Amador County – A group of Ione citizens calling itself “The Voice in Ione” served a notice of intent to petition for the recall of Mayor David Plank on Tuesday night in Ione.
Jim Nevin, who presented the notice to the Mayor, said he needed 20 signatures to file the notice, and he turned in 50 signatures to the City Clerk earlier Tuesday. Nevin said the notice would be going to the Amador Ledger-Dispatch newspaper today for publication in its legal section. He said the Mayor had a time period following during which to respond, and then he and the petitioning group would have to circulate petitions and gather 500 signatures.
City Clerk Janice Traverso said: “This first go-around, they needed 20 signatures, to file the notice of intention to circulate.” If the signatures and the notice are approved, the petition circulators must then get signatures from 25 percent of the city’s registered voters to place the recall question on a ballot, and a special election may have to be called.
Traverso said 25 percent of registered Ione voters was approximately 520 signatures, because the city has approximately 2,100 registered voters. She said Mayor Plank has 10 days to respond to the notice of intention. The Council did not discuss the issue during their regular meeting Tuesday, after the presentation of the notice.
If the petitioners get enough signatures, then the Ione City Council would be required to call for a special election for a recall vote.
Nevin, who filed the petition, has been involved in the website “IonePD.com,” which lists information about the City Council, and police department. One poll recently asked which council members should be recalled, and Plank led the list, with about 65 percent of the respondents’ votes. Councilwoman Andrea Bonham had 22 percent.
The Ione City Council on a 3-1 vote with one abstention approved the initiation of a “design, build, operate and finance contract with PERC Water, for a new city tertiary level wastewater treatment plant. Plank, Bonham and Councilman Daniel Epperson voted in favor, while Vice Mayor Ron Smylie voted no, and Councilman Lloyd Oneto abstained.
City Manager Kim Kerr said the next step would be negotiation with PERC on a contract. She said there would be no payment required until the plant is open and operational for 30 days. The agreement would also set the wastewater rates for 30 years, and would help the city lift a cease & desist order from the state, for violations dating back to 2001.
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