Sutter Creek – A Sutter Creek committee of volunteers got an early boost on plans to tend the city Gateway Park at the junction of the Highway 49 Bypass and Old Highway 49. Amador County Supervisor Louis Boitano pledged to give part of his discretionary funds for the project. Organizer Ed Arata gave the Sutter Creek City Council a presentation on the committee’s formation last week, when 8 people gathered at the Gateway Park to talk about the park’s upkeep. Arata said the core group last week wanted to form a long-term standing volunteer committee to take on Gateway and other city landscape projects. He said: “I’m amazed at how fast this came together.” Mayor Gary Wooten said the committee was a “great idea” and he will volunteer to help if he is in town when work is done. Arata said some of the volunteers were residents of the nearby mobile home park, who were tired of looking at the weeds at the park. He said they identified goals and decided to ask the city council for liability clearance for the group to work on the city park. Arata said Dee Kennard of Sutter Creek will head the committee, which will be under the direction of Kathleen Lynch of Amador City. Lynch is the landscaping architect who designed the Gateway Park, which was built last year. But Arata said the “city has been unable to maintain this site due to budget and manpower constraints.” Arata said the group laid out plans for the site and possible future projects. They plan to pull weeds and get them off the site, apply a pre-emergent chemical at the site before winter, and find a rough estimate of costs for chemicals, mulch and parts for an irrigation system. Arata said the costs were estimated at $1,500 to $2,000 per year. After he spoke, Supervisor Boitano took the podium and said he will “commit $2,000 out of my recreation fund so you won’t have to worry about money for the Gateway Park.” The recreation funds can be dispensed at his discretion in District 4. Other work includes checking and repairing an irrigation system, surveying plant loss and getting an estimate for plant replacement. He said they would seek an undetermined source of funding from donations or local service groups, to keep the committee working on projects. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.