News Archive (6192)
Amador County – The Amador County Sheriff’s Office has announced the arrest of a Sutter Creek man and 2 men from Citrus Heights in relation to a string of burglaries that occurred over more than a year. Sheriff Martin Ryan said in a release today that the series of burglaries occurred in the unincorporated county area off Shake Ridge Road and in the area of Willow Creek Road, between April 4, 2009 and April 13, 2010. Amador Sheriff’s “detectives conducted the investigation which connected the burglaries based in part, upon the time of day, method of entry and type of property targeted,” Ryan said. Based on the investigation conducted by ACSO detectives, arrest warrants were obtained for James Anthony Guerrero, 18, of Citrus Heights; Brandon Taylor Neuman, 19, of Citrus Heights; and Casey Robert Clark, 19, of Sutter Creek. All 3 have been arrested and charged with residential burglary. During the week of June 7th, Amador detectives arrested Guerrero, who was also charged with possession of stolen property. Guerrero’s bail was set at $60,000. Detectives also arrested Neuman, whose bail was set at $50,000. Sutter Creek Police Department arrested Clark on the burglary warrant during an unrelated traffic detention. Clark’s bail was set at $50,000. Ryan said to date more than $17,000 worth of stolen property has been recovered” by ACSO detectives. The stolen property primarily consisted of jewelry, computers and other electronics. Information obtained during the investigation indicates the suspects may be responsible for as many as 37 residential burglaries within unincorporated areas of Amador County and Citrus Heights, however, at this point the suspects have only been positively linked to 10 burglaries within Amador County. “During the course of the investigation, which included neighborhood canvases, interviews and surveillance operations, detectives obtained descriptions of 3 possible suspects and a possible vehicle used in the commission of the crimes.” A follow up investigation led to Citrus Heights, and with assistance from the Citrus Heights Police Department, some property stolen from burglaries in the Willow Creek area was recovered, dumped in a vacant lot, near one of the suspect’s residences. Ryan said that as the “burglary investigation continued, it was determined that 2 of the burglary suspects, were also the focus of a narcotics investigation being conducted by the Amador County Combined Narcotics Enforcement Taskforce.” Investigators found more stolen property that had been “hidden, pawned and/or dumped, within Amador County and within the city of Citrus Heights.” TSPN News Report. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Amador County – Party turnouts in Amador County ranked 7th overall of the 58 counties in California in last Tuesday’s Primary Election, according to information collected by the Amador County Elections Department. That accounts for over half of the registered voters in the County. The department lists 7,156 Democrats voters representing 34.18 percent of the all registered voters in the county, 4,195 of which voted in the latest election. Registered Republican voters equal a total of 9,404, or 44.92 percent of the overall total. Of those, 5,887 Republicans participated in Tuesday’s election. 18.75 percent of the County’s 3,381 registered nonpartisan voters cast 634 ballots on Tuesday. Another 706 citizens representing 3.37 of Amador’s registered voters also participated Tuesday, including members of the Libertarian, Peace and Freedom, Green and American Independent parties. California elections in general receive low voter turnout when compared to other states. Last week, only 24.8 percent of registered voters participated, which translates to an even lower 18.3 percent of Californians who are eligible to vote. 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 – A big turnout is expected to see 10th District Assemblymember and Amador County representative Alyson Huber speak this Friday (June 18th) at tiny Café de Coco in downtown Jackson. According to an announcement from Amador Democratic Central Committee Chairman Randy Bayne, Huber’s local appearance kicks off a series of forums across her district in which she’ll “discuss the state budget, the May revise, her legislative priorities, and her work on eliminating waste, fraud and abuse in government.” As Chair of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee for the state, Huber has been busy examining oversight and implementation of Federal Recovery Act funding. A recent hearing focused on oversight of ARRA funds and what is being done to prevent there waste and misuse, as well as implementation efforts. The California State Assembly this month, on an overwhelming, bipartisan vote, passed two far reaching governmental reform measures authored by Alyson Huber. The legislation if implemented will push government to identify waste, duplication and inefficiencies in state departments and agencies. Democratic Senator Mark DeSaulnier and Republican Assemblymember Roger Niello are co-authors of both bills. “For many years the legislature and the Governor have created governmental entities that were designed to solve particular problems,” Huber said at the times of the measures passage. “I think the time has come for us to review each of these bureaucracies, keep the ones that work and eliminate those that have outlived their usefulness. This will ensure taxpayers that their money is being spent wisely,” she said. Bayne encourages community members to attend the forum Friday and bring their “questions, ideas and solutions regarding state legislative issues that affect the community.” Huber is also scheduled to appear at the Rio Americano High School library in Sacramento from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 22. She’ll be at the Bear Creek High School multi-purpose room in Stockton from 6 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 23. Finally she’ll appear at Rancho Murieta Country Club from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 24 and at the Monterey Trails High School theatre room from 7 to 8 p.m. on that same day. The Café De Coco lunch forum takes place this Friday (June 18) from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Café de Coco in Jackson. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Wednesday, 16 June 2010 06:03
AWA Looks to Be Able to Serve Its “Will Serve”Commitments
Written by Tom
Amador County – The Amador Water Agency last week discussed allowing new treated water connections of up to 24 in Ione, and another 186 on the Tanner plant system, as the agency reaches the “bottom of the barrel” of its capacities. General Manager Gene Mancebo said “being at the bottom of the barrel capacity is new for this agency.” The agency attorney will look into state peak flow requirements and whether the agency can allow those new hook ups, by looking at Title 22’s applicability. Mancebo said the agency is “not looking to make it a state campaign,” and hopes to handle it with the district representative of the California Department of Public Health. Ione-area developer Rob Aragon (representing Ione Villages 1 LLC and the Building Industry Association) said he wanted to confirm that a connection will be given if someone does improvements and gets a final map. President Bill Condrashoff asked what staff does when they get will-serve requests, which come in at a rate of 1 to 2 per month. Engineering Manager Erik Christesen said they had “been referring them to this board meeting.” Mancebo said: “Giving will-serves is not a board action,” but “changing agency policy is a board action.” He said they have to worry about places with existing parcels, such as at Castle Oaks, and they must prepare for people who will come and say “here’s my map, here’s my check, I want service.” He said the agency is worrying about how it should function when it tries to answer such a question for service. He said “staff has been concerned, so it was brought to the board to get direction. The board will allow 2 units to connect a month, until agency counsel Steve Kronick hears from Public Health in the next 2 weeks. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Wednesday, 16 June 2010 06:08
Police Arrest El Dorado County Man and Woman fter a Garage Burglary
Written by Tom
Amador County – Sutter Creek Police arrested 2 suspects Sunday (June 13th) after a burglary and theft on Spanish Street. 2 El Dorado County residents face multiple felony counts in the case and were booked into the Amador County Jail, after several agencies and citizens closed a successful dragnet on the pair. Sutter Creek Police Sergeant Brian Klier in a news release Monday said the 2 suspects were identified as Rawlin James Shobert, 28, of El Dorado; and Melissa Delanne Hasley, 27, of Somerset. Klier said that just before 8 p.m. Sunday, the “suspects entered a residential garage on Spanish Street in Sutter Creek. The suspects took numerous tools and other personal items. The victim saw the suspects leave the garage, and notified Sutter Creek Police Department.” A Jackson Police Department officer and several citizens of Sutter Creek helped in the search for the suspects, who “were eventually located by SCPD Officer Tizok Del Rio in the Sutter Creek Cemetery.” Sergeant Klier said: “During a search of the suspects and bags that they were carrying, the stolen items were located, along with narcotics and narcotic paraphernalia.” 2 California Highway Patrol officers also assisted, and “transported the victim and several citizens to the cemetery, where they all positively identified the suspects.” The suspects were arrested and taken to the county jail. Shobert faces three felony charges, including possession of a controlled substance, second degree burglary, and violation of probation. Shobert was being held without bail. Hasley faces felony charges of second degree burglary and receiving known stolen property valued greater than $400. She also faced misdemeanor charges of possession of controlled substance paraphernalia, obstructing a public officer. Hasley also faced misdemeanor warrants in El Dorado and Sonoma county superior courts. Her bail was set at $60,000. Klier said “additional charges will be filed upon completion of the investigation.” TSPN TV News Report (JR) This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Wednesday, 16 June 2010 06:05
Amador County Experiences Drop In Home Sales, Rise in Escrows Closed
Written by Tom
Amador County - Amador County has experienced the biggest drop in home sale prices of any county in the Sacramento region, according to recently released statistics from researcher MDA Dataquick. For statistical purposes, the company considers the region to include El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba counties. Home prices throughout the region have dipped slightly from one year earlier, yet this may not be a bad sign, as the total number of home sales continue to rise. The difference in median home prices in Amador County in April of 2010 compared to one year earlier has dropped by 10 percent, from $180,000 to $162,000. The median price is the point at which half the homes sell for more and half sell for less. Just one month earlier in May, the median home price in Amador County was $179,000. The price of new homes in Amador County over the course of one year dropped from $400,000 to $360,000, and detached home resale prices dropped from $177,500 to $158,500 over that same period.
Dataquick said fewer repos and a renewed sense of confidence at the higher end of the market, combined with sellers posting more realistic market prices, are considered the main factors behind the downward pricing trend and simultaneous rise in the number of escrows closed. Sacramento real estate agent Tim Collom told the Sacramento Bee that the “gap between buyers and sellers is a lot more narrow than last year.” The only county to see a rise in median home prices was Sacramento, which experienced a 4.5 percent increase to $172,500 in April compared to $165,000 one year before. Amador County also led the pack in the number of escrows closed, with a 55 percent increase over April of 2009. El Dorado, Nevada and Placer counties also experienced increases in this area, while Sacramento and Yolo counties saw 13 percent declines and Sutter and Yuba counties broke even.
Dataquick analyst Andrew LePage said these are the same trends his company is seeing throughout the state.
Overall, 3,255 homes changed hands during April in Amador, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba counties. New homes accounted for 5 percent of sales in the region. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Wednesday, 16 June 2010 06:09
Gold Rush Gratified with Measure N Win, Turns to Legal Challenges
Written by Tom
Amador County – The Gold Rush Ranch & Golf Resort city-wide referendum in Sutter Creek took the go-ahead votes in the apparent final count Tuesday, with voters narrowly approving the measure. In effect, Gold Rush approvals by the Sutter Creek City Council were certified by the vote. Gold Rush Managing Partner Bill Bunce said: “We’re just really gratified. It’s been a very thorough process,” and he was “gratified that the process has ended the way it has.” He was happy with “voters’ support,” because they “knew it was going to be close and it was close.” Bunce said it is “very difficult to win a measure.” He thought Registrar Sheldon Johnson “was exceedingly thorough” in the count. Bunce said he did “not expect any change from this point forward” in the vote count. The next step for the project was “a couple of legal challenges that we’ll turn our attention to.” Once resolved, they will turn to mapping and approval. He said the legal challenges have an unknown time frame. One challenge is Ken Berry’s lawsuit again the project’s Environmental Impact Report, which had been “stayed pending the outcome of the referendum.” Now that Measure N was successful, they expect Berry’s suit to be prosecuted. He said Berry’s lawsuit is “a typical legal challenge to an EIR,” and “these are very common.” He said: “We’ll find our way through the lawsuit,” and “we’ll be around for the long haul.” Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Wednesday, 16 June 2010 06:11
Sutter Creek’s Gold Rush Measure N “Yes” Wins by 16-Vote Margin
Written by Tom
Amador County – The Gold Rush Ranch & Golf Resort made a 24-vote turnaround this week when Sutter Creek voters narrowly passed Measure N. The Amador County Election Department on Tuesday (June 15th) counted 119 more ballots, and Gold Rush Ranch won the tally of those ballots by a 71-47 margin. Measure N trailed by 8 votes and just under 1 percent after the election night count ended last Tuesday. This week “Yes On N” came back to take a win by a 1.24 percent margin, 657 votes to 641. The day began with backers from both sides of Measure N observing as the election department’s Debbie Smith verified signatures on provisional and absentee ballots. Protect Historic Sutter Creek members Bart Weatherly and Lottie Tone observed, along with Gold Rush partner Chris Norem and project attorney Richard Rios. The verifications tossed out 1 ballot, though the department also sought and received an opinion from Secretary of State Debra Bowen on one ballot, which ultimately she disallowed. Still, 119 of a possible 120 ballots were counted, leaving the final margin. Backers from both sides stood watching as Smith uploaded the ballot count data, revealing the outcome. Tone walked past TV crews from Sacramento’s channels 10 and 3, who had spent several hours awaiting the count. Norem emerged from the room and said: “We won by 16 votes,” but deferred further comment to Gold Rush Ranch Managing Partner Bill Bunce. Bunce said: “I would say we are celebrating. Any time you enjoy the support of the residents, it’s cause for celebrating.” He said “we are eminently grateful to the residents of town.” The vote must still be certified. Weatherly spoke to TV cameras, saying he was “very saddened by the outcome,” as he had “been working at this for 2 years.” He said developers claimed 80 percent of the community supported Gold Rush, but the vote showed less support. Weatherly said his campaign to stop Gold Rush “lost by 16 votes” and he wished “more people would have come out to vote.” The 119 counted votes brought the total turnout to just over 75 percent of registered voters. 1,298, of 1,725 registered voters cast ballots. Weather said he wanted the community to heal. Before the vote had said he was the most nervous he had ever been in his life. He thought Protect Historic Sutter Creek made a “hell of an impact” and “winning by less than 1 percent is no reason for any group to celebrate.” He was not sure what the group would do next. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Amador County - Due to area rivers experiencing unseasonably colder, swifter, and more dangerous flows, the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Mother Lode Office is asking river users to exercise caution when enjoying local river recreation. These conditions contributed to three near drownings on the Merced Wild and Scenic River in recent weeks. Rivers that would normally be receding in velocity and cubic feet per second are now high and rising, according to Mother Lode Recreation Planner Jeff Horn. “The combination of an unseasonably cool spring, significant snow packs in the Sierra Nevada, and the warming temperatures have created June conditions that haven’t been seen in 20 years,” he said. “People should be careful around all of the rivers in the foothills and never boat alone.”
With rivers such as the Merced Wild and Scenic River flowing at 12,000 cubic feet per second (cfs), river users should be aware of river safety and it is advised that parents be especially watchful of small children around areas of high flow. The BLM offers a number of river safety tips. Always wear a Coast Guard approved adjustable life jacket, helmet, protective footwear and proper clothing suitable for the type of white water you are in. Be sure your white water skills and experience are equal to the river and the conditions you are going to run. Tell someone where you are going, when you expect to return, and where to call if you don't. Know how to self rescue on white water rivers. Know when and how to swim for an eddy. Also, be prepared for extremes in weather, especially cold. Know about the dangers of hypothermia and how to deal with it. When air and water temperature add up to 120 degrees or less, hyperthermia is a high risk. Wear a wet suit and booties in spring to early summer and always in Class V water. Carry a first aid kit and know how to use it. Learn or review medical aid responsibilities and CPR. And avoid rattlesnakes and poison oak, but know how to deal with emergencies if someone is unlucky. For more information, contact David Christy, BLM Central California Public Affairs Officer, at 916-941-3146. A TSPN TV Staff Report This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Amador County – The Amador Water Agency board of directors discussed capacity constraints for its Amador Water System, and directed staff to discuss “Title 22” law with the California Department of Public Health. Staff will monitor applications for service, and bring the issue back if applications exceed 2 a month. An engineering report asked for a release of 24 new hook-ups in the Ione water system, and another 186 connections to the Tanner water system “until the interim capacity study is completed and a plan can be presented to the board for increased capacity from these 2 water treatment plants.” The study is expected no sooner than the 4th quarter of 2010. Engineer John Griffin in the report said staff is working with Public Health “to determine if recent conservation efforts by Mule Creek State Prison can be used to reduce existing peak 24-hour demand for the AWS-Ione service area.” It was unclear if Public Health would reduce existing peak 24-hour demands, which are calculated by the state using “Title 22” methodology. The board directed AWA attorney Steve Kronick to look into the issue. Kronick said he hoped it would only take one meeting with state Public Health officials to settle the question. District 5 Director Terence Moore raised the issue, saying Title 22 “doesn’t really apply,” because the law “does not refer to water treatment plants,” and only “applies to source capacity.” Moore said: “Staff is going to have to convince me big-time that it applies to water treatment plants.” Kronick said staff raised this question, but it was the first time he heard if from the board. Kronick said AWA staff feels that because of conservation at the prison, they “in essence have freed up capacity in the AWS system,” and “that’s why drilling down on the issue that Terry raised is so important.” Engineering Manager Erik Christesen said Title 22’s applicability was the “exact issue we raised,” and Public Health said a water source is “everything,” including water treatment capacity. Moore said he didn’t “see how the state can arbitrarily decide that it applies to water treatment plants.” President Bill Condrashoff said the systems have committed more that they have to offer. Moore said they did not surpass the systems’ “theoretical peak.” Christesen said they are “working on changes to get us to our permitted peak, and possibly beyond.” Christesen agreed with Moore that they should bring the issue back to the board when they have more definitive answers form Public Health.. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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