News Archive

News Archive (6192)

Wednesday, 13 January 2010 22:47

Plymouth Officials Learn from Yountville Fieldtrip

Written by
slide3-_plymouth_officials_learn_from_yountville_fieldtrip.pngAmador County – The Plymouth City Council at its meeting today is scheduled to get a report from council members and staff on an early December trip to the city of Yountville in Napa, where the small town thrives with tourism. City Manager Dixon Flynn planned the trip to show the council how the town, with a population of 3,600, has embraced and thrived what he calls agricultural tourism. Flynn said Yountville has “Transient Occupancy Tax” receipts of $3.6 million annually, compared to Plymouth, which Finance Director Jeff Gardner said earns a TOT tax income of $150,000 annually. The Plymouth contingent went to hear about Yountville’s programs and their successes. Making the trip with Flynn were Mayor Patricia Fordyce, Councilman Jon Colburn, City Clerk Gloria Stoddard and Community Development Director Barry Siebe. Flynn talked about the trip after their return in December. He said the trip was “really enlightening.” Yountville has “generated quite a few jobs throughout their community with good salaries,” and have “actually built their reputation for being a culinary destination,” with “5 world-class restaurants.” Flynn said the city has a 65-room hotel, built at a cost of $65 million, or a million dollars a room. He said: “Where are we going to find those kinds of investors?” He said Yountville is “built for rich tourists,” and local residents have to go to Napa to get to a drug store. Yountville officials lived by the credo that “urban growth occurs in urban areas,” and its planning does “not allow restaurants at wineries,” and retail in rural areas. He said Plymouth and the Shenandoah Valley wine country could benefit from that practice, and invite people to come spend money, then go home to Sacramento. He said ag tourism would help create jobs and keep young people from deserting Plymouth and Amador County. Stoddard said it was a worthwhile trip, and the council likely will get a full report, as scheduled on today’s agenda. Stoddard said in a way, Plymouth was better off than Yountville because they are in the middle of wine country, while Plymouth is “the gateway to the wine country.” Yountville is about 9 miles from Napa itself. Flynn is scheduled to give a verbal report of the trip today. The council will also hear a report form consultant Richard Prima on the status of the city water pipeline, attaching Plymouth to the Amador Water Agency plant on Ridge Road in Sutter Creek. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
slide1-citizens_petition_drive_wants_sutter_creek_referendum_on_gold_rush.pngAmador County – A Sutter Creek citizens’ group announced Monday it had “officially launched a referendum campaign” aimed at stopping the Gold Rush Ranch & Golf Resort. The group wants to overturn related Sutter Creek City Council actions passed last week in conjunction with approval of the project. Sutter Creek resident and Gold Rush opponent Bart Weatherly in a release Monday said his group, Preserve Historic Sutter Creek “launched a referendum campaign to reverse legislative actions taken by” the city council. He said “reversing these actions will make null and void the approval of Gold Rush Ranch housing development.” The 1,334-unit project, including a golf course, resort, hotel and housing, was approved January 4th. Weatherly said opponents need 160 signatures to get a referendum on the ballot, and the simple majority vote would target not approval of Gold Rush, but rather amendments to a zoning ordinance and the General Plan. Weatherly said door-to-door signature gathering would start Saturday, January 16th, after the city provides updated amendments. Weatherly said: “We cannot do a referendum on the approval of Gold Rush because that is not a legislative act. We are doing referenda on the ordinances.” He said Preserve Historic Sutter Creek is made up of 20-30 members that meet regularly. Weatherly said: “Our goal is to stop Gold Rush as it is now presented.” He said repealing the ordinances would effectively stop Gold Rush and “force a 1-year time out,” meaning developers “have to go away for a year” and come back to the city with “a whole different project.” The group opposes the size and impacts of Gold Rush, but likes the project, Weatherly said, adding that it was originally proposed at 1/5th the size it is now, with a golf course, clubhouse, restaurant, 60-room hotel, 300 timeshares, and more than 600 acres of open space. Weatherly said he was “very optimistic about our chance.” He said 300 people signed the Vote “No on gold rush petitions, of which 200 were actual Sutter Creek residents.” Only registered Sutter Creek voters can sign the referendum petitions. Weatherly said his core group is not “no-growth” and “ultra-left”, but conservative supporters of “slow growth” and “controlled growth.” Weatherly said: “If we don’t prevail, our only thing we can do is make sure the developer is held to his promises.” Amador County Elections said the referendum needs 10 percent of the last registration total to make a ballot. Sutter Creek had 1,584 registered voters January 5th, meaning petitioners need 159 valid signatures to place a referendum on the ballot. 2010 regular elections include a June 8th primary and a November 2nd general election. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Wednesday, 13 January 2010 03:09

ACRA Plans Flying Disc Golf Tournament

Written by
slide5-acra_plans_flying_disc_golf_tournament.pngAmador County – Volunteers and staff of the Amador County Recreation Agency were working this week to prepare the grounds of the Kennedy Mine for a Saturday flying disc golf tournament, at the temporary course located on the hills around the former hard rock gold mine in Jackson. Adam Lindsey and Pete Staple of ACRA were joined by Brandon Wedge of Play It Again Sports on Monday as they carted around baskets used in the game, to find concrete post anchors buried in 18 holes around the golf course. ACRA program specialists Lindsey, and Matt Nestor, will host the tournament, which will be a fund-raiser to help build a flying disc golf course at Mollie Joyce Park in Pine Grove. ACRA acquired the Mollie Joyce Park from Fred Joyce in 2008, with the aim to keep the park open for public recreation. ACRA will create interpretive trails and other recreation opportunities at the park, and already, a work crew reclaimed the 2 Little League Baseball fields, under park director Pete Staple, cutting overgrown weeds, building infields and trimming outfields. ACRA started work on the Mollie Joyce Park disc golf course in April, with the help of volunteers, including local and regional players. The course has been designed and laid out on the 76-acre park, with volunteer designers include long-time disc golf professional Charlie Callahan of El Dorado County, and local players Wedge of Sutter Creek, Paul Dalmau of Pine Grove, and first-season professional Ray Birch of Ione. Paul Watkins also helped map out Mollie Joyce Park with a GPS unit, and Staple and a Pine Grove CYA work crew cut fire breaks in the scrub brush early last year. The course has received an in-kind donation of concrete and metal flashing from Lowe’s, and the Jackson Rancheria has sponsored one of the baskets for the course. Callahan told ACRA Executive Director Tracey Towner-Yep that the property identified at Mollie Joyce Park for disc golf could potentially house a 27-hole course. Towner-Yep said sponsors are being sought, and the course would cost about $10,000 to install. The tournament Saturday will be held at the temporary ACRA disc golf course, built by the agency and volunteers in 2007 at the Kennedy Mine, and used for 2 tournaments. The tournament starts at 10 a.m. Saturday and includes a singles round and a doubles round. The Kennedy Mine will give good opportunities for spectators to attend and watch the field of players, expected to include professional, amateur and beginning division players. For information and details about the tournament, call ACRA at 223-6349. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Wednesday, 13 January 2010 03:11

Jackson Rancheria Donates $50,000 to Five Local Organizations

Written by
slide4-jackson_rancheria_donates_50000_to_five_local_organizations.pngAmador County – The Jackson Rancheria Casino & Hotel has donated $50,000 to five local organizations. The funds are from the 9th annual Giving Season promotion during which Jackson Rancheria pledged to donate $1 to local charities for every 3,000 points earned by all Dreamcatcher’s Club members in November and December. This year’s recipients are the Amador County Recreation Agency, Amador County Senior Center, Calaveras Food Bank, Habitat for Humanity Calaveras, and Interfaith Food Bank. Each organization received $10,000 in early January, a time when most charities’ funds are seriously low. “In this declining economy,” notes Kathleen Harmon, Director of the Interfaith Food Bank, adding: “Jackson Rancheria continues to make it a priority to give back to the community. This donation matters to us. It’s the biggest donation we ever get and it truly makes a big difference in the services we can provide.” Jeannie Hayward, Director of the Calaveras Food Bank, adds “The partnership with the Resource Connection Food Bank and Jackson Rancheria is significant in the feeding of underserved families in Calaveras County. We appreciate so much that the Rancheria has a giving spirit and understand the needs of the community. Your donation is meaningful to us and does make a difference in what we can do for our community.” Jackson Rancheria Casino & Hotel is located at 12222 New York Ranch Road, Jackson, CA 95642. For more information, call 800-822-WINN or visit JacksonCasino.com. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Wednesday, 13 January 2010 03:13

Jackson Looks to Save Through Water Bond Refinancing

Written by
slide3-jackson_looks_to_save_through_water_bond_refinancing.pngAmador County – The Jackson City Council on Monday unanimously approved to refinance city water bonds in order to achieve additional savings in overall debt service. A memorandum from the City’s Bond Counsel stated that “with respect to market conditions…such a refinancing would produce an aggregate savings to the City of approximately $320,000.” City Manager Mike Daly said savings could be as much as $350,000. “That is the range we’re trying to achieve, but that is all dependent on interest rates,” he said. In 1992, the City entered into two sales agreements with the City of Jackson Public Financing Authority totaling $4,840,000 in order to finance various improvements on facilities and property it owns and operates, including a municipal water system. The city refunded those agreements through the issuance of bonds in 1998. The resolution before the council said “the City has determined it is in the interests of the City to provide for the issuance of its 2010 Water Revenue Refunding Bonds…to refund its obligations” from 1998. According to state law, the City is authorized to issue its bonds for the purpose of refunding any outstanding indebtedness payable from the revenues of these properties. The Council authorized the issuance of the bonds in an aggregate principal amount not to exceed $3,000,000, provided that the payments of principal and interest will “produce a net present value savings, as compared to the 1998 bonds.” Authorization was granted to Stinson Securities, LLC of San Francisco, to carry out the process. Daly said most of this will happen in the next three weeks. He said this could equal up to $40,000 a year in savings for the first four years after it is implemented and “could lessen the need to increase water rates.” An update on the result of these savings will take place at an upcoming council meeting, to be announced. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Wednesday, 13 January 2010 03:15

School Board Gets Letter from Foothill Jewish Community

Written by
slide2-school_board_gets_letter_from_foothill_jewish_community.pngAmador County – In the wake of a student’s lawsuit alleging religious persecution at Amador High School, the Amador County Unified School District board of trustees late last month received a letter from the Foothill Jewish Community urging a more broad approach to combat intolerance. The December 24th letter, included in today’s school board agenda packet, was signed by members of Bnai Israel Foothill Jewish Community congregation, including Bob Baird, Sharyin Cunningham, Lynnette Lipp, Lenora Phillips and Arnie Zeiderman. Addressed to Superintendent Dick Glock and school board, the letter said a congregation committee voted unanimously December 19th to contact the district “regarding our ongoing concern that the district continue with substantive efforts to address the perception that intolerant and sometimes anti-Jewish comments and behaviors are expressed in class and on campus in our schools.” The committee noted said it “appreciates your generic efforts at recognizing ‘intolerance’ as a problem,” and urged “in the context of the alleged historic pattern” that a “more comprehensive program be adopted and broadly implemented” for students, faculty, and administrative and support staff. In the letter, the Bnai committee agreed with a national Jewish group “that all parties will benefit from recognized experts in addressing intolerance.” The letter supported a program presented by Assistant Superintendent Elizabeth Chapin-Pinnoti. The committee offered to work with trustees in community monitoring, and specifically requested “establishing a timeline for implementing the full program,” and “informing the general community through routine news channels.” The committee sought a response and commitment from school board. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Wednesday, 13 January 2010 03:17

Go Get Grants Workshop Helps Local, Regional Orgs.

Written by
slide1-go_get_grants_workshop_helps_local_regional_orgs.pngAmador County – About 18 people attended the second day of a local grant workshop Monday at the county public health building, with mostly non-profit organizations looking for ways to write and collaborate on grant applications. Organizers of the seminar, “Get Ready, Get Set, Go Get Grants” are experts in the art of acquiring grants funding, and even operated the workshop on a “mini-grant” of $1,000 from the Amador Community Foundation, and with technical support from the Amador County Recreation Agency. Facilitators of the workshop were Karen Dickerson of The Grant Tree Group of Jackson, and Renee Chapman of Pine Grove. The pair finished the second of 2 sessions Monday, and set appointments with attendees for assessments of their draft grants on March 1st. Some attendees had already submitted grant applications with the help of Dickerson and Chapman. Dickerson said the most important part of grant writing is the “needs assessment,” telling participants: “You’re going to have to prove that there is a community need.” She said they needed data and facts to support the programs for which they seek grants. Chapman agreed, saying “nothing speaks louder than the facts in the world of grant writing,” and data is at the crux of the project – “demonstrating how your project solves the problem.” Dickerson and Chapman, both successful grant writers, gave a sample proposal and tutored attendees on resources, and outlined the elements of a grant proposal. Dickerson, whose “proven track record” includes more than $1.2 million in grant awards, said a good application should be kept under 9 pages, and include goals, objectives, methods, activities and if possible, sustainability. The grants application should try to answer the particular grantmaker’s mission statement. Dickerson said: “If you ever get the opportunity to be a grant reviewer, do it,” noting that the experience for her has helped her hone her grant writing to cut to the important information, and write what the “grantmakers” want to know. Chapman told attendees to “leave yourselves plenty of time to plan and rewrite” and “don’t find yourselves preaching to the choir,” as people who offer grants to help with certain issues already know the importance of those issues. Other tips include seeking more than one funding source, collaborate as much as possible and make small promises and deliver with big results. Chapman said she liked seeing in workshop break periods how participants “work together on how to make the community better.” The November 9th first session of the workshop included 25 people, and the second had 18 in attendance. Attendees included members of ACRA, Amador County Historic Railroad Foundation, Environmental Health, Children’s Council, State Preschool, Student Music Fund, Child Abuse Prevention Council, Monarch Montessori, TSPN Teen Zone Live, Amador Tuolumne Community Action Agency and Americorps. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Monday, 11 January 2010 22:41

AFSC to Conduct Controlled Burns in River Pines

Written by
slide4-afsc_to_conduct_controlled_burns_in_river_pines.pngAmador County - Situated right on the Cosumnes River and Amador's border with El Dorado County, the small community of River Pines is “primed and ready to burn,” according to the Amador Fire Safe Council (AFSC). The Council was recently funded by the US Forest Service for two upcoming hazard fuel reduction projects in the River Pines area. The first project is a shaded fuel break surrounding the town and protecting both the homes in town and the water treatment facility. This project will create arcs of protection on large private parcels adjacent to River Pines. When completed, a shaded fuel break has a park-like appearance. Excess brush will be removed and trees limbed in order to remove ladder fuels that allow a ground fire to move into the tree canopy. The other project involves the town itself. At the request of the River Pines Revitalization Committee, AFSC will bring a California Conservation Corps crew into town to remove trash and other debris. After 6 years of boil-water orders, this project will help prevent pollutants from entering the local water supply. Once the trash is cleared, the Corps crew will cut brush and create defensible space around the homes of cooperating residents. Fire safety has always been an issue in River Pines because of small lots and close proximity of the homes, according to the Fire Safe council. By assisting the homeowners in creating defensible space around their homes, not only will they reduce fire hazards, but may also lower their homeowners insurance and improve property values. The California Conservation Corps recruits young men and women aged 18 to 23 to help restore California's environment and respond to disasters such as wildland fires. In exchange for one year of service, they earn an educational scholarship. Watch for more information on these two projects on TSPN. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Monday, 11 January 2010 22:43

AWA Awaits Words on USDA Grant, GSL Environmental Work

Written by
slide3-awa_awaits_words_on_usda_grant_gsl_environmental_work.pngAmador County – The Amador Water Agency hosted a workshop last week and discussed the future of the “Gravity Supply Line” project, and the agency’s next steps in addressing an upside-down operating budget in the Central Amador Water Project. District 3 Director Don Cooper said he knows they “don’t have the total answer,” but if “water rights are increased, the pump station load would double and require adding a new pump to be able to meet Buckhorn’s capacity.” AWA Interim General Manager Gene Mancebo said Friday that the agency needs to get confirmation of a USDA grant for the Gravity Supply Line (GSL), and complete the environmental process. Agency staff says that a rate update is needed for CAWP. Mancebo said the board will not be seriously considering an Upcountry rate adjustment until after environmental work is done on the GSL, and the board also needs to see “how much money they want to spend investigating alternatives.” He said “with the assumption that we get grant funding,” the GSL “tends to look like a better option financially.” An AWA “white paper” said benefits of the 6.6-mile Gravity Supply Line include that it would not be affected by power outages. The pump station has been affected by 52 outages, including 4 lasting longer than 24 hours. Former AWA president and District 3 Supervisor Ted Novelli said a 1997 storm caused an outage that lasted 13 days, though Mancebo said generators made sure the system did not run out of water. Novelli asked if the agency did not pursue the Gravity Supply Line, could pumps handle sufficient flow to meet Buckhorn’s treatment capacity. Mancebo said they could push the pumps a little more but they wouldn’t match the GSL’s capacity. He said the pump station eventually would need expansion to meet that flow. District 4 Director Debbie Dunn said the $5 million cost of replacing the existing line should not be part of the discussion, because the agency probably would not need to replace it for 20 years. Mancebo said they assume the current, 30-year-old pipeline has a 50-year life, so the pipeline has an assumed 20 year life remaining. Without further study, the remaining life may be more or less 20 years. He said when comparing the options, they “probably should at least account for” replacing the existing line. Mancebo said there will be financial plan workshops in the future, to look at impacts on rates, with the GSL or improving the pump station system. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Monday, 11 January 2010 22:44

Sheriff Seeks Info on Jackson Area Burglary

Written by
slide2-sheriff_seeks_info_on_jackson_area_burglary.pngAmador County - The Amador County Sheriff’s Office on Monday announced it is reviewing physical evidence and possible leads in a burglary investigation in the unincorporated area of Jackson. According to a release from Undersheriff Jim Wegner, an unknown person or persons burglarized a residence on Chase Road on the evening of December 17, 2009. Items reported stolen during the burglary included five “Toshiba” laptop computers, one “Hewlett Packard” laptop computer, miscellaneous electronic gaming devices, digital cameras, jewelry and a large “Cannon” safe with an electronic key pad. Wegner said the safe “reportedly contained a substantial amount of U.S. currency as well as a coin collection.” The Sheriff’s Department is reviewing physical evidence and following possible leads. Anyone with information regarding this residential burglary or any other crime is asked to contact the Amador County Sheriff’s Office at 209-223-6500 or the Amador County Secret Witness Program at 209-223-4900. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.