The Amador Observer

Another big crowd voiced their opinions at the July 24th meeting of the Jackson City Council in regards to changing the Commercial zoning of the 58 acre Surian property which is the proposed location for Home Depot and several other large retail stores. In the end, the Council approved a motion to retain the C-2 Commercial Zoning.

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It was standing room only and the public’s opinion was in full force at a special July 5^th meeting of the Jackson Planning Commission. The special workshop was prompted by local resident Thorton Consolo who requested that the current C-2 commercial zoning for the 58 acres be reconsidered by the City. This property is owned by the Surian family and is located adjacent to the Kennedy Mine along Highway 49 in north Jackson. The possibility that this land could become the location for a 136,000 Home Depot and up to 4 other large retail establishments has created an extraordinary amount of public concern to prevent this project.

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The next meeting of the Jackson Planning Commission on July 27th could be a lively one. On the agenda is the issue of establishing an "LRE size ordinance" for the City of Jackson as proposed by the Amador County Citizens for Smarth Growth (ACSG) group.
An "LRE" is the acronym for "Large Retail Establishment", also known as a "big box store".
The ACSG has proposed that one of the ways for Jackson to control growth is to limit the square foot size of any new retail store. The idea is to avoid the problems encountered by other communities in regards to losing its character and small business base.

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The Sutter Creek Planning Commission and the public received a closer look at the proposed details for the 954 acre Gold Rush Ranch and Gold Resort at a meeting held June 26. This project plans to bring over 1,300 homes, 300 time share units, a 60 unit hotel and an 18 hole golf course to Sutter Creek. The purpose of the meeting was to review and comment on “Community Design Standards” and proposed zoning changes for this massive development. Representatives of the project presented numerous details on many of these design standards that they claimed would guide this project, focusing primarily on architecture.
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This article has been reprinted from the June 16, 2006 issue of the Sacramento Business Journal.
Mike McCarthy, writer.
Developers are reportedly looking at buying all or part of the 23,000-acre Howard Ranch in Amador County, about 20 miles east of fast-growing Elk Grove and one of the largest undeveloped parcels in the region.
Western Amador County, with its gently rolling hills, is attracting developers looking for the next frontier in the increasingly built-out Sacramento area, industry leaders say.
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It was a first for many and like old times for others, as a diverse group of local residents marched with signs and props from one end of town to the other to let it be clearly known that Home Depot is not welcome in Jackson.

Starting at 9:00 am on Saturday June 17, well over one hundred people assembled at Jackson’s Detert Park and walked along Highway 49 to the steps of downtown’s National Hotel in a parade of people not usually seen in these parts. Carrying signs, placards and some dressed as “big orange boxes” the many slogans all told a clear message: Home Depot go away.

“The energy, the excitement and the turnout were just fantastic!” said Kathryn Devlin, one of the marchers. “At one point my estimate had the crowd closer to 250 people”. Devlin also praised Dennis Price for his efforts in organizing the successful march.
(KCRA News Coverage link now available. Please read through to the end of the story.)
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