of his Death, Resignation, or Inability to discharge the Powers and Duties of the said Office, the Same shall devolve on the Vice President, and the Congress may by Law provide for the Case of Removal, Death, Resignation or Inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what Officer shall then act as President, and such Officer shall act accordingly, until the Disability be removed, or a President shall be elected.

The President shall, at stated Times, receive for his Services, a Compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the Period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within that Period any other Emolument from the United States, or any of them.

Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath or Affirmation:--"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

Section. 2.

The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States; he may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.

He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.

The President shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next Session.

Section. 3.

He shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary Occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them, and in Case of Disagreement between them, with Respect to the Time of Adjournment, he may adjourn them to such Time as he shall think proper; he shall receive Ambassadors and other public Ministers; he shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed, and shall Commission all the Officers of the United States.

Section. 4.

The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.

Article III.

Section. 1.

The judicial Power of the United States shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their Services a Compensation, which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office.

Section. 2.

The judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties made, or which shall be made, under their Authority;--to all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls;--to all Cases of admiralty and maritime Jurisdiction;--to Controversies to which the United States shall be a Party;--to Controversies between two or more States;-- between a State and Citizens of another State;--between Citizens of different States;--between Citizens of the same State claiming Lands under Grants of different States, and between a State, or the Citizens thereof, and foreign States, Citizens or Subjects.

In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before mentioned, the supreme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress shall make.

The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, shall be by Jury; and such Trial shall be held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed; but when not committed within any State, the Trial shall be at such Place or Places as the Congress may by Law have directed.

Section. 3.

Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt Act, or on Confession in open Court.

The Congress shall have Power to declare the Punishment of Treason, but no Attainder of Treason shall work Corruption of Blood, or Forfeiture except during the Life of the Person attainted.

Article. IV.

Section. 1.

Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State. And the Congress may by general Laws prescribe the Manner in which such Acts, Records and Proceedings shall be proved, and the Effect thereof.

Section. 2.

The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several States.

A Person charged in any State with Treason, Felony, or other Crime, who shall flee from Justice, and be found in another State, shall on Demand of the executive Authority of the State from which he fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State having Jurisdiction of the Crime.

No Person held to Service or Labour in one State, under the Laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in Consequence of any Law or Regulation therein, be discharged from such Service or Labour, but shall be delivered up on Claim of the Party to whom such Service or Labour may be due.

Section. 3.

New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.

The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to Prejudice any Claims of the United States, or of any particular State.

Section. 4.

The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened), against domestic Violence.

Article. V.

The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as Part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress; Provided that no Amendment which may be made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses in the Ninth Section of the first Article; and that no State, without its Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate.

Article. VI.

All Debts contracted and Engagements entered into, before the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be as valid against the United States under this Constitution, as under the Confederation.

This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.

The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.

Article. VII.

The Ratification of the Conventions of nine States, shall be sufficient for the Establishment of this Constitution between the States so ratifying the Same.

The Word, "the," being interlined between the seventh and eighth Lines of the first Page, the Word "Thirty" being partly written on an Erazure in the fifteenth Line of the first Page, The Words "is tried" being interlined between the thirty second and thirty third Lines of the first Page and the Word "the" being interlined between the forty third and forty fourth Lines of the second Page.

Attest William Jackson Secretary

Done in Convention by the Unanimous Consent of the States present the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven and of the Independence of the United States of America the Twelfth In witness whereof We have hereunto subscribed our Names,

G°. Washington

Presidt and deputy from Virginia

Delaware

Geo: Read

Gunning Bedford jun

John Dickinson

Richard Bassett

Jaco: Broom

Maryland

James McHenry

Dan of St Thos. Jenifer

Danl. Carroll

Virginia

John Blair

James Madison Jr.

North Carolina

Wm. Blount

Richd. Dobbs Spaight

Hu Williamson

South Carolina

J. Rutledge

Charles Cotesworth Pinckney

Charles Pinckney

Pierce Butler

Georgia

William Few

Abr Baldwin

New Hampshire

John Langdon

Nicholas Gilman

Massachusetts

Nathaniel Gorham

Rufus King

Connecticut

Wm. Saml. Johnson

Roger Sherman

New York

Alexander Hamilton

New Jersey

Wil: Livingston

David Brearley

Wm. Paterson

Jona: Dayton

Pennsylvania

B Franklin

Thomas Mifflin

Robt. Morris

Geo. Clymer

Thos. FitzSimons

Jared Ingersoll

James Wilson

Gouv Morris

Constitutional Amendments 1-10 make up what is known as The Bill of Rights. Amendments 11-27, which came after the original document was ratified, are listed below.

AMENDMENT XI

Passed by Congress March 4, 1794. Ratified February 7, 1795.

Note: Article III, section 2, of the Constitution was modified by amendment 11.

The Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects of any Foreign State.

AMENDMENT XII

Passed by Congress December 9, 1803. Ratified June 15, 1804.

Note: A portion of Article II, section 1 of the Constitution was superseded by the 12th amendment.

The Electors shall meet in their respective states and vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves; they shall name in their ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice-President, and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-President, and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate; – the President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates and the votes shall then be counted; -- The person having the greatest number of votes for President, shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed; and if no person have such majority, then from the persons having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those voted for as President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately, by ballot, the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken by states, the representation from each state having one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two-thirds of the states, and a majority of all the states shall be necessary to a choice. [And if the House of Representatives shall not choose a President whenever the right of choice shall devolve upon them, before the fourth day of March next following, then the Vice-President shall act as President, as in case of the death or other constitutional disability of the President. –]* The person having the greatest number of votes as Vice-President, shall be the Vice-President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed, and if no person have a majority, then from the two highest numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose the Vice-President; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of two-thirds of the whole number of Senators, and a majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a choice. But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States.

*Superseded by section 3 of the 20th amendment.

AMENDMENT XIII

Passed by Congress January 31, 1865. Ratified December 6, 1865.

Note: A portion of Article IV, section 2, of the Constitution was superseded by the 13th amendment.

Section 1.

Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Section 2.

Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XIV

Passed by Congress June 13, 1866. Ratified July 9, 1868.

Note: Article I, section 2, of the Constitution was modified by section 2 of the 14th amendment.

Section 1.

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

Section 2.

Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice-President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one years of age,* and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State.

Section 3.

No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.

Section 4.

The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.

Section 5.

The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.

*Changed by section 1 of the 26th amendment.

AMENDMENT XV

Passed by Congress February 26, 1869. Ratified February 3, 1870.

Section 1.

The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude--

Section 2.

The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XVI

Passed by Congress July 2, 1909. Ratified February 3, 1913.

Note: Article I, section 9, of the Constitution was modified by amendment 16.

The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.

AMENDMENT XVII

Passed by Congress May 13, 1912. Ratified April 8, 1913.

Note: Article I, section 3, of the Constitution was modified by the 17th amendment.

The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures.

When vacancies happen in the representation of any State in the Senate, the executive authority of such State shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies: Provided, That the legislature of any State may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct.

This amendment shall not be so construed as to affect the election or term of any Senator chosen before it becomes valid as part of the Constitution.

AMENDMENT XVIII

Passed by Congress December 18, 1917. Ratified January 16, 1919. Repealed by amendment 21.

Section 1.

After one year from the ratification of this article the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby prohibited.

Section 2.

The Congress and the several States shall have concurrent power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Section 3.

This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of the several States, as provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to the States by the Congress.

AMENDMENT XIX

Passed by Congress June 4, 1919. Ratified August 18, 1920.

The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.

Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XX

Passed by Congress March 2, 1932. Ratified January 23, 1933.

Note: Article I, section 4, of the Constitution was modified by section 2 of this amendment. In addition, a portion of the 12th amendment was superseded by section 3.

Section 1.

The terms of the President and the Vice President shall end at noon on the 20th day of January, and the terms of Senators and Representatives at noon on the 3d day of January, of the years in which such terms would have ended if this article had not been ratified; and the terms of their successors shall then begin.

Section 2.

The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall begin at noon on the 3d day of January, unless they shall by law appoint a different day.

Section 3.

If, at the time fixed for the beginning of the term of the President, the President elect shall have died, the Vice President elect shall become President. If a President shall not have been chosen before the time fixed for the beginning of his term, or if the President elect shall have failed to qualify, then the Vice President elect shall act as President until a President shall have qualified; and the Congress may by law provide for the case wherein neither a President elect nor a Vice President shall have qualified, declaring who shall then act as President, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected, and such person shall act accordingly until a President or Vice President shall have qualified.

Section 4.

The Congress may by law provide for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the House of Representatives may choose a President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them, and for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the Senate may choose a Vice President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them.

Section 5.

Sections 1 and 2 shall take effect on the 15th day of October following the ratification of this article.

Section 6.

This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within seven years from the date of its submission.

AMENDMENT XXI

Passed by Congress February 20, 1933. Ratified December 5, 1933.

Section 1.

The eighteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States is hereby repealed.

Section 2.

The transportation or importation into any State, Territory, or Possession of the United States for delivery or use therein of intoxicating liquors, in violation of the laws thereof, is hereby prohibited.

Section 3.

This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by conventions in the several States, as provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to the States by the Congress.

AMENDMENT XXII

Passed by Congress March 21, 1947. Ratified February 27, 1951.

Section 1.

No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of President more than once. But this Article shall not apply to any person holding the office of President when this Article was proposed by Congress, and shall not prevent any person who may be holding the office of President, or acting as President, during the term within which this Article becomes operative from holding the office of President or acting as President during the remainder of such term.

Section 2.

This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within seven years from the date of its submission to the States by the Congress.

AMENDMENT XXIII

Passed by Congress June 16, 1960. Ratified March 29, 1961.

Section 1.

The District constituting the seat of Government of the United States shall appoint in such manner as Congress may direct:

A number of electors of President and Vice President equal to the whole number of Senators and Representatives in Congress to which the District would be entitled if it were a State, but in no event more than the least populous State; they shall be in addition to those appointed by the States, but they shall be considered, for the purposes of the election of President and Vice President, to be electors appointed by a State; and they shall meet in the District and perform such duties as provided by the twelfth article of amendment.

Section 2.

The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XXIV

Passed by Congress August 27, 1962. Ratified January 23, 1964.

Section 1.

The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay poll tax or other tax.

Section 2.

The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XXV

Passed by Congress July 6, 1965. Ratified February 10, 1967.

Note: Article II, section 1, of the Constitution was affected by the 25th amendment.

Section 1.

In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the Vice President shall become President.

Section 2.

Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress.

Section 3.

Whenever the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that he is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary, such powers and duties shall be discharged by the Vice President as Acting President.

Section 4.

Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.

Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty-eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty-one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty-one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two-thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his office.

AMENDMENT XXVI

Passed by Congress March 23, 1971. Ratified July 1, 1971.

Note: Amendment 14, section 2, of the Constitution was modified by section 1 of the 26th amendment.

Section 1.

The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.

Section 2.

The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XXVII

Originally proposed Sept. 25, 1789. Ratified May 7, 1992.

No law, varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and Representatives, shall take effect, until an election of representatives shall have intervened.

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HOPLAND — Two counterfeiters were caught red-handed feeding fake $100 bills into slot machines at Hopland's Sho-Ka-Wah Casino on Thursday.

California Attorney General Jerry Brown announced that his office's Division of Gambling Control arrested Jack Daniels Ewing, 27, of Las Vegas, Nev., and Mikael Inturbe, 27, of Hercules on charges of conspiracy, counterfeiting and burglary.

Brown's office reported that the arrests followed a four-month investigation, which revealed that the two-man team was bleaching real $1 bills and using home printers to make counterfeit $100 bills. The counterfeiters bilked at least 20 casinos in Northern California and Nevada out of more than $100,000.

The names of other casinos that were hit by the counterfeiters were not released.

“These two bandits used home printers to make fake bills that tricked casino slot machines into paying out more than $100,000,” said Brown. “Our Division of Gambling Control demonstrated great skill and incredible ingenuity in catching and arresting these counterfeiters.”

While under surveillance, the suspects were observed passing off large quantities of counterfeit “old style” $100 bills through the bill validators of gaming machines at Northern California and Nevada casinos, the Attorney General's Office reported. The suspects demonstrated familiarity with the security features of the bill validators and were proficient at avoiding detection.

In most cases the suspects fed bills into the machine, cashed out and left the casino, according to the Attorney General's Office. Occasionally, the suspects used the fake bills to play the slot machines, sometimes winning up to $4000.

The suspects leased rental cars from a variety of Bay Area rental car companies in an effort to evade authorities, the Attorney General's Office reported. They also employed the services of third-party associates to rent the vehicles on their behalf.

The suspects were known to wear a variety of baseball-style caps from different sports teams, a trademark disguise that used as they moved from casino to casino, Brown's office reported.

During a raid of an extended stay hotel in Richmond, where one of the suspects was residing, the Attorney General's Office reported its investigators found two printers, a scanner, rubber gloves, chemical bleaching solutions, a stack of bleached bills and a pile of baseball caps.

The California Department of Justice joined the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Department in apprehending the suspects Thursday at Sho-Ka-Wah Casino.

Inturbe, according to the Attorney General's Office report, has prior counterfeiting and homicide convictions.

Ewing and Inturbe each are being held on $300,000 bail.

According to FBI statistics, there are approximately 100,000 forgery and counterfeiting charges filed in the United States annually.

The Division of Gambling Control’s investigation into this case remains active and ongoing.

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Jessica's Law, passed last November by California voters as Proposition 83, makes it illegal for sex offenders to live within 2,000 feet of schools or parks, according to Bill Sessa, spokesman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

California's version of Jessica's Law is based on a Florida law called the Jessica Lunsford Act, named for a girl raped and murdered by a previously convicted sex offender.

Sessa said prior to Jessica's Law, sex offenders were restricted from living 2,000 feet or a quarter mile from schools, but the new law adds the restriction with regard to parks.

Since the law passed, Sessa said between 5,500 and 6,000 sex offenders have been released from state prison and placed on parole, which normally lasts three years. Of those, more than 2,700 received notices that they would be required to move.

Sessa said the 2,700 in question were in parole supervision and were housed according to the old restrictions as the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation awaited the outcome of the court challenges to the law. And not all of them committed offenses involving children, he added.

Sessa emphasized that the parolees in question weren't without supervision and that they weren't knowingly breaking the law. He said they knew eventually they would have to move.

The courts decided that it was unconstitutional to apply the law retroactively, but that only parolees released from prison after the law passed would be affected.

Once the court hurdles were cleared, Sessa said parole officers went to each individual address and, using a handheld global positioning (GPS) unit, measured the distance in a straight line from the residence to the nearest school or park. If the parolee lived within 2,000 feet they were immediately handed a move notice.

"When we gave them the notice to move it was not a big surprise to any of them," he said.

Sessa said parole agents went back to another 2,000 sex offenders to double-check that their living conditions also were in compliance.

Good news for Lake County

Among those 2,700 paroled sex offenders monitored by the state, none live in Lake County, said Sessa.

In addition, on the local level, county Chief Probation Officer Steve Buchholz said his department hasn't had to send out any notices to sex offenders they monitor that a move is required.

He added, "We have a relatively low number of sex offenders on our case load."

Sessa explained that the state monitors only a fraction of convicted sex offenders living in California. "We only supervisor about one out of every 10 sex offenders in the state," he said.

That doesn't count people currently on probation from county jail, which is the responsibility of Buchholz's staff.

"We've had some people who have lived too close to schools but we've dealt with that,” he said.

There are a significant number of sex offenders required to register in Lake County, said Buchholz; the Megan's Law Web site reports there are currently 197 living locally.

Recidivism rate is low

Sessa said the rate of sex offenders who reoffend is "actually quite low."

He explained, "Generally speaking, sex offenders know their victim." When offenders are prosecuted, that relationship is uncovered and cut off, he said.

All sex offenders on parole have more stringent restrictions and intense supervision than other state parolees, said Sessa, plus the longest list of requirements to follow.

Corrections and Rehabilitation staff use a clinical screening tool designed to measure the propensity of violence in men in order to categorize offenders based on their likelihood to reoffend.

"Out of 10,000 sex offender parolees that we supervise at any given time, about 2,500 generally are in the high risk category," said Sessa.

That 25 percent of offenders get more intense supervision using "the containment model," said Sessa.

That involves hemming them in on two or three different sides using mandatory treatment, curfews and other special parole conditions connected to the crime, said Sessa.

Corrections and Rehabilitation also uses polygraph testing, said Sessa, and, in some cases, monitor offenders with GPS systems that set off an alarm if they go where they shouldn't.

A 146-page report titled “No Easy Answers: Sex Offender Laws in the US,” released this month by Human Rights Watch, challenges the notion that measures like Jessica's Law do any good.

The report points to low recidivism rates and suggests that sex offender registration and residency laws do more harm than good. The limited research to date, the report suggests, shows that child molesters who reoffend are as likely to victimize children found far away as those living close by.

Report author Sarah Toffe stated, “Politicians didn't do their homework before enacting these sex offender laws. Instead they have perpetuated myths about sex offenders and failed to deal with the complex realities of sexual violence against children.”

For more information, visit www.meganslaw.ca.gov or www.83yes.com. For the Human Rights Watch report go to http://hrw.org/english/docs/2007/09/06/usdom16819.htm.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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The Lake County Wineries Association officially formed in July, said Matt Hughes of Zoom Winery in Kelseyville, who chairs the association's board.

Hughes said a core group – including Clay Shannon of Shannon Ridge Winery in Clearlake Oaks, Jed Steele of Steele Wines in Kelseyville and Gregory Graham of Lower Lake's Gregory Graham Wines – organized the effort.

Shannon and Graham now sit on the board with Hughes, serving as secretary and vice chair, respectively; and are joined by Sandy Tucker of Langtry Estate & Vineyards in Middletown and Nicole Johnson of Cougar's Leap in Kelseyville.

The association's goal will be to promote Lake County as a wine region and destination, said Hughes. They'll meet that goal through events such as the Lake County Wine Adventure, which will come under the association's umbrella.

“We wanted to do more of these things as a group to give ourselves a voice in the county,” said Hughes.

Lake County is home to 25 wineries, said Hughes, most of which have tasting rooms. Most of the local wineries, he added, are small, producing less than 5,000 cases of wine each year.

“We want to let people know Lake County is here as a wine region,” Hughes said.

This new association will join the Lake County Winegrape Commission in promoting the local wine industry.

The winegrape commission was formed in 1992, and is the oldest such commission in California, said Executive Director Shannon Gunier. Sonoma and Mendocino counties recently formed their own winegrape commissions, she added, with Mendocino forming their's because of Lake County's success.

Gunier said the winegrape commission has focused on branding Lake County as a winegrape-growing region. So far there are 94 wines that carry the Lake County name on their labels, and the county has five wine growing appellations -- Lake County, High Valley, Red Hills, Benmore Valley and Guenoc, with Big Valley and a possible Kelseyville Bench appellation in the future.

Lake County's winegrape acreage is at 8,800 “and holding,” with not much new planting going on right now, said Gunier. She estimates that the acreage will grow to between 10,000 and 12,000 acres over the next few years.

Eighty percent of the grapes grown in Lake County are sold outside of it, she added. All told, winegrapes are a $35 million industry in Lake County.

Gunier said Cabernet Sauvignon is the leading varietal locally, followed by Sauvignon Blanc; the two varietals together account for 95 percent of the winegrapes in Lake County.

And Lake's Cabernet Sauvignon is a good one, Gunier said, tasting like Napa's Cabernet but without the steep price.

Gunier said the winegrape commission is excited to see the wineries association form, and that they

look forward to partnering with them. She said the commission has money earmarked for promotions, including a campaign to encourage wine drinkers to buy local wines. Gunier added that local wineries definitely need better coverage at local retailers and restaurants. She

“I think you'll see us, the growers, partner with them a lot on doing promotions,” she said.

Clay Shannon, who also chairs the winegrape commission's board, agrees.

“We'll definitely have some things we can do together,” he said. “It just makes sense.”

Creating demand for wine, he added, automatically creates demand for winegrapes.

The wineries association already has marketing plans that include conducting media events in the Bay Area and on the East Coast possibly as early as this fall.

They'll also work on creating other wine-promoting events like the Wine Adventure, which Shannon said has grown larger and more successful over its first three years.

Hughes added, “We want to bring more people into Lake County and let them know it's a winery destination now.”

Seeing the audience for their products grow has led local wineries to be optimistic about future possibilities, said Shannon.

He said of Lake County, “It's just a totally different place to hang out and taste wine.”

Wineries plan for growing demands

The wineries association comes at a time when demand for Lake County wines is growing.

Lake County's largest winery, Langtry Estate & Vineyards, produces 160,000 cases of wine annually at its Middletown site, said Craig Moore, Langtry's national sales manager.

From January of July through this year, sales for wines produced by Langtry Estate & Vineyards were up 38-percent, according to a recent company statement.

Moore told Lake County News that there is a definite shift in consumer tastes to brands that are above the $10 price point.

The winery's Langtry label produces wines ranging from $25 to $40 a bottle, with varietals including Petite Syrah, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. They also have wine blends featuring all of the Bordeaux varieties – Cabernet Franc, Petite Verdot, Merlot and Malbec, Moore said.

The winery also produces the Guenoc wine label with wines ranging between $12 and $16, and a $45 port, Moore said.

Although there is aggressive competition from Australian imports, Moore said wineries like Langtry have escaped the affects of the wine glut.

“There's worldwide surplus, and that's never going to go away, because America will always be the No. 1 target,” he said.

Langtry grows most of its own grapes on 420 acres on the 22,000-acre estate, with some extra fruit purchased from neighbors, said Moore.

It's also the only winery in the country to have its own wine appellation – Guenoc – and that's something they want to build on, said Moore.

California wines are gaining increasing popularity worldwide, said Moore, as the state's taste profiles become more widely accepted.

Moore said there isn't any magic to increasing Langtry's sales. While California is their dominant market, Moore said Langtry has aggressively pursued sales in metropolitan areas around the country, the East Coast corridor of Washington D.C. to Boston, Canada and the Caribbean.

Langtry has focused on “pour it and they will come” strategy, said Moore.

That strategy is working well with the winery's increasing focus on quality, said Moore. “I think the quality right now that we're putting out is as good as we've ever done.”

He said Langtry's staff sees the winery as the county leader, and they promote Lake County heavily.

“We have a lot of faith in the future of this region,” he said.

So much faith, that they're looking at growth in the next five years, said Moore.

They've already laid the groundwork for significant expansion. In the last 18 months, Moore said Langtry has expanded its capacity with new barrel storage and tanks and new wastewater ponds.

The winery also has new wastewater treatment plans and monitoring requirements to come into compliance with Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board standards, according to the regional board's documents.

“We could double our business here with the infrastructure we have now,” Moore said, adding they only would need more grapes.

Next steps for the association

Membership in the association will be voluntary, and there will be opportunities for those with an interest in the wine industry – who don't necessarily work within it – to join as associate members, said Hughes. Shannon said he expects 90 percent of the local wineries to join.

There is still a lot to do, both Hughes and Shannon reported.

The group right now is collecting membership applications and setting up a Web site. Shannon added that the board this month is working on its budget.

Shannon said there's also the matter of the association applying for nonprofit status and seeking grants and funding.

“I think it's going to be a great thing for the county,” said Hughes.

For more information contact the Lake County Wineries Association, 263-8001, or send mail to 401 11th St., P.O. Box 1829, Lakeport, CA 95453.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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Driver Joan Sage was taken to the hospital with minor to moderate injuries. On the vehicle side, Truman Bernal's minivan had to be towed from the scene, while the other vehicles were able to be driven from the scene. Photo by Harold LaBonte.

A 1994 Plymouth Voyager driven by Truman Bernal of Kelseyville was hit on the driver’s side and forced off the road by a Buick sedan driven by Joan Sage of Clearlake, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Craig Van Housen.

Bernal's vehicle then crashed into the rear of a second Plymouth minivan being driven by John Sage, the husband of the Buick’s driver, Van Housen reported.

Fire and medical crews from Kelseyville worked to control traffic and transport Joan Sage to Sutter Lakeside Hospital. Van Housen described her injuries as minor to moderate.

Bernal said he and his wife were traveling southbound on Highway 29 when they observed the silver minivan turn south from Thomas Drive.

The silver van seemed to have overshot the turn and was moving toward the right side of the highway when they noticed the Buick sedan execute the same turn, which forced the Bernals into the back of Sage’s minivan, Truman Bernal explained.

As a result of the accident the Bernals' minivan was removed by tow truck. The other two vehicles suffered moderate damage and were able to leave under their own power.

Officer Van Housen did not cite any of the drivers at the scene but commented that proof of insurance and registration status for the Sages was under investigation.

E-mail Harold LaBonte at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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Nearly 100 families and groups have responded to the online poll on the www.clearlakesplashin.com Web site, indicating they plan to attend the 2007 Clear Lake Splash-In.

More than 30 Seaplanes of all types have committed in advance to attend the event. Hotels throughout the downtown area, closest to the Seaplane Display, are fully booked with participants and their guests.

Seaplanes are planning to come to Lakeport from California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Arizona, Idaho and Minnesota. Every type of seaplane will be represented, from the largest flying amphibious seaplanes to the smallest homebuilt seaplanes.

Aircraft registered to date include: deHavilland Beaver, Grumman Albatross, Grumman Mallard, Piper Cubs and Clippers, Stinsons, many Cessna Types, Tahoe Special Corvette-Powered Homebuilt, Lake Amphibians, Republic Seabees, Seareys and the world's only Piper Apache on floats.

Many of these aircraft are unique and several have won prestigious prizes for their quality restorations. Beauty and pride are personified in the owner's presentation of these aircraft. Additionally, dozens of land plane pilots will be arriving at nearby Lampson Field and will be shuttled to the event venues by Aero Airport Shuttle and Charter Service (http://aeroshuttleservice.com).

The 2007 Clear Lake Splash-In begins Friday, Sept. 21, and features a welcome concert for the seaplane crews in the Library Park Gazebo at 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 22 is the date for the Seaplane flying events and the Seaplane display at Natural High School, 810 Main St. The day will begin with the Kiwanas Club Pancake Breakfast at the Natural High School. Here the public can get up close to the planes, their pilots and crews. This display has been enjoyed by and open to the public for many years, sponsored exclusively by the splash-in organizers.

Local community support always has been the hallmark of the Clear Lake Splash-In; for 28 years the City of Lakeport, Lake County and many local service clubs have supported the annual arrival of Seaplanes in Lakeport.

The Lakeport Regional Chamber of Commerce has now established a Seaplane Festival, to be held Sept. 22 in the Library Park area in Downtown Lakeport, to allow the public their best opportunity to enjoy the spectacle of the Seaplanes flying on Clear Lake. The public may purchase seaplane rides at the city docks at Library Park, and the Splash-In pilots are planning several flying events in front of the Library Park docks for the entertainment of the public.

here is nowhere else in California, or for that matter the Western United States, where this type of display is available for so many to enjoy!

For more information about the Splash-In and Seaplane Festival, visit www.clearlakespashin.com or www.seaplanefestival.org for complete details.

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LUCERNE – Lucerne's two water groups elected new members of their boards of directors at a Saturday meeting at the Lucerne Alpine Senior Center.

About a dozen people attended the afternoon meeting.

New directors of the Lucerne Community Water Organization are past president Craig Bach, Jerry Morehouse, Hogan Cheung, Ed Moore and Jim Wilkie.

LucerneFLOW elected Karen Kennedy, Morehouse, Diane Behne, Gregory Cavness, Dallas Cook and alternate Tricia Van den Berghe.

Both groups are nonprofit educational and charitable associations, whose directors elect the officers. LCWO was formed in 2005 to intervene with the California Public Utilities Commission when California Water Service requested a 246-percent rate increase. LucerneFLOW'S goal is to acquire the water system as a public entity.

LucerneFLOW meets on the first Thursday of the month and LCWO at 7 p.m. on the second Thursday. Locations will be announced.

For more information call Van den Berghe at 274-8510.

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Firefighters work to extinguish the fire that burned Bill Douville's Mercedes. Photo by Harold LaBonte.

LAKEPORT – A fire Tuesday totaled a car and burned a grassy area near Lampson Field, but the car's driver escaped injury.

The fire took place at Highland Springs Road and Rodello Road, and was called in at 11:17 a.m.

Bill Douville of Kelseyville, 77, was driving east along Highland Springs Road on his way to town when he said he noticed smoke and flames inside his 1973 Mercedes 450SL.

Douville slowed the vehicle, preparing to pull the car to the side of the road, when he saw huge flames emerging from the car's hood and under the dashboard.

Fearing for his life Douville pointed his red sports car toward a drainage ditch and then jumped out.

The car, now completely engulfed, rolled approximately 150 feet across the road surface before coming to a stop 30 feet off the road and nose – first into the ditch, Douville said. An unknown passing motorist stopped long enough to place the original emergency call from his cell phone but left the scene shortly afterward.

Lakeport Fire Protection District sent an engine and a medic, which were on scene at 11:29 a.m.

Firefighters quickly extinguished the grass fire but about 20 additional minutes to control the vehicle fire. A tow truck came to pull the badly damaged Mercedes from the ditch shortly after noon.

Amazingly, Douville suffered no serious injuries. Responding to a comment about his bad luck, Douville said, "What do you mean bad luck? I'm alive aren't I?”

He added, “There's only two kinds of luck I have, good and better.”

Good luck was shared all around. If the sport car had traveled 60 feet further to the east it would have come to rest in an area of with dry grass reaching nearly 5 feet in height and located directly under telephone lines.

Quick work by the Lakeport Fire Protection District crew along with support from a Kelsey-Cobb Cal Fire engine prevented the fire from spreading to local farms.

E-mail Harold LaBonte at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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Luckily, the car didn't make it closer to an area of tall, dry weeds that could have resulted in a much larger fire. Photo by Harold LaBonte.

The US Geological Survey reported a 3.5-magnitude earthquake took place at 7:43 a.m., centered nine miles east northeast of Hidden Valley Lake and 11 miles east southeast of Lower Lake. The quake occurred at a depth of six miles.

A 2.8-magnitude quake occurred in the area later in the day, taking place at 3:06 p.m., according to the US Geological Survey. That smaller quake was centered 10 miles east northeast of Hidden Valley and 12 miles east southeast of Lower Lake, at a depth of 4.5 miles.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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Seat belt usage by California motorists is at a new record high, 94.6 percent, according to an annual survey commissioned by the state Office of Traffic Safety (OTS).

That's an improvement of more than 2 percent during the past two years, according to the study. In 2005, the figure was 92.5 percent; in 2006 it rose to 93.4 percent.

"These numbers are literally the difference between life and death. The increase this year means an estimated 372,000 more Californians are buckling up," said Business, Transportation and Housing Secretary Dale Bonner, who announced the new last week at the annual California law Enforcement Challenge Awards in San Diego.

The California Highway Patrol and local police departments have increased public awareness of the life-saving benefits of wearing a seat belt during the past year.

OTS, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, has provided funding for officer overtime for enforcement efforts and for educational outreach programs to encourage people to always wear their seat belts.

"These aren't just numbers. They are real lives saved and real tragedies averted," sad CHP Commissioner Mike Brown.

"These numbers are great, but we won't rest until we've convinced everyone that wearing their seat belt is the smart thing to do," stated OTS Director Christopher J. Murphy. "It takes just two seconds to save

a life."

In 2006, the CHP issued 254,328 citations for people not wearing their seat belts. Fines have been significantly increased the past two years.

The combination of enforcement and education is the key to changing behavior. Commissioner Brown warns that CHP officers will continue to aggressively seek out those holdouts who still don't get the message.

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