Sutter Creek Officials are sprinting to the finish line in order to secure what many purport to be a winning project- the Gold Rush Ranch and Golf Resort. The Gold Rush Ranch and Golf Resort package includes an 18 hole golf course, club house, and related facilities, 1,334 single family residences, 300 timeshare units, a 60 room hotel, 20,000 square feet of neighborhood commercial space, a public safety site, and 300 acres of open space. The massive project, which will effectively double the size of Sutter Creek, is proposed for 945 acres adjacent to Ridge Road and Highway 88 bordering the north-western edge of the town. In a joint meeting of the Sutter Creek City Council and Planning Commission Wednesday evening, council members, commissioners, and members of the public reviewed several aspects of the Draft Environmental Impact Report.

Topics of review pertained to the project’s consistency with Sutter Creek’s general plan, the project’s specific plan for development, General Plan amendments that are required by project elements, Zoning Ordinance amendments, and the project’s tentative large lot subdivision map. Project Manager Anders Hauge was under the gun throughout the meeting, leading the discussion on several complicated components of the DEIR. At the beginning of the session, Hauge apologized to the administrators present for being unable to supply all of the pertinent information to them before the meeting, but still welcomed input on the materials that were available. Indeed, time constraints on information dissemination have been a pervasive theme throughout the execution of the project’s fast-paced schedule. Hauge took notes of public officials’ and the public’s comments, which will be incorporated into the Final EIR. Wednesday’s workshop is one of three such meetings; the other two are scheduled for August 13th and August 20th. The DEIR circulation will end on August 29th, which is also the last day to submit comments for the final EIR. On September 15th, the Planning Commission is scheduled to make a recommendation to the City Council regarding project approval. The City Council expects to consider the Certification of the final EIR accompanying project approval in December 2008.

Also at the meeting, Paul Molinelli Senior of ACES Waste Services proposed a rate increase of 10 percent based on the extraordinary rise in fuel costs over the past 6 months. The cost of diesel fuel has increased from approximately 3.45 dollars per gallon on January 1st of this year to a peak of 5.03 dollars per gallon this month. Although the price has decreased slightly in the past week, it is still much higher than it was at the beginning of the year. If approved, this would be the second rate adjustment for ACES in the past 12 months, which deviates from the franchise agreement between the City and ACES that allows for one increase per year. “The cost of fuel never seems to stop increasing, and ACES can no longer absorb the cost increases,” said Molinelli.

He also reminded the council that the cost of fuel was not the only increase plaguing him, but also the cost of tires, tubing, and other items frequently utilized by the company. Emergency cost cutting measures have been instated because of the rising costs and the decreasing total revenues. These cuts include: no longer providing uniforms for employees, waiving pay increases, and installing shut off devices on vehicles. Councilman Wayne Garibaldi stated that “as difficult as [increases are] this is probably still a pretty good deal, and it is one that I can support.” Questions regarding the legality of the increase were raised at the meeting, but were met with very little opposition as this is considered more of an emergency need.

A notice from ACES to its customers informing them of the impending increase will be required 30 days before the increase becomes effective. During public comment, Marilyn Lewis, a Jackson resident, stated that “ACES saved our butts and the County’s too,” recalling past issues regarding recycling and state mandates. A motion was proposed directing staff to prepare a resolution to be signed at the next City Council meeting, and an interim rate increase was approved unanimously.

A group of loyal customers have united to protest the planned closing of Starbucks in Jackson. Far from another local business, the Starbucks located on the corner of Highway 49 and Clinton Road is one of 600 locations the coffee giant plans on closing nationwide. But local Starbucks loyalists are not about to give up without a fight. Jackson Residents Roger Amaral and Joyce Larsen have been simultaneously protesting and enjoying their hot beverages in front of the shop each morning. They have been petitioning for signatures from customers as they enter the store, and so far have collected over 400.

The sheer volume of signatures on the petition is evidence of the many coffee enthusiasts who frequent the chain, even in these tough economic times. But with two other Starbucks locations in the Martell shopping center, one Amador City resident who regularly buys her coffee at Andrae’s Bakery hardly sees what the fuss is about. “I could understand if they were fighting for lost jobs, but let’s give some smaller businesses a chance. And if you really want your Starbucks, is it that hard to drive to the one in Martell?” she said. For the past ten years, the coffee juggernaut has been expanding at an astronomical rate. The Amador County locations are just three of 16,000 stores worldwide. The official closing date has yet to be announced.

The El Dorado Irrigation District began the massive undertaking of drawing down Caples Lake last weekend to prepare for the replacement of deteriorated outlet works at the Caples Lake Main dam on Highway 88. Caples Lake is adjacent to Kirkwood near the northernmost region of Amador County and is a popular recreation area for Amador County residents. The District emphasizes that the dam structure itself is safe. However, the outlet works were recently found to be in unsound condition and must be replaced. The drawdown will cause higher-than-usual water flows for this time of year in Caples Creek and the Silver Fork of the American River, located in the Eldorado National Forest between Highway 50 and Highway 88. The flows are expected to remain unusually high through mid-September. During this time, the District warns that it is hazardous to be in or near the two streams and advises the visitors to camp on high ground away from the stream edge and avoid entering or crossing the stream.

The District is coordinating with the U.S. Forest Service to post signs at trailheads, in parking areas, and at campgrounds to alert visitors to the extremely higher water flows. On July 1, the District’s Board of Directors declared an emergency after an underwater investigation at Caples Lake revealed problems with two slide gates, located in a well-like shaft within the dam. Of particular concern is the lower gate that is about 64 feet under water when the lake is full. Late last week, District staff located a manufacturer who can furnish the replacement parts. The lake must be drawn down for the replacement work to proceed. Caples Lake is part of Project 184, the hydroelectric power generation system that the District acquired from the Pacific Gas and Electric Company in 1999.

After multiple complaints from local mine operators, the County of Amador is set to terminate its contract with Resource Design Technologies Incorporated, the agency who performs annual surface mine inspections in accordance with the California Surface Mining and Reclamation Act, or SMARA. Amador County contracted with Resource Design three years ago to perform the surface inspections and reporting to the State for the 26 active or idle mines in Amador County. Prior to that, the county contracted locally to perform inspections, but became unable to manage State reporting requirements as laws regulating mining reclamation activity have become much more stringent in the last three years. Recently, the County Planning Department has reportedly received numerous complaints from local mine managers regarding the quality of Resource Design’s work.

Complaints primarily centered around the issue of a low quality of work performed during inspections and “sloppy reporting” at a considerable cost to the mining companies. According to one local mine manager, at the end of this year’s reporting period, he received a phone call from the State Mining and Geology Board pointing out numerous errors on his mine’s surface inspection report. He was able to correct the errors, but his faith in Resource Design was shaken. The County is looking into a contract with a new inspection firm, Pacific Municipal Consultants, or PMC. According to County Planner Nathan Lishman, the County hopes to contract with PMC for two years for a cost of $47,000 per year. After the two year period which will include training with PMC, the County Planning Department will look into performing its own inspections and reporting which will save local mining operators a considerable cost and will also, according to Lishman, serve to help circulate revenue within the County.

A decent turnout of long-time local activists, city council followers, and a handful of curious civilians attended the July 16th Gold Rush Ranch and Golf Resort public information workshop on the project’s newly released Draft Environmental Impact Report. Residents debated the merits and impacts of the development with the project board and city staff while viewing posters depicting photo-shopped before and after images of the 945 acres of oak woodland and cattle grazing land that may soon be the site of construction. The City of Sutter Creek is a partner in the project, which was initially formulated in order to facilitate the city’s wastewater disposal needs. The project includes major additions to the city’s water infrastructure, in addition to the expansion of local roads and public services.

Later that evening, much of the same crowd reappeared for a joint City Council and Planning Commission meeting to review the document. Mayor Pro-tem Bill Hepworth opened the meeting in the absence of mayor Gary Wooten, but soon thereafter announced that he would have to step down from the discussion due to a potential conflict of interest involving his wife’s business as a realtor. What ensued was a presentation on the DEIR lead by Bob Delp, who is assisting the city in Gold Rush’s environmental planning and review. Delp discussed the projects impacts to population and housing, public services and utilities, transportation and circulation, air quality, noise, location geology and hydrology, historical, biological, and visual resources.

As in previous discussions on the project’s impacts, the hot button topics that became the source of debate centered on traffic impacts and oak woodland mitigation. Planning Commission Chairman Robin Peters pointed out that there is a “distinct and obvious lack” of planning for future connections to properties bordering the project to the north, south, and west. The City, developer, and public will continue discussions on the Draft EIR through August 29th. On August 25th, public comments on the DEIR will be solicited at a public hearing before the Planning Commission. The DEIR is available for review at Sutter Creek City Hall, the Amador County Library, on the City of Sutter Creek’s website and on Gold Rush Ranch’s website.

The first of several town hall meetings was held to discuss the City of Ione’s General Plan Update at the Evelyn Bishop Hall Monday evening. City Council members, Planning Commissioners, the General Plan Executive Committee, City Staff, and citizens were present to voice their opinions and concerns regarding Ione’s future. Daniel Hamilton, the project manager, was also on hand to present and discuss all the information that has thus far been collected. The General Plan Update currently falls under the first stage of development, entitled, “Understanding Ione, its background, and the community of people who live in the area.” Future stages include developing community goals, devising land use alternatives, drafting goals and policies, completing an environmental review, and finally plan adoption, which is tentatively scheduled for 14 to16 months from now.

The opening of the Central Eureka Mine in Sutter Creek has been postponed until further notice. The grand re-opening of the mine site was scheduled for July 5th, but concerns over the presence of hazardous chemicals and the threat of exposure has prompted the City of Sutter Creek to postpone that event. The City had been working with the California Youth Authority and contractors preparing for the re-opening, clearing trails and spreading gravel around the parking lot area.

However, last week the Department of Toxic Substance Control visited the site to take soil samples as part of the Remedial Action Work plan for the site. The DTSC engineer in charge of the project expressed concern regarding the proposed event, due to the site’s contamination and possible associated public exposure risk. The CYA crew also left the site due to the potential risk, leaving the majority of the work unfinished. The council discussed the feasibility of gravelling and wetting down the entire site prior to the event, but in the end, felt it better to forego spending any money now and instead focus resources on a proper clean up. The postponement was especially disappointing for Mayor Pro-Tem Bill Hepworth, who has been organizing the event and looking forward to it for about a year.

The Amador Water Agency Board of Directors met last Thursday morning to discuss a proposed agreement with PBS&J, an Environmental Consultant group. The proposed agreement between the two agencies is to conduct an environmental review for the Gravity Supply Line and the water right impacts associated with the Central Amador Water Project, or CAWP, Water Right Application. A question repeated throughout the course of project development is why the AWA isn’t upgrading the current CAWP area, but instead creating a new alignment to get to the same system. According to Jim Abercrombie, the CAWP service area was developed and was created with the intention to supplement surrounding districts after a drought in the 1970’s, and it was never intended as a permanent long term fix. “With present value it’s cheaper to go with a new alignment,” said Abercrombie. The Board voted to direct Jim Abercrombie, General Manager, to execute the agreement between the AWA and PBS&J with total payment not to exceed 171,095 dollars.

The Amador County Planning Commission has approved a use permit to allow a helicopter air ambulance program and associated facilities at Amador County’s Westover Field Airport. The applicant for the permit is California Shock/Trauma Air Rescue, or CALSTAR. The permit includes provisions for three crew members, a modular building, storage space, a helipad, and a fuel truck. The permit will not be activated, however, until CALSTAR receives a ‘will-serve’ letter from the Amador County Water Agency, which ACPC staff does not anticipate will be a setback. Commissioner John Gonsalves, who moved to approve the permit, stated, “I feel that this program supports the airport, and provides a very valuable service to the community.”