News Archive (6192)
Supervisors discussed reasons behind Camanche water system grant
Written by Tom
Amador County – Supervisors on last week discussed the reasons for a grant to Amador Water Agency and its Camanche water system, saying it was worthy of county water development funds.
Supervisor Richard Forster said the grant could immediately “relieve the structural deficit in the budget.” He said they were fortunate to have only about five days of 100-degree weather this year otherwise there would have been water rationing, due to loss of flow on Well 14. Supervisor Chairman John Plasse said the emergency was identified in February, when the well was not capable of running at its previous level.
Former Camanche home owners’ president Michael Krisman asked about the budget deficiency, and Forster said it would take “$50,000 to $60,000 to at least balance the books for this year.”
Krisman said “we would like to see some accountability.” Plasse said the five AWA board members are accountable for Camanche water.
Bill Condrashoff said: “I believe the grant will be seen as a bribe” to get a rate increase. Forster said the grant was to repair deficiencies in the Camanche system that were caused by the county when the county owned the system, and they were still there when the county handed it to AWA. He said it has been five years since a rate increase at Camanche.
Plasse said the Water Development Fund is meant to be used for development in the county. Debbie Dunn said the “Water Development Fund is not county money. It’s for selling out your water rights to the Mokelumne River.”
Supervisor Louis Boitano took offense to Dunn “calling my friends crooks.” He said the past board did not sell the rights, and the $2 million in the Water Development Fund came from ratepayers of East Bay Municipal Utility District. Boitano said the board in 1958, including Russ Evitt and Bob Brison, won the money in a legal judgment, when they tried to protect Amador and Calaveras water rights.
David Evitt said his father and the board did not think they would win in court, but sued because they thought maybe they could get a settlement. He said it was good to get facts out, instead of hearing “people who just spew out venom and hate.”
Earlier, Evitt said AWA is running Camanche with “deceitful neglect and bad management.” He suggested Supervisors “should install a begging chair” for AWA.
Evitt criticized Supervisor Brian Oneto for opposing his neighbors’ legal fight against the Amador Transmission Pipeline.
Oneto said he supported the rights of people to go after government, even if its costs $100 million. The problem he has is “when you say you are here to save people money, but people are really being basically hurt as a whole.”
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Jackson hears that some sewer system options are just too costly
Written by Tom
Amador County – Jackson City Council heard a report last week from a consultant who said some alternatives for a sewer plant may not be economically feasible, but the city may still be able to get a permit to discharge year-round into Jackson Creek.
Tom Grovhoug, president of Larry Walker Associates, reported on a review of Jackson’s wastewater treatment plant discharge alternatives. His firm did a “peer review” of former city consultant Stantec’s work.
The review looked at the state discharge permit, and alternatives recommended by Stantec and the public. He said the permit, for 400,000 to 710,000 gallons a day of treatment would not allow for any “critical conditions” due to severe drought, and the permit would require “sizing the system” as dictated by critical conditions.
He said a storage and land application area would need to be large enough to hold treated effluent that would be diverted from flowing into the creek for “up to 16 months” during critical drought times. He said “the sizing and costs would increase to meet the letter of the law always.”
Grovhoug said Ken Berry’s alternative, an “upstream reservoir above the treatment plant” was a good idea, but the hydrologic study shows that in trying to dilute the effluent at the source, you would “start to run out of water.” He said it would require dewatering the reservoir, and any water released “must meet the discharge permit.” He said “it would be a nightmare to run” and “it just won’t work. Its problem is in these critically dry years.”
City Manager Mike Daly noted that Berry sent a comment letter over the Aug. 20 weekend asking for an explanation of how his alternative was interpreted, and they are working on an answer.
Grovhoug said continuing with the current discharge could be done with an upgrade at the plant by installing UV disinfection. But he thought metals could be removed with other system changes.
He said UV treatment helps other plants “discharge year-round to creeks,” but for Jackson, it depends on the permit, and oversight of various agencies. He said “the Department of Fish & Game didn’t want your flow to come out of the creek.” Daly said Division of Water Resources also has its own interpretation, and regulations are “ever evolving.”
Grovhoug said a 20:1 requirement for water-to-effluent ratios in Lake Amador is the most strict requirement in the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board’s jurisdiction, and is based on secondary sewer plants, while Jackson’s is a tertiary plant.
Vice Mayor Keith Sweet said “if 20:1 changes tomorrow, are there other things in the water we need to get rid of?” Grovhoug said those include ammonia, nitrate and aluminum, and they could add lime to the water to help eliminate toxicity. He said regarding endocrine disrupters and pharmaceuticals, “no one in the state is being regulated on those in wastewater.”
The full peer review findings are available on the city’s website.
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Supervisors discuss priorities for work at the Camanche water system
Written by Tom
Amador County – Amador County Supervisors last week changed requirements for a grant to the Camanche water system, and Amador Water Agency, and noted that they wanted to prioritize improvements made there.
Supervisor Chairman John Plasse said Camanche has a failing system that was given to AWA by the previous Board of Supervisors. The current board is taking responsibility by granting $150,000 from the Water Development Fund. Supervisor Ted Novelli requested the grant be brought back for reconsideration so they could to place a two-year time limit on the funding.
Supervisor Louis Boitano said he preferred a year’s limit, instead of two years, because “things are in bad shape down there,” and they should start work soon, “before they have an outright failure.” He said the county “built a treatment plant that did not treat. They got it built, but it did not work.”
Mancebo said a one-year limit for spending might be too short because they have a list of things to do and he wants to stretch the money. He asked Supervisors to consider a two-year limit, after the rate increase, which was approved unanimously.
Mancebo said a $530,000 leak detection grant is close, but he did not want to say the grant was received, because it was not finalized. It goes to specific projects, and will replace about 200 service lines, and place liners on some water storage tanks. It would still leave the system with about 430 service lines needing replacement.
Mancebo said the Water Development grant would go first toward restoring water reliability of Well 14, which could cost $30,000 to $100,000 or more. The second priority is fixing hydrants, and the third is service line replacements.
After that, the system needs well booster pumps: Two of four pumps at two sites are down, and Well 8’s pumps have not functioned since AWA took over the system. He said pump reliability is an issue, and they are not energy efficient. A fifth priority is a remote alarm system and Mancebo said those projects add up to more than $150,000.
The cost of Well 14 will determine how much money is left for the rest of the work. Mancebo said the tanks liner grant is looking good, but if they fail to get it, that would become number two on the priority list. He said the system required a lot of work, which was paid with internal loans, which they try not to do anymore.
Plasse said making the list of work would be easy if money was not a factor, but it is, so they need to fix problems based on the money available.
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AWA to get financial, cash reports and discuss updated Urban Water Management Plan
Written by Tom
Amador County – Amador Water Agency board of directors on Thursday will get financial reports on agency investments and cash flow, and hear about accounting format changes.
The board is expected to get a presentation by new Controller Marvin Davis on the agency’s investment portfolio status, in a quarterly report. The board is scheduled to discuss accounting format changes, and could give direction regarding “account structural changes and appropriation adjustments.”
The cash flow report will review cash as of July 31, and there could also be a discussion and possible adoption of a credit card processing fee to be added to the AWA rates and charges schedule.
At the board’s last meeting, Davis said recent financial models that were given were not really showing what the agency is getting in cashflow. He said he had to put together a year of transactions, and build a model from that because “you’ve got to know that those numbers are right.”
The AWA board could also discuss its Urban Water Management Plan, which was discussed at the last meeting, Aug. 11, with direction given to bring back suggestions made by the public, with options on how to decide the agency’s reaction to comments. The board could consider a resolution approving the updated Urban Water Management Plan.
The AWA board also may discuss a Proposition 84 Implementation Grant. The board could discussed and give direction to agency representatives on the Upper Mokelumne River Watershed Authority, “regarding the Amador Water System leak detection project” grant submitted through the Watershed Authority. Topics could include “grant shortfall options.”
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Amador County – Mayor Connie Gonsalves, Vice Mayor Keith Sweet and Council members Patrick Crew, Wayne Garibaldi, and Marilyn Lewis will go down in history as the first Jackson City Council to have a full-time paid fire chief when the Council gives the oath of office to a new fire chief, a former Portland, Oregon fire district deputy chief.
Jackson last week announced the hiring of its first full-time Fire Chief, Marc Crain, who comes to the city from Oregon, with a 35-year career history in the fire service in which he has held the ranks starting with paramedic firefighter up to Deputy Chief. His most recent position was a Deputy Chief position with Clackamas County Fire District Number 1 in the southeast metropolitan area of Portland, Oregon.
Crain began his career in southern Oregon with the Winston-Dillard Fire District and after 10 years moved to northern Oregon where he continued his career with Hoodland Fire District, City of West Linn Fire Department, City of Milwaukie Fire Department and Clackamas County Fire District Number 1.
In addition to his operational experience, Crain has extensive fire service command and management service. He attended the National Fire Academy and the Oregon Fire Service Administrators Institute.
He is currently a nationally accredited Fire Officer and Fire Instructor and has taught Command and Control courses in the Northwest and Alaska and is a member of the Oregon/California Incident Management Team.
City Manager Mike Daly in a release Friday said “this is the fourth position hired by the city utilizing Measure M funding,” generated from a ¼-cent sales tax that was passed by a county wide vote in 2008. “The City also has one Fire Captain and two Fire Engineer positions already on duty.”
As part of this transition, former Jackson Fire Chief Mark Morton will assume a role as Deputy Fire Chief and is excited about the professional background Chief Crain brings to the Jackson Fire Department.
Crain has immediate family in Turlock and he and his wife are very happy to be out of the rainy northwest. Crain will be officially sworn-in to his new position at the August 22 City Council meeting.
His office will be located at Jackson Fire Station Number 1, located at 175 Main Street.
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Amador County – TSPN TV’s newest show “Love, Hope & Faith” is about faith, not so much religion, according to host Heather Murdock, who wants to “showcase God in action. I want to keep focused on people who are transformed by Jesus.”
“Love, Hope & Faith” first aired at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 17 and returns live on Aug. 31. Producer and TSPN Vice President Sue Slivick brought up the show’s idea to Murdock about a year ago. Murdock “prayed a lot on it, to make sure that it was a God thing, before I jumped on board.” She jumps on board to a lot of projects.
Murdock said: “Although I am a relatively new Christian, I have dedicated my life to following him and learning who he is, and I have a very passionate faith.” She said there are so many ways God is shown to people, and “I wish people could feel God like I feel him.”
Murdock said “there is a lot of misunderstanding of who God is,” or disappointed by Christians. Her show began as a testimony of her own story.
Murdock watched a replay, thinking: “Oh my gosh. I really laid my life on the table,” and speaking of her father (who she said she loves and has forgiven). She said the show’s purpose is to inspire people who have been hurt in some way by domestic violence, alcohol or drug abuse.
Reinforcing the first show was a call from Martha Perez, who cried watching, saying she felt like Murdock was talking to her. Murdock said “even if just one person had that reaction,” it was a successful show.
She attends Church of the Nazarene, where Pastor Mark Lehman touches her similarly with his sermons. She said “Love, Hope & Faith” is not a Nazarene show, but will have pastors from other churches as well, possibly a pastor panel to talk about Jesus in a way that the layman can understand.
Murdock wants to focus on things like teenagers doing great things, like building a home for a family, and to celebrate 12-step recovery programs because “people deserve a second chance after they pay their dues.”
Murdock said when she “found Jesus,” it meant that “no matter what I’ve done, or what’s been done to me, all the bad decisions I’ve made, God still loves me and forgives me.”
Her personal story will continue in the next show, because she wants people to see her for who she is. She said the goal is to “have each show be a new show and see where it goes, to be the best we can be, and see where God leads it.”
The show airs live every other week at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday It replays 8:30 a.m., 4:40 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Friday at; 8:30 a.m., 4:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. on Thursday; and at 10 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Each episode will be archived on TSPNtv.com.
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Amador County – The city of Ione formally inducted two more fire personnel last week, and also recognized a local police patrol volunteer for quick help in saving a man’s life after he expired from a heart attack.
Ione Fire Chief Ken Mackey inducted the third and fourth paid fire personnel in the Ione Fire Department Aug. 16, with help from the firemen’s spouses, who pinned on their husbands’ badges at a ceremony in City Hall.
A standing room only crowd filled Ione City Council chambers when Mackey presented new Fire Captains Brian Diregolo and Steven Billingsley, and their spouses pinned on the badges. Mackey followed with pinning on their service bugles, followed by salutes and handshakes.
Interim City Manager Jeff Butzlaff in a report to the City Council, said “since we’ve been able to move forward with the final phase of Measure M implementation, we’ve appointed Silverio ‘Sil’ Herrera as our new paid fire apparatus engineer, and Brian Diregolo and Steven Billingsley as our new paid call fire captains.”
Mackey requested the formal pinning of the Captains, and Herrera will be pinned at the Sept. 6 council meeting.
The Council last week also approved a Certificate of Commendation for local Ione Police Department Volunteer Patrol Officer Bill Thiry, for his “outstanding, courageous lifesaving service while off duty.”
The council authorized preparing the certificate for Thiry, who while off duty and working in his business of window cleaning at a local home, in the 400 block of Fairway Drive, he heard a loud noise and went to help a local man who had suffered a heart attack, and whose pulse and breathing had stopped.
Thiry immediately began CPR, before paramedics arrived. The man was revived and was at home and expected to make a full recovery when the Council recognized Thiry’s actions last week, with Mayor David Plank reading an account of the incident, furnished by Ione Police Chief Michael L. Johnson. ¶ Butzlaff in a report recommended the Council OK the certificate to recognize Thiry for “exceptional public service in responding to a life or death situation.”
Butzlaff said Thiry “took immediate lifesaving action” and “a life was saved that may very well have otherwise been lost.” He noted that Thiry was assisted by both on-duty and off-duty Ione Fire personnel, as well as IPD personnel.
He said “while all our public safety personnel do a wonderful job day in and day out in just such circumstances, there are times such as this when special recognition above and beyond is both appropriate and called for.”
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Woman delivers a summons in a suit to stop the sale of the Amador Cannonball train replica
Written by Tom
Amador County – A local woman delivered a summons for a court injunction to the Amador County Board of Supervisors Tuesday to stop a sale of the Amador Cannonball replica train, also called the Emma Sweeney.
Local resident John Queirolo urged Supervisors not to go through with the sale, saying: “I brought a cashier’s check for $5,000, I am working on getting mining equipment, and I am offering to pay $500 a year in rent” to keep the Amador Cannonball at the Museum grounds. He met the offer of Duragno Railroad Historical Society, though Supervisors at their Aug. 9 meeting approved a contract for the exchange of donations.
He said he wants to keep the movie train prop in Amador County, noting that it is 61 years old, was restored by Pine Grove Camp, and has been here for 31 years, three generations of children. Queirolo said it can be a destination for movies crews. His daughter, Diane Bennett said she was really upset, and did not see the train donation on the agenda for the Aug. 9 meeting. She said people need to know, so they can speak to the issue.
Bennett said the county can make money from films, and missed out on about $100,000 several years ago, when the remake of Wild Wild West wanted to use the train. It could not be removed, so they rented a train from Sacramento Railroad Museum.
Bennett also said selling the train went against rules for removing government “surplus” because it did not out for bids.
Both spoke during “public matters not on the agenda,” then Bennet said “you are receiving a summons right now,” handing it to County Counsel Martha Shaver.
Bennett said they need to keep things legal, and it “seems very underhanded” the way they came out with a contract with the Durango, Colorado group. She said selling the train opens the door to doubt for other families who have donated items to the Museum.
Supervisor Chairman John Plasse said two members of the Amador County Historical Society were against donating the train, but their votes changed after a presentation in April by Durango Historical Railroad Society President George Niederauer. One of them, former Museum Curator Georgia Fox, spoke at the meeting after Niederauer and said she supported the donation.
Queirolo said he was the main negotiator and donor of the train to the county, through Ray Finegold, in 1980, and the contract called for it to stay in the county.
Plasse said “there were two publicly advertised meetings before this board” to discuss the train donation, and the Board OK’d a draft agreement, which was approved Aug. 9.
Bennett said they were to be in Amador Superior Court at 11 a.m. today “to get an emergency temporary restraining order against the county so that the train cannot be moved.”
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GSL merits discussd before supervisors extend AWA loan period
Written by Tom
Amador County – Supervisors on Tuesday discussed merits of the Gravity Supply Line project, before approving an extension on a loan to the Amador Water Agency.
In public comment, Bill Condrashoff said if someone asks for a loan, the county should “act like a banker.” He said AWA owes Sutter Creek $800,000, although Sutter Creek City Manager Sean Rabe recently told TSPN the amount agreed on is about $650,000.
David Evitt said AWA suffered from “bad financial decision making” and needed the $900,000 loan 14 months ago to make a $1 million bond payment on the Amador Transmission Pipeline. He said “I don’t think Sutter Creek will want to be paid second.”
Supervisor Richard Forster said that was “the pot calling the kettle black,” because “some primary opponents of the Amador Water System” cost the agency $11 million after 10 years of fighting the AWS pipeline, “and you wonder why AWA is having financial problems.”
Forster said he supported the GSL when he was on the AWA board, but there was no grant. Now AWA has a grant and a small group of some of the same people who opposed the AWS led a Prop 218 drive against the GSL, and is doing the same thing in the Camanche water district. He wondered what conclusion they sought besides “bringing AWA to ruination.” Forster said the language the group uses in its Prop 218 drive is: “Don’t vote for a rate increase,” but this “has been viewed as a great project for 12 years now.”
Supervisor Brian Oneto said it was ironic that the same AWS foes who cost AWA millions are now trying to stop the GSL, while at the same time saying they want to save the ratepayers money. He said “people want to shut off access to water, whether it’s the GSL or Wild & Scenic.”
Supervisor Chairman John Plasse said calling the request for a loan extension “bad management” was short-sighted. He said AWA has time and again demonstrated the benefits of the GSL, including gravity flow of cleaner water, replacing dirtier water that is pumped. He said the GSL pays for itself two times over, compared to what it would cost to replace or fix the existing system.
Plasse said the Amador Transmission Pipeline could have been finished for $10 million, but “frivolous lawsuits” ended up costing $22 million, and “those costs are passed on to the ratepayers.” He said one ruling found that “the plaintiff couldn’t make an intelligible argument.”
Evitt said “don’t you dare say” he cost the AWA money with his suit. He said all he wanted was a compromise, and the agency was “bullheaded.” Forster said “there was some bullheadedness” on both sides.
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Amador County – Jackson City Council on Monday inducted in its first paid, full-time fire chief, and recognized 7-year volunteer chief Mark Morton for his contributions, which will continue.
A few dozen people, including many uniformed Jackson Police and Fire personnel, attended a ceremony to induct new Jackson Fire Chief Marc Crain, who will take over for Morton as the top paid, full-time chief. Morton said his job will continue as it is, and he will remain as the volunteer Deputy Chief. His job will not change, though Crain will get all of the paperwork.
Crain, who is adjusting to a move two weeks ago to Amador County from the southeast metropolitan area of Portland, Oregon, said “it has been an interesting process” for he and his wife in “looking for an organization where I can share some of my training abilities” and skills to help the department.
Crain is currently a nationally accredited Fire Officer and Fire Instructor and has taught Command and Control courses in the Northwest and Alaska. He is also a member of the Oregon/California Incident Management Team.
City Clerk Gisele Cangelosi led Crain in his oath of office, and then Morton presented Crain with his chief’s badge. Mayor Connie Gonsalves then read a proclamation of thanks for Morton, who began as a volunteer with Jackson Fire Department in 1995, and served under former Chief Jack Quinn.
Gonsalves said “after some arm twisting by Mayor Gene Taylor,” Morton took over as Fire Chief after Quinn. In seven years as Chief, Morton responded to 3,800 calls, and played a role in the passage of Measure M, a county-wide sales tax that funds firefighters in the cities and county.
Police Chief Scott Morrison said in past police work in the Bay Area, he never worked with fire departments because they always did their own thing. But in 21 years here, “we’re really close with the Fire Department and with Chief Morton.”
Morrison said “I’m glad he’s staying on here,” and he added: “Long live the new Chief.”
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