Tom
Wednesday, 10 February 2010 01:01
VA Narrows Down Locations for New Regional Veteran's Facility
California - The U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs has narrowed down the list of potential sites for a new, centrally-located regional healthcare facility in San Joaquin County to serve veterans in surrounding counties, including here in Amador. The new facility would be ideally located to suit Amador County, which has one of the highest populations of veterans in California. American Legion Post 108, located in Sutter Creek, is the third largest of its kind in the state. Amador County Supervisors and many local veterans are endorsing the idea of a nearby hospital with easy freeway access for tens of thousands of regional veterans. The VA sent out notifications last week rejecting some proposals for hospital locations while keeping others, a move that has upset backers of rejected sites who say the decision was hasty. Two proposals still on the table are a 20-acre plot near St. Joseph’s Medical Center owned by the Grupe Commercial Company and 56-acres owned by Arnaiz Development Company close to Interstate 5. But San Joaquin County Veterans Services Officer Ron Green said the VA made a “cavalier decision” when it turned down a county-government backed facility next to San Joaquin General Hospital in French Camp. The proposed site was at the center of the year-long push to bring a hospital to the county. San Joaquin Supervisor Leroy Ornellas wrote in a guest commentary to the Manteca Bulletin that he and fellow supervisors “were astonished at this revelation.” He said the location passed environmental reports for a healthcare facility. The board offered the land at $1 a year. “The VA could have broken ground within weeks, putting people to work and providing a much needed punch to our local economy,” he said. The VA said site selection is part of a long, data-driven process based on population, partnerships, transportation, land costs and the availability of hospital staff. If approved, the new facility location is expected to be open by 2015. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Wednesday, 10 February 2010 01:08
Supes Hear Presentation on Broadband Study
Amador County - The prospect of robust broadband internet access throughout the Mother Lode was the main topic of conversation at the Amador County Board of Supervisors meeting this week. Supervisors ultimately supported efforts by the Amador-Tuolumne Community Action Agency (ATCAA) to continue its Central Sierra Connect program to seek funding for a variety of projects including adding more Neighborhood Information Centers at libraries and other public sites, expanding telemedicine and improving the region’s “Infonet” websites for on-line “information and referral” services. ATCAA recently completed work on an 18-month, $250,000 project to gather information on how rural counties can gain 100 percent coverage for high speed internet. The study included surveys, determining community access and potential prices and was funded through the California Emerging Technology Fund. Project Manager Michelle Shelton said the survey indicates that only 45 percent of households in Amador, Alpine, Calaveras, Mariposa and Tuolumne Counties have access to high speed internet. In Amador County, she said “speed and reliability are bigger factors than the service itself.” The push for expanded high speed access is a top priority of the Obama administration and considerable funding for the cause was included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) stimulus bill. Shannon Mosher of ATCAA said they can now “provide local service providers with a detailed mapping report in order to help them find funding on their own.” Local providers like Mother Lode Internet in Sonora and Golden State Cellular in Jackson are among the companies that have expressed a strong interest in working together to provide local service. Shelton said the cost for bringing service into the county through a major provider like AT&T would be “prohibitively expensive.” She said only local carriers have so far applied for funding. She said each county contributed time and funding to the project, and each will be able to develop more detailed plans for future projects using the data collected. Supervisor Louis Boitano said he personally places a high importance on the ability for rural residents to have Internet access. He said he has twice put discretionary funds towards the purchase of new computers in the Upcountry Community Center. A community forum hosted by Volcano Communications to discuss this five-county project was held Tuesday night. More information is available online at www.centralsierraconnect.org. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Wednesday, 10 February 2010 01:10
Registrar Certifies Petition for Sutter Creek Referendum on Gold Rush
Amador County – Amador County Registrar of Voters Sheldon R. Johnson last week certified a petition challenging a resolution by Sutter Creek regarding the Gold Rush Ranch & Golf Resort. Johnson announced that “after the proponent filed this petition, I verified the required number of signatures by examining the records of registration in the county, current and in effect at the respective purportive dates of such signing, to determine what number of qualified electors signed the petition.” Of the 468 “unverified signatures,” Johnson verified 177 signatures, of which 163 were “found sufficient,” 12 were “found insufficient,” and 2 were withdrawn. Johnson received 6 requests filed by signers to have their signatures removed from the petition. Johnson certified the petition on February 4th. Deborah Smith of the elections office said Tuesday the office stopped verifying and checking the signatures after verifying the adequate number of 159 signatures needed to place the referendum on the ballot. The petition included 102 sections, and each section contained “signatures purporting to be the signatures of qualified electors of this county,” Johnson said. Smith said the elections office had notified Sutter Creek by fax that sufficient signatures had been verified to certify the referendum. Smith said city officials had not yet picked up the petition, which was attached to copies of resolution Number 09-10-16. She said the issue can be put to a vote at any date within 88 days of an announcement by the city, but it is up to the city to determine the date for the election. The Sutter Creek City Council must decide if the referendum becomes part of the primary ballot in June, or there regular ballot in November. Bart Weatherly, one of the proponents of the referendum, a member of Preserve Historic Sutter Creek, said he did not want a special election for the referendums they sought against 2 resolutions approved by the Sutter Creek City Council. One resolution approved the Specific Plan for Gold Rush, and the other amended the city General Plan, with regard to the project. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Wednesday, 10 February 2010 03:38
BOS Report for 2-9-10 with Richard Forster, Supervisor
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Wednesday, 10 February 2010 04:56
Lynne Olsen - Office of Emergency Services 2-10-10
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Wednesday, 10 February 2010 00:46
Amador County News TSPN TV with Alan Sprenkel 2-10-10
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Wednesday, 10 February 2010 04:56
Lynne Olsen - Office of Emergency Services 2-10-10
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Wednesday, 10 February 2010 03:38
BOS Report for 2-9-10 with Richard Forster, Supervisor
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Wednesday, 10 February 2010 01:17
2-10-10 AM Live Sports w/ Frank Halvorson
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Sports Talk with Frank Halverson
Wednesday, 10 February 2010 01:10
Registrar Certifies Petition for Sutter Creek Referendum on Gold Rush
Amador County – Amador County Registrar of Voters Sheldon R. Johnson last week certified a petition challenging a resolution by Sutter Creek regarding the Gold Rush Ranch & Golf Resort. Johnson announced that “after the proponent filed this petition, I verified the required number of signatures by examining the records of registration in the county, current and in effect at the respective purportive dates of such signing, to determine what number of qualified electors signed the petition.” Of the 468 “unverified signatures,” Johnson verified 177 signatures, of which 163 were “found sufficient,” 12 were “found insufficient,” and 2 were withdrawn. Johnson received 6 requests filed by signers to have their signatures removed from the petition. Johnson certified the petition on February 4th. Deborah Smith of the elections office said Tuesday the office stopped verifying and checking the signatures after verifying the adequate number of 159 signatures needed to place the referendum on the ballot. The petition included 102 sections, and each section contained “signatures purporting to be the signatures of qualified electors of this county,” Johnson said. Smith said the elections office had notified Sutter Creek by fax that sufficient signatures had been verified to certify the referendum. Smith said city officials had not yet picked up the petition, which was attached to copies of resolution Number 09-10-16. She said the issue can be put to a vote at any date within 88 days of an announcement by the city, but it is up to the city to determine the date for the election. The Sutter Creek City Council must decide if the referendum becomes part of the primary ballot in June, or there regular ballot in November. Bart Weatherly, one of the proponents of the referendum, a member of Preserve Historic Sutter Creek, said he did not want a special election for the referendums they sought against 2 resolutions approved by the Sutter Creek City Council. One resolution approved the Specific Plan for Gold Rush, and the other amended the city General Plan, with regard to the project. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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