Plymouth – The Plymouth City Council retained water rights specialists last week as negotiations continue on the Arroyo Ditch. City Attorney Steven Rudolph, of the firm Myers Nave (Naw-Vay), recommended the specialist, Somach Simmons & Dunn, attorneys at law of Sacramento. Rudolph in a July 2nd memo to the city council said the city is currently in “negotiations with the Shenandoah Water Company regarding the future maintenance of the Arroyo Ditch and the beneficial use of the related water rights.” He said the “purpose of retaining Somach Simmons & Dunn, and in particular, Paul Simmons of that firm, is to provide legal advice to the city regarding any proposal from (Shenandoah Water Company) that affects the city’s water rights.” Rudolph said the contract gives hourly compensation, and “the city will be reimbursed for these costs by the Shenandoah Water Company.” The council approved a resolution authorizing City Manager Dixon Flynn to execute a retention agreement with Somach Simmons & Dunn. The agreement included a $5,000 dollar deposit toward initial fees. Somach Simmons & Dunn’s schedule of rates for public clients listed Simmons as its only “key personnel,” earning a rate of $310 dollars per hour. Additional personnel hourly rates ranged between $120 and $390 dollars an hour. Flynn gave a presentation on a visit he made to Copperopolis during a trip he took in June, showing photos of the designs of downtown buildings. He said they “were constructed by a developer that shows a style of facades” that he thought “would be successful in Plymouth.” Flynn said it “is not a 1930s style but more of a Gold Rush late 19th century style.” In a memo to the council, he said he believed it may be worth the council members’ time to Copperopolis “just to see what they have done.” Flynn said he expected the Plymouth City Council’s next regular meeting, August 13th to be a big meeting, with a General Plan discussion. City planning staff took direction in early July and will make recommended changes. Staff was expected to give the “strikethrough” edition of the General Plan EIR to the city council members by Friday, July 31st, giving the council and the public 2 weeks to read the document, before the General Plan EIR public hearing meeting resumes. That meeting is 5:30 p.m. Thursday, August 13th at city hall, and the General Plan and EIR will be the only item on the agenda. Story by Jim Reece. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.