News Archive (6192)
Amador County – A group earlier this month learned it has succeeded in forcing a city-wide vote on the future of the Ione Police Department. Jim Scully of rural Amador County and Denise Robertson of Ione submitted a petition for the ballot measure, and the Amador County Elections Department certified that they had enough valid signatures to proceed with the ballot initiative. Ione City Clerk Janice Traverso said the measure would not make it on this November’s ballot. She said the election office indicated that the item instead would be placed on the next general election ballot for the city, in November 2012. Traverso said proponents turned in the petition August 15th and she must verify that information in the petition is correct. She said Scully and Robertson had 213 signatures and needed 206 to place it on the ballot. She said it “definitely will be addressed at the Sept. 7th meeting,” the next regular city council meeting. She was not sure if the city would take legal action. In February, Ione City Attorney Kristen Castanos released a title and summary of a “petition for an initiative that proposes to transfer law enforcement services from the city of Ione Police Department to the Amador County Sheriff’s Department.” Castanos said the initiative appeared to be “illegal and unconstitutional” because it “attempts to compel the county” to “take over law enforcement services for the city.” Castanos said “it’s invalid because” the “right of the city to contract for police services is vested in the council’s discretion” and is “not a proper subject for an initiative.” Scully said Wednesday that this was only Castanos’ legal opinion. He said: “This has been done in other places,” and “I don’t view that as the potentially strongest legal argument in the world.” Scully said they turned in the petition with 225 signatures on August 13th and have not received “any official word from the city.” He understood it was confirmed they had enough signatures, but they were told they did not make the November ballot. Ione City Manager Kim Kerr in a Sacramento TV news report Tuesday said Scully and Robertson’s complaints stem from a 2003 incident. But Scully said: “We’ve moved on to new problems, including two reports made by one officer” and witnesses that were not identified and not interviewed. Scully said one complaint is from a 2008 incident. Scully said: “We don’t care about 2003. It’s dead and gone,” but Tuesday “was the 3rd time the city came back and brought it up again.” Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Friday, 27 August 2010 03:23
Ione burglary investigation leads to 2 Sacramento suspects
Written by Tom
Amador County – The Ione Policed Department this week said a local burglary investigation has led to two Sacramento suspects and multiple felony cases in the greater Sacramento region. IPD Chief Michael L. Johnson announced the developments in the local case in a release Thursday. Johnson said in July, Ione Police Department responded to the 800 block of Fairway Drive to a reported burglary. Officers discovered forced entry into the residence and theft of a computer, credit cards, and other personal items. Johnson said: “Over the next several days, despite cancellation of the credit cards and bank accounts, the suspect (or suspects) used the credit card to purchase thousands of dollars in merchandise and even opened a new line of credit fraudulently assuming the victims identification.” During the course of the investigation, IPD “was successful in gaining surveillance videos at locations where the merchandise had been purchased.” Johnson said Ione police identified the suspects involved, and “a search warrant was served on the suspects’ cellular phone account.” That information led authorities to a residence. Johnson said IPD “solicited the assistance of the Sacramento Sheriff’s Department to execute a felony probation search” at the residence in Sacramento County. Several stolen property items from the Ione burglary, along with other identified stolen property, was discovered in the search. The investigation has linked these suspects to at least four other burglaries in Folsom, Woodland, and the Sacramento region, Johnson said. Suspects Arnold Kang and Rosa Chang are in custody on unrelated warrants and probation violation charges. Arrests warrants for the pending burglary, possession of stolen property, forgery, and identity theft related charges are currently being sought through the Amador County District Attorney’s office. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Friday, 27 August 2010 03:25
23-year-old Plymouth woman found dead off West Clinton Road
Written by Tom
Amador County – The Amador County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Wednesday that the body of a 23-year-old Plymouth woman was found last Thursday (August 19th) in a ditch on West Clinton Road. The body was later confirmed to be that of Tiffany Ann Groza after her mother reported her missing and identified her at the coroner’s office.
According to a release from the Sheriff’s Office, the body was first discovered by a reporting party who tried to approach “an unfamiliar canine that had been in the area since Tuesday.” The dog “became aggressive and was protective of a brushy area in a ditch on the south side of the road” in which there appeared to be a human body. Sheriff’s Deputies confirmed the presence of a white female in the ditch before passing the case to Sheriff’s Detectives to begin the investigation. The release said “the scene was processed for potential evidence, the decedent was recovered, witnesses were interviewed and a neighborhood canvas was conducted.” An examination of Groza’s body was conducted by a forensic pathologist in Placer County on Saturday (August 21st). The examination “showed no blunt force trauma injuries, no sharp force trauma injuries, no gunshot wounds, or other apparent injuries consistent with foul play.” Toxicology results are pending and are expected in four to six weeks. “During this on-going investigation, Amador County Sheriff’s Detectives have drafted and executed search warrants and court orders, they have conducted numerous interviews and searches, and have examined and reviewed miscellaneous records and surveillance video, in an effort to reconstruct the final days of Tiffany’s life and assist in determining the cause of her death,” said the Sheriff’s Office. This investigation is continuing. No further details will be released at this time, pending additional investigation. Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to contact the Amador County Sheriff’s Office at (209) 223-6500. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Wednesday, 25 August 2010 08:23
State budget delays could impact road project funding
Written by Tom
California – Caltrans announced earlier this month that delays in approval of a state budget for the next fiscal year will have huge impacts on funding for new and existing transportation projects throughout the state. As of now, it looks at though Amador County road projects will remain unaffected, but the delays could stop at least $262 million dollars for projects in our district (District 10) that are either awaiting allocated funds, under construction, or contingent upon the 2010 Budget Act. This includes $112 for roadway rehabilitation on Interstate 5 and Highway 99 in Sacramento County, $108 million for rehabilitation of Interstate’s 5 and 80 in Sacramento County, $20 million for partially completed bridge replacement on Highway 99 in Merced, $17 million for partially completed reconstruction of Highway 99 in Ceres, and $5 million for a roadway rehabilitation project on Route 4 within District 10. Although there is no financial impact in Amador County, Charles Field, Executive Director of the Amador County Transportation Commission, said there will be an indirect effect on local projects in the works. “Funding cutbacks would impact Caltrans ability to have all the resources and staff people it needs to help deliver projects on schedule,” said Field. “Caltrans is on 4 hour furlough weeks, and the new District 10 director who we would appeal to is going to work for Contra Costa County now,” he added. Field said all of this create a “ripple effect,” and small, rural county projects receive less attention. “Should the Budget Impasse continue through the end of August 2010, transportation fund cash balances may be depleted, resulting in potential suspension of ongoing construction projects,” said Cindy McKim, Director of Caltrans. Her concerns were outlined in a letter to Dale Bonner, Secretary of California’s Business, Transportation and Housing Agency. McKim wrote that during the 2008/09 fiscal year budget impasse, “payments for over 96,000 invoices were delayed resulting in more than $215,000 in penalties.” She said, “State tax revenue is impacted by delaying income to construction contractors and their employees” and project suspensions result in penalty payments to contractors and increased project costs. Caltrans currently has funding for transportation projects worth over $2.1 billion that are contingent on the approval of the state budget, and another $900 million in new contracts to construction firms and $9.5 billion of current construction that may be delayed. “Without a budget and the uncertainty of available cash for contracts after September, the department will not be awarding new contracts,” said McKim. “This impasse will cause a delay in new construction starts and delay the creation or saving of jobs.” Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Wednesday, 25 August 2010 08:25
Attorney says litigation premature as Plymouth returns to casino, Final EIS
Written by Tom
Amador County – The Plymouth City Council had litigation on its agenda Monday afternoon, but never went into closed session to discuss it. The council held a special meeting to discuss the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Ione Band of Miwok Indians’ fee to trust request for a casino, but only moved to answer the FEIS. The council directed staff to write a comment letter. City Attorney Mike Dean said it mostly would note that past comments by the city and others remain to be answered. He said they must also point out how the Bureau of Indian Affairs is “flat wrong” in failing to acknowledge the change in legal status of the tribe in the last year. Councilman Jon Colburn took offense to the FEIS calling the city a “cooperating agency” in the fee-to-trust issue. Councilman Greg Baldwin recognized that the past city council approved a Municipal Services Agreement with the tribe for its casino. Colburn said it was hard to see why the tribe would not give an extension for the city to look at a 1,500-page document they took 4 years to produce. Dean said “they haven’t approved the document either,” and “they could send you another 1,500-page document tomorrow.” Dean said the tribe may be sending through the project FEIS “just in case Congress finds a way to take action the tribe seeks.” Gary Colburn said the FEIS should note city losses of houses, jobs and revenue, and the “city needs the casino more now than when this began.” Butch Cranford said the FEIS had been called ambiguous, misleading and false by U.S. Solicitor General David Burnhardt in January 2009, who reversed a previous land opinion. Cranford said “our comments on the fee-to-trust application have not been answered to this day,” and “this is about following the law,” seeing whether BIA and the National Indian Gaming Commission acted on the FEIS in accordance with law. If not, he urged the city to file a lawsuit, which he expected would cost about $250,000. Dean said that would probably be the cost, but it could be shared by multiple plaintiffs. Dean said it was “premature to initiate litigation,” and recommended studying comments on the FEIS. Fordyce asked if they should speak with the tribe. She had heard they “wanted to get the ball rolling,” before the FEIS came out, and she wasn’t sure if the “solicitor general” had been overruled. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Wednesday, 25 August 2010 08:28
PG&E seeks funding to study pumped hydro facility for Mokelumne River
Written by Tom
Amador County - Pacific Gas and Electric Company has submitted a request to California regulators for funding a study on the feasibility of building a pumped hydro facility in the Mokelumne River watershed in Amador County. The utility is asking regulators to spend close to $33.5 million on the study of the project, which would also pay for exploring other potential sites like the Kings River watershed in Fresno County. In a press release, PG&E said the facility would generate between 400 megawatts and 1,200 megawatts. Referred to by the company as the Mokelumne River project, the plan includes the connection of existing reservoirs and the possible construction of a new reservoir to be built on or nearby Cole Creek at a total estimated price tag of $2.5 billion. The power would be transferred throughout the state.
A pumped hydro storage system generates electricity by releasing water from one reservoir into another one downstream, pushing it through a series of turbines along the way. The water is pumped uphill during off-peak times and released during peak times. Despite the many alternative forms of electricity generation available, pumped hydro is considered more reliable and faster, with the ability to create a large power output in a short period of time.
If this project is eventually approved, it will become the seventh hydro power system in the state. At least 3 other plants are currently proposed throughout California. PG&E says the permitting process alone could take 6 years to complete. PG&E’s plan is the latest attempt by a major utility to utilize the Mokelumne River to serve the demands of its growing customer base. Last spring, a large group of area citizens and the vast majority of local elected officials expressed outrage and disapproval at the East Bay Municipal Utility District’s proposal to expand the Pardee Reservoir by 2040, which would flood miles of the Mokelumne River in order to provide additional water capacity to millions of customers in the east bay. That plan was eventually approved by the EBMUD board, despite overwhelming opposition from over 50 elected officials, government agencies, political groups, NGOs, and conservation and fishing organizations. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Amador County – Sutter Creek released on Monday a final draft of its response to the 2009-2010 Grand Jury Report, with many agreements, but also some disagreements. The draft was written by Mayor Pro Tempore Tim Murphy, acting City Manager Sean Rabe and city attorney Derek Cole. The response agrees with the bulk of the Grand Jury findings and recommendations, many of which have been initiated. The draft will be considered by the city council in a special meeting 7 p.m. Monday (August 30th). The response is due September 1st. The draft points out what it calls an error in the Grand Jury Report introduction, which said the “City Council should have been aware of the issues and taken action prior to the start of this investigation.” The response said: “This implies that if it were not for the Grand Jury Report many of these issues would never have been revealed or corrected.” The response calls that “incorrect, especially regarding the Finance, Administration and Personnel section of the report,” saying that the “city council has taken very significant actions to correct many of these issues long before they were referred to the Grand Jury.” Some were handled in 2008 and others in 2009, the response said, and the public may not have been aware, “since many of the actions were part of confidential personnel performance discussions. However, the city council’s efforts to address these issues are a matter of public record which the Grand Jury should have considered prior to beginning their investigation.” The draft response lists a disagreement with the Grand Jury recommendation to have the city finance director answer directly to the city council, rather than the city manager, saying that “could undermine the city manager’s ability to control this key aspect of their job responsibilities.” The response also rejects the recommendation that the city “renegotiate contracts so that only the employer’s portion” of retirement and Social Security are paid by the city. The response calls it a matter for the “collective bargaining process rather than the Grand Jury.” The response also criticizes part of a final recommendation that urges citizens to “become actively involved with the city council.” The city draft response said: “Active participation by the public is critical to the local democratic process,” but the “closing sentiment” urging that the public “help city government avoid defaulting to continued mismanagement,” was “an unwarranted insult and below the professional standard expected of a Grand Jury recommendation.” Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Tuesday, 24 August 2010 06:37
Local Sierra Nevada Geotourism Nominaiton Period Closes Aug. 31
Written by Tom
Amador County – The process of creating a Sierra Nevada Geotourism MapGuide in the central Sierra Nevada is close to over, and those involved in the project are urging residents to submit their nominations in the remaining open categories. Martini Morris, an Americorp member and Sierra Business Council representative, said approximately 15 areas have already been nominated in Amador County. Due to the large amount of local interest, she said the nomination period has been extended until August 31st to coincide with the close of the active nomination period for the Tahoe Emigrant Corridor. The nomination period for Amador County was supposed to close in October 2009. Nomination periods for the Northern Sierra and Southern Sierra regions are set to close on January 2011 and June 2011, respectively. Morris said regional areas are based on Sierra Nevada Conservancy boundaries. Maureen Funk, Executive Director of the Amador Council of Tourism, said in a release that “geotourism is defined as tourism that sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place - its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage and the well-being of its residents.” The term was coined by National Geographic. Nominations can include events, local businesses, service opportunities, historical and cultural sites, local artists, natural attractions and outdoor adventures. She said nominations should include places that share these qualities. She said it is important to “keep in mind that Geotourism helps travelers to tread lightly and enjoy a locale’s sense of place.” The MapGuide can be viewed at www.sierranevadageotourism.org/map.php. To make a nomination go to: www.sierranevadageotourism.org/ . Once there, select the blue button that says, “Tahoe Emigrant Corridor -Nominate Now”. For more information, call 530-582-4800. The Sierra Nevada Geotourism MapGuide project is a partnership between National Geographic, the Sierra Nevada Conservancy and the Sierra Business Council. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Amador County – Walgreens plans a grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony 10 a.m. Wednesday (August 25th) at its new store at 475 Highway 49 in Sutter Creek. Vera Allen of the Amador County Chamber of Commerce e-mailed invitations for the opening, which expects local dignitaries to be in attendance. Store management invites people to preview the new store, enjoy refreshments, and welcome the branch manager, Cathy Bennett. During the party, Walgreens will offer a special 15 percent discount on purchases, and 20 percent off Walgreens or “W Brand” products. The store is at the corner of Highway 49 and Ridge Road. Story by Jim This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Tuesday, 24 August 2010 06:40
$66.6M Broadband Project Awaits $6.6M Match From Calif. Utilities
Written by Tom
Amador County – Amador County will be among 18 counties to benefit from $46.6 million in federal matching grants, toward a vast broadband fiber optic project. Janis Cortese of the nonprofit Corporation for Education Network Initiatives in California (CENIC) gave thanks to the 18 counties that helped the Central Valley Next Generation Broadband Infrastructure Project win funding last week from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and The National Telecommunications and Information Administration. Cortese said support from the local companies helped the project qualify, and she hoped that support continued. CENIC and private sector partner The Central Valley Independent Network, LLC, plan to improve the availability of broadband networking infrastructure for 18 counties in the Central Valley, including Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Placer, and Tuolumne counties. The $66.6 million project will build, operate and maintain “a fiber-optic network infrastructure” that will span 1,371 miles of California's Central Valley. The project will connect “community anchor institutions,” such as offices of education in 20 counties that serve more than 998,000 students. It will also connect 14 community colleges and districts serving 200,000 students, and CSU’s 3 anchor schools, serving 30,500 students. She said: “In addition to the NTIA grant, equal to 70 percent of the costs, the affiliated members of CVIN, LLC have committed $13.2 million in cash for a 20 percent match,” Cortese said, and CVIN is “now awaiting favorable action by the California Public Utilities Commission to provide a 10 percent match, or $6.6 million.” Cortese said the partnership is “hopeful for positive action soon so we can officially start the implementation phase.” As part of the partnership, she said: “Very early on, we will be returning to each county to involve folks in final input as part of locking down our design.” Once connected, non-profit anchor institutions will be supported by CENIC and become an integral part of CENIC’s statewide California Research & Education Network, a 3,000-mile fiber-optic network infrastructure “extending from the Mexican border to Corning and San Diego into Arizona, which reaches nearly 10 million students, faculty, and staff. Cortese said the CalREN has been serving California public research and education institutions since 1997. CVIN will utilize the new infrastructure for commercially, enabling businesses, residences, and government agencies in its project area to purchase a full range of telecommunications services. Services will be offered by CVIN directly, or affiliates and other local telecommunications providers with whom CVIN has strategic relationships. CVIN, LLC is a joint enterprise comprised of affiliates of 8 independent telephone companies covering more than 7,000 square miles in central and northern California, on 1,700 miles of fiber. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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