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Vol. 10, No. 5
YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Council OKs Cedarwood Estates by Samie Hartley Staff Writer
While Discovery Builders’ Rosewood housing development is indefinitely postponed, the Oakley City Council approved the developer’s tentative map for the Cedarwood Estates subdivision along Knox Lane. Residents in the area have publicly protested the Cedarwood project since it was first presented to the council last July. In an organized plea to the council at a meeting in September, Knox Lane residents asked council members to rezone the project to a lower density, citing concerns that the project would impact the rural atmosphere of the existing neighborhood, which consists of only a handful of 1-acre ranchette-style houses. Residents attempted to formally petition the project, but unlike the Stop Rosewood campaign, the residents were unable to collect enough valid signatures in time to put the project on hold.
With the petition officially quashed, the council voted 4-0 (Councilman Bruce Connelly abstaining) at its Jan. 12 meeting to approve a revised tentative map for the 34-unit housing project on 14.95 acres along Knox Lane. In response to neighbors’ concerns, Discovery Builders revised its first proposal so that the minimum lot size is now 15,000 square feet as opposed to the initial proposal of a 12,000-square-foot minimum. To accommodate the increased lot sizes, the project’s main street was made a cul de sac. Despite the changes, residents still opposed the overall density of the project. Denise Morford, a member of the Committee To Stop Rosewood, asked the council to rethink the project and consider rezoning the 14.95 acres to allow for a lower density of houses, more comparable to the existing neighborhood. “Your job (as the City Council) is to create new residential developments and preserve the existing
THIS WEEK
Digging deep for Haiti aid
Page 7A Photo by Samie Hartley
The Oakley City Council approved the tentative map for the Cedarwood Estates project on Jan. 12. Discovery Builders plans to build 34 homes on the 14.95-acre parcel on Knox Lane, seen above. neighborhoods. … It’s unfair to the current residents to have such a development that does not work cohesively into the existing homes in the area. Please reconsider this
by Dave Roberts
Environmentalist David Nesmith tells the audience at a Delta forum that fish get shortchanged because they can’t write checks or vote.
Staff Writer
Photo by Dave Roberts
low-value crops: cotton, rice, alfalfa and irrigated pasture. These crops are about 13 percent of the value of agriculture but they use 40 percent of the water. Agriculture is a fairly small player in the economic picture of California – especially these low-value crops. They are really
January 29, 2010
Opportunities abound for East County residents to join the international effort to relieve the suffering in Haiti.
plan and listen to the community.” Knox Lane resident Julie Fierros, who has spoken at all the see Cedarwood page 18A
No solutions proclaimed at Delta forum Six officials discussed the crisis of the collapsing Delta ecosystem for three hours before a packed audience at the Antioch Historical Museum Saturday morning – with little agreement on how to save the premiere waterway on the West Coast but with lots of fingers pointing at those contributing to the problem. The biggest culprit is waterthirsty crops, according to Dr. Lawrence Kolb, former assistant director for the Water Quality Board. “The real root problem we have in California is we take too much water out of the Delta for agriculture,” he said. “Farmers use about 80 percent of the water. A lot of water gives us limited social return. All of the crops amount to about 2 percent of the state’s economy. “About 40 percent of the water that farmers use goes to four
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expensive to grow, heavily mechanized and don’t provide much employment. We aren’t giving up that much (economically) if we have to cut back (water to farms).” But Kari Fisher, representing the California Farm Bureau Federation, begged to differ. “Water
Sell stuff!
is liquid gold,” she said. “Without water, irrigated agriculture would not exist. California is the nation’s leading agricultural and dairy producer. One out of every six jobs in California is tied to agriculture in some way. A high priority should be placed on efforts to ensure a reliable water supply.” Fisher said that while agriculture uses 80 percent of the developed water supply in California, it only uses 41 percent of the total rainfall and water storage in the state. Nearly half of the water goes into the environment such as lakes, streams and groundwater. “Farmers and ranchers actually use water very wisely,” she said, which prompted some in the audience of about 150 people to laugh. She said that the state’s water delivery system, which hasn’t been improved in 40 years, is outdated see Forum page 18A
Post FREE online classifieds. It’s just one of many things you can do as a member! Sign in today at www.thepress.net. See page 17A.
Fire board a done deal The final two members the new fire protection governing board will take their seats at the board’s inaugural meeting.
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Fight to the photofinish
A last-second Hail Mary shot found glass but no nylon, and an exciting game ended in a loss for the scrappy Falcons.
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INSIDE Business .............................8A Calendar ..........................19B Classifieds ........................12B Cop Logs ..........................15A Entertainment ................18B Food .................................10B Health & Beauty ............... 8B Milestones ......................... 7B Opinion ...........................14A Sports ................................. 1B WebExtras! ....................... 1B
FOR MOVIE TIMES SEE PAGE 5A