Amador County – Sutter Creek saw a “double whammy” as it awaits resolution of a pending lawsuit against Gold Rush Ranch & Golf Resort, while considering a needed update to its wastewater master plans.
City Manager Sean Rabe told the Sutter Creek City Council on Monday that a five-year notice letter from Ione to end the wastewater disposal relationship with the city came as the “double whammy” because “we need to know what we will do with Ione,” and “if Gold Rush does not survive, then we will need to do” the city wastewater master plan and the Amador Regional Sanitation Authority (ARSA) master plan.
Rabe said it’s a pretty aggressive thing, with the Ione letter and the suit, adding that “we’re compressing a lot of work into a shorter period of time” and “once the city decides what we are doing,” they will get a five-year letter to send back to Ione, because they requested a response.
The council on Monday authorized Rabe to sign a professional services contract with HydroScience Engineers, a wastewater master planning firm to handle the two draft sewer master plans for ARSA and the city. Both are in draft form, and have not been “finalized.” He said a lot of information in the plans was valid, but the population number needs to be updated. And they need to look at whether Gold Rush moves forward, and then if it will not. The city must pay, and ARSA partners will be asked to pay for the plans, and Gold Rush is not obligated to pay for the plans.
Gold Rush will have 12 months to build a new sewer treatment plant, which starts a year after the end of any litigation, giving the city a year to complete the two wastewater master plans.
Mayor Tim Murphy said Gold Rush partner Bill Bunce plans to be involved in the wastewater master planning, and the “timing needs to be built into the crystal ball section of the plan,” Murphy said. “We need to come up with something that’s flexible and makes sense. We’re in a really tough spot.” He said “there are a lot of variables but we need with-or-without-options that really make sense.”
Murphy said “there are way more questions than answers at this point,” and whether or not Gold Rush survives litigation, they still have two years to come up with a sewer plant.
Rabe said workshops for the Sewer Committee and City Council will help make decisions on the master plans. He said HydroScience Operations does manage the city sewer plant, but HydroScience Engineers is a different business altogether, handling wastewater master planning. The ARSA board will be holding a special meeting Friday.
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
