Farewell to Konocti

KELSEYVILLE - The music was country but there were underlying blues as the sun set over the Konocti Harbor Resort and Spa's final outdoor concert Sunday night following years of financial and legal turmoil.

"We're saddened by it. It's a place we'd like to come back to," Gary LeVox, lead singer of Rascal Flatts, said as band members posed with fans before their show.

Fans came from throughout Northern California to see the band play, and they greeted Rascal Flatts with wild cheering.

The 5,000-seat outdoor amphitheater -- the North Coast's largest music venue -- was at near capacity for its final show, on an cool evening at the base of Lake County's Mount Konocti.

A few smaller events are scheduled at the lakeside resort in coming weeks before it closes Nov. 11 unless a buyer materializes. The resort's price tag is $15 million.

"I think it's sad. I really love this place," said Rich Barnett of McKinleyville, who has been coming to Konocti concerts for at least 15 years.

"Our first date was here," said his wife, Carrie.

"I hope people with a lot of money buy this place," said Pam Boyrie of Santa Rosa, who has been attending Konocti concerts for at least 10 years with her husband, Ken. On Sunday, they were accompanied by their son and daughter-in-law.

There has been interest in the resort, and several potential buyers made it to the contract stage but the deals fell through, said Jim Bishop, who works for the resort's court-appointed management company, WhiteStar Advisors.

Several others currently are investigating possibilities, he said. Bishop said he could not disclose any names.

The resort's closure will be a blow to Lake County's economy as well as to music lovers.

It is one of the county's premier tourist attractions and one of the largest private employers, with almost 600 employees, most of them part time or seasonal, according to a 2008 county study.

"It's a huge impact. It impacts everyone," said Melissa Fulton, chief executive officer of the Lake County Chamber of Commerce.

The county of 66,000 residents has one of the state's higher unemployment rates at 14.7 percent. If the resort's estimated 100 full-time employees lose their jobs, it would increase the rate to 15.1 percent, said Dennis Mullins, an analyst with the state Employment Development Department's Labor Market Information Division.

The resort also is responsible for a "significant portion" of the $750,000 in bed tax generated in the county last year, said Lake County Administrator Kelly Cox.

Concert-goers also generate sales tax revenue for the county through ticket sales and by shopping at restaurants, grocery stores and gas stations, Cox said.

He said he could not provide the resort's tax figures because the information is proprietary.

The county does not have an estimate of the sales tax resort patrons generate throughout the county.

While county coffers will suffer if the resort closes, Lake County has absorbed other financial hits in the last couple of years and could do so again, Cox said.

But it would rather not.

"It would slow down our progress" in marketing and economic development, Cox said.

The county is willing to do what it can to facilitate a sale of the resort, Cox said. Officials have been spreading the word and are willing to help a buyer obtain redevelopment or economic stimulus funds aimed at retaining jobs.

County officials also are lobbying the resort's managers to keep the resort open while a buyer is sought.

"If closed, I think it will be that much more difficult to sell," Cox said.

The resort, on nearly 100 acres along the shores of Clear Lake near Kelseyville, includes restaurants, swimming pools, tennis courts, a boat launch, 261 guest rooms, 20,000 square feet of meeting space, a 19,000-square-foot spa and a 1,000-seat indoor concert hall in addition to the outdoor amphitheater.

The resort has been owned by Local 38 of the United Association of Plumbers, Pipefitters and Journeymen since 1959.

It was operated as a seasonal resort until 1990, when the union hired Greg Bennett to manage and expand the resort.

He expanded the resort's indoor showroom and in 1993 built the outdoor amphitheater. Other improvements were made, but the money spent on the resort proved controversial and ultimately led to a court settlement that required the sale.

The U.S. Department of Labor had sued the union, saying it mishandled members' benefit plans by diverting an estimated $36 million into renovating and operating the resort.

Fans hope whoever buys the resort is able to put enough money into the facility to really make it shine.

"I hope and pray someone will buy it and Greg (Bennett) will stay," said Ukiah attorney Erik Petersen. "I don't think people realize how sad it's going to be if it closes."

You can reach Staff Writer Glenda Anderson at 462-6473

or Glenda.anderson

@pressdemocrat.com.