Amador County News, TSPN TV News Video, 5-6-11

·       AWA tentatively approved 3 layoffs and a draft reorganization plan today.        

·       A Gravity Supply Line committee debriefing last week include discussion of support & opposition.

·       Amador Farmers’ Market will celebrate its 18^th season this year when it opens May 22 in Jackson.

·       At an AWA Gravity Supply Line discussion last week, opponents spoke about why they were involved.

·       PG&E is funding $9,000 in grants for regional economic development in Amador.

Amador County News, TSPN TV News Video, 5-6-11

·       AWA tentatively approved 3 layoffs and a draft reorganization plan today.        

·       A Gravity Supply Line committee debriefing last week include discussion of support & opposition.

·       Amador Farmers’ Market will celebrate its 18^th season this year when it opens May 22 in Jackson.

·       At an AWA Gravity Supply Line discussion last week, opponents spoke about why they were involved.

·       PG&E is funding $9,000 in grants for regional economic development in Amador.

Amador County News, TSPN TV News Video, 5-6-11 - TSPN's Tom Slivick speaks with Amador Air District Officer Mike Boitano.

Amador County – The Amador Water Agency this morning (Friday, May 6th) approved a draft employee reorganization plan that would lay off three employees, restructure management and cut between up to $500,000 from the budget.

The draft plan was approved, with another meeting set for 9 a.m. Friday, May 13th to consider final approval. The board also set its ad hoc reorganization committee to consider public and employee comments about the reorganization, and set a time limit by which comments must be submitted. Comments must be submitted by close of business Monday, May 9th.

The board also changed the makeup of the ad hoc reorganization committee, because Director Robert Manassero will be out of town next week. Director Paul Molinelli took Manassero’s position on the ad hoc committee, with Board President Don Cooper, and the two will consider all comments before the Friday meeting.

AWA General Manager Gene Mancebo introduced the reorganization plan, saying the “economic depression is continuing to affect the agency,” and fiscal impacts have led staff to identify that $750,000 has to be made up in the coming budget year. The agency could cut and slash everything in the budget, or do a combination of reorganization with elimination of three total positions, and reassignment of duties, he said. The plan included eliminating department heads, installing an office manager and reassigning duties, such as information technology, to either other employees, or contracters. Mancebo said the agency would also have to consider cutting employee concessions, and trying to increase revenue. He said benefits from the cuts may not fully be seen for two or three years.

In public comment, Finance Manager Mike Lee said with this reduction, the agency would have made a 30% reduction in staff, and cut “well over $1 million dollars in staff.” Lee said “more than half of the AWA customers have not seen a rate increase in more than five years.”

Lee said “our organizational structure is sound,” and was reorganized three years ago, though only half the cuts had been made. He said if department heads and the General Manager cannot do the correct reorganization, then an outside consultant cannot do it.

Lee said the “AWA needs a finance manger,” even if it was not him, and “the last thing this agency needs is an office manager.” He called the position “comical,” and said the “financial side is going to be put into chaos.”

Directors noted that Proposition 218 protests had stopped rate increases in the last few years at La Mel Heights, Camanche, and Central Amador Water Project service areas. They voted 4-0 to approve the draft plan, to be considered for final approval next Friday.

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Amador County – The Amador Water Agency board of directors last week gave a debriefing of recent Gravity Supply Line committee meetings in the Upcountry.

President Don Cooper said he appreciated attendees, which included members of a group that spearheaded a Proposition 218 protest of a rate increase last year in the Central Amador Water Project service area. He said people “were telling us the same things,” that they don’t want to pay more. But they also were concerned with improving safety and system reliability.

Preliminary surveys showed 35 people supported the GSL, and 19 did not, Cooper said. “Customers don’t want a rate increase,” but the agency continually needs to educate them that costs continue to rise, and the state is not backing up on its requirements. He said “we need a rate increase to reflect inflationary costs,” and “if we don’t it’s going to get very ugly for this agency.”

Director Robert Manassero said there was a lot of negativity at the beginning, but it eased up as meetings progressed. “The average guy does not care about where water comes from,” he said. “Average people don’t want to pay more for anything, whether it’s insurance or gasoline or water.”

Manassero said CAWP, with old 1960s and 1970s infrastructure and small pipes, could benefit from a couple of fast connectors along the pipeline, where fire fighter water tenders can be filled. He said: “I think all of us need to pay toward the future of the county, and maybe for that system, the future will be next week.” He thanked GSL opponents for attending, and said “your opinion is like any other in America. It’s different from mine, but I’ll listen to it.”

Director Gary Thomas said the GSL is needed and they need to pay for it. Director Paul Molinelli agreed, saying “it is still a good project.”

In public comment, Sherry Curtis said she liked to hear all sides to an issue, but the group that spearheaded the Proposition 218 protest attended and seemed to ask questions that confused the issue, especially at the Mace Meadow meeting. She said they seemed to be trying to “influence the people up there.”

Ken Berry said he thought he was helping by speaking up during the Mace Meadow meeting. He said: “I didn’t exactly speak in favor of the Gravity Supply Line,” but “I thought I filled in information.”

Berry said “everybody in the world believes the GSL is a good idea,” but paying for it is the problem. Bill Condrashoff disagreed, saying not everybody agrees with the gravity feed being a good idea and just needing funding. He said “it’s about making it cost-effective.”

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Amador County – Amador Farmers’ Market will celebrate its 18th season this year when it opens the week of May 22 in Jackson, and then with localized opening dates for Farmers’ Markets to follow later in the season in Sutter Creek, Pine Grove and Plymouth.

Michelle Grondin announced the “Eighteenth Season” of the Amador Farmers’ Market is fast approaching, and the Market Association Board of Directors held a meeting April 4th at the Sutter Creek Ice Cream Emporium to welcome new directors Robert Renfro Senior, and Mary Culver, both residents of Sutter Creek.

Grondin said “Renfro is a farmer who joined the market last season, and Culver is a long-time customer who was named to the board to represent customer views.” The Board of Directors meeting included discussion of localized market opening dates and this year’s special events.

The Amador Farmers’ Market’s 2011 season begins Sunday, May 22 in Jackson. Other local market opening dates are Saturday, June 11 in Sutter Creek; Wednesday, June 15 in Pine Grove; and Thursday, August 4 in Plymouth. Grondin said “opening days with any luck will signal the start of spring for our area.” Operational hours and days vary by location.

Jackson Farmers’ Market is held 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. each Sunday, beginning May 22 at the Busi Municipal Parking lot on Highway 49, behind Mel & Faye’s Diner in Jackson. Site Coordinator is Sean Kriletich.

Sutter Creek Farmers’ Market is held 8-11 a.m. Saturdays at the Eureka Street Parking Lot starting June 11. Site Coordinator is Greg Motch.

Pine Grove Farmer’s Market is held 3-6 p.m. Wednesdays at the Pine Grove Community Park, starting June 15. Site Coordinator is Michelle Grondin.

Plymouth Farmers’ Market is held 4-7 p.m. Thursdays from Aug. 5 to Sept. 30 at McGee Park on Main Street in Plymouth. Site coordinator is Michelle Grondin.

For market information, contact the market manager at (209) 419-2503.

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Amador County – The Amador Water Agency discussed recent informational meetings about the Gravity Supply Line last week, and took criticism, while some of the opponents explained why they were getting involved.

Sherry Curtis said she heard comments from people asking “why are they doing this? Why are they not being concerned about their own district?” She said non-Upcountry residents seemed to be using the meetings to communicate their own information and “influence the people up there.” Curtis said: “What are they concerned about? They don’t pay our rate. What standing do you really have?”

Ken Berry said he only visited a few homes in the Prop 218 drive, but 95 percent of them signed the petition when they found out he was trying to stop the rate increase. Director Paul Molinelli Senior said “95 percent of the people voted against the 218 rate increase, but that does not mean they are against the Gravity Supply Line.”

Curtis said they “interjected confusion,” when AWA should be giving out information about the project. Berry said he attended the meetings because “this is America, the land of the free and I have the right to go anywhere.” He said the Central Amador Water Project owes money to the Amador Water System, and “instead of paying back the money you owe, you are going into debt on a new project.”

Debbie Dunn said the GSL “will affect my life,” by affecting the value of her homes in Pine Acres and on Mount Zion Road. Dunn said Mancebo and Supervisor Ted Novelli had spoken in support of consolidation. She said, “well, you’ve just reeled in all of the Amador Water System.”

Director Paul Molinelli said as a Jackson resident, it does rankle him when a non-resident speaks at the City Council meeting. Thornton Consolo of Jackson said there was a “certain amount of apathy at these meetings,” and people don’t understand how the cost affects other districts.

AWA Board President Don Cooper said the agency is evaluating the concepts of consolidation, or forming an assessment district, and “all of us need to get a little more creative to meet the customers’ needs.”

Debbie Dunn said the GSL was “a water supply for 7,000 more houses to be built,” and the coffee shop meetings were “not about gravity and not about education,” it’s “all about the bad economy and saddling a huge debt on a small group of people.” Dunn said they should get “unanimous agreement from those wholesalers to take on this debt,” or a “ballot with all 3,500 ratepayers.”

Dunn criticized an early survey sample that showed 80 percent support of the GSL. Cooper said it was a small sample, and more surveys showed about 65 percent support.

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Amador County – The U.S. Forest Service announced Wednesday that the Mormon Emigrant Trail will be closed due to snow likely until mid-June, and will not be available as an alternate route to Lake Tahoe when Caltrans closes Highway 50 for two weeks or more next week.

El Dorado National Forest Public Information Officer Frank Mosbacher said Wednesday that Mormon Emigrant Trail remained closed due to snow, and it is expected to remain closed until mid-June. Mosbacher said the “popular El Dorado National Forest highway runs between Sly Park and Highway 88” and “is currently covered by 10 feet of snow on its eastern end, near Highway 88.”

He said the “road will not be available as an alternate route to Lake Tahoe when Highway 50 closes for two weeks for repairs beginning May 11.”

Caltrans will detour traffic through Amador County for two weeks, starting next Wednesday, May 11, for roadside repairs on Highway 50 at Echo Summit. The work is estimated to take two weeks, but could take longer, depending on weather.

Caltrans will detour Highway 50 eastward traffic and Highway 99 northward traffic to Lake Tahoe through Amador County, via Highways 16, 49, 88, and 89.

Caltrans District 3 made the decision to temporarily close the route while working to replace a rock wall at Echo Summit in El Dorado County. Jody Jones, District 3 director, said the “closure is part of the first stage of a safety enhancement project that will remove damaged rock walls and replace them with a barrier that meets current safety standards.”

The detour includes one-way traffic control May 9-10, and then for up to six weeks after Highway 50 is reopened. Highway 50 will be open with no restrictions on Memorial Day weekend.

Alternate routes around the closure take travelers through the El Dorado and Amador counties, and motorists should allow one hour extra travel time to reach South Lake Tahoe. Electronic message signs at key positions will direct travelers on the highways.

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Amador County - The California Department of Water Resources announced results of the final snowpack survey of the season, which on Monday showed that water content is still 144 percent of the April 1 "full season average."

Manual and electronic readings showed California's near-record snowpack is slowly melting with warming spring weather. The "readings will help hydrologists forecast spring and summer snowmelt runoff into rivers and reservoirs. The melting snow supplies approximately one-third of the water used by Californians."

Department of Water Resources Director Mark Cowin said: "All indications are that we're moving toward summer with a good water supply for our farms and cities." He said people "must be aware, however, that California can quickly turn from wet to dry, and we can't afford to forget the lessons of conservation that we learned in the 2007-2009 drought."

Ted Thomas, DWR Information Officer said in a release Monday that "snowpack water content is measured manually on or near the first of the month from January to May, and in real-time by electronic sensors." Manual readings off Highway 50 near Echo Summit showed 117 inches of snow depth at 7,600 feet elevation, with 231 percent of the long term average, and 60 inches of "water content."

A reading at 6,700 foot elevation in Lyons Creek also had 231 percent of long term average, with 105 inches of snow, and 52 inches of water content.

Thomas said electronic readings show water content in the northern mountains is 159 percent of the April 1 season average, and likewise at 144 percent in Central Sierra, 127 in south Sierra, and 144 percent statewide.

"The first of April is normally when snowpack water content is at its peak," Thomas said. "California's reservoirs are fed both by rain and snowpack runoff. A majority of the state's major reservoirs are above normal storage levels for the date."

Lake Oroville in Butte County, the State Water Project's principal reservoir, is 112 percent of average for the date, or 93 percent of its 3.5 million acre-foot capacity. Lake Shasta north of Redding, the federal Central Valley Project's largest reservoir with a capacity of 4.5 million acre-feet, is at 108 percent of average, and 94 percent capacity.

The Department of Water Resources estimated it will be able to deliver 80 percent of requested State Water Project water this year. In 2010, it delivered 50 percent of a requested 4.1 million acre-feet, up from a record-low initial projection of 5 percent due to lingering effects of the 2007-2009 drought.

The State Water Project delivers water to more than 25 million Californians and nearly one million acres of irrigated farmland. Statewide snowpack and reservoir level readings may be found at the Department of Water Resources website.

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Amador County – A special meeting of the Amador Water Agency Board of Directors has been called for 9 a.m. Friday to discuss and possibly take action on the Agency’s employee organizational structure. The board will discuss and possibly take action “regarding an employee re-organization plan for the Amador Water Agency.” The meeting is 9 a.m. Friday, May 6 at the Agency office on Ridge Road in Sutter Creek. The meeting was publicly noticed by AWA Board President Don Cooper, who will be participating by telephone from 59 Pine Street Unit Number 1, in Waltham, Massachusetts, according to the announcement, and “members of the public will have an opportunity to address the Board at such location.” The public notice said “members of the public will have the opportunity to directly address the Agency Board of Directors” about the agenda topic. The agency also will hold a special meeting of the Board of Directors at 3 p.m. Monday to dedicate a new backwash system, and lead a tour of the Buckhorn Water Treatment Plant. Both meetings are open to the public.

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