Amador County – The Ione City Council last week scheduled a workshop and public hearing in a joint meeting with the Amador County Board of Supervisors for later this month to discuss elements of a city annexation.

City Manager Kim Kerr said the joint meeting will take place October 28th.

Kerr said the city was told by the Amador County Local Agency Formation Commission board of directors to complete and sign an agreement with supervisors on a Sphere of Influence amendment. She said the city “council always wanted an agreement.”

Ione’s committee on the agreement met with Supervisors Louis Boitano and Richard Forster last week, and the draft agreement has been rewritten, Kerr said. She said they “eliminated some of the prior concerns,” and based the agreement somewhat on the Jackson Memorandum of Understanding with the county.

It eliminated the requirement for “pre-zoning,” Kerr said, and basically allows each party to continue what it is now doing as far as zoning and land use designation, and the “city has no jurisdiction until land is annexed.” They tried to allow the county to maintain its land use authority.

Kerr said the annexation came about when the General Plan update identified parcels that wanted to be included in the Ione Sphere of Influence, so were voluntarily added, including Q ranch. Other areas are being amended in the Sphere of Influence border to follow property lines, and one area has a “flip-flop” of land to make the sphere follow a road.

She said two properties that want to join the sphere surround another, which must also be placed into the sphere. And when that is completed, they may be able to get to LAFCO in November.

Ione City Council will hold its joint meeting with the Board of Supervisors 6 p.m. Thursday, October 28th at City Hall, after a light turnout at the last meeting, which was held at Evalyn Bishop Hall.

Also, last week, the city council asked for more information on its public facilities fees update and will set a special meeting as a workshop, at a date to be determined. Kerr said staff will bring back information in a public hearing, to discuss the impact fee changes with the public.

Staff will work on the public facilities fee update and probably return to the council by early November.

Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.