By Jim Reece - The Sutter Creek City Council OK’d a nearly 1 Million Dollar realignment of the intersections of Old Ridge Road and Sutter Hill Road on Sutter Hill, which will move the intersection eastward and widen it to ease traffic jams. The 975,000 dollar project will put in about 150 feet of pavement and will be paid on a 90-10 percent matching roadways grant, with the city matching 10 percent of the costs. City Engineer Roark Webber presented the Sutter Hill Realignment Project. Webber asked for council approval of a negative declaration for the project, which would then be sent for California Environmental Quality Act approval, National EPA approval and also approval from the federal Highway Administration. City Planner Bruce Baracco said the realignment, moving the intersection about 150 feet east of its present location, should reduce traffic at the main intersection of Highway 49 and Ridge Road, and also decrease the carbon footprint. Baracco said global warming is mentioned in the negative declaration and he believed the answer to CALTRANS was adequate. Resident Ed Swift in public comment said the intersection “has to go.” Swift pointed out that the estimated cost was 974,000 dollars, and 43,000 dollars had already been spent on preliminary engineering. Mayor Pro Tempore Bill Hepworth said he thought the convergence was “one of the most dangerous intersections in the county. It’s been a long time coming and it for sure has my support.