The City of Jackson is looking at forming a permanent Redevelopment Agency. Councilmember Wayne Garibaldi, City Manager Mike Daly, and Shannon Lowery of the Economic Development Committee’s Finance Subcommittee traveled to Sonora recently to learn about that town’s Redevelopment Agency. Formed in the early 1990’s, the City of Sonora’s Redevelopment Agency has formed a Redevelopment Plan, and now generates over 400,000 dollars per year to fund projects identified in their plan. The objective of their Redevelopment Plan is “to eliminate conditions of blight by providing needed public improvements; by encouraging rehabilitation and repair of deteriorated structures; by facilitating land assembly and development which will result in housing opportunities, employment opportunities and an expanded tax base; and by promoting development in accordance with (the general plan).” Jackson hopes to accomplish something similar, a task that that Mayor Rosalie Pryor Escamilla reports may take as much as “200,000 dollars to get rolling,” but says that Sonora’s plan “has really paid off for them.” The matter will likely be on the agenda at the city council’s next meeting.

An encounter with nature Tuesday morning meant a close call for a young driver. A teenager behind the wheel of a grey jeep Cherokee came face to face with a deer during a hazy early morning drive on Ridge Road. He swerved around the deer, narrowly avoiding the animal. As a result, his car crashed into an embankment and tipped over. CDF Fire Crews arrived on the scene immediately. The young man was transported to Sutter Amador hospital but there are no reports of major injuries. The deer lived.

The Ione City Council held a special meeting Tuesday evening to discuss the proposed budget for the upcoming 08/09 fiscal year. The meeting, which was conducted as a workshop, allowed members of the public and council members to review and comment on the document before the public hearing currently scheduled for July 1st. Mark Smith, the City’s Finance Director, was at the meeting to present the proposed budget and to comment on questions or concerns raised during the workshop. The general fund will be seeing a slight decrease of about 1 percent in the coming fiscal year, with revenues coming in at approximately $1.8 million dollars. This seems to be an ongoing trend, with revenues from the general fund seeing a slight annual decline since June of 2006. The city must take into account the long-term debt acquired for two major projects being executed this coming year- the general plan Update and the new Ione fire station. The fire station will require a portion of its funding from bank loans and the rest from internal borrowing. The general plan update funding will be based solely on internal funds. In total, Ione will have a total of $1.6 million borrowed, with 560,000 acquired externally. Special revenues are up roughly 67 percent, however, that increase is based on the allocation of grant funding to the city, and a vast majority of the money coming from this fund is designated or restricted funds. The city also discussed allocating funds to various groups in the community including the Amador Council on Tourism and the Chamber of Commerce. All of these items will be available to discuss and comment on at the July 1st public hearing.

Andrae’s Bakery of Amador City will soon be re-locating to Sutter Creek. On Monday, the Sutter Creek Planning Commission reviewed and approved the business’s site plan and architectural design permit. Andrae’s will build a new bakery in the vacant lot next to Sutter Creek Trading Post and across the street from the Park at Hanford Court on Hanford Street. The project consists of a new 5,928 square foot, three story building which will incorporate a bakery, eatery, sales area, office, and storage. There will also be a covered porch, an outdoor eating area, and 18 parking spaces. Monday night’s meeting also marked the first time that the Sutter Creek Planning Commission acted as the architectural review committee, after the city adopted new architectural guidelines for the town’s ‘historic bowl’ principality. The project designer, Larry White, demonstrated the ways in which the project will comply with the new standards by incorporating architectural elements that reflect Sutter Creek’s historical buildings. The Commission did choose to alter a few aspects of the design permit, including a stipulation that the business owners will have to obtain a permit from the city if they wish to alter or demolish the historical barn structure at the rear of the property. In general, though, the Commissioners and members of the public had much felicitous praise for the project, and the application was approved unanimously.

District Attorney Todd Riebe announced yesterday that John Daniel Griffin, a former California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation correctional officer, or CDCR, was convicted of three misdemeanor counts of worker’s compensation fraud in Amador County Superior Court. On June 19th, Griffin was sentenced to 120 days in jail, ordered to pay over 57,000 dollars, and placed on five years formal probation. Griffin, 53, of Ione, allegedly concealed a pre-existing disability when seeking employment with CDCR at Mule Creek State Prison. While employed he made worker’s compensation claims and received worker’s compensation benefits for alleged injuries to his shoulder, foot and leg. While on paid leave, Griffin was observed performing physical activities inconsistent with his injury claims, including loading and unloading lumber and heavy bags of cement while exhibiting no pain, riding a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, playing golf and carrying three large cases of motor oil. It is also alleged that the defendant knowingly concealed his employment as a firefighter while on paid leave from CDCR. This case was a joint investigation between the CDCR’s Worker’s Compensation Fraud High impact Team and the Amador County Worker’s Compensation Fraud unit, which investigates fraud cases in Amador, Placer and Calaveras County through a grant provided by the California Department of Insurance.

Fire crews from Nevada and Oregon have arrived to help California firefighters battle hundreds of blazes that are darkening the sky over California, leading public health officials to issue air-quality warnings. The lightning-caused fires have charred tens of thousands of acres and forced hundreds of residents to flee their homes, though few buildings have been destroyed, said Daniel Berlant, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or CALFIRE. "It's just extremely, extremely dry," Berlant said Tuesday. "That means any little spark has the potential to cause a large fire. The public needs to be extra cautious because we don't need any additional wildfires." Elsewhere in the state, residents were ordered to evacuate an area of Monterey County on Wednesday because of a huge blaze that started before the lightning storm. More than 800 wildfires were set by a storm that unleashed nearly 8,000 lightning strikes across Northern California over the weekend. The storm was unusual not only because it generated so many lightning bolts with little or no rain over a large geographical area, but also because it struck so early in the season and moved in from the Pacific Ocean. Such storms usually don't arrive until late July or August and typically form southeast of California.

A severe lightning storm started a number of fires in nearby counties over the past weekend, but Amador County went relatively unscathed. Minor fires broke out in Amador’s higher elevations, although these were small-scale blazes compared to those in neighboring counties. Approximately 23 wild land fires dotted Calaveras and El Dorado Counties as a result of Saturday’s lightning storm. The primary fires of concern were the 30-acre Soldier fire, located 3 miles northeast of Pollock Pines and north of Highway 50, and the 20-acre Capps fire halfway between Highway 50 and Highway 88 in the vicinity of the Capps Crossing campground. The Soldier fire threatened homes and a Natural Research Area. Both of these fires were contained by Sunday. Meanwhile, firefighters across Northern California have been battling merciless fires that have been feeding off the bone-dry landscape. Along California’s Coast, three massive wildfires have been contained. A 23,000 acre fire that has destroyed 50 homes has yet to be contained in Humboldt County; a 4000 acre blaze is approaching containment in Napa County, and a 600 acre fire burns in Santa Cruz. As a result of the statewide blazes, local air quality is at a poor level. Amador’s Air Quality District is advising more sensitive groups to take caution because of the high particulate levels in the local air.

The City of Sutter Creek was transformed last weekend for a reenactment of the last successful stagecoach robbery by local legend Black Bart. The town’s annual celebration takes you back 125 years to June 23, 1883, when the infamous highwayman Black Bart held up the Wells Fargo Stage on Main Street. The robbery netted him a total of 755 dollars in express boxes and U.S. registered mail. More importantly, it was the last successful robbery of his colorful career. Unlike the original robbery, the atmosphere last weekend was focused on fun, family and history. An assortment of locals donned traditional western garb and reenacted various well-choreographed shootout’s that hinted at the tension surrounding Black Bart’s hold up. At one point, the Sheriff and a posse of bathrobe clad vigilantes strode down the street for a showdown with Black Bart’s gang. Real blanks were fired and the air was filled with smoke and excitement. It is estimated that during his career, Black Bart robbed as much as 18,000 dollars from stages along mountain roads. It is also alleged that the real Black Bart was a cordial man who politely requested the money from his victims. Black Bart had a personal vendetta against Wells Fargo bank and refused to take any funds from other parties.

Last week, the Amador Fire Safe Council held a public information workshop on how to create defensible space. Executive Director Cathy Koos Breazeal gave a presentation on the steps homeowners need to take to prepare for wildfire. The concept of defensible space deals with how to best landscape the area around one’s home in order to minimize the threat of wildfire spreading to the structure, and also provides firefighters a space in which to work while protecting the structure. California State Law requires the homeowner to clear 100 feet of space around the home and other buildings. Providing defensible space does not mean that you need strip all vegetation around your home, but it does require clearing 30 feet of flammable vegetation immediately around your house. In addition, the next 70 feet is a “reduced fuel zone,” which should be clear of debris and should have vertical and horizontal spacing between plants. Large trees do not have to be cut and removed as long as all of the lower limbs and plants beneath them are cleared, which serves to eliminate a vertical “fire latter.” Trees should also be trimmed at least 10 feet away from chimneys. Koos Breazeal also recommended several other ways to prepare for fire. She stressed making a family plan, including designating two meeting places outside of the home. Preparations should be made for pets and livestock; livestock can be brought to the Amador County Fair grounds, but don’t rely on animal shelters for your pets. Be sure you have one crate for each pet, and a place where you can take them if you have to evacuate. Also, make sure your driveway is clearly marked, in both directions as you approach your home. Think about your driveway in the event of heavy smoke- your address should be made of metal and reflective. The Amador Fire Safe Council also provides a free roadside chipper service, in addition to several other services. For more information on these services and defensible space, visit www.amadorfiresafe.org.