County Supervisors Approve Venue Change, Lakeside Sheriff Station

San Diego County supervisors Tuesday approved a rules change that will allow them to hold some of their meetings in Kearny Mesa and approved the creation of a sheriff's substation in Lakeside.

County staff suggested the change because the County Operations Center on Overland Drive, which has been under construction the past few years, is now ready to accommodate board gatherings.

Board of Supervisors meetings are held Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 9 a.m. at the County Administration Center by the downtown waterfront. Kearny Mesa is more accessible to people who live in northern or eastern parts of the county, where most of the unincorporated land is located.

The board's previous procedural rules stated that meetings must be held at the downtown location. The amendment simply added the operations center's name and address.

The first supervisors' event at the new facility is scheduled for tomorrow at 11 a.m., when board Chairwoman Dianne Jacob will present her State of the County address, followed by a 2 p.m. meeting.

In other board action, the supervisors signed off on the $1.2 million purchase of a three-parcel property at the corner of Parkside and River streets in Lakeside, which will be turned into a sheriff's substation.

"This new substation in Lakeside has long been a top priority of the community -- and of mine," Jacob said.

The site includes a 5,300-square-foot office building that the Sheriff's Department plans to move into after some interior work, and a neighboring house would be leveled to make way for a parking lot.

"Once operational, it is estimated this station will staff 30 full-time deputies to better serve Lakeside and the surrounding unincorporated area," Jacob said.

The project's cost is estimated at about $2.5 million, including the cost of renovations, according to county documents.

Both items were passed unanimously as part of the board's consent calendar.

-City News Service