At Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting, the Board found some closure in ongoing discussions over the controversial Amador Economic Stimulus Plan. 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. The original proposal would have allowed a reduction in impact fees for local and regional traffic mitigation, recreation and capital facilities between July 1st, 2008 and December 31st, 2009.

During deliberation, the general consensus among the Board members was to approve the bill- with some caveats. “I have no problem with affordable housing, but we need to keep it simple,” said Supervisor Boitano. As long as this doesn’t affect impact fees for roads, I could go along with something.” According to Supervisor Forster, “Part of our job is to help the community get back to work. I’ve seen comments that (this stimulus package) won’t amount to a hill of beans, but 10 to 15 thousand dollars will make a lot of difference when you’re building a 250 thousand dollar house.”st , 2008. There would also be a limit to how many homes a contractor could build under the new guidelines. Despite some confusion over the details, the Board approved the package with the understanding that further discussion over the details will take place at a future meeting. Supervisor Escamilla’s main concern was with reopening old wounds. “I’m concerned about our planning department. I don’t want to see they get caught up in this again.” Supervisor Oneto made a motion to wave county facility fees and a portion of park and recreation fees until November 1

A new roof is in the process of being built for a historic building housing many valuable tokens of Amador County’s past.  During a presentation at Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting, representatives of the museum and the Board discussed the status of the project and some setbacks. According to museum curator Georgia Fox, the building’s leaky roof has become a steadily worsening issue over the last 30 years. The leaks would eventually have the potential to damage some of the museums valuable Gold Rush-era artifacts. The building itself was originally built in 1859. Starting May 12th, the county embarked on a 60 day project to replace and reinforce the museum’s roof. The museum is expected to reopen to the public in late July or early August, unless the roof is finished sooner. The work has been running smoothly so far, with the exception of one setback. There is only one contractor in California who is qualified to apply an expensive carbon fiber wrap to the roof as a form of insulation. Beyond the cost of this expensive proposition, there is the logistic problem of working a schedule out with that contractor. At the end of the discussion, the board made the recommendation that the museum research the likelihood of finding contractors in neighboring states who can do a carbon fiber wrap at a lesser price.

Today marks the grand opening of the Sutter Amador Hospital Auxiliary Thrift Shop. The Thrift Shop is celebrating the move to its new location in the Cost Less Shopping Center behind the Waffle Shop and next to Cost Less. “We have everything from soup to nuts,” said Terri Holm, one of the store’s volunteer clerks. “People have donated quite a few unusual items.” All the proceeds from the thrift store benefit the Sutter Amador Hospital. Funds are allocated based on the various needs of the hospital. When we spoke to store manager Barbara Fogg the day before the grand opening, she explained that the store is still being filled and employees will happily accept any nice, clean, usable donations. Holm was also quick to point out that store volunteers make a special effort to put aside supplies for infants in order to have those supplies readily available if there is an emergency. The Grand opening of the Auxilary Thrift Store will take place today, May 21st, between 11am and 4 pm. For more information you can contact the store at the number on your screen.

The cost of a four-year college education went up again in California on Wednesday, as leaders of the University of California and California State University systems approved their sixth round of student fee hikes in seven years. Under orders from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to reduce campus spending to help make up a statewide budget deficit, the governing boards of the two systems said they had to ask students and their families to shoulder some of the burden come fall. "We are doing everything we can to persuade the governor and the Legislature that additional funding for the CSU ought to be viewed as an investment, not an expense," said CSU Trustee William Hauck. "We are going to continue to fight that fight, but as of today, we are left with not much in the way of alternatives."

Cal State trustees meeting in Long Beach voted 15-3 to raise yearly undergraduate fees by $276, or 10 percent. The increase means that undergraduates will pay an average of $3,797 next year - twice as much as what a CSU school cost in the fall of 2000. University of California board members, meanwhile, tentatively approved a 7.4 percent fee increase that would bring the average annual cost for undergraduates to $8,007 for the 2008-09 academic year, which also represents a doubling in price from the start of the decade. The governor restored about $200 million of the $720 million he originally proposed cutting from UC and CSU's requests. But system officials said that even with the fee hikes they still would have to curtail enrollment, reduce course offerings and scale back campus services. Both CSU and UC administrators said that up to one-third of the money generated by the higher fees would go toward boosting financial aid to offset the potential impact on low-income students.

State Senator Abel Maldonado may not be the most popular guy around the Senate lounge these days. The Santa Maria Republican is the author of a constitutional amendment that would ban pay raises for the governor, legislators and other state elected officials when California is saddled with a budget deficit - a persistent problem in recent years. "But the common sense thing is to support something like this and move it forward. We are in a crisis," he said. "You can't have a governor who goes out and says we need to cut 10 percent across the board and two days later give a raise to the Legislature," he also said. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced last week that the state was facing a $15.2 billion deficit in the fiscal year that starts July 1 and proposed more than $12 billion in spending cuts to help close the gap and create a $2 billion budget reserve.

The Republican governor also wants to raise $5.1 billion by borrowing against future state lottery revenue. Maldonado's amendment would prohibit the California Citizens Compensation Commission from granting pay raises to the governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, controller, treasurer, insurance commissioner, secretary of state, superintendent of public instruction, members of the tax-collecting Board of Equalization or legislators in any fiscal year when the legislative analyst determines there is a deficit. It also would specify that the commission, created by voters in 1990 to set state elected officials' salaries and benefits, has the authority to cut pay and benefits as well as authorize raises or freeze salaries. In some cases, California’s salaries are the highest in the nation for state elected officials, according to a survey prepared for the commission. The seven-member panel is scheduled to meet June 10 to consider a proposal by its chairman, Charles Murray, to cut officials' pay by an unspecified amount because of the state's fiscal problems.

The newly-acquired Joyce Park in Pioneer has seen a lot of activity as of late. Tracey Towner-Yep, Director of the Amador County Recreation Agency, or ACRA, provided the ACRA Board with an update at their meeting Wednesday.  Meeks Lumber donated lumber and materials, which were used to rebuild the snack shack and bleachers.  The park needs another set of bleachers, and Towner-Yep is looking for a donation of 60 linear feet of angle iron for that project. Other upgrades include the transformation of the existing house into a darkroom, which is almost complete. The agency also walked the 80-acre property with a naturalist, who found a wide variety of natural plants, including wild ginger and heritage roses and apple trees. The agency plans to construct about 3 to 4 miles of trails on the property, which extends from Woodfern Drive south, across Highway 88. ACRA will be holding public hearings on June 2nd and June 29th, where they will invite the public to provide comments and suggestions for other improvements.  Towner-Yep also indicated that she would welcome suggestions at the ACRA-sponsored Kennedy Mine BBQ on May 29th.  For more information on the improvements to Joyce Park or the May 29th BBQ, contact ACRA staff at 223-6349.

At Wednesday’s board meeting of the Amador County Recreation Agency, or ACRA, the board revisited the ongoing issue of the existing and intended use of the Scout Hut at Pioneer Park. The building, which is owned by the county and maintained by the Amador County General Services Administration, or GSA, has traditionally been used by the Boy Scouts in that area. The Scout Hut was built in 1994 and dedicated to the Scouts by the county. Since that time, the Scouts have mainly used the building and paid for its utilities. Recently, ACRA received several inquiries regarding use of the facility, which instigated the apparent debate over who can use the building. At ACRA’s last board meeting, the board asked LeAnne McIntyre of the GSA to conduct research on the original grant paperwork for the building. Wednesday, McIntyre reported that the original paperwork could not be found; however, GSA Director Jon Hopkins says that “the public has never been excluded from using the building.” Hopkins indicated that, up until recently, no one had made a request to use it, as most groups use the Veteran’s Hall, which is just a few hundred yards away, and is much larger.  Hopkins also added that the real issue is what agency will be responsible for scheduling for the building, a task that is now being managed by GSA. One option was having ACRA maintain the schedule. Tracey Towner-Yep, ACRA Director, indicated that her agency could handle that job. The ACRA Board will be drafting a letter to the Board of Supervisors communicating their wishes that the Scout Hut be open for public use, with ACRA managing the schedule.  In the meantime, you can contact the General Services Administration at 223-6375 with scheduling requests.

Another successful Gold Country Cruise Car Show took place Saturday on Main Street in Downtown Jackson. Car collectors, rebuilders and enthusiasts gathered together to admire some 40 years of classic American automobile craftsmanship. The sweltering heat and 100 degree temperature did not deter visitors from miles around from attending the event. Downtown vendors used the event as an opportunity to open their doors and display their goods on the sidewalks. Food vendors such as the Motherlode Deli and Fat Freddy’s sold hot dogs and tri-tip sandwiches from sidewalk grills. Participants in the show came from many different car clubs throughout the country.

The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation honored two employees at Mule Creek State Prison on Friday, for distinguished service above and beyond the normal demands of correctional service.  The awards were presented by CDCR Secretary James Tilton at a ceremony on the West Steps of the State Capitol.  Nearly 100 employees received awards, ranging from the Medal of Valor to Unit Citations. The Distinguished Service Medal is for an employee’s exemplary work conduct with the Department for a period of months or years, or involvement in a specific assignment of unusual benefit to the Department.

In the first event, Distinguished Service Medal recipient Michael E. Doud was honored for his service at Mule Creek State Prison.  In January 1985, Michael Doud began his career with CDCR as the Vocational Cabinetmaking Instructor at Mule Creek State Prison.  He brought 17 years of cabinetmaking experience, a Contractors License, and Union Membership. Mr. Doud believes that learning of the cabinetmaking trade is but one aspect of a successful rehabilitative process.  The emotional and social requirements of his students are equally important to their successful reintegration into society. The Mule Creek Vocational Cabinetmaking Program students have designed and built approximately 2,000 projects for the local community.  The very desk that Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger uses was build by Mr. Doud and the inmates in the vocational program. In the second event, Correctional Supervisor of the Year recipient Rhonda Baker was honored for her six years of service at Mule Creek Prison.

Scientists say the clarity of Lake Tahoe has improved, and more importantly, the rate of decline has slowed considerably in recent years. In 2007, the waters of Lake Tahoe were clear to an average depth of 70.2 feet, a slight improvement from the 67.7 feet reading in 2006, according to a report by researchers with the University of California, Davis. Tahoe's clarity is measured by how far below the surface scientists can see a white, 10-inch plate known as a Secchi disk. In 1968, the lake was clear to an average depth of 102.4 feet. But Geoff Schladow, Director of the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center, emphasized that the change in the long-term trend is far more significant. "With new, more sophisticated models for detecting trends and factoring out the effects of annual precipitation, we can now say with confidence that the historic rate of decline in the lake's clarity has slowed off since 2001," Schladow said. He said the data doesn't pinpoint a specific cause for the recent improvements, but noted that new modeling results show that runoff of fine particles from urbanized areas and roadways around the lake are the primary factors that influence clarity. Federal, state, and local agencies, homeowners, and businesses have spent over half a billion dollars on water quality projects for reducing and improving runoff through Tahoe's Environmental Improvement Program, which was launched in 1997 by President Clinton.