Ingram pushes issue forward, county directs staff to help Herlong Food Pantry obtain title to former VFW property

Lassen County’s Board of Supervisors directed staff to do whatever it can to help the Herlong Food Pantry obtain title to the former Veterans of Foreign Wars property in Herlong.

County Administrative Officer Richard Egan said the county would do whatever it could to help with the transfer, but legally he thought there was little the county could do because it lacks standing.

He said the county never owned the property, and a deed restriction the property be used by the nonprofit VFW was put there by the Local Reuse Authority, which managed properties in Herlong acquired from the U.S. Army during the BRAC process a decade or so ago. The Lassen County Board of Supervisors met as the LRA, but that entity has since been dissolved. The LRA gave the property to the VFW in Herlong, but that organization also has dissolved. Felix Flores, a former VFW member, sold the property to the Herlong Food Pantry for $1. Regional VFW leaders have said they are willing to approve the sale and transfer of the property.

District 5 Supervisor Jason Ingram brought the issue forward and said he has been working with all parties involved to complete the transfer of the property to the food pantry. He said the food pantry provides a vital service to needy South County residents.