Amador County - Consultants for the East Bay Municipal Utilities District, or EBMUD, say raising the Pardee Reservoir will have no significant impact on kayaking or whitewater rafting, despite concerns expressed by river recreation organizations and conservationists. At a workshop last Monday evening in the Amador Water Agency, an overflowing crowd listened intently as EBMUD consultant David Blau, among others, said that raising the dam another 33 feet would have no significant impact on the Mokelumne’s whitewater rapids. Blau expressed the same belief to a crowd of 30 at a workshop in Lodi on Monday afternoon. He said that water would be released during rainy winters and water levels adjusted accordingly. However, many opponents to the proposed expansion are still skeptical, including one Lodi official in attendance who calls Blau’s assessment, “a whitewashing designed to appeal to those who are creating EBMUD’s 2040 Water Plan.” During Amador’s workshop, opponents from diverse backgrounds claimed that higher water levels would not only destroy existing recreation areas, but cause significant environmental damage as well. Councilman Keith Sweet read a Jackson City Council resolution passed unanimously last week in opposition to Pardee’s expansion. The City of Jackson has made significant investments in river recreation through the years. Perhaps the biggest opponent to the proposal is the Foothill Conservancy, which considers preservation of the Mokelumne River one of its top priorities. “We don’t feel we should have to give up more of our river so people in the east bay can take longer showers and water their lawn,” said Katherine Evatt, Board Director for the Foothill Conservancy. The proposed dam expansion is part of EBMUD’s 2040 Water Plan. EBMUD Spokesman Charles Hardy says it will still take 10 to 15 years for district officials to decide the feasibility of the project. EBMUD supplies water from the Mokelumne to customers throughout the East Bay Area. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – The Amador County Transportation Commission board of directors approved an agreement with Sutter Creek and the Petrovich Development Company on Wednesday that should open the door for the building of Walgreens on Ridge Road in Sutter Creek. ACTC Executive Director Charles Field said the agreement was being drafted by the commission’s legal staff and it would be based on an e-mail agreement draft he sent to Sutter Creek and the Petrovich Company’s Wanda Doscher. The board approved Field to sign the written agreement, pending legal completion. Field said Petrovich hopes to go to work at the site and begin building a Walgreens there. Sutter Creek Assistant City Manager Sean Rabe (RuhhBay) said Petrovich is “hoping to pull a grading permit (this) week and start moving dirt.” He told the board it could delay the prokject if it disapproved of the agreement. Supervisor and ACTC Board Chairman Louis Boitano said it is also “putting people to work.” Rabe said the city is supportive of the project and excited to get the Walgreens built. The agreement allows Petrovich to pay a Regional Traffic Mitigation Fee of $1,200 to ACTC. Rabe said the total reduction of fees is $88,000 dollars. The agreement includes right-of-way, frontage improvements and fee credits, as discussed by the ad hoc Transportation Policy Advisory Task force. The right-of-way is required for the highway and intersection expansions which were determined to be needed by a Traffic Impact Study of the Crossroads Shopping Center. Credits will be given to Petrovich for the right-of-way property, and supplant the Regional Traffic Mitigation Fee payments. The ACTC board unanimously voted to have Field sign the document when the legal team finishes drafting it. Sutter Creek approved the Crossroads Shopping Center in 2004. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – The Amador County Transportation Commission board of directors last week approved 2 resolutions to commence studies on Highway 88 in Pine Grove and on Highway 49 in Plymouth. The expected widening project of Highway 88 has a total cost estimate of $2.27 Million Dollars, while the Plymouth Circulation Improvement Project was approved for $89,105 dollars. Both would conclude next May. Neil Peacock, planner and program manager for both projects, said the Plymouth project included a schedule, starting with forming an oversight committee and a developing public participation program in April and May. June through August will be for data collection and preliminary analysis, and then 3 community meetings in September through November will look at the project overview and general plan policy guidance; land use, traffic & the environment; and then funding strategies. In January 2010, Peacock scheduled a joint “city council and Planning commission meeting” and draft of a plan, with plan revision and a funding program handled next February and March. Next January to April will be used to develop and screen improvement recommendations and alternatives; then the selection of the final alternatives will occur in April and May 2010; with “adoption of the final preferred alternative” in May. Peacock has held outreach meetings with 2 Upcountry grassroots quasi-political groups, the Upcountry Community Council in Pioneer, and the Pine Grove Community Council in Pine Grove, describing the steps in the project. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County - The Amador Tuolumne Community Action Agency, or ATCAA, is among nine area nonprofit organizations to benefit from $215,000 in grant funding awarded by Sacramento-based Sierra Health Foundation. Sierra Health President Chet Hewitt said they wanted to do their part to mitigate the challenges people in our communities are facing. Shelters and food banks throughout the region have had to turn people away because they lack supplies, space and manpower. ATCAA was among a handful of organizations to beat out heavy competition for funding. In total, 250 grant applications were received by the January 15th deadline from philanthropy organizations in Sierra Health’s 26-county funding region. ATCAA, based in Jackson, will receive $25,000 to help the Amador Shelter remain open year-round and continue providing 160 homeless adults and children with meals and shelter for 60-day stays. The Human Resources Council in San Andreas, which is the only safety-net service in Calaveras County, received $25,000 for emergency food supplies. Other grant awardees included Catholic Charities of Stockton, Gospel Center Rescue Mission in Stockton, the San Joaquin County Human Services Agency, Second Harvest Bank of San Joaquin, and the San Joaquin AIDS Foundation. Each of these organizations received $25,000. The Sierra Health Foundation is a private philanthropy promoting improved health and quality of life in the region since 1985, and has committed $1 million to 42 organizations overall. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – The Ione City Council last week heard an update on a drainage issue that was affecting a resident’s property next door to the new Ione Firehouse. Charles Broussard appeared at the meeting on behalf of Heather Broussard, whose property next door to the newly built firehouse was being affected by rainfall runoff from the firehouse property. Mr. Broussard showed photos of the property from February 14th, and brought a letter from Heather to “make the council aware of the problem out there,” and to “put the council on notice.” He said water was flowing off the sidewalk through cuts in the curb, and “the retention basin does not catch water.” City Manager Kim Kerr said she spoke with Heather about the date the photo was taken, February 14th, and told the council that city maintenance staff “has had some improvements made,” on February 25th. She said “unfortunately we haven’t had any rain since then.” Kerr said she would like to meet at the site with the project engineer and with Heather, and she would like to eventually make corrections along the “whole length of the property line.” She said the engineer drew up the repair project but it has not yet been done. Kerr told the council and Broussard that “we are continuing to work on this” and the city’s intent is to complete the repairs. She said “we have impacted it when we put the building there.” Councilman Jim Ulm said the city staff realized “there is a problem there and you want to do something about it.” In other correspondence, Mayor Lee Ard mentioned a letter from Jackson City Councilman Keith Sweet asking the Ione council to consider passing a resolution in protest of the East Bay Municipal Utilities District’s plan that would make a larger dam at Pardee Lake, in effect flooding portions of the banks along the Mokelumne River. Ard said the letter included a draft Resolution, an edition of which the Jackson City Council passed 2 weeks ago and which Sweet read at a public workshop hosted by East Bay MUD last week in Sutter Creek. Ard said Sweet sent the letter and resolution to all city councils in Amador, and also to the Amador County Board of Supervisors, to generate support opposing the Pardee Lake expansion plan. Ard and the council directed Kerr to place the resolution and letter on the next city council meeting agenda. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – A $185,000-dollar slice of the federal pie prompted the Amador County Transportation Commission to draft a “modest thank-you letter” to Congressman Dan Lungren, who added the earmark to a recent federal spending bill. The ACTC board considered the letter, which Executive Director Charles Field said should also be directing thanks to the work of the Amador County Board of Supervisors and its staff. Field said actually getting the funds is still difficult, but project coordinator Neil Peacock and ACTC are already “beginning to work with stakeholders in Pine Grove.” Peacock has attended meeting of the Upcountry Community Council and the Pine Grove Community Council. The supplemental appropriation will ensure that the study work and public meetings will go through, Field said earlier this week. At Wednesday’s meeting, he told the ACTC board that “we are just waiting for the final red tape to get cleared.” Peacock also requested a late addition of the agenda: a resolution of support for a grant application that is due to be sent April 1st. The “Community-based Transportation Planning Grant Application” is being applied for by ACTC on behalf of the cities of Jackson and Ione, for work on Highways 49, 88, 104 and 124. Peacock said ACTC’s “Overal Work Program” list “anticipates submitting a grant request for $300,000, with a required local match of $75,000.” Peacock said the “project will use land use and traffic demand forecasts to analyze transportation improvements required to maintain acceptable levels of service based on the cities’ existing guidelines. Then, a prioritized funding strategy will be created to implement the identified improvements over a long-range planning horizon.” He said the “final product is expected to be a dynamic implementation program that can be used by the cities to plan, prioritize and fund transportation improvement projects that support the cities’ visions as outlined in their General Plans.” He said a ACTC has a “goal of fostering a consistent, county-wide approach” and “has previously undertaken a similar effort in Martell and is currently beginning a similar project in Plymouth.” The ACTC board approved the resolution unanimously. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County - A fox that bit a child in neighboring El Dorado County tested positive for the rabies virus, according to El Dorado health officials. The child was bitten in Cameron Park, which straddles the northern border of Amador County. The child is currently in the care of doctors and receiving a vaccine to prevent rabies. A Cameron park resident contacted Animal Control Services Tuesday after discovering a dead fox. The child’s caregiver subsequently confirmed that it was the same animal that had bit the child while playing in the same location on March 12. This marks the first positive test for rabies in the local region this year. In 2008, a total of 178 animals found in California tested positive for rabies, including six in Amador County, six in Placer County, eight in Sacramento County and one in El Dorado County, according to the news release. They included 31 skunks, 137 bats, nine foxes and one cat. In May of 2008, two rabid skunks in Jackson exposed a number of dogs and livestock to the disease. “With only 2 rabid skunks reported in the past 10 years, we have concerns there are many more rabid skunks that we don’t know about and there will be more potential opportunities for people and their animals to be exposed,” says Dr. Robert Hartmann, Amador County Health Officer. He said prevention is the best weapon for protection against exposure to rabies. Protection would include: keeping your dog and/or cat’s rabies vaccinations up to date, avoiding exposure to wild animals for both yourself and your animals, and not feeding wild animals and keeping your dog and cat feeding bowls away from wild life access. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County - Amador County reported 24 home sales in February, staying true to an increasing regional trend of sales based on bank repos. But while sales continue to rise, home prices continue to fall. According to MDA Dataquick, a company that gathers statistical information on housing trends, Sacramento region median sales prices fell to $160,000 during February, down nearly 40 percent from $257,000 during the same month last year. Sales of existing homes and new homes were up 51 percent as a result. Amador County home sales are up 33.3 percent from last February. Dataquick says sales are being fueled by lower interest rates tipping towards 5 percent in many cases for 30 year loans. Special government financing requiring just 3.5 percent down payments also play a major factor. Neighboring El Dorado County reported 128 sales, up about 1 percent from last year. The median sales price there is $325,000, down 19.8 percent. Placer County reported 355 closed escrows, down 13.2 percent from the same time last year. The county's median sales price - where half cost more and half less - was $315,000, down 13.5 percent over the past year. Other interesting statistics show median prices in the Bay Area falling below $300,000 for the first time since Dec. 1999. Prices in the Los Angeles region, meanwhile, stabilized in February after eight months of declines, at $250,000. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – The Amador County Transportation Commission considered Plymouth’s proposed Sphere of Influence Wednesday, then approved a $90,000 dollar study of traffic on Highway 49. The ACTC board got a motion from Plymouth Councilman Greg Baldwin that failed for lack of a second, before the board eventually voted 4-1 with 1 abstention to approve the Plymouth Circulation Improvement Project, at a cost of $89,105 dollars. Neil Peacock, planner and program manager, said the Plymouth project included a schedule, starting with forming an oversight committee and a developing public participation program in April and eventually concluding next May. Board Member Richard Forster said that Plymouth’s study, based on its proposed Sphere of Influence would be a waste of money because he doubted that the Local Agency Formation Commission would approve that sphere. Baldwin said 2 development projects touch the city of Plymouth boundary line and expand into the unincorporated areas around town, and he would “be surprised if LAFCO did not approve” the city’s request. ACTC Chairman Louis Boitano asked if there was any way they could table the item, so ACTC staff could discuss the study with Plymouth staff. Peacock said delaying the scoping might delay some of the scheduled work and reviews. Baldwin said “we are looking at May or June to have our General Plan wrapped up so we need this.” Forster said “it appears that your Sphere of Influence should be part of your fatal flaws.” ACTC Executive Director Charles Field said “it’s not up to transportation planners to consider Spheres of Influence and LAFCO’s opinion of them.” Field said cities have certain powers and “it would be awkward for ACTC staff to discuss with the city” whether it can support its Sphere of Influence. Baldwin said “we just want the county to be aware that this is an area we are concerned about.” Peacock said “this is a programmatic grant for the city” and the decisions and operation are “really in their lap.” Baldwin motioned to pass the project again, Councilman Pat Crosby of Sutter Creek seconded it, and it passed 4-1. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Amador County – The Amador County Transportation Commission board of directors saw the latest plans for the Ione Bypass Wednesday, and heard the latest cost estimate for the plan. Matt Boyer of Dokken Engineering said the total package would cost an estimated $113 Million dollars, including land acquisition, construction and engineering. But the biggest news was seeing the preferred route on paper for the first time. Boyer said the bypass, now referred to by the city of Ione as the “Western Ione Roadway Improvement Strategy,” had the main objective of alleviating the “largest amount of traffic from downtown Ione.” Its various segments, A through H, would connect Highway 104 in the east back to itself on the west side, and north side of town. Boyer said a recent meeting with Caltrans and District 10 chief of Rural planning and administration, Dan Brewer, was the “best and most productive meeting with Caltrans that he has had in his 20-year career.” The meeting showed that Ione, Caltrans and ACTC plans and long-term goals were compatible. Boyer said a third public meeting will be held in Ione, but the latest preferred plan was selected and recommended by the Ione Planning Commission and placed into the city’s draft General Plan Land Use Element by the Ione City Council. Ione City Planner Christopher Jordan said the city saved about $70,000 dollars on the bypass, including $50,000 by having it included in the General Plan Environmental Impact Report. ACTC Board Member Richard Forster said it was “good to finally see something on paper after 25 years” of talking about an Ione bypass. Among recommendations, Boyer said he thought there should be a separate bicycle and pedestrian bridge built over Sutter Creek, so the existing bridge can be strictly for vehicles. He said parts of the bypass “are essentially modifications and improvements to roads that already exist.” And the segment on Old Stockton Road could eventually be widened, but may not need to be. Some segments, he said, will be tied to developments, including at Castle Oaks and on the Ringer Ranch. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.