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Clearlake council affirms CalRecycle-funded abatement liens after residents' pleas
Summary
The Clearlake City Council unanimously confirmed a report seeking special assessments to recover CalRecycle-funded abatement costs totaling $386,512.53 for 27 properties and separately confirmed a $2,250 city-funded abatement; homeowners pleaded for more time to pay and disputed the scope and cost of cleanup.
The Clearlake City Council voted unanimously Dec. 4 to confirm special assessments linked to municipal abatement work paid for by a CalRecycle grant and to record a separate, smaller city-funded abatement on the tax roll.
Lieutenant Peterson told the council the city received a CalRecycle grant (awarded in summer 2024, referenced by staff as $477,469) to fund demolition and abatement work. Staff said rounds 1 and 2 of abatements began in early 2024 and into 2025 and were completed in October; as required by the grant's cost-recovery rules, the city recommended recording liens as special assessments to secure reimbursement when properties are sold or transferred. Peterson said the lien "does not require immediate payment" but preserves grant funding and protects taxpayers.
During the public hearing several property owners contested the assessments. "I owe $4,000," said Bunny (Benny) Carter, who asked the council to "give me a couple of months to come up with the money" for cleanup tied to her brother's property at 13535 Santa Clara Avenue; she said a private contractor could have cleaned the property for less and described ongoing problems with an occupant. Leanne Watson, who said she inherited a property at 16140, described repeated setbacks, loss of property items and said a quoted cleanup price of about $66,000 was impossible to pay "in a month"; she told the council she is disabled and living on Social Security.
City Manager Flora said the recommendation to record liens is a requirement of the CalRecycle grant and that declining to record them would shift costs to the general fund. Flora noted that a recorded lien "does not accrue interest" and that owners can pay to release it, but that liens provide a mechanism to recover public funds.
After closing public comment, Vice Mayor Slotin moved to approve the report and request that the county collect the charges on property tax bills; Council Member Wilson seconded and the motion passed unanimously. The council also moved, separately and unanimously, to deny the protest and confirm a $2,250 special assessment for an unpaid city-funded abatement at 3050 10th Street.
What happens next: the liens will be recorded as special assessments under the Clearlake Municipal Code Chapter 10 and become enforceable on the tax roll process; owners who pay the recorded amounts can request release of the lien.
