Amador County – The Amador County Transportation Commission voted 6-0 Wednesday to take two proposed project finalists to the public and the state for a Pine Grove Corridor improvement project.

The Commission authorized increasing a contract with CH2M Hill by $57,232. Hill will offer services of “interagency coordination and public participation assistance,” in taking the proposed projects to the public, and also to the California Department of Transportation’s “Project Development Team.”

Planner and Program Manager Neil Peacock gave an overview of the project thus far, saying ACTC’s appointed “Stakeholder Work Group” of a dozen members had met 12 times and through the process pared down 14 alternate routes to four for more in depth study. Those were whittled to two on which the Stakeholders were able to reach a consensus of support. Some of the Stakeholders urged support, including Andy Byrne, John Carlson, Gary Reinoehl, and Jane Houton.

Peacock said he could try to do the next phase himself, but ACTC Executive Director Charles Field said CH2M Hill was needed for its expertise to assist in meetings with business owners, the public, and the Caltrans Project Development Team, made up of about a dozen different divisions of the Department, which in turn apply their expertise to the proposals.

Field said the meetings have not yet been scheduled, but the public meetings are public, while those with Caltrans are staff level and are closed to the public.

Peacock said “there’s no easy solution here,” and they have not gone out to the community at large since November. Commissioners commented: Supervisor Richard Forster said: “You should take business owners on a tour through Sutter Creek. It’s pretty dead in Sutter Creek right now.”

Commission Chairman, Ione Mayor David Plank asked if they would spend the $57,000 and not have a decision from the community. Peacock said they might hear that people want the traffic and the vitality through town, and they “might want to fix what we’ve got.”

The two projects left on the table by the Stakeholder Working Group included a “fix what we’ve got approach,” or a two-lane southern bypass, with east-bound and west-bound lanes. Those were run through a “decision matrix” crafted from public input, and costly projects were dismissed.

Peacock said we have two “build” alternatives. They may not have the capacity to suit Caltrans, but if they want to front more of the costs, they could definitely go bigger. He said all but two of the alternates are recommended for elimination and will not be studied any more.

The through-town three-lane improvement was estimated to cost $27.4 million in 2024, and $16.7 million in 2010. The Southern Bypass, from Climax to Mount Zion Road, was estimated to cost $71 million in 2024, and $43.3 million in 2010.

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