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Home My WebLink About1979-01-02; City Council; 5717; Lake Calavera - Proposed lease-4 CITY OF CARLSBAD AGENDA BILL NO. /7 DATE : January 2, 1979 DEPARTMENT: City Manaqer *& Initial: Dept. Hd-> C. Atty.\/Fb C. Mgr. 1 - 1 Subject: LAKE CALAVERA - PROPOSED LEASE Statement of the Matter Mr. W. H. Brownlee by letter dated December 8, 1978, has proposed a plan to use Lake Calavera on a lease or revenue sharing basis with the City of Carlsbad. Mr. Brownlee proposed the following: 1. Keep the lake stocked with fish. 2. Provide and maintain chemical toilets and litter cans. 3. Assure that the area would be kept clean. 4. Provide a portable building as an office and bait and tackle shop. 5. Administer the operation of the lake, keep records, collect fees, regulation of public use to conform with: proper fire safety and water safety rules and to comply . with any other regulations desired by City Council. Mr. Brownlee's qualifications include service as a forest ranger for the State of California entailing law enforcement, fire control, public relations, personnel management, and administration of recreation and wild life areas. In addition he has experience as a commercial fisherman. The Assistant City Manager has met with Mr. Brownlee and explained some of the problems the City would encounter with this type of venture. This property is zoned as open space and such use would be permitted if a Conditional Use Permit were granted. Exhibit Memo from Assistant City Manager to City Manager dated 12-26-78 Letter from Mr. W. H. Brownlee dated 12-8-78 Recommendation That the request be denied and staff directed to study other uses for the Lake Calavera property. I Agenda Bill No. 5717 Page 2 Council action: 1-2-79 Council referred the matter to the Parks and Recreation Commission for review and report back as to possible uses for Lake Calavera. I-- - DATE : DECEMBER 26, 1978 TO : CITY MANAGER FROM: Assistant City Manager SUBJECT: LAKE CALAVERA - PROPOSED LEASE I had a meeting with Mr. W. H. Brownlee regarding his request to lease the Lake Calavera property and explained some of the problems the City would encounter with the kind of venture he proposed in his letter of December 8, 1978. Some of these include: 1. The necessity for a five million dollar liability policy. 2. A paved road to the lake. 3. Enforcement problems of fire and police protection. 4. It would be necessary to run the connecting road from Lake Boulevard (Oceanside) and whenever police were needed they would respond via Highway 78 and Lake Boulevard. Fire vehicles would probably have to use the same route. If the City Council feels it would be appropriate to make greater use of the lake at this time, further study of similar operations conducted in the City of San Diego should be made and other persons should be given the opportunity to make proposals for private recreational uses of the lake. It is not recommended that significant staff time be spent on this project unless the Council has a firm interest in private recreational development of the lake or disposal of the lake for private development. WILLIAM C. BALDWIN Assistant City Manager WCB : ldg Eec. 8, 1978 TO: City Manager, City of Carlsbad 1200 E;lm Ave. Carlsbad, Calif , FROM: H, He Brownlee 1311 Eucalyptus AVE, Vista, Calif, 92083 Dear Sir, This 1s in reference to a meeting which I had with Mr. Bill Baldwin, Astrt. City Ilanager on Dec 7, 1978, At this time I presented a proposal to Nr, firjlUwin whereby 1 wishEd to ogen the Calaveras Reservoir to the public a,s c fishing and recreational 9rGz either on a lease or profit sharing 'tlasi~ the details of which would have to be mutually agreed upon, $42. Baldwin indicated that there were inany obstacles to such a proposal, mainly access and insurance. Mr. Baldwin sugyested that the City of CarlsbaCI would require five million dollars insurance to be carried, a paved road access to the lake and extensive developaent on the lake area proper. I checked with Fariners insurance in Vista and they said that they would not even carry such a high insurance policy, I was referred to a major Insurance to. in Carlsbad and they quoted an off the cuff price to which they would not be held without further study of 20,000 dollars 2er year, I checked with R pzving cmtractor and they said that the cost of paving Q miles of rood to the lake would cost 13,000 dollars, My feeiingn are these::I believe that the Calaveras Lake area should be kept in it's natural pristine condition, excepting of course, the necessities of chemical toilets and natu$ trail8 and litter cans.. h I believe thzt the City of Carlsbad has a pa of a piece of p-operty in the Calaverlsis Lake. In the midst of subdivisions and cement and asphalt lies one of the last reinaining specimens of nclture in the rPw..I believe that it should be kept this way. ?here are kids growiq up who do not know that that there are trees and bushes and flowers growing nakurally untouched by a landscape architects hand and not surrounded by a cement curbins. If you are in touch with the times you know that environmentalists everywhere are moving to keep thingsin it's natural state. I believe that there are lots ~f people who vmulC 53~ irilling to .v~atki the fsrr,ily CBP after trsvsllin3 3vzr EL dirt road to reach a place hhere thay could cornnune with nature. I don't think that ym have to gild the lily by covering everything with cement and asphalt to make a place attractive to the aublic. 1 believe thzt the passzge of Proposition 13 shows that the public aoes not want the most expensive or the fanciest but the greatest return for the least amount of money expended, My proposal would be to keep things simple at least in the initial stages by making available a place in a natural environment where familiea could come and fish for a reasonable fee in a sufficiently well stocked lake so that everyone would take home a string of fish.. To this end: in exchange for a lease or revenue sharing arrangement I would be willins to keep the lake stocked with fish, to provide and maintain chemical toilets and litter czns, to keep the area clean, to provide a portable building to be used as an office and the sale of bait and fishing tackle. To administer the operation of the lake including the keeping of recDrds, the collection of fees, regulation of public use to conform with proper fire safety and water safety rules. To comply with whatever other reasonable requirement8 the City of Carlsbad or other .@ - ‘p4- concerned agency might require. As for the matter of insurance: Actcording to Mr. Baldwin the lake area is presently plagued with problems of vandalism, trespassing, swimming and discharge of firearms. The City of Carlsbad presently carries insurance at a rate determined by these conditions, I think it only reasonable to assume that if the area were in e, condition of regulated supervised use the in- surance rates would be lowered, The construction of a fence could also probably be Justified on the basis of further reduced insurance rates. As for my personal qualificatims to meet the commitments I have proposed:. I was for many years employed by the State of California as a forest ranger charged with the duties of law enforcement, fire control, 2ublic relations, personnel management and administration of recreation and wild land areas. I have also had experience in comn,ercial fishing and the operation of my own busin- “aSe8. I would be happy to meet with you or your representative any time at your convenience to discuss this proposal further or failing this I would like to be placed on the agenda to present my prdsal to the City Council. fJ6 Sincerely yaurs, 1311 hucalyptua Vista, Calif. 9 2083 Phone 724 1335