Amador County – Amador County Board of Supervisors in early May discussed a request to purchase the 27-acre Pioneer Park from the Bureau of Land Management, and assigned the General Services director to work on looking at related costs in such a purchase.

Amador County Recreation Agency Executive Director Tracey Towner in a report to Supervisors said the county has been in a Recreation and Public Purposes lease with BLM for the park on Buckhorn Ridge Road since 1978, and the new lease will expire in 2020.

On the parcel sits Pioneer Veteran’s Hall, a small community “Scout Hut” building, the Pioneer Branch Library, an ambulance substation and a defunct sheriff’s substation, Towner said. There are also two full-sized adult softball fields, a playground, a snack shack, a tennis court and a basketball court.

The 27 acres are part of a 122-acre parcel BLM owns, with the rest of the property across the road. Only the currently leased land can be purchased through the Recreation and Public Purposes process, she said.

Towner asked the county to enter due diligence to purchase the property. Supervisor Brian Oneto said: “I would be most interested in pursuing this further.” He walked the property before and thought the value of the lumber estimated by BLM was likely accurate. Oneto said at 10,000 board feet an acre, it was about a quarter of a million board feet, in the ballpark of $45,000 to $65,000 in value.

Towner said the county would need its own forester evaluation of the timber. Oneto said they would need to look at what is there and what is harvestable. Towner said only the timber value is involved in the purchase, not the structures, because they were built by the county. Towner said until we do our due diligence, BLM will not make further comment on the proposed sale.

Supervisor John Plasse said General Services Director John Hopkins should look at how much it would cost the county to own Pioneer Park. Supervisor Ted Novelli said they should also look at the liability of owning it. Hopkins told Towner: “My hat’s off to you because you are always proactive. I’m always energized by you.”

Hopkins said he would need to do a cost analysis of direct and indirect costs of “the entire lifecycle, from acquisition to disposal,” including maintenance, repair, obligations and operations. He would also have to look at where ACRA is going to be financially five years down the road.

Oneto said BLM would probably want appraisal on the timber and archaeology, and were “probably looking at a couple of years.” Hopkins said “we need to look at the total picture before we get into doing that real estate due diligence.”

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Amador County – Amador Superior Court Judge Susan Harlan will hold a Driving Under the Influence sentencing with an audience of approximately 300 students and faculty 1:45 p.m. Tuesday, May 22 at Argonaut High School.

Amador-Tuolumne Community Action Agency’s Friday Night Live coordinator Megan Taylor announced the sentencing of an Amador County resident who “was recently arrested for DUI and chose to participate in this assembly in order to demonstrate to the students at Argonaut High School the consequences of drinking and driving.”

Taylor said following the sentencing, A-TCAA’s Friday Night Live program and members of the Amador Juveninle Justice youth Advisory Board will facilitate an interactive panel discussion.” The panel includes Harlan, Sheriff Martin Ryan, District Attorney Todd Riebe, CHP officer Craig Harmon, Chief Probation Officer Mark Bonini, Public Defender Randy Shrout and a recent victim of DUI crime.

Harmon reported that 159 DUI arrests and 46 DUI-related collisions occurred in Amador County in 2011. It is estimated 40 percent of all traffic accidents with a fatality are alcohol related. Taylor said motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for people age 15-19, with the primary collision factor being alcohol.

In order to further decrease the number of alcohol-related deaths involving drivers under age 21 who have been drinking, Taylor said it is necessary to continue to raise awareness of the dangers of drinking and driving among this population through multiple traffic safety prevention programs such as the DUI Court in Schools program.

She said counties across the state are implementing similar programs. The Amador program was funded by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

“The intent of the panel is to allow for significant dialogue among the panel and students in attendance,” Taylor said. “Following the panel discussion, Toni Fancher will speak about the consequence and impact of a DUI in a person’s life.”

Taylor said they hope the “sentencing will teach students about the very real and severe consequences of driving under the influence.” She said “too many lives continue to be altered or lost due to drinking and driving. I hope this experience will convince students to avoid making a terrible mistake.”

Conducting a DUI sentencing at a high school is an innovative strategy to help reduce community alcohol problems, including motor vehicle crashes, Taylor said. Students will witness the legal implication and learn about the consequences.

Drinking and driving continues to be a leading cause of collisions resulting in injury or death, and statistics show 30 percent of Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related motor vehicle crash at some point in their lives.

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Amador County – The Amador County Fair Exhibitor Handbook is now available for this year’s fair, “Barn in the USA,” set for July 26-29 in Plymouth.

Those entering the Blue Ribbon Competition at the Amador County Fair can see the 2012 Exhibitor Handbook on-line and can pick up a hard copy. Fair publicist Karen Spencer announced the availability earlier this month, saying that “looking through it for ideas is like looking at the new seed catalogs.”

She said whether people hand-stitch quilts, grow plump produce or use digital photography to capture the world, there will be a category of competition to showcase their talents in the Amador County Fair. There are hundreds of categories to enter for cooks, gardeners, artists, photographers, rock collectors, sewers, weavers and more, in the annual Amador County Fair.

Amador County Fair CEO Troy Bowers said: “Fair exhibits and competition for a blue ribbon are a showcase of the community’s talents. Many of the art, photography and jewelry on display is for sale, so it is an opportunity to support local artists as well.”

Most entry forms are due by 6 p.m., Saturday, July 7, with actual exhibits not due until just before the Fair. The entry office will be open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on July 7 to accept entries and assist. Forms will also be accepted at the Jackson Library on Friday and Saturday, July 6 & 7 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The Exhibitor Handbook is available on-line at AmadorCountyFair.com and limited printed copies are available at the Fair office, libraries and feed stores. Residents of Amador, El Dorado, Calaveras and Tuolumne Counties are eligible to enter most divisions.

This year’s featured flower is the Daisy, and special contests will be held for Peach Pies, Filled Bundt Cakes, Oatmeal Cookies, and Macaroni Salad. Watch for categories relating to the 2012 theme “Barn in the USA.” Livestock exhibitors are encouraged to decorate their stalls and campsites with the theme, and all stalls and sites will be judged during the Fair.

For more information about the Amador County Fair or assistance in entering the Fair competition, visit AmadorCountyFair.com or call (209)245-6921.

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Amador County – Amador County Supervisors at their early May meeting voted 4-0 to direct staff to look at costs involved with owning Pioneer Park, on which the county already operates one of its two community centers.

General Services Director John Hopkins said Pioneer Veterans Hall on Buckhorn Ridge Road is one of two community halls the county runs. He said “we lose money and you have to subsidize it to run it,” including maintenance, repairs, utilities and insurance. He said if Supervisors are aware of the total cost for owning Pioneer Park, they can make a better decision. Supervisors approved Hopkins working on the total costs with Amador County Recreation Agency director Tracey Towner to consider a purchase of the 27-acre park through the Bureau of Land Management’s Recreation and Public Purpose Lease program.

The county has a lease on the park through 2020 with BLM and Towner said it would be better to own the land, so they do not have to “go through BLM to move a tree or put in a septic system.” She said “in fact, we already own the park,” and do not pay rent. “This is just formalizing it.”

Towner said parks are places where people go in economic times like these, and they have seen increased use at Mollie Joyce Park and Pioneer Park. Towner said people take ownership of public places.

Supervisor John Plasse said in times like these, we’ve got to make decisions from a fiscally prudent position, and we can’t make decisions based on emotion. Hopkins said before you embark on the due diligence, you should take a look at the total cost.

Supervisors Brian Oneto noted the proximity of Mollie Joyce Park and Pioneer Park, and wondered if the county needs “two parks that close together.” Towner said they are two vastly different parks, and Mollie Joyce ball fields are too small for adults.

Supervisor Ted Novelli said “we own about $2 million in assets up there,” and the cost to build another ballpark would be half a million dollars. County Counsel Greg Gillott said recreation “impact fees should be used in the relative vicinity of where the impact occurs.”

Novelli asked to look at costs in both good and bad years. He said the county has done a great job on Pioneer Park and if they want to buy property that may be the one they want to buy. He said the “wrong elements” have been out there, but ACRA and the County should get together, do their homework and bring some of these financial figures, to see if they both can afford it.

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Amador County – The Amador County Sheriff’s Department on Thursday announced the implementation of a new internet-based software program that will allow citizens to view crime and jail information through Sheriff’s Department website.

AmadorSheriff.org will have “Citizen RIMS” which will allow anyone with an Internet connection to view information online. Crime Mapping will show a common crime pin mapping feature where the user picks a time frame and the types of crimes to be mapped. Clicking on a mapped case icon shows more information about the case.

An arrest log displays arrests by the Amador Sheriff’s Department for the past 30 days. The log displays basic information, personal data that is allowed by statute and the booking photograph of the arrestee.

A “Who’s in Jail” feature gives access to detailed public information about people currently in custody. This is also where the public can access recent jail bookings from all law enforcement agencies in Amador County. For additional information about individual inmates, click on the inmate’s name.

A Crime Charts function summarizes Uniform Crime Reporting data in easily understood charts, with year to year comparisons. Missing Persons shows current Amador County Missing Persons with pictures, when available.

A “Sign Up for Alerts” feature allows site visitors to subscribe to a free service that emails new crime data to them on a daily or weekly basis. To sign up for alerts, follow the link at the bottom right of the website page.

Anyone can access the information by going to the Website at AmadorSheriff.org and following the link in the left hand column to “Citizen RIMS.”

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Amador County – Jackson City Council on Monday approved a municipal trash rate increase of 3.68 percent as requested by ACES Waste Service due to increase costs at the landfill.

City Manager Mike Daly said the rate increase was based on a landfill tipping fee increase at Keifer Landfill in Sacramento County. ACES President Paul Molinelli Senior said the rate increase was based on a 25 percent increase, and Keifer’s fee is increasing from $20 to $25 per ton on July 1.

Daly said he received a letter from Martell resident Ken Berry urging the Council to not approve the rate increase without a Proposition 218 notification, for the purpose of protesting fees. Daly said he would read the letter into the record if any council member wanted to hear it but none asked for it.

City Attorney Andy Morris said Proposition 218 notifications, are related to fees that are mandatory. He said in the case of the recently settled Prop 218 protest suit regarding ACES rates, the city of Sutter Creek had a law that made trash service mandatory, making Proposition 218 apply to trash rates.

Morris said in Jackson, “self-hauling is an option,” so Proposition 218 does not apply. Daly said since Sutter Creek’s rate increase was challenged, they have amended their ordinance and no longer have mandatory collection and to allow self-hauling.

Councilman Wayne Garibaldi noted that the increase on a $17-dollar-a-month trash bill, with the increase, would raise it to $17 dollars and 70 cents. Mayor Pat Crew said it seemed like rates had been changed before and asked if this is an annual occurrence.

Molinelli said normally it is a Consumer Price Index increase, but this 25 percent increase is significant, and we have never had this much of an increase in a dump fee before.

Councilman Keith Sweet said the franchise agreement with ACES includes a regular review of costs. He also urged ACES, when they notify customers of their rate increase to also notify customers of their opportunity to have a senior discount. Molinelli said he would do that.

In public comment, Judy Jebian said she has a small amount of trash, while the rest is sent as recycling, and green waste, and she assumed ACES got money for it.

Molinelli said they currently get $21 dollars a ton for recycling. He said even though customers pay for the recycling program, ACES must pay $17 dollars a ton to get rid of green waste at Vicini Brothers, which gets what they can for selling it.

Kam Merzlak said the value was better than the cost of driving to the landfill, and the recycling charge is far less than the trash charge.

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Amador County – Amador County Supervisor Vice Chairman Richard Forster represented the county and the Regional Council of Rural Counties board of directors on Wednesday in testifying before a regulatory hearing in strong objection to imposing fire fees on structure owners in the State Responsibility Area.

Forster, chairman of the RCRC board’s regulatory committee, testified on behalf of rural counties against State Responsibility Area fees, also referred to as a fire fee, during the San Diego implementation hearing of the California Board of Forestry. RCRC communications director Jehan Flagg said, Forster recognized the hearing was to gather public input for regulatory implementation of existing law, passed in 2011 as Assembly Bill 29X. Forster then took the opportunity to share rural county concerns with the law, just the same.

Forster said: “RCRC has opposed SRA fees throughout this process, and we remain opposed. While we understand the Board is required by statute to adopt permanent regulations imposing the fee, RCRC still believes the repeal of AB 29X is the best approach.” The RCRC includes 31 member counties and represents more than 2.7 million residents.

Flagg said a “number of arguments against SRA fees were made, including the potential long-term liability to the state by assuming a greater role in fire prevention when homeowners paying the SRA fee expect that Cal-Fire has made their homes fire-resistant.” Subsequently, if “homes are destroyed in a wildfire, and it is discovered that Cal-Fire has done little prevention work, those homeowners could have a legitimate claim against the state.”

Forster said “Cal-Fire needs a healthy and strong local fire protection infrastructure to achieve its mission and protect California from the effects of wild fires. SRA fees weaken the state’s mutual aid system by unraveling” the “respond-first-and we’ll-figure-out-the-cost-later” approach to fire fighting.

Forster said: “I can assure you that the rural fire districts I represent will begin to contemplate the costs involved in responding to mutual aid efforts on behalf of the state.”

Flagg said SRA fees also erode grant opportunities. According to calculations by the California Department of Finance, which were presented to the California Board of Forestry at their March meeting, there will be no local fire grants available for a minimum of five years because money generated will be used to administer this new program.

Also, Flagg said, many landowners in the State Responsibility Area have already agreed to assess themselves for fire protection and prevention services. Therefore, imposing an SRA fee effectively taxes people twice without any additional benefit.

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Amador County – The Ione City Council on Tuesday heard its budget has improved another $45,000 over projections through the month of April. ¶ Interim City Manager Jeff Butzlaff said: “It’s a moving target but it’s moving in the right direction.” The council hadn’t had monthly budget reports and finally got the financial situation to the point in January that they were able to start tracking monthly budget reports.

The April budget report showed finances improving, and “no more new surprises,” Butzlaff said. They will try to keep expenditures well within the adopted budget and try to exceed general fund revenues. He said adjustments and retirements set up the 2012-2013 budget balance further.

Butzlaff said an acting police chief approach will save money. Ione Police Chief Michael L. Johnson’s last day with Ione is May 21 and Sergeant Rocky Harpham will take over as acting chief of police. Johnson submitted his formal resignation last week, to be chief for the city of Anderson in Shasta County. Johnson announced some time ago that he was in the application process.

The acting chief will have less pay, and the Ione Police Department will be an officer short for a while, Butzlaff said. They will cover it with overtime and volunteer reserve officers.

Budget changes enacted since Butzlaff took over are lining up future financial stability, he said. The adopted budget in February showed the city would end the year with a $230,000 general fund shortage but the recent budget workshop showed a higher revenue stream, reducing the deficit by $45,000 to about $189,000. The rest of the fiscal year should reduce it more, he said.

Effects would not fully show until October, because of retiring costs related to payouts for sick leave and vacation accumulated. The city will receive the benefits of reductions in the next fiscal year. He said the $230,000 deficit was less than half of what they started with, and in the new fiscal year in 2012-2013 with a fresh slate, and will fully realize the reductions.

He said Vehicle License Fees are not in the budget, but “we are confident that is going to be dealt with by the Legislature.”

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Amador County – The Kennedy Mine California History Day in Jackson took 400 fifth grade Amador County Unified School District students back in time Thursday in Jackson.

Students, teachers and parents from the six grade schools in Jackson, Sutter Creek, Ione, Pine Grove, Pioneer and Plymouth started the day with a sing-along with Geoff Crawford and Masha Goodman Crawford, of the band the Old Soles, at the Kennedy Mine Amphitheater. The children and adults were then blessed by Arvada Fisher, an elder of the Northern Sierra Miwuk tribe, and resident of the Westpoint area.

Organizer Dennis Price said it was the first time they had a blessing to start History Day and he later thanked Fisher for the positive beginning. Fisher was in full regalia for the blessing, then the kids were released to walk up the hill from the Amphitheater to start the activities, staged around the Kennedy Mine head frame and other buildings.

Price on Wednesday said they expected the 12 fifth-grade class teachers and all their kids. He expected about 400 local students, 100 parents and 80 volunteers. They had several new activities including branding a wood plaque with a CHD brand, for California History Day. Other new activities were pouch making, Miwuk Language taught by Fisher’s nephew, and pine seed bracelets.

Price said the itinerary included 25 activities, and groups of children rotated through 20-minute sessions of the different activities. A dinner bell rang every 20 minutes to let the groups know when to switch to a different activity. Volunteers included ACUSD trustee Rose Oneto and her husband, Ione City Councilman Lloyd Oneto, dressed in cattle poking duds. Students also got to try a turn at the two-handled “whip saw,” trying to cut short rounds out of a large log. Students also got to put on harnesses and take turns at pulling a plow through the rocky soil next to the parking lot.

There was also rope making with Twin Cedar K9, and demonstrations with horses and costumes by members of the National Pony Express Association’s California Division, based in Pollock Pines. Also attending were the “Mormon Battalion” and the Company C Civil War group.

Another station demonstrated hand and wheel spinning wool into yarn and using a loom. A pioneer cook was preparing wooden coals to cook bacon and cabbage and also to bake apple pie in a cast iron Dutch oven. Kit Carson Mountain Men let the students throw axes at a large wooden round, and they displayed animal pelts.

There was also stations for a Miwok display, toy making and stone tool making and language lessons, along with a pine needle basket making demonstration, Chaw’se stick game playing, and pine seed bracelet and leather pouch making.

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Amador County – Amador County Sheriff’s Office of Emergency Services kicked off its update on a Local Hazard Mitigation Plan May 9 with discussion of areas of hazard for which they may plan. 

Don Myshrall, semi-retired Ione building inspector, said Ione has had a few landslide and debris flows. In the late 1990s, “you could walk across Lake Pardee because of all the debris in there.”

Amador Water Agency’s operation manager Chris McKeage said the Camanche area is served by wells for water and they would be out on a limb on PG&E’s tunnel systems, and a earthquake could be huge there. He said AWA has senior rights on Bear River, and wondered about getting FEMA funds for raising lower Bear River reservoir’s dam to ensure they did not have a water shortage.

Supervisor Vice Chairman Richard Forster said AWA should also plan for possible failure of the Central Amador Water Project service area pipeline system, and include the Gravity Supply Line project in the plan.

Consultant, Jeanine Foster of AMEC Earth & Environmental said “you want everything in here that makes sense as a mitigation type project.” She said it should be a “wish list… You want to get everything in there and look at the problems down the road.”

Amador County Planning Director Susan Grijalva said freezes and power outages were a problem several years ago. An Amador Unified maintenance official said backup generators at schools would help during long-term outages to achieve shelters.

Jeanine Foster said her home state Colorado has blizzard response plans for winter. They can also plan with backup generators and by having good snow removal equipment, insulation for pipes, preparedness and education.

A woman from public health said her department was doing a public health risk assessment in the fourth week of May. Foster said that would be good for the plan update.

They discussed insects and pests, and Foster said some local plans included a “shoot the beaver” program and another aimed at eradicating feral pigs that were spreading e-coli contamination. Myshrall said the state was commonly inspecting for invasive Zebra Mussels at area lakes, which bring in a lot of people to this county.

Richard Forster said Amador County’s wine industry could be endangered by the Glassy Winged Sharpshooter grasshoppers, which have “caused millions of dollars in damage in Napa.”

Foster said she would send a list to the participants when it was compiled. She said participants should send her details of how hazards have affected your community specifically, and historic events.

She said the existing hazard mitigation plan should have most historic hazard events up to five years ago, and if they are adding new hazards, you would want to go back historically 50 years.

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