Jackson Elementary School received some new classroom space this week. Thursday afternoon, TSPN’s Kevin Clark was on site to photograph the scene of a police escort accompanying trailers towing three new portable classrooms.The classrooms were then hoisted into place on the Jackson Elementary school grounds using a giant crane, and will be outfitted for use during the fast approaching 2008-2009 school year. Remember Parents: This school year begins in only 2 weeks on August 13th, and runs through June 5th 2009. For more information on Amador County public schools, visit the Amador County Unified School District’s website at www.amadorcoe.org. 

Well-known Amador Judge Martin H. Ryan passed away over the weekend. The judge became famous locally during his 13 years of public service in the Superior Court. He is the father of current Amador County Sheriff Martin Ryan. A visitation will be held on Friday from 6 to 8 p.m. at Daneri Mortuary. A funeral service will be held on Saturday, August 2nd at 1pm at the Sutter Creek Church of the Nazarene. The Internment will be private and donations can be made to the charity of each donor’s choice.

Caltrans District 10 has announced its participation in a new initiative that aims to reduce emissions through the valley and foothills and subsequently improve the health and quality of life for residents. Entitled Healthy Air Living, the initiative was inspired by a recent statewide Healthy Air Living Week, and has additional support from the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District. “We understand the seriousness of the valley’s air quality status and are committed to doing our part by joining residents in cleaning up our air,” said Kome Ajise, Caltrans District 10 Director.

The Central Valley faces unmatched statewide challenges due to meteorological and topographical factors in reaching clean air-standards. Unhealthy air qualities in the valley directly effect ozone levels in Amador County, creating a notoriously unhealthy climate. Because of the valley’s bowl shape, it has a reduced ability to naturally clean itself of emissions from various sources. According to Air Control statistics, cars and trucks are responsible for up to 80 percent of the valley’s air pollution problem. “It is efforts such as these by Caltrans District 10 that will move us even closer to clean air in the valley,” said Seyed Sadredin, the Air District’s air pollution control officer and executive director. The initiative encourages individuals and companies to make clean air decisions a natural part of everyday life. Caltrans has pledged to continue to offer alternative work schedules, telecommuting, links to carpooling and vanpooling resources and subsidize mass transit for employees to reduce trips to work.

Capital-area home sales racked up a third straight month of year-over-year gains in June, as closed escrows reached almost a two-year high, DataQuick Information Systems reported today. But median prices continue to fall. The sales increases were not universal, though. Half of area counties - Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba - saw higher sales than the same time last year. Four others - Placer, El Dorado, Amador and Nevada - still showed fewer sales than a year ago. The La Jolla property research firm reported that 3,922 homes closed escrow during June in Amador, El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba counties. That was the highest number since September 2006. The month also marked a 15-month low in the number of homes for sale in El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento and Yolo counties, according to another researcher, Trend Graphix of Sacramento. June ended with 11,854 homes for sale in those counties - 4,073 fewer than last year as buyers scoop up thousands of discounted foreclosed homes being sold by banks.

Another packed chamber at Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting symbolized the importance of a reoccurring item on the agenda- the proposed Amador Economic Stimulus Package. A host of local contractors and realtors showed up to voice their support for contractor Paul Bramell’s proposed plan to temporarily cut impact and development fees in order to stimulate growth in the sinking housing market. “I sat down with a committee and we developed this new proposal,” said Bramell, referring to a meeting the day before with County Administrative Officer Teri Daly and other local representatives. “I believe we came up with a pretty comprehensive plan that will still stimulate the local economy,” he said.

The new, revised stimulus plan he refers to would allow a reduction in impact fees for local and regional traffic mitigation, recreation and capital facilities between July 1st, 2008 and December 31st, 2009. This includes a 100 percent reduction in fees until December 31st, 2008, a 50 percent reduction from then until June 30th, 2009, and a 25 percent reduction from then until December 31st, 2009. Considering the makeup of the audience, many were surprised by the mixed opinions voiced by public speakers. “Reducing impact fees, it’s just going to dig us a deeper hole. If less money is spent, you’re going to have just as big of a deficit,” said resident Bill Condershoff. “We don’t have any guarantees to what degree this will stimulate the economy, but I do think it will create work and employment,” said another resident, John Wheets. All the Board members expressed different opinions on the proposal. It was decided that the best course of action would be to continue discussions and consider it again at next week’s meeting.

Wednesday’s meeting of the Amador County Technical Advisory Committee, or TAC, included a request by California Shock/Trauma Air Rescue, or CALSTAR, to allow a helicopter air ambulance program at the Westover Field Airport. In a round-table discussion, TAC members reviewed CALSTAR’s application for completeness and potential environmental impacts before recommending it to the planning commission. Any major concern centered on insuring that the Air ambulance and landing area would comply with local hazardous materials guidelines for disposal of waste. Another question arose as to whether the airport was already at capacity and under a different contract than the rest of Martell. The discussion is expected to continue in future meetings. It was agreed that the benefits of having a CALSTAR program are numerous. CALSTAR’s response time to emergency calls is 2 minutes- less than half of the average emergency response time. CALSTAR is a regional, public, non-profit helicopter ambulance.

Also at Thursday night’s meeting, the Plymouth City Council saw the approval of changes to the city’s motorcycle ordinance. After a short discussion, the council voted to amend Plymouth’s motorcycle ordinance to ensure“the operation of any motorcycle, motor driven cycle, or similar device on authority of a permit, shall be limited to the hours commencing one-half hour after sunrise and ending one-half hour before sunset. Operation shall not occur nearer than two hundred yards from any residential structure, church, assembly hall, or school.” The City of Plymouth currently requires that an individual and/or property owner obtain a yearly permit from the City Clerk before operating a motorcycle on private property, or allowing someone else to operate a motorcycle on private property. However, the city does not require a permit if the motorcycle is being used as a part of an agricultural or ranching operation.  consistency with the city’s noise ordinance. The motorcycle ordinance states that

The Jackson City Council and citizens hypothesized whether or not limiting the number of political signs you display on your property is a violation of the first amendment. Most of the discussion centered on the sign size limits and time frames. Currently, the city ordinance states that political candidate signs are limited to 18 by 24 inches, two signs per property, and cannot be displayed before 60 days prior to an election.

Not on the agenda, but of great concern was the historic significance of the old Buscaglia building on Jackson Gate Road. Members of the public expressed concern about the demolition of the historic building, and appealed to the city council that measures be taken with the current owners of the property to preserve it.

Amador Vintners held their annual “Behind The Cellar Door” event last week. The event began last Thursday and ran through the weekend. Wine lovers from across the state gathered in Amador County to appreciate a region famous for quality wines. In total, 28 wineries participated by offering food, live music, seminars and wine-making demonstrations. Participating wineries were located along scenic backroads, providing visitors with stunning views of the snow-capped Sierra Mountains. Featured seminars included discussions & tastings of Zinfandels, Barbera, Rhône varieties and Ports. Visitors reported being impressed with the local culture and passion for winemaking.