Sutter Creek – The Area 12 Agency on the Aging resumes its monthly family caregiver educational luncheons on Monday with a class taught by a Jackson attorney. The presentation is called “Elder Law Topics with Louise Longley.” Longley is an attorney in Jackson, and the presentation is the third in the “Family Caregiver Lunch & Learn Series,” which began in September with a “fitness & mobility” class by physical therapist Jan Migliaccio. In October, Lorenzo Manza of the Ione Pharmacy spoke on “adaptive equipment.” The classes allow attendees to learn practical information they can use to support aging parents and loved ones. Area 12 Agency on the Aging program manager Kristin Millhoff said that the series is open to individuals who are already in the role of caregiver to their loved ones, or to those who may take on that role in the future. The classes are sponsored by the Area 12 Agency on Aging and free of charge, including a free lunch. Classes are limited to 30 people. She said it is open to people age 18 and older, and it is mostly designed around family caregivers. It is not meant for people being paid to give care, but it is open to the public. Future classes include December’s “How to Accompany a loved one on a Doctor’s Visit,” by Tamara Harding. January’s title is “The Emotional Aspect of Having to Place a Loved one in a Facility,” by Ronna Esparze. February’s class is “Common Sense Approach to Alzheimer’s Caregiving.” Monday’s class is 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Amador County Health & Human Services, 10877 Conductor Blvd., Room A, in Sutter Creek. Pre-registration is required, as there will be lunches served. To register call 532-6272 ext. 220 or e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Jackson – After a repeat victory at the California State Fair, the 2009 Amador County Fair exhibit came to Jackson Thursday afternoon. Local sign maker and TSPN personality Kam Merzlak and volunteers scooted the steel replica of the Kennedy Mine head frame into place in the parking lot at the corner of Main Street and Highway 49. The project, built by Merzlak, Doug Westcott and Kurt Todden, will be on display at the corner, next to Merzlak Signs. The project gave Amador County a repeat win as a California State Fair exhibit. Amador County was awarded one of only a handful of gold ribbons and Merzlak’s team won Best Design, impressing judges to edge out all other counties, including 6 or 7 exhibits constructed by set builders from Universal Studios. The exhibit, built from steel beams and rusty corrugated steel roofing, also included a tailing wheel, a running stream and an anima-tronic gold miner panning for gold. Merzlak made a 90-second presentation on Amador County from atop the 18-foot high head frame and he and volunteers handed out literature to more than 1,000 people. Financial backing for the project was provided in part by Stan Lukowicz, Sue Underwood, Sharyn Brown and Debbie Dunn. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Jackson – The Amador Resources Conservation District (ARCD) announced last week that Amador County may soon have an ordinance that exempts agricultural buildings from the building permit process. The ARCD, along with farmers and ranchers, have pushed for the exemption in order to avoid complicated building permit processes. “After a year of hard work and the support of (Supervisors) John Plasse and Louis Boitano…Amador County is on the verge of having an ordinance,” said ARCD Director Steve Cannon in a release. “There are some requirements, but they are tolerable,” he added. The agreement would bypass restrictions placed on other types of buildings and allow property owners to build structures to house “farm implements, hay, grain, poultry, livestock or horticultural products.” The Agreement to Limit Uses of Agricultural Structures, as drafted on October 15, would apply to owners of “certain real property situated in the unincorporated area of the County of Amador.” Among the restrictions Cannon refers to, owners must agree that the structure “shall not be a place of human habitation or a place of employment” and will “not be a place used by the public.” The proposed agreement also includes a Covenant Running with the Land wherein the owner agrees that the exemption will “be perpetual and run with the land, binding future owners” unless the building is permitted or removed. Cannon claims there is another stipulation not included with the draft that limits unpermitted agricultural structures to 3000 square feet and one story. “The ARCD would like to see that limitation removed to allow for the construction of larger hay barns, though there is some argument that most barns that are larger come with engineered plans,” he said. Whether the building permit exemption is approved now depends on the county’s Land Use and Development Subcommittee, who will consider recommendation of the ordinance to the Board of Supervisors during their December meeting. Cannon encouraged interested parties to contact Kristen Bengyel, Deputy County Administrative Officer and Interim Public Works Director, for more information. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Jackson – The Amador County Administrative Committee on Monday sought clarification of a revenue sharing agreement relating to the annexation of the Gold Rush Ranch and Noble Ranch properties. Supervisors Ted Novelli and Brian Oneto made recommendations as to the best course of action before the item is presented to the Board of Supervisors. County Administrative Officer Terri Daly said Supervisors and the Sutter Creek City Council adopted the revenue sharing agreement on September 29, 2003, in order to address “revenue streams.” Daly said “about 2/3rds of the property proposed for development is in (Sutter Creek) right now.” Key points of the agreement include the establishment of a public safety fee, a fire protection parcel fee, a sales tax in which the County and City agree to share sales tax created in the area on a 90 percent and 10 percent basis, respectively, and a property tax split in which the County will keep the base property tax and the City and County will share new property tax created through the development on a 1/3 and 2/3 basis, respectively. Both entities would allocate 2 percent of these taxes to the Sutter Creek Fire Protection District. Also included is a County Facilities Fee in which the “City and County agreed that the annexed area would be subject to a County Facilities Fee that was projected to be $900 per unit at the time of the agreement, adjusted annually in accordance with a construction cost index.” Daly said there has been confusion about the appropriate fee for Gold Rush units because the County Facilities Fee is now $8,316 per unit. Daly said an agreement has since been crafted that would require both entities to split property tax and sales tax revenue, annex County CFD fire protection to Gold Rush, and “condition Gold Rush to create an annual Public Safety fee equivalent to 2 percent of assessed property value for County Public Safety services and a fee for City Public Safety services. Finally Gold Rush would be required to pay the original $900 County Facilities Fee for any unit “constructed on the land that was previously annexed,” or the approximate 2/3rds annexed by the city. Any unit constructed on land proposed for the remainder of Gold Rush will face the current $8,316 facilities fee. Much of the discussion focused on the last item in the revised agreement: a commitment by Gold Rush to dedicate a 3.01 acre site for a new main library. The discussion was scheduled to be continued before the Board of Supervisors at their meeting on November 24th. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Jackson – The Amador County Administrative Committee on Monday sought clarification of a revenue sharing agreement relating to the annexation of the Gold Rush Ranch and Noble Ranch properties. Supervisors Ted Novelli and Brian Oneto made recommendations as to the best course of action before the item is presented to the Board of Supervisors. County Administrative Officer Terri Daly said Supervisors and the Sutter Creek City Council adopted the revenue sharing agreement on September 29, 2003, in order to address “revenue streams.” Daly said “about 2/3rds of the property proposed for development is in (Sutter Creek) right now.” Key points of the agreement include the establishment of a public safety fee, a fire protection parcel fee, a sales tax in which the County and City agree to share sales tax created in the area on a 90 percent and 10 percent basis, respectively, and a property tax split in which the County will keep the base property tax and the City and County will share new property tax created through the development on a 1/3 and 2/3 basis, respectively. Both entities would allocate 2 percent of these taxes to the Sutter Creek Fire Protection District. Also included is a County Facilities Fee in which the “City and County agreed that the annexed area would be subject to a County Facilities Fee that was projected to be $900 per unit at the time of the agreement, adjusted annually in accordance with a construction cost index.” Daly said there has been confusion about the appropriate fee for Gold Rush units because the County Facilities Fee is now $8,316 per unit. Daly said an agreement has since been crafted that would require both entities to split property tax and sales tax revenue, annex County CFD fire protection to Gold Rush, and “condition Gold Rush to create an annual Public Safety fee equivalent to 2 percent of assessed property value for County Public Safety services and a fee for City Public Safety services. Finally Gold Rush would be required to pay the original $900 County Facilities Fee for any unit “constructed on the land that was previously annexed,” or the approximate 2/3rds annexed by the city. Any unit constructed on land proposed for the remainder of Gold Rush will face the current $8,316 facilities fee. Much of the discussion focused on the last item in the revised agreement: a commitment by Gold Rush to dedicate a 3.01 acre site for a new main library. The discussion was scheduled to be continued before the Board of Supervisors at their meeting on November 24th. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sutter Creek – The Amador Water Agency Board of Directors heard the history and workings of the Amador Regional Sanitation Authority Thursday, with the object of learning enough to decide whether or not to join the 31-year-old Joint Power Authority (JPA). AWA attorney Steve Kronick said “it is an extensive amount of information” and he is not fully versed on the subject, including legal agreements, obligations and shared liabilities. Kronick planned to give the presentation over 3 meetings, and he said questions may arise from AWA board members that he may not be able to answer. He said the goal was that the board be “fully informed” about ARSA in order to decide whether or not to try to become a member of it. ARSA was formed in 1978 by Jackson, Amador City, Sutter Creek and Amador County. Kronick said “the original intent was to have 1 government agency carry out regional disposal of treated wastewater.” Jackson extricated itself from the JPA in 1982. AWA Interim General Manger Gene Mancebo said the agency does “not know to what degree Amador County wants off of the board” of directors of ARSA. He said Supervisor Chairman Ted Novelli was going to bring that back to a Joint Water Committee meeting, after hearing from supervisors. Kronick said state joint power law says that the liabilities of a JPA are the same to all its members, unless otherwise specified in the JPA. He said the ARSA JPA agreement does not say otherwise, “so the debts of ARSA are the debts of its member entities.” Kronick said breakdown by “proportion” of the share of debt is not indicated in the JPA, so in the event that someone is owed a debt by ARSA, that person “probably can pick who they want to sue to fulfill the obligations due.” Kronick said logically, the debtor “would look to a deep pocket to fulfill that obligation.” He said an amendment to the JPA would not erase past debts, only change proportions from that point forward. Mancebo said the partially state-owned ARSA system, with pipelines between Amador city and Castle Oaks Golf Course could require an estimated $30 million to as much as $50 million in upgrades, to replace pipelines and systems. Kronick said adding a new member to ARSA’s board would require an amendment to the agreement, and he said the AWA could not simply take Amador County’s membership on the board. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Jackson – The Amador Resources Conservation District (ARCD) announced last week that Amador County may soon have an ordinance that exempts agricultural buildings from the building permit process. The ARCD, along with farmers and ranchers, have pushed for the exemption in order to avoid complicated building permit processes. “After a year of hard work and the support of (Supervisors) John Plasse and Louis Boitano…Amador County is on the verge of having an ordinance,” said ARCD Director Steve Cannon in a release. “There are some requirements, but they are tolerable,” he added. The agreement would bypass restrictions placed on other types of buildings and allow property owners to build structures to house “farm implements, hay, grain, poultry, livestock or horticultural products.” The Agreement to Limit Uses of Agricultural Structures, as drafted on October 15, would apply to owners of “certain real property situated in the unincorporated area of the County of Amador.” Among the restrictions Cannon refers to, owners must agree that the structure “shall not be a place of human habitation or a place of employment” and will “not be a place used by the public.” The proposed agreement also includes a Covenant Running with the Land wherein the owner agrees that the exemption will “be perpetual and run with the land, binding future owners” unless the building is permitted or removed. Cannon claims there is another stipulation not included with the draft that limits unpermitted agricultural structures to 3000 square feet and one story. “The ARCD would like to see that limitation removed to allow for the construction of larger hay barns, though there is some argument that most barns that are larger come with engineered plans,” he said. Whether the building permit exemption is approved now depends on the county’s Land Use and Development Subcommittee, who will consider recommendation of the ordinance to the Board of Supervisors during their December meeting. Cannon encouraged interested parties to contact Kristen Bengyel, Deputy County Administrative Officer and Interim Public Works Director, for more information. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Jackson – After a repeat victory at the California State Fair, the 2009 Amador County Fair exhibit came to Jackson Thursday afternoon. Local sign maker and TSPN personality Kam Merzlak and volunteers scooted the steel replica of the Kennedy Mine head frame into place in the parking lot at the corner of Main Street and Highway 49. The project, built by Merzlak, Doug Westcott and Kurt Todden, will be on display at the corner, next to Merzlak Signs. The project gave Amador County a repeat win as a California State Fair exhibit. Amador County was awarded one of only a handful of gold ribbons and Merzlak’s team won Best Design, impressing judges to edge out all other counties, including 6 or 7 exhibits constructed by set builders from Universal Studios. The exhibit, built from steel beams and rusty corrugated steel roofing, also included a tailing wheel, a running stream and an anima-tronic gold miner panning for gold. Merzlak made a 90-second presentation on Amador County from atop the 18-foot high head frame and he and volunteers handed out literature to more than 1,000 people. Financial backing for the project was provided in part by Stan Lukowicz, Sue Underwood, Sharyn Brown and Debbie Dunn. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sutter Creek – The Area 12 Agency on the Aging resumes its monthly family caregiver educational luncheons on Monday with a class taught by a Jackson attorney. The presentation is called “Elder Law Topics with Louise Longley.” Longley is an attorney in Jackson, and the presentation is the third in the “Family Caregiver Lunch & Learn Series,” which began in September with a “fitness & mobility” class by physical therapist Jan Migliaccio. In October, Lorenzo Manza of the Ione Pharmacy spoke on “adaptive equipment.” The classes allow attendees to learn practical information they can use to support aging parents and loved ones. Area 12 Agency on the Aging program manager Kristin Millhoff said that the series is open to individuals who are already in the role of caregiver to their loved ones, or to those who may take on that role in the future. The classes are sponsored by the Area 12 Agency on Aging and free of charge, including a free lunch. Classes are limited to 30 people. She said it is open to people age 18 and older, and it is mostly designed around family caregivers. It is not meant for people being paid to give care, but it is open to the public. Future classes include December’s “How to Accompany a loved one on a Doctor’s Visit,” by Tamara Harding. January’s title is “The Emotional Aspect of Having to Place a Loved one in a Facility,” by Ronna Esparze. February’s class is “Common Sense Approach to Alzheimer’s Caregiving.” Monday’s class is 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Amador County Health & Human Services, 10877 Conductor Blvd., Room A, in Sutter Creek. Pre-registration is required, as there will be lunches served. To register call 532-6272 ext. 220 or e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sutter Creek – The Amador Council of Tourism was expected to hear today from its “visioning committee” that a proposed Outdoor Writers Association Conference, scheduled for June 2010, would be delayed until 2011. Maureen Funk, executive director reported that in the October ACT meeting, a “Conference representative expressed interest in Amador County” as avenue. The conference would include about 40 writers, with an average attendance of 80-110 people. The conference has been held in Calaveras County, which had a budget for the conference of $10,000. Most expenses for hosting the conference rest on the shoulders of the hosting area. Attractions can include photo excursions, caves, fishing, hunting, Roaring Camp, golf, hatchery and walking tours, with different levels of activity for writers and spouses/families. Hosting the conference can provide Amador County with “significant press and promotional coverage vis-à-vis their writing profession,” Funk said. A committee was formed to bring back a proposal. Also in October, a treasurer report said most of ACT’s income is from 2 sources: lodging assessment and membership dues. The council was “at $8,000 of a $12,000 goal.” 50-60 percent of ACT’s expenses are advertising and overhead is approximately $55,000. The Amador County Board of Supervisors this year gave ACT $25,000, an increase over last year. The 7-year-old Amador Council of Tourism reported 160 members, and its “membership committee” is starting a new campaign this month, among current and prospective members. ACT “can take ½ cash and ½ trade for membership fees, especially if someone is interested in going to a higher membership level.” In member reports, Corinne Moore reported planning a wine booth for the 10-day tennis open in March 2010 in Indian Wells, with attendance expected at 300,000 people. The hosts are putting together a wine country pavilion from all regions of California, including related tourist info. Moore said her brother offered to work with her to help with costs of the booth. Amador Regional Transit System director James Means said he has submitted 3 grant applications including one for shuttle service, and he met with Sen. Dave Cox and will meet with Assemblywoman Alyson Huber. He said the ARTS Kirkwood ski bus will be running until April this season. The new transit site will have about 50 Park & Ride parking spots. Insurance will cover vehicles that park there. ACT was scheduled to meet at 9 a.m. today at Days Inn in Sutter Creek. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.