Bank Asks Judge to Seize Trinitas – Argues Course Can’t Recover from Bankruptcy

By Dana M. Nichols November 11, 2011 Record Staff Writer SAN ANDREAS – Stockton-based Community Bank of San Joaquin is asking a judge to let the bank seize the Trinitas golf property south of Wallace. U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Ronald Sargis is scheduled to consider the request on Dec. 7 in Modesto. If granted, it would likely mean the end of operation for Trinitas, which was built without permits in an agricultural preserve. Trinitas owners... Read More

Fire board Approves $150 Fee for Rural Properties

The Associated Press Posted: 11/09/2011 05:56:05 PM PST SACRAMENTO, Calif.—A California firefighting board has approved raising an annual wildfire fee for rural structures to $150. The state Board of Forestry and Fire Protection voted Wednesday to impose the higher fee sought by Gov. Jerry Brown. It will apply to about 850,000 properties where the state provides wildfire prevention and protection. The board approved a $90 fee in August that contained... Read More

Federal Money Goes to Bridge Repairs Here in Calaveras County

By Sara Lunsford, Calaveras Enterprise, November 4, 2011 Three more bridges in Calaveras County will be retrofitted in the next few years, thanks to a federal program aimed at making aging public bridges across the country safer. The Federal Highway Administration instituted the Highway Bridge Program which is administered through each of the states to rehabilitate, restore and perform preventative maintenance on aging bridges. The program allocates... Read More

A Sunday Afternoon for CAP

Over 50 people gathered at the Hotel Leger in Mokelumne Hill on October 23 to enjoy the accomplishments of the Community Action Project and look to the future of citizen participation in county and regional planning. Inspiring presentations informed newcomers and those who know CAP well that: Our voices and actions have changed the planning conversation in Calaveras County; citizens have shown that they will hold our county government accountable... Read More

Study Paid for in Part by Skeptics Finds Raising Temps

Study paid for in part by skeptics finds raising temps. Physicist to detail report’s findings at climate change conference. By Seth Borenstein The Associated Press/Record October 31, 2011 WASHINGTON-A prominent physicist and skeptic of climate change spent two years trying to find out if mainstream climate scientists were wrong.  In the end, he determined they were right: Temperatures really are rising rapidly. The study... Read More

Calaveras County Wins Case Over Controversial Golf Course

Written by Sean Janssen, The Union Democrat, November 01, 2011 01:26 pm In a setback for operators of the controversial Trinitas golf course, a federal bankruptcy court judge ruled late last week that golf is not agritourism and Calaveras County can prohibit it on agricultural zoned lands. Judge Ronald Sargis notified attorneys for the county and the owners of the Trinitas property in Wallace, Michael and Michelle Nemee, who appeared via teleconference... Read More

Judge Rules on Trinitas Case…Golf Course is Not Agritourism

Federal Judge finds Trinitas golf course is NOT agritourism;grants County’s counterclaim for injunctive relief to enforce zoning violations.  The ruling should be available on Monday here.  Read More

Timing of Civil Suit Questioned as Trinitas Trial Reaches First Tee

By Dana M. Nichols Record Staff Writer October 14, 2011 12:00 AM MODESTO – A long-awaited trial on whether commercial golf is legal on farmland in Calaveras County opened with fireworks Thursday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Modesto. The owners of the 280-acre Trinitas golf course on the west edge of Calaveras County say their course is “agritourism” needed to support their olive orchard. County officials say golf is not... Read More

EPA Puts Tuolumne, Stanislaus on List of Polluted Waterways

Written by Union Democrat staff October 12, 2011 12:38 pm Portions of the Tuolumne, Stanislaus and Merced rivers have been added to a list of polluted California waterways. The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday announced the rivers’ inclusion on its list of “California Impaired Waters,” making the determination based on high water temperatures, an indication of poor water quality. The report focused on 24 California waterways... Read More

Jenny Lind Fire Goes 24/7 with Paid Staffing Next Month

The Valley Springs News, October 5, 2011   By Nick Baptista The Jenny Lind Fire Protection District is moving forward to have round-the-clock coverage beginning Nov. 1. The district’s Board of Directors last month approved a plan by Fire Chief Kim Olson to have at least one firefighter at the main station 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The predominately volunteer fire department has two paid positions, with the board’s action adding... Read More