July 27

In with the new

La Contenta residents, from left, Larry Emehiser, Peter Slorp, Skip Landry and Ron Braidman gather around the new mailbox selected for installation inside La Contenta subdivision. The individual mailboxes will replace the two-decade-old cluster boxes off Vista Del Lago at Greenbriar Road. Emehiser, Slorp and Braidman are board members of the homeowners association and were at the cluster-box site Wednesday demonstrating the new mailbox and encouraging residents to place their orders by Aug. 10. They would like to complete the installation by Oct. 1.  

July 25

Tense times on Ospital

The Gassner residence, the white structure in this photo, was threatened when flames raced through grasslands Saturday afternoon in the vicinity of Ospital Road. According to CalFire, the blaze blackened approximately 235 acres of vegetation, but no structures were damaged. CalFire’s Air Attack units based in Columbia, 21 fire engines and three dozers responded to fire, along with units from Jenny Lind, Foothill, Linden-Peters, Clements, San Andreas, Copperopolis, Mokelumne Hill and Altaville-Melones fire districts. The call went out at 5 p.m. and the blaze was contained at 9 p.m. Some units stayed at the scene until 8 p.m. Sunday. The cause of the fire is still under investigation. Photo by Kathy Mayhew.  

July 20

The vast majority of candidates in races for seats on the Calaveras Water District, Foothill Fire Protection District and Valley Springs Public Utility District participated in last Wednesday's "Meet the Candidates NIght."

Candidates outline views, differences at forum

By Nick Baptista

   Fourteen office-seekers vying for seats in one of three special district board races to be decided next month participated in Wednesday’s “Meet the Candidates Night” hosted by The Valley Springs News.

   The forum attracted all four candidates running for a pair of seats on the Calaveras County Water District’s Board of Directors, six of seven running for four seats on the Valley Springs Public Utility District board and four of nine candidates seeking four seats on the Foothill Fire Protection District board.

   A breakdown of the evening by each special district appears below.

   Foothill Fire Protection District

   Foothill has made tremendous strides lately, appointed incumbents Robert Fry and Ron Spradlin told the audience of about 75, and the recent Calaveras County Grand Jury report critical of the district’s volunteer levels and delays in construction of the Burson fire station and structural problems at the Valley Springs facility are outdated and no longer valid.

   Spradlin is seeking a two-year term on the Foothill board and Steve Gleason, who did not attend the forum, opposes him. Fry is one of three appointed incumbents seeking four-year terms. The other two are Ed Anderson and Ken Glissman. They were not at the forum.

   Sharon Floyd, Jeff Palm, Jon Rolland and Jerry Smith are challenging the three incumbents. Roland and Palm were at the forum.

   Rolland said the department has had volunteer problems since it terminated Assistant Chief Drew Utterback nearly two years ago and demoted then-Chief Jeff Palm. Rolland defended the Grand Jury’s findings and advised the audience to read the report.

   Palm said volunteer staffing is a major concern, especially having enough firefighters with Class B licenses to operate the larger fire trucks.

   Spradlin said the department has 22 volunteers 10 with Class B.

   “That issue is dead,” he said.

   Fry, who brings a construction background to the board, said the Burson station “is coming along fine” and the district may be able to store vehicles in the facility as soon as this weekend.

   The Burson fire station has been in the works for six years, Rolland said, and the board has taken an “outrageous” amount of time to bring the station to completion.

   Palm expressed frustration that it took so long to build the station, but he was glad to see the facility reaching completion because it will improve the public’s safety.

   In closing statements, Spradlin outlined the district’s recent accomplishments and encouraged voters to cast their ballots for the incumbents if they wanted to see progress continue.

   Rolland said he was glad to see the existing board recently began paying attention to the Grand Jury’s findings, but the board never should have been in a position where the Grand Jury needed to come in and make recommendations.

   In addition, Rolland said a number of findings made by the Grand Jury still apply.

   “It’s nice to hear stuff is being done,” Palm said. “When I was there, nothing was happening.” Palm said he wanted to see the district progress and he wanted to be a part of that progression and improve public safety in the community.

   Fry blamed many of the district’s woes on Palm during his tenure as chief. Last year’s OSHA investigation “opened our eye,” he said.

   The district now has an excellent chief in Mike Siligo, Fry said, and will continue to improve if voters keep the incumbents in office.

Calaveras County Water District

   Incumbents Jeff Davidson and Charlie Hebrard campaigned on their efforts to improve the district’s infrastructure, while challenger Carol Barzee said the district needs a new vision in regards to repair, upgrading and expansion of the infrastructure, along with keeping and rewarding its experienced and professional employees. Barzee is running against Davidson in District 5, while Hebrard is challenged by Phil McCartney in District 1.

   “I’m proud of the work we’ve done,” Davidson said, and he’d like to stay on the board to work toward completion of the Cosgrove Creek flood control project.

   Excessive turnover is a thing of the past, Hebrard said.

   CCWD employees are among the best paid employees in the county, he added.

   McCartney said CCWD wages are generally lower than wages for similar jobs elsewhere in the state. He said CCWD has become a training ground for other districts and it is expensive to train employees and lose them.

   In addition to paying employees some of the highest wages in the county, the district also gives them the best equipment so they can do the job right, Davidson said.

   Barzee said the district not only has to give its employees a fair wage, but show its appreciation toward them.

   “They want respect from the people who run the utility district,” she said.

   Davidson and Hebrard said the water problems in Rancho Calaveras were inherited by CCWD and they have been working to finance and repair the area’s infrastructure.

   Barzee said the incumbents knew of the problems eight years ago and something should have been done then.

   McCartney said CCWD was aware of the situation and “got bit.”

   Hebrard said the district first needed the money to finance the repairs.

  Valley Springs PUD

   Incumbents Lucille Allee, Andy Whitaker, Connie Gleason and Rob Robertson expressed pride with having a hand in moving the district from a negative to a positive cash flow, while challenger Tony Glenn stated his displeasure with recent rate increases for water and wastewater services.

   “Rates had to be raise, there was no way around it,” said Allee, who is chairwoman of the utility district’s board.

   Glenn is running for one of the two two-year seats on the board. Gleason and Robertson are in that race along with another challenger, Mary DeWitt.

   Allee and Whitaker are running for the two four-year terms, and are challenged by Mal Pointe, who was not at the forum.

   “I have a lot more planned and I’d like to stay on the board to see them through,” Gleason said.

   Glenn questioned the PUD’s reliance on only one well. The district needs to drill more wells or consider folding into CCWD.

   Robertson said the district has an agreement with CCWD to provide water in an emergency. In addition, the district is in the process of working with local landowners to drill another well and eventually may buy water on a wholesale basis from CCWD.

   The incumbents were also in agreement that any need to expand water and sewer facilities to accommodate new growth should be paid for by the developers and not existing ratepayers.  

July 18

Terry Clark

Insurance agent lends helping hand during vacation

By Nick Baptista

   A vacation at Lake Tahoe turned into a hectic, but rewarding experience for Valley Springs Farmers agent Terry Clark.

   Clark was planning to spend a restful week the end of June in Incline Village on the eastern shores of Lake Tahoe. A day into her break she saw the plume of smoke coming from the Angora Fire near South Lake Tahoe.

   When she learned the scope of the blaze, she left a message in the South Lake Tahoe office of Farmers agent Jon Hetherton.

   “I knew him and having gone through fires here, I knew it was crazy,” Clark said. The following day, Clark was helping out in Hetherton’s office and a day later she was working out of Farmers’ Catastrophic Claim Bus, the Cat Bus for short.

   In one instance she spoke with a fire victim on the phone and advised him to come to the Cat Bus for help on his claim. Within three hours of the initial call he had an emergency check.

   “That makes you feel good,” Clark said. “These people were devastated. I was happy I could be there when people needed an agent and our company.”

   Clark was also impressed with the “extraordinary coordination” between the emergency and public services, such as the Office of Emergency Services, the Red Cross and South Lake Tahoe city staff.

   “Any entity you needed help from was set up at the local community college,” she said.    

July 11

Dave Evans has been sworn in as the new commander of Bill Brinlee Post No. 102 of the American Legion in Valley Springs.

Legion post inducts new officers

   Members of Bill Brinlee Post No. 102 of the American Legion in Valley Springs gathered the day before the nation’s birthday last week to swear in officers for 2007-08.

   Dave Evans took his oath July 3 to serve as the post’s new commander. Michael Faatz will serve as the 1^st vice commander, Allen Nordstrom will be the 2^nd vice commander, while James Ruhs will be 3^rd vice commander and Don Powlesland will be the 4^th vice commander.

   Andy Ballantyne is the post’s adjutant and Fred Kuster is the chaplain, while Don Patterson will serve as the service officer. Gene Pate will be the judge advocate and Ray Burhop will serve as the sergeant-at-arms and Henry Sanchez will be the assistant sergeant-at-arms.

   Ben Kirby is the legislative officer and Carl Nicholson is the junior past commander.

Equipment and crews from Mozingo Construction are busy along Highway 26 at Jenny Lind Road installing a new pipeline to improve water service to Calaveras County Water District customers in and around Rancho Calaveras.

CCWD: Water use alert for Rancho Calaveras

   The first heat wave of the summer has forced the Calaveras County Water District to issue a water conservation request to customers in and around Rancho Calaveras.

   The water conservation request was issued Thursday as the thermometer hit a season high of 109 degrees.

   “Due to extreme heat conditions, the rate of water use by customers is
exceeding the capability of the CCWD system to recharge,” CCWD said in its water conservation warning. “A pipeline extension under construction on High 26, part of system improvements intended to help balance the system between its two zones, is not yet complete. The pipeline extension is expected to be in service by the end of July. In the meantime high water use will continue to be of concern.”

   The piping project was identified as CCWD staff as a key to solving the area’s water problems. The project was put in place after many customers in Rancho were with little or no water for a day or two last July during an extended heat wave.

   Last July’s heat wave, heavy outdoor water usage and power surges that knocked out pumps filling a CCWD water tank off Schmidt Place caused the water shortage to more than 1,000 homes in the area.

   CCWD is asking customers in the Rancho area to control their outdoor water use and follow district’s odd- and even-day watering schedule. The district wants its customer to water only between the hours of 6 p.m. and 10 a.m.

   Residents with addresses ending in odd numbers are asked to water on Tuesdays, Thursday and Saturdays, while residents with even number addresses should water on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

   “Irrigating on this schedule will help to keep usage within this system’s design limit of 1,500 gallons (approximately 200 cubic feet) per day per household,” according to CCWD.

   In addition, CCWD staff began going door-to-door on July 6 in the Rancho area with tags requesting assistance and outlining simple conservation measures.

   Customers with questions or concerns can contact CCWD Customer Service at (209) 754-3543.  

July 6

The condition of Pettinger Road has come under scrutiny from the Grand Jury.

Grand Jury outlines Pettinger Road safety concerns

By Nick Baptista

   The 2006-07 Calaveras County Grand Jury examined the safety of school bus routes and stops and paid close attention to Pettinger Road in the west portion of the county.

   The Grand Jury’s finding and recommendation concerning school bus route and stop safety issues were released earlier this week in the jury’s 2006-07 final report.

   “The Grand Jury became aware of bus route and bus safety problems within the county,” the jury stated in its finding. “The Grand Jury selected the Pettinger Road bus route for detailed observation and found excessive patching causing a rough, uneven road with unsafe shoulders. Heavy traffic between Jenny Lind and Highway 12 during morning bus travel intensifies the danger.

   “Transportation director of the Calaveras Unified School District and bus drivers report the road to be unsafe. The Calaveras County Public Works deputy director of Operations and Maintenance reported that road safety is their main concern and that no complaint had been received from the Calaveras Unified School District.

   “Therefore only routine attention was being paid to this road. The deputy director reports equipment to monitor peak usage of this road will be set up and attention will be given as to whether the condition of the road and usage deserve priority for possible resurfacing or repair.”

   The Grand Jury requested responses from the Board of Supervisors, CUSD, the public works department and the Calaveras Council of Governments, which is the regional transportation planning agency for the county.

   “The Grand Jury recommends that Calaveras County Public Works Department increase the safety for school transportation by allocating funds for resurfacing, widening the road, and repairing the shoulders on Pettinger Road. Transportation personnel should report unsafe bus route road conditions to the County Public Works Department.”

   The jury’s entire 2006-07 Final Report is available on-line at www.co.calaveras.ca.us/departments/grand_jury.asp  

July 4

Foothill Fire comes under Grand Jury examination

By Nick Baptista

   The Foothill Fire Protection District continues to come under Calaveras County Grand Jury scrutiny.

   The 2006-07 Grand Jury in its final report released Monday issued six new findings and recommendations concerning operations of the volunteer fire district that covers Burson and Valley Springs.

   The first two of the Grand Jury’s latest findings center upon construction of the new fire station in Burson, a third finding deals with “administrative deficiencies,” while the fourth finding questions the structural integrity of the Valley Springs fire station, the fifth points to a shortage of volunteer firefighters and the final finding questions the district’s financial outlook.

   The report also includes earlier findings and recommendations concerning the district’s board meetings and an annexation tussle with Jenny Lind Fire Protection District regarding the Valley Springs Estates development.

   “The new fire station at Burson has yet to be completed,” the Grand Jury stated in Finding 1. The planning and procurement process raised several questions.

   “The Grand Jury recommends FFPD write a complete, updated cost and scheduling plan, which would allow the district board, staff, general contractor, sub-contractors, building department, and the public to be fully informed when discussing each remaining phase of building Station No. 1.”

   “While planning, bidding, and building Station No. 1 in Burson, the district failed to follow the Public Contract Code regarding proper procedure for soliciting and posting of construction contract bids,” the Grand Jury said in Finding 2. “In addition, provisions requiring analysis of the project impact on the environment as required in the California Environmental Quality Act were not followed. Noncollusion Certificates were not submitted nor executed as required under Section 7106 of the PCC. … FFPD did not include indemnification requirements in any of the contracts executed and did not secure any performance or payment bonds.”

   “The Grand Jury recommends that FFPD comply with the Public Contract Code while finishing construction of Station No. 1 and with any future construction projects.”

   In Finding 3, “The Grand Jury found the following administrative deficiencies: 1. An incomplete policies and procedures manual. 2. No comprehensive training program. 3. No existing comprehensive long-range plan. 4. No Fire Chief.”

   The board hired Mike Siligo as its chief beginning May 1.

   “Station No. 2 is not only inadequate to house equipment and administration, but it does not appear to meet county building code standards,” the Grand Jury said in Finding 4. “In a site visit it was noted that a major portion of a cinder block wall was removed for a vehicle pass-through with no header and post bracing.”

   “The Grand Jury recommends Station No. 2 be inspected by a licensed engineer. A signoff by the County Building Department must be obtained.”

   Finding 5 says, “FFPD is shorthanded of volunteer firefighters. Currently there is an insufficient number of drivers with a Class B driver’s license required to operate four of the large fire apparatus.”

   “The Grand Jury recommends the district develop a recruitment and retention program with specific skills and certifications.”

   The final sentence of Finding 6 says, “Although planned development and assessed valuation increases within the district can answer some of the district financial shortcomings, there may not be sufficient increases in funding for the district to catch up with projected growth and infrastructure requirements.”

   “The Grand Jury recommends Foothill Fire Protection District immediately draft a financial strategic plan to meet its current and future needs, possibly by means of tax provisions afforded to special fire protection districts. An innovative approach to resolving the continuing funding issues needs to be studied, adopted, and presented to district voters.”

   The Grand Jury requested responses from the district’s Board of Directors. Four of the directors are up for election in August.

   The incumbents up for election are Ed Anderson, Robert Fry, Ken Glissman and Ron Spradlin. Sharon Floyd, Jeff Palm, Jon Rolland, Jerry Smith and Steve Gleason are challenging them.  

Highway 49 history book released

   The Golden Highway, Volume II, Amador, Calaveras, Tuolumne, Mariposa, and Madera counties has been released, just two weeks after Volume I, covering the northern portion of Highway 49, won a bronze medal from the Independent Publishers Association, competing against 70 other books in its category.

   This is the third award for Publishers Ric and Jody Hornor of Electric Canvas on their “Golden History” series. The Golden Corridor also won an Independent Publishers award, and The Sacramento Historical Society awarded the publishers for “Excellence” in all of their historical works.

      This series of “Golden History” books take a unique approach to the area’s history. They are compiled from dozens of 19th century original source documents, preserving the unique language and style of each contributor. Compilation, versus rewriting history, which is done in most history books, also eliminates errors in interpretation or facts that may be inadvertently introduced by authors.

   “The language of the 19th century pioneers and miners is much more colorful than today’s language,” said Jody Hornor. “Whether it’s Sir Henry conveying his disgust at spittoons . . . the very sight of which invites discharge from an American mouth, or John Bidwell having a coyote’s “lights” for breakfast, these books reflect real events by the people who actually experienced them.”

   Once the content is compiled, hundreds of carefully selected 19th century photographs are restored and added, one on each page, to complete the reader’s experience. The Hornors go to great lengths to find photos at smaller archives and libraries that haven’t been in the public’s view.

   “Photo restoration is a lot like being an archeologist,” said Ric Hornor. “When you clean off the dirt and grime, fix the cracks and tears, and correct fading and discoloration, the discoveries are interesting and rewarding, as well as looking great.”

   The Golden Highway, Volume II, is a 296-page book that chronicles the 19th century life along the southern portion of Highway 49 (Amador, Calaveras, Tuolumne, Mariposa and Madera counties) and the cities, towns and areas that are served by Highway 49.

   The “Golden History” books are available in most Raley’s, book stores, gift shops, and museum stores, online at: www.19thCentury.us/Gold, or by calling (800) 989-8112.  

Mail: P.O. Box 1297, Valley Springs, CA 95252 
A Division of B&H Publishing