Tom
Thursday, 04 February 2010 05:21
Harriet Nichols - Serrving Amador's Troops 2-4-10
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News Interview Videos
Wednesday, 03 February 2010 17:00
Amador County News TSPN TV with Alex Lane 2-4-10
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News Broadcast Videos
Thursday, 04 February 2010 05:21
Harriet Nichols - Serving Amador's Troops 2-4-10
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Local
Wednesday, 03 February 2010 17:00
Sutter Creek Petitioned for City-Wide Vote on Gold Rush Issues
Amador County – Sutter Creek officials this week received a petition seeking a referendum on city council’s decisions related to the Gold Rush Ranch & Golf Resort development. City Manager Rob Duke said Wednesday that he supports the idea of the referendum, because it will take the heat off of him, and Sutter Creek city officials, and put the decision in the hands of the people. If it passes, they cannot blame him, and if it fails, then the citizens have spoken about what they want in the city. Opponents, led by volunteer Sutter Creek fireman Bart Weatherly and engineering technician Ed Arata, say the 1,334-unit development is too big, and they spent the last couple of weeks gathering signatures, which Duke said they delivered this week. He said he did not read the language of the petition, as the organizers made city staff count the signatures “upside-down,” due to the volatility and the “brother-against-brother” nature of the issue. The referendum backers hand-delivered the documents, and after the count of signatures, Duke said city staff sealed the referendum documents in an envelope, and the 2 parties – together – hand-delivered the documents to Amador County Registrar of Voters Sheldon Johnson’s office. The registrar’s office would not release the text of the petition, saying that it’s being attached to the signatures made it confidential, because the signatures on the petition were considered confidential. The registrar’s office must count the signatures and verify that they are all from registered Sutter Creek voters. Duke said they had 400 signatures and likely would have the 10 percent of the city’s electorate needed to get the referendum on a ballot. On January 5th, the registrar’s office had a reported 1,584 registered voters in Sutter Creek, meaning petitioners needed 159 valid signatures to place a referendum on the ballot. A simple majority of all registered voters will decide the referendum, meaning a winning vote will have 50 percent of the vote total, plus one vote. If all voters participate in the election, the winning side would need 793 votes. With an even number of voters, a tie vote is possible. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Local
Wednesday, 03 February 2010 17:00
Ken Berry Plans CEQA Suit vs. Gold Rush
Amador County – Jackson resident Ken Berry notified the city of Sutter Creek on Tuesday that he intends to file a lawsuit against the city council’s approval of the Gold Rush Ranch & Golf Resort on grounds that it violated state environmental law. Sutter Creek City Manager Rob Duke said Wednesday that it looked like Sutter Creek could face both a city-wide vote and a lawsuit on Gold Rush. Sutter Creek officials earlier this week received a petition seeking a referendum on city council’s decisions related to the Gold Rush, and Duke said they also received word that Berry intends to sue the city for violations of the California Environmental Quality Act. Berry filed a legally required “notice of intent to sue” with the city on Tuesday, notifying the city of his “intent to file and commence action for your failure to comply with” the California Environmental Quality Act “and planning laws, by improperly performing the required environmental analysis.” Berry’s notice said the “suit pertains to the approvals given by the Sutter Creek City Council” in a December 16, 2009 resolution “certifying the Environmental Impact Report” for Gold Rush, and a January 4th resolution “approving the Gold Rush Specific Plan, general plan amendments, and phased vesting large lot tentative subdivision map.” The filing alleges that the city did not “comply with CEQA” in 12 instances. Berry’s allegations include that the city’s “water supply assessment is inadequate,” a similar item he challenged when suing the now defunct Wicklow Way project in Jackson. The water supply assessment for Gold Rush was conducted by the Amador Water Agency. Berry’s allegations also say the Gold Rush “specific plan omits financing information,” it is not consistent with the city General Plan, and its “traffic analysis is inadequate.” He also alleges inadequacies in analyses of “alternatives”; “the feasibility of mitigation measures; and job, housing or secondary impacts. Berry’s filing also says Gold Rush “does not incorporate mitigation measures required” by the city General Plan; its “responses to comments are inadequate”; and its “statement of overriding considerations” was “not supported by substantial evidence.” Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Local
Wednesday, 03 February 2010 17:00
Housing Element Update Outlines Housing Policy Goals
Amador County – The Amador County Planning Department released a draft Wednesday of the updated Housing Element, which provides a “road map” for the county’s housing policy. The document states that “the County is committed to a vision of a sustainable, rural community that increases housing choice for all current and future residents.” Consistent with the General Plan, the 168-page document says the county is committed to State Housing Element laws, including the development of low income housing, complying with zoning and development standards, promoting equal opportunities and “preserving assisted housing developments for lower income households.” It includes a list of goals and policies of the draft General Plan that are closely related to the Housing Element. These goals are to attain a “diverse and integrated mix” of different classifications of development, including open land space uses; enhancing and maintaining “separate and distinct community areas” in the county; and guiding “future residential and local commercial uses into established cities and unincorporated Town Centers. Planning officials previously held two workshops to discuss housing policies and the Housing Element, both open to the public. A Stakeholder’s Workshop held last June brought together 12 groups from throughout the county and highlighted the importance of workforce housing, services for elderly residents, low income services, and the high sewer costs in the upcountry area. A Public Workshop last July gathered ideas on farm labor housing, constructing higher density housing in urban areas and zoning regulations. Many of these ideas are incorporated into this latest Housing Element update. A joint meeting of the Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission will be held on Wednesday, February 24, 2010 at 1:00 p.m. to review and comment on the proposed update to the Housing Element. A copy of the element is also available on the Planning Department General Plan Update page of the County website. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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County Growth
Wednesday, 03 February 2010 17:00
CAWP Called Fire Hazard in Summer
Amador County – The Amador Water Agency hosted a brainstorming session on possible alternatives for the Central Amador Water Project on Monday, with about 40 people attending. Staff gave presentations, starting with Interim General Manger Gene Mancebo, who said they will look at suggestions and try to get the best overall project solution. He said the main question was “why do we need to improve or replace the raw water conveyance system” for Central Amador. He said the pump system operates with 18 percent of its budget going to electricity, and power costs would increase, with those costs passed on to the customers. He said CAWP has “a much greater electricity cost than other systems” in AWA. It is also vulnerable to power failures, which can cause rationing in the system. In long outages “there is little or no fire protection.” Acting Engineering Manager Erik Christeson said the Buckhorn plant would be unaffected by power loss, in a storm or fire, because it has generators, but the distribution capability is minimally affected, as the majority of the system distributes by gravity from the main storage Tank “A.” Christeson said fire would not impair water delivery by the GSL, unlike a fire taking out power to the pumps. Supervisor Ted Novelli asked how the system would handle a week of 100-degree weather, followed by a fire. Operations Manger Chris McKeage said Buckhorn normally has a 6-hour down time, but would have to be run at 100 percent capacity around the clock to keep flows ready for fire fighting. The system has 20 storage tanks, a total capacity of 2.5 million gallons and serves 4,000 customers. Its largest storage vessel, Tank “A,” has a 500,000-gallon capacity. Dave Wardall, a former fire investigator, said “a major fire would put a lot of people at risk,” and he saw “a potential for a catastrophe.” Christeson said the pump system in CAWP had 18 hours of electrical and communications down time Friday, and staff worked 7 hours of overtime on it Saturday. He said they buy parts on eBay from people selling items from their old systems. Christeson said the 2004 Power Fire left Tank “A” with a foot of water in 2004, and the “El Nino” storm season in 1996 took the Tank “A” water level to 6 inches. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Water
Wednesday, 03 February 2010 17:00
Property Assessments See Reductions in Full Base Year Values
Amador County – Amador County Assessor Jim Rooney announced Wednesday that all properties assessed at their full base year value will see a reduction in their assessed value due to a declining California Consumer Price Index. “For the first time since the passage of Proposition 13 the California Consumer Price Index (CCPI) actually declined,” said Rooney. The passage of Prop. 13 in 1978 resulted in a cap on property tax rates in the state. The decline was measured between October 2008 and October 2009. Rooney said the decline is only 0.237 percent, but is “considered substantial when compared with the usual adjustment of a 2.0 percent increase.” Rooney said it is estimated that the total Amador County assessment roll will be reduced approximately $10.8 million dollars because of the negative inflation factor. “This blanket reduction will affect most properties in the county, but will not have an effect on the thousands of properties that have already had their assessments reduced under the guidelines of Proposition 8,” said Rooney. Properties with assessments already reduced do not need an assessment reduction as they will be automatically reviewed by July 2010. Rooney said that “even though the Assessors office plans to continue a proactive approach and reduce assessments without it being requested, we strongly encourage property owners to look at their assessments and to request an assessment review if they feel that their assessed value is too high.” For any questions or more information on assessments, visit the Assessor page on the county website or call the office at 223-6351. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Local
Wednesday, 03 February 2010 17:00
Amador County News TSPN TV with Alex Lane 2-4-10
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Video
Wednesday, 03 February 2010 00:49
AWA Staff to Study Solar Power, PG&E Flume
Amador County – The Amador Water Agency board of directors gave staff direction Monday to look into solar power to help the Central Amador Water Project, and will also look at the reliability of a water flume owned by Pacific Gas & Electric. The board heard at a workshop Monday that a total solar power conversion of Central Amador Water Project pumps would cost more than $10 million, not including land acquisition. Acting Engineering Manger Erik Christeson said current CAWP electrical use is about 2 million kilowatts a year, and putting the pumps entirely on solar power would take 5.5 acres of south-facing, “100 percent shade free” panels. David Evitt said AWA “can solve the big problems with solar power,” and a state grant system has a surplus of funding. A man in the audience suggested using battery backup power, as used in nuclear reactors, which would cost about $250,000. And he said costs could be cut with a partial solar power system. Christeson said the agency doesn’t own enough land for solar power near the pumps. To use a 7.5-acre lot near Silver Lake Pines, 32 adjacent parcels would have to be cleared.” The plot also has a seasonal creek and drainage in the center of the parcels, and a wetland delineation that would prohibit setbacks. He said existing CAWP sites were shaded more than 50 percent of the time, by trees on neighboring private property. The Tiger Creek pump station had only 4/10ths of an acre available for solar panels, on the facility’s roof. Interim General Manger Gene Mancebo said on board direction, staff will “look into the possibility of using solar power for the pump stations,” or look at “other locations where power could be put in to benefit the CAWP system.” Staff will also “verify the reliability and vulnerability of the flume system that provides water to the Tiger Creek Reservoir.” Mancebo said staff will also “take a look at connection fees and how they would perhaps be increased with respect to the Gravity Supply Line or the pump station increase, and how much revenue would be generated with new connections.” No time frame was set for a return of findings to the board. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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