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Tuesday, 24 February 2009 |
 Amador County – Amador County stakeholders working on the economic element of the General Plan Update discussed economic development at length last week, hearing a presentation from Doug Svenssen of Applied Development Economics. Svenssen said 25 percent of tax revenue in Amador is generated by non-retail sales; and manufacturing adds “tremendously to the tax base.” He said “the more higher paying jobs we have, the more income there is to spend locally,” also adding to the tax base. He said the county should look to invest revenue toward economic growth and toward grants such as Community Development Block Grants. He said that is especially important for projects that benefit multiple jurisdictions. He noted that the CDBG could have close to $1 billion in funding with the federal stimulus spending. Jim Conklin of the Amador County Business Council asked about language in the Economic Element policy that would require that a fiscal impact analysis be compiled for large businesses seeking to locate in Amador. One man asked if that had been studied for Wal-Mart in Martell, and several in the audience said it had not been studied. Svenssen said a fiscal analysis “isn’t something communities normally have done in the past,” but due to lawsuits, the California Environmental Quality Act now requires it. Conklin said it would be “adopting words that are restrictive in nature.” Jeff Henderson of EDAW said a court struck down a business Environmental Impact Report in Bakersfield “because the court found that the project caused physical blight.” Ron Mittelbrunn of Amador County Economic Development Corporation said the new business park on Ridge Road had an inquiry from a company that would have been in direct competition with existing local stores, including Meek’s and the Feed Barn. Mittelbrunn said “they had the attitude that they didn’t care what they would do to the local businesses.” He said “they didn’t come in because I ignored them.” The joint panel of Amador County Supervisors and Planning Commissioners will discuss the Economic Element and also the Governance Element, including all public and stakeholder comments, during its next series of meetings, set for March 24th, 25th, and 26th. Story by Jim Reece
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