By Jim Reece - Amador County Undersheriff James Wegner said in a letter last week that he did not believe the Wicklow Subdivision would affect the Jackson Police Department. Wegner was asked by the Amador County Planning Commission to comment on a September letter from Jackson Mayor Rosalie Pryor-Escamilla about the Revised Draft Environmental Impact Report for the Wicklow project. In his response, Wegner partly agreed with the Mayor in that he did believe as she said that Jackson Police would at times assist with calls in the Wicklow Subdivision. But Wegner pointed at call histories for JPD since 2004, the Jackson Police had been the primary responder in the unincorporated area of Martell on just three occasions in four years. He said Jackson and other city police departments and the sheriff’s officers all had mutual aid agreements, and the sheriff office also had such an aid agreement with the California Office of Emergency Services. Pryor-Escamilla’s letter said the proximity of the Wicklow project to Jackson makes it highly likely that the JPD would be the first to respond in the event of an emergency. Wegner disagreed with that. And he said in development of sheriff’s personnel mitigation agreements with developers of Wicklow and also the Buena Vista Casino, “restructured and realigned sheriff’s office beat assignments are already in the planning stage” and “there will be more sheriffs’ office patrol units assigned to the Martell area than are currently deployed.” Pryor-Escamilla in her letter, dated September 23rd, said that the Wicklow Subdivision will cause a need for additional JPD personnel, which “will require expansion of the city’s current police station as this facility is already overcrowded.” She said the issue must be addressed in the Wicklow Subdivision’s Final EIR, “for the document to be considered adequate.” Wegner said he disagreed that the Wicklow Subdivision would require additional Jackson police personnel, “based upon documented city responses to the Martell area.” The Amador County Planning Commission considered the Wicklow Subdivision’s EIR last night, with results from the meeting unavailable for this report.
Wednesday, 29 October 2008 02:48
Debate Continues Over Wicklow's Future Police Services
By Jim Reece - Amador County Undersheriff James Wegner said in a letter last week that he did not believe the Wicklow Subdivision would affect the Jackson Police Department. Wegner was asked by the Amador County Planning Commission to comment on a September letter from Jackson Mayor Rosalie Pryor-Escamilla about the Revised Draft Environmental Impact Report for the Wicklow project. In his response, Wegner partly agreed with the Mayor in that he did believe as she said that Jackson Police would at times assist with calls in the Wicklow Subdivision. But Wegner pointed at call histories for JPD since 2004, the Jackson Police had been the primary responder in the unincorporated area of Martell on just three occasions in four years. He said Jackson and other city police departments and the sheriff’s officers all had mutual aid agreements, and the sheriff office also had such an aid agreement with the California Office of Emergency Services. Pryor-Escamilla’s letter said the proximity of the Wicklow project to Jackson makes it highly likely that the JPD would be the first to respond in the event of an emergency. Wegner disagreed with that. And he said in development of sheriff’s personnel mitigation agreements with developers of Wicklow and also the Buena Vista Casino, “restructured and realigned sheriff’s office beat assignments are already in the planning stage” and “there will be more sheriffs’ office patrol units assigned to the Martell area than are currently deployed.” Pryor-Escamilla in her letter, dated September 23rd, said that the Wicklow Subdivision will cause a need for additional JPD personnel, which “will require expansion of the city’s current police station as this facility is already overcrowded.” She said the issue must be addressed in the Wicklow Subdivision’s Final EIR, “for the document to be considered adequate.” Wegner said he disagreed that the Wicklow Subdivision would require additional Jackson police personnel, “based upon documented city responses to the Martell area.” The Amador County Planning Commission considered the Wicklow Subdivision’s EIR last night, with results from the meeting unavailable for this report.
