The Amador County Unified School District Board of Trustees cancelled a special meeting scheduled for today, when the Board was to award a bid for paving projects at Sutter Creek Elementary School, Amador High School and Argonaut High School. According to the district office, the meeting was cancelled because one of the competing paving contractors had filed a protest on the bidding process. The district business office said at this point, the job will likely be postponed until spring anyway, and a new request for bids will go out, and the bidding process will start over from scratch.

Yesterday, Maggie, an elephant who has lived most of her life at a zoo in Alaska, moved to her new hometown of San Andreas. At 27, the Alaska Zoo in Anchorage says the African elephant — said to be Alaska’s only elephant — is having some health troubles, and zookeepers think she’ll be better off in a warmer climate where she can be outdoors year round. Maggie has been the subject of animal rights group campaigns to “Free Maggie” by relocating her to more suitable quarters, since her former zoo-mate had to be euthanized after suffering elephant foot-rot disease. Maggie will take up residence at Ark 2000, the 2,300-acre exotic animal sanctuary complex near San Andreas operated by the Performing Animal Welfare Society (or PAWS).

Hundreds of items including hand-crafted pottery, wood items and paintings will be offered at the 19th Annual Inside Out Art Show & Sale today and Saturday at the Mule Creek State Prison cafeteria. All items are made by the Mule Creek Arts in Corrections and Mill & Cabinet programs, and proceeds benefit Operation Care. The show is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. Visitors are asked to avoid wearing blue jeans. The art sale is so popular that show organizers have arranged a sort of lottery for the opening on Friday from 8 to 8:30 a.m.  Visitors at the door when the show opens will receive a ticket, which, after being drawn at random by Warden Rich Subia, enables them to enter the show one-by-one and select one item for purchase. After 8:30 or so, the doors will open to all and there will be no limit on purchases. Inmates participate in the program with the knowledge their artwork will be sold with the proceeds going to Operation Care which helps victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. For more information, contact Lynn Shield at Operation Care -- 223-2897.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's universal health care plan finally received a hearing in the Legislature on Wednesday – 10 months after he unveiled it amid much pomp – and was greeted with bipartisan skepticism.

A drunk driver caused a head-on collision that injured four people and stopped traffic in both directions on Ridge Rd for almost an hour near the Church of the Nazarene at about 1:30 Wednesday afternoon. According to the California Highway Patrol, Vicki Danelson, 61 of Wilseyville, was driving her white Grand Am westbound on Ridge Rd when, due to her state of intoxication, headed into oncoming traffic, colliding with a red Chevy Geo driven by Edward Berndt, 70, also of Wilseyville. Sutter Creek Fire Department, CALFIRE  and American Legion medics, California Highway Patrol and Amador County Sheriff’s deputies responded to assist the victims and control traffic on Ridge Rd. One of Berndt’s passenger was airlifted to Mercy San Juan Hospital with moderate injuries. Two other passengers in Berndt’s car were transported to Sutter Amador Hospital with minor and moderate injuries. Danelson suffered minor injuries and was arrested at Sutter Amador Hospital for driving under the influence and causing injury. The accident is still under investigation.

The Amador Water Agency recently finished a project in the busy Highway 49 corridor using an innovative “trenchless” technology. The project consisted of improving the flow in a 6-inch sewer collection line located in the Martell area south of the Highway 49 near Airport Boulevard. The Agency’s Manager of Engineering and Planning Gene Mancebo explains that the Agency used “trenchless technology” to complete the project -- a construction process that minimizes or eliminates the need for trenching. A 322-foot segment of pitted iron pipe was relined in one day, without the need to dig a trench or replace the pipe. Mancebo said the process, “presents a cost savings by extending the life of the pipe, and avoiding potential problems which could include spills and the fines from those spills.” What could have been very expensive project, proved to be much less costly with the use of trenchless technology. The work was completed for approximately $20,000.

The Amador County Elections office has certified that a qualifying 234 signatures were gathered on two referendum petitions against the proposed Jackson Hills Golf Community project.  The signature drive, organized by a group called “Concerned Citizens of Jackson” calls for a city vote on rescinding Jackson City Council’s certification of the Jackson Hills EIR and approval of a General Plan amendment that would change the land use designation from agricultural to Residential Single. At their next city council meeting on Nov. 13, Jackson City Council will consider the options of rescinding their previous votes on Jackson Hills, or sending the issue to Jackson voters.

At a public meeting on 9-1-1 calls Monday, Amador County Sheriff Martin Ryan responded to senior citizen concerns about the sheriff’s office response to “welfare check” 9-1-1 calls. The Amador County Commission on Aging sponsored the meeting in response to a controversy that developed when sheriff’s deputies delayed for about 4 hours breaking into the home of Terry Casebeer last January. Casebeer’s friend, Thelma Clancy, called 9-1-1, reporting that Casebeer had missed an appointment and she could not reach Casebeer. Casey and four other friends urged deputies to break into Casebeer’s home for a “welfare check.”