By Jim Reece -

Ione elected officials and staff hosted a General Plan Workshop Sept. 8 with 45 people attending and nearly all contributing with the help of a digital instant polling mechanism and a slide show. Daniel Hamilton of Rancho Cordova hosted the meeting and called the General Plan a “blueprint for growth and planning now and in the future” and a reflection of community goals.” He said it was a framework for land use decisions, housing, economic development, cultural and natural resources and transportation. Of the 45 attending, 66 percent were residents of Ione for 10 years or less, including 34 percent less than 5 years. 24 percent were residents for 20 or more years.

84 percent said Ione was their primary resident and 95 percent owned their home rather than rented. 94 percent of the crowd thought Ione’s pedestrian system was inadequate. To improve circulation locally, 45 percent supported expansion of the city’s sidewalk system while 34 percent preferred building or designating bicycle lanes. Of the 45 in the crowd, three raised their hands to say that they had a walking destination in town that they could reach entirely on paved sidewalks. Others criticized the bicycle lane idea, said there were no shoulders on streets and no room for the lanes. 58 percent said it was very important for Ione to encourage more entertainment, festivals and nightlife, while another 37 percent said that was somewhat important. Hamilton said some aspects of festivals included large commercial spaces dedicated to such use, while nightlife events would include neighborhood communication about such events for noise and light impact. The crowd split exactly 50-50 on whether the city’s parks were adequate, which Hamilton said was a good place to finish and encourage conversation. One person said Ione needed more small neighborhood parks, while another said small parks were the problem because they were so small. For an overall poll of the biggest areas of concern, 58 percent said attracting new businesses and industry was the top priority. 45 percent chose improving downtown, 37 percent picked preserving open space, 34 percent said managing the pace of growth and a high number picked improving roads, traffic and transit.