Jackson – County Administrative Officer Terri Daly presented the Board of Supervisors Tuesday with a Strategic Plan Update designed to “improve communication and cooperation both internally and externally.” Daly said “this isn’t just a make-work project…everyone has to-do lists that are already pretty lengthy at this point.” Rather, her plan intends to streamline county systems and help to reduce the bureaucracy inherent in government bodies of all sizes. Chairman Ted Novelli said that he and the other Supervisors have received random questions via phone and email about everything from traffic right-of-ways to “beetles in trees.” He said they try and answer as many questions as possible. Daly said the Supervisors’ clerks have worked hard to answer the variety of calls they receive and have never complained, considering staff reductions due to budget cuts. She called them a “model department.” Novelli said it would be nice to implement a system where calls could be properly diverted to the appropriate department. Daly read through a list of “Six-month Strategic Objectives” and a “Three Year Goal” to put strategies in place. The six month plan included a request for department heads to produce departmental status updates, reviewing the External Communications Plan, developing a County Services Directory and redeveloping the website to be more user friendly. Earlier in the meeting Supervisors heard a presentation from IT Director Jeff White on the revamped county website, now up and running online. Three-year goals included identifying training needed to increase staff awareness of county resources, developing a list of questions regarding the county’s core values, reviewing federal stimulus opportunities and creating a prioritized list of county codes and policies. Daly posed the question: “Before we get to the point where we have money again, where do we add staff back?” She also told the board she had written a letter cancelling the county’s state lobbyist contract as it had proven to be “ineffective.” She recommended putting more staff resources behind Supervisor Richard Forster’s efforts as a member of the Regional Council of Rural Counties, an organization that works hand-in-hand with member counties in areas of State and Federal advocacy, program development and outreach. No formal action was taken. Supervisors unanimously supported Daly’s ongoing efforts. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sutter Creek – The Sutter Creek City Council continued its Gold Rush Ranch & Golf Resort public hearing this week, and would answer questions brought out in hearings last week. Project principal Bill Bunce last week said he cherished the process. “Some people in this community think that I am lower than whale dung, and I appreciate that,” Bunce said last Tuesday. “I love this process.” He said: “I think this is the best project to come to the foothills, and I say that humbly.” On Thursday, one woman said she thought anti-Gold Rush signs in town were negative and “should come down.” She said tourists see the signs and think something is wrong. Bart Weatherly said he represented 100 to 150 people and was appalled at Bunce liking the process. He said it was “killing” him and “has turned neighbors and friends against each other.” Weatherly called Gold Rush “un-build-able,” “un-sell-able” and “un-livable,” and gave Bunce a list of comments and questions. Bunce told the council he would answer the document in writing, and give the answers to the council. Lisa Koslowski, president of the Sutter Creek Business Association, said her organization voted to support Gold Rush a year ago, and “most of us were in favor of it.” She said as a business person, she knows she will benefit, but as a resident, she was “torn.” Koslowski said “it’s a beautiful project. If you are developing that land, you should let no one other than Gold Rush do it.” She said she was torn because she really did not “want 5,000 people around here.” She said the design and materials they are going to use are “very beautiful,” but “if they sell, do we have any control over that?” Bob Reeder of the Amador County Business Council, said his group voted unanimously to support Gold Rush, and urged the council to pass it, as did Former Supervisor Richard Vinson, District 3, who said he thought it was a good project. Tom Infusino told the council that the Foothill Conservancy thought the project’s Environmental Impact Report was not in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act, and he submitted a partial list of those presumed failings. The Conservancy’s Katherine Evatt said she thought the project would include “smart growth” and recycled water, but she was disappointed that it did not, and the project’s plan seemed to envision “what developers see as the city’s future.” Infusino urged the city council to complete a fiscal analysis of the project before any approval of Gold Rush. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sutter Creek – The public hearing last week showed some of the numbers behind the Gold Rush Ranch & Golf Resort. Chris Austin, analyst for the project told the Sutter Creek City Council and scores in attendance that home prices are down 50 percent in California. But he said there will be “$1.3 billion in economic activity created by this project.” It would bring 10,700 jobs, including “228 on-site jobs.” Austin said “$450 million in worker salary will be created by this project,” with “$22.5 million in property taxes,” “$39.5 million in school district revenue,” and “$475 million in taxable sales.” Austin said: “There’s a lot of dollars being generated by the project.” Project Principal Bill Bunce said “it was always imagined that there would be golf, time shares and homes.” He said partner, Troy Claveran agreed that “piecemeal” was not the way to go, but rather for all parts of the plan. They “invested millions of dollars over many years,” and they could not do the project just for wastewater solutions. Bunce said: “I’ve always believed this will be a quality project to help Sutter Creek.” An attorney for Gold Rush said the developer will pay a $1 million fee for open space, but wants to pay on a “program basis.” He said Sutter Creek attorney Dennis Crabb’s conditions of approval “remedy sections are highly disproportionate.” The Gold Rush attorney said developers want a condition that if the City Council breeches the contract or “causes it to happen that Gold Rush cannot carry on,” Gold Rush would be awarded attorney fees, and would be “compensated for non-nexus benefits that Gold Rush gave to the city.” Gold Rush benefits to Sutter Creek include a plan to take over operation of the wastewater plant, and expansion of it to a higher level of treatment. They also plan to dedicate 17 acres of land to the Amador County Unified School District, for a school and park adjacent to the project. Superintendent of School Dick Glock said the project likely would add 420 students over a 10- to 20-year period. He said the schools could handle that, and if the district cannot take the 17 acres, the developers will give schools $2 million. Bunce said: “We believe Gold Rush can make better schools, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t already great.” Bunce said he knew the importance of preserving schools. His wife has been a school teacher for 17 years, and they have children in 1st, 5th, and 8th grades. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Jackson - Rural-PRIME, an innovative UC Davis School of Medicine program designed to increase access to health care in rural areas of California, launched a medical-training partnership this month in Amador County. Two third-year medical students began clinical rotations in primary care and obstetrics and gynecology at Sutter Amador Hospital. Sutter Amador is the third official site beyond the UC Davis Sacramento campus where the School of Medicine will train its students as the next generation of rural physicians. “We are thrilled to have this new partnership with UC Davis,” said Anne Platt, CEO for Sutter Amador Hospital. “We think they’ll find their time here fulfilling, and we are especially hopeful that it will lead them to practice in a rural community some day, maybe even here in Jackson.” By 2015, experts predict the state will face a significant shortage of physicians, with rural communities struggling to provide health care with fewer doctors per resident than in urban areas. Rural residents often lack access to the full spectrum of medical services that urban populations enjoy. Rural-PRIME is part of the University of California's Programs in Medical Education, or PRIME, which is designed to produce physician leaders who are trained in and committed to helping California's medically underserved communities. By next year, UC Davis School of Medicine will have nearly 50 students enrolled in the program. As part of Rural-PRIME, UC Davis is partnering with other health systems in the state that are committed to improving rural health, passionate in their advocacy for change in the rural health-care delivery system and willing to become teaching sites for medical students. Jackson, along with the mountain town of Truckee and the central valley community of Reedley, are the first designated Rural-PRIME sites. Students will spend from four-to-eight weeks immersed in rural clinical settings, experiencing some of the unique challenges and benefits that only those types of communities can offer. The students are also given opportunities to integrate technology into their curriculum and training through distance learning and the use of telemedicine. High-speed telecommunications technologies such as telemedicine help bridge the rural gaps in access to quality health care and are a key element in Rural-PRIME training. Staff Report This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.