North Shore Business Association Meeting Recaps

Operation Tango Mike

Fri, 02 Dec 2011 07:37:53 -0800

Hopefully, most of us enjoyed a comfortable dinner with family or friends last week during Thanksgiving, sharing those holiday treats and eats. We traveled far or stayed home to visit with loved ones, enjoy each other or have lively political conversations. Some ended well, others maybe not but we were all together. However across the world, many soldiers were craving those simple pleasures. Yes, there is a certain amount of comradely in the military but those comforts of home are sorely missed. This is where Operation Tango Mike comes in for our troops. We often see the containers with this logo in Lake County shops, dropping spare change in them; knowing it is for our men and women serving our country overseas. North Shore Business Association was lucky to have Ginny Craven, head of the organization as a speaker in November. She shared this wonderful program, started for a friend who had been called to duty in the Middle East.

It was simple enough, sending him a care package filled with treats, foot powder, and other necessities; we often take for granted. A comrade noticed the package and mentioned he would like to receive something, anything. Now, it has become a full blown program with monthly packing parties at Umpqua bank, barrels in local shops, and letter writing campaigns. As members sat and listened to Ms. Craven's stories, they could see how many cannot say no to helping her organization. She was so grateful when she picked up, a batch of items collected at a recent NSBA social at Lake County Wine Studio. NSBA will have a barrel at the Tree Lighting Parade in Upper Lake on Saturday, Dec. 3. Please come by our booth and drop something off to brighten up a soldier's day. If you miss us, you can always bring something to Judy's Junction or other places around the lake. Items must be sealed to be sent to our troops in priority boxes.

Lake County Mediation

Sat, 13 Aug 2011 12:21:20 -0700

Another great meeting with Lake County Mediation speaker Terry Dereniuk sharing things like "I" language and feedback techniques for helping you get along with customers.

We also shared facebook, twitter and website strategies. Don't forget, you get a free website page when you join us. Denise Rushing our 3rd district Supervisor gave us an update, too.

Oh and the breakfast was great as usual by Judy's Junction's member Joanne Breton.

Smart Meters are coming

Fri, 13 May 2011 17:54:32 -0700

We had a great meeting April 20 with a PG&E presentation from their Smart Meter Department. The company sent their expert presentor Austin Sharp PGE and their government relations rep Justin Real. It was a

great presentation with a nice question and answer segment. Members found out that there is more radiation and radio waves coming from our cell phones or televisions than from the new meters. Many of the problems have been worked out and the company has been proactive in getting them resolved. If you do not want special rates, you may opt out and just have a regular rate schedule that does not fluctuate with high usage times. If you do not want a smart meter due to personal views or health reasons like a pace maker, you may opt as well but you will be charged a meter reading fee as a person will have to physically come to your property rather than PG&E receiving radio wave readings in the office. They will not come through a gate without permission but will put a meter up that is not in an enclosed area on a property.

Bottle Rock Power - Brian Harms

Thu, 17 Feb 2011 06:27:46 -0800

Bottle Rock Power's Brian Harms did a great job on showing us how an actual geyser steam generated power plant works and how it helps our community as a whole. Bottle Rock Power Plant is a 55 megawatt geothermal power plant that provides clean, reliable and renewable energy to homes and businesses in northern California. Bottle Rock sits on a 350-acre site in Lake County, California, in an area known as the Geysers, the largest producing geothermal region in the world. It was amazing to find out that the electricity made at Bottle Rock is enough to power up 12,000 homes. PGE buys all power generated from the plant. More than 80 local people have plant jobs, including welders and plumbers. These people all buy things from our businesses or use our services. The best part of this power maker is that it also generates a lot of revenue for our county tax base. Over one million tax dollars goes into Lake County coffers. That is not counting the tens of thousands of dollars in property tax they pay on the land used for drilling for steam.

Clark's Island

Sun, 09 Jan 2011 12:50:03 -0800

Supervisor Denise Rushing brought good news from the medical marijuana dispensary in Upper Lake. The facility, which continually gets ire from neighbors and tourists, for the number of people waiting outside for services, has implemented a new paging system similar to that found in some restaurants. This should reduce and, hopefully, eliminate the number of people waiting outside the office making Upper Lake friendlier to tourism and residents alike.

The Board of Supervisors has also received a commitment from the University of San Francisco to look over the Lucerne Hotel (the Castle) as a potential candidate for a remote culinary and hospitality campus.

Konocti Trails was approved by the Board.

Schools

Career day in May - date to be determined.

There will be an office for the probation department on the school site. There are a lot of kids on probation at the school so this helps them.

They're going to start an adult ed program at the school.

Holly Harris - Chuck Lamb - Clark's Island

Frank Rivero - Sheriff Elect

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 07:08:52 -0800

Today's guest speaker at the North Shore Business Association was our Sheriff-elect, Frank Rivero. In the sheriff's race, Francisco Rivero received 8,102 votes or 53.9 percent of the vote, defeating 16-year incumbent Rod Mitchell, who had 6,919 votes, accounting for 46.1 percent of votes cast.

The new Sheriff had a lot of good things to say about the direction he hopes to see the office take. He acknowledged that there are already good people in the department but that resources may not have been allocated to maximize those individuals. One of his first priorities will be to re-classify some personnel to get them back on patrol. Rivero indicates that having peace officers on the streets is a very high priority in his department.

"We need more presence in the neighborhoods and we need more sub stations," said the newly-elected Rivero.

Considering his audience, Rivero indicated that he sees a huge correlation between law enforcement and the business climate. The better the law enforcement, the more able local businesses are to conduct business. The North Shore is an area of particular interest to him as he sees this as the gateway to our entire tourism industry.

Brent Siemer

Sun, 25 Jul 2010 10:33:52 -0700

There were some new faces at our meeting so introductions were made. Lonnie's Accassion Station and Doctor Detail - Vehicle Detailing donated two raffle prizes.

Denise Rushing: PGE funds coming back to county

Nice Marina RFQ and Proposal being reviewed by our own tony Barthel

Lucerne Castle proposal for community use

Upperlake Parking now available in the back of Dr. Office

Gary Lewis shared a document titled Disaster Ready People for a Disaster America with monthy activities to prepare for one.

Alpine Festival sign up for volunteers passed around

Upper Lake Council needs help with Wild West Days

Brent Siemer Guest Speaker

Roots in Sonoma, Mendocino, and Lake County but he is here to stay. He worked himself up from a road crew worker to superviser. He likes to think outside the box by looking at problems as lots of opportunities.

Right now he is a one-man show in his office with a $5 million annual budget then special projects money flows in so it is around $155 per running road or 1/4% goes back to roads a year.

Scott DeLeon - Water Services Department

Sun, 27 Jun 2010 18:02:59 -0700

When the County of Lake hired Scott DeLeon to head the Water Resources Director, they made a good choice. Scott has a lifetime of history in Lake County going back to the days when his family had a resort when he was a child.

Presently, he is heading up the Water Resources Department which used to be a part of Public Works but now is out on their own. Essentially his department is in charge of Clear Lake as well as watershed protection and flood control. This area of responsibility includes dealing with quagga mussels and anything to do with the Lake.

Watershed also deals with water quality issues.

Scott described a huge issue with all the illegal marijuana growing because of pesticide and other chemical runoff which is getting into the Lake. Another big issue is the potential infiltration of quagga mussels into the Lake.

Dealing with quagga mussels is a one-person job at present, although there are a number of volunteers who make the job doable. While this program gets a lot of complaints, particularly by boaters, Scott said that solutions are being sought every day.

Sandra West - Mount Konocti Foundation

Mon, 31 May 2010 06:56:04 -0700

Mount Konocti Facilitation - Lake One Stop

Sandra West might best be known as the owner of the Edgewater Resort in Soda Bay, but she is also very heavily involved in several other community organizations. The Edgewater Resort specializes in family reunions and already have a strong summer calendar on the books, although there's always room for a few more visitors.

But what Sandra came to speak about was the Mount Konocti Facilitation (MKF). Mount Konocti Facilitation seeks to help new and existing businesses with all the challenges that can face an organization. While many small business owners feel like they are alone in their struggles, the MKF can help with marketing and other programs to ensure success in the organization. The organization can be likened to a board of directors of sorts and offer coaching services to help a small business owner make informed decisions.

Both the County's Chambers of Commerce and the County Redevelopment agency are the sources of referral for the Mount Konocti Facilitation.

Sutter Lakeside Hospital

Sun, 02 May 2010 10:44:40 -0700

Here is the recap of our April, 2010 meeting.

Sutter Lakeside Hospital

Sutter Lakeside Hospital stepped up to the plate to provide pinch hit with Sandra West's being in the hospital - we wish her well. Tammy Sylva spoke of three new programs at the hospital - urology, bone density scans and a new incision-less acid reflux procedure.

The new acid reflux procedure results in far less pain and much quicker recovery for patients who need this type of procedure. This is a significant gain for Lake County patients.

The hospital also has new doctors coming on board including a new general surgeon. They are also recruiting doctors in other areas.

The mobile unit that looked to be so promising is temporarily sidelined as the practitioner who was to be responsible for the unit followed a different opportunity so the hospital is having to start from square one. A medical practitioner has to be responsible for the unit.

Strokes are also a major issue for people and often times a stroke in the family means a huge disruption in the lives of both the victim and the caregivers as they have to go where the solutions are. Sutter Lakeside is working on a new stroke telemedicine program so that stroke victims can stay here in Lake County allowing them to have far less disruption in their lives.

Officer John Irwin

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 19:17:34 -0800

Your incoming and outgoing board for 2009/2010

This month's Member of the Month was Doni's Occasion Station in Lucerne.

Doni's Occasion station is the perfect stop for your celebration decorations. Doni has already made a name for herself with beautiful balloon decorations that you may have seen at Lakeview Supermarket & Deli's 40th anniversary or many other community events. Doni even donated the balloon Christmas tree for our parade float which was still looking' good several weeks after its appearance at the parade.

Also at Doni's Occasion Station are beautiful fresh flowers.

Doni is enthusiastic about consulting with anyone in advance of their celebration and is able to work on a budget from little to huge. No matter what the budget, the results will be beautiful as Doni's thrilled customers are enthusiastic about pointing out.

Officer John Irwin

Our featured speaker with officer John Irwin of the Bureau of Indian Affairs through the US Department of the Interior.

Officer Irwin is presently assigned to Robinson Rancheria and handles criminal activity on the Rancheria. Incidentally, Native American lands carry three size designations; reservations, colonies and rancherias. Robinson Rancheria comprises over 5,000 acres as far away as Chico, surprisingly.

Bernard Butcher - History of the Tallman Hotel

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 10:31:23 -0700

Our main presentation was Bernard (Bernie) Butcher, owner of the Tallman Hotel in Upper Lake with his wife, Lynne. His presentation focused on the history of Upper Lake and how a hotel like the Tallman came to be.

In the late 1800s when it was originally built, the Tallman was a stop on the stage line that came from Ukiah and took riders up to the resorts of Bartlett Springs as well as to points beyond. As such is was a bustling place with vacationers, loggers, and workers at the local fruit packing warehouses.

As time went on, the hotel served these travelers until the early part of this century when changes in the local business climate as well as changes in transportation rendered the hotel almost useless. Under the family's tutelage it remained in business until 1962 when the doors were closed for the last time and the for sale sign went up.

Finally, 42 years later a buyer was found for the property and that was the Butcher family. After extensive renovations, the hotel was re-opened with additional rooms as well as a re-creation of the Blue Wing Saloon and Cafe right next door. The original one was torn down during prohibition.

Community Care - Sister Marti McCarthy

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 11:32:04 -0700

Sister Marty McCarthy

The project provides services to people with HIV AIDs.

There are 60 clients. 200+ people in Lake County have HIV AIDs. “It’s hard to get the actual numbers because counties only report people when they’re first diagnosed.”

There’s a drop-in center in Clearlake.

Of course state cuts have affected their programs, some by half. “Sometimes short-term cuts result in increases in expenses down the road.” What the state of New York found after making similar cuts was that their long-term costs went up.

Right now younger people are contracting AIDs the most because they have a feeling that it’s a curable disease. She overheard two girls talking and one claimed that “you just have to take some pills.” This is not the case, some of the medications don’t work for everybody. There is a tremendous amount of unprotected sex in youth today.

There is a needle exchange program in the County and this is good for a variety of reasons, including the “underground networking” where information is exchanged among participants.

Sunrise Special Services

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:57:39 -0700

This morning’s speakers were Annie Branes and Marisa Feliciano-Garcia of Sunrise Special Services. Sunrise provides healthy resources, social services and a safe living environment through a bridging program that is designed to stabilize and ensure the personal survival to those with special needs. The organization does this through a variety of means, but one of their cornerstone efforts is providing housing for those with social or mental issues with the objective of having those individuals become ever more able to ultimately pay for most, if not all, of their housing costs while also growing personally to be able to live independently.

Part of this process includes finding housing close to the services the individual would need, such as medical attention or jobs. The federal government has traditionally provided funding for mental health programs and recently changed the rules so that the care given to an individual is affected heavily by that individual’s own decisions. Each person decides what their plan and needs are and they work with a counselor to determine those needs.

Leona Butts - Save Our Parks

Wed, 20 May 2009 14:40:17 -0700

NSBA Meeting June 17, 2009

Following is a recap of the June 17, 2009 North Shore Business Association meeting.

Leona Butts: Our Parks & Their Future

Our main speaker was Leona Butts, a member of the Autobahn.

According to a state spokesperson, “...closing parks wouldn’t have much of an impact. “(Tourists) come to (California) for Disneyland and might happen to wander into a park. Closing parks wouldn’t have much of an impact on tourism.”

Last week five visitors from Russia here specifically to visit Clear Lake State Park. “If you look at our guest register you see people from all over the world,” said Leona Butts “This happens week after week.”

A year ago both Clear Lake State Park and Anderson Marsh were on the chopping block, but Clear Lake was taken off the list. The reason Clear Lake was kept is that boats and water ways go through the park and the State feels that it is a source of revenue. A lot of money was spent in the park as well, making it almost completely ADA compliant. A total of $2.8 million have been spent on the park in improvements in the past few years.

Lake County Vector Control District

Wed, 20 May 2009 14:40:17 -0700

NSBA Meeting May 20, 2009

Following is a recap of the May 20, 2009 North Shore Business Association meeting.

Lake County Vector Control

Our main speaker was Jamesina J. Scott, PhD, of the Lake County Vector Control District.

Lake County Vector Control District (LCVCD) was developed in 1948 to deal with the Clearlake Nat but they’ve expanded since then. They’re an independent special district, funded by property taxes. Presently their primary focus is mosquitos, but they deal with many other creatures of all sorts.

A lot of their time is spent searching for mosquito larvae. When they do they work with the property owner or manager to eliminate the habitat. Presently a big problem are swimming pools that aren’t well maintained, but mosquitos can grow even in the water that exists in spare tires on the property.

Mosquito fish are also a big help and are very inexpensive. They also use a lot of bio rational products which are completely natural and don’t affect anything but the mosquitos - other animals can still drink the water.