A DEVASTATING REMINDER, BE PREPARED FOR WILDFIRE!
As many of you know, the River Fire, which started Wednesday, grew very quickly, and destroyed homes in the Colfax area and beyond. My heart goes out to each and every individual who has already lost their homes or had property impacts. I was able to get to Colfax and meet with the Mayor Pro Tem, the City Manager, Cal Fire, and the Placer County Sheriff’s office a few hours after the start of the fire. Seeing the tremendous resources in action from the air and the ground was reassuring. Thousands of people were evacuated, 3,400 homes threatened, but fortunately at this point only 88 structures were destroyed. I want to extend the utmost appreciation to our CalFire crews who reacted quickly, called in tremendous aerial and on-the-ground equipment and crews, and limited the growth of the fire quickly. Their efforts saved us from a far worse outcome. In addition, I’d like to thank our Placer County Sheriff’s staff who worked quickly to evacuate residents and ensure their safety. The following video shares the difficult conditions firefighters have been contending with over the past 24 hours. WATCH VIDEO
This is a humbling reminder that wildfire can strike at anytime and anywhere – we MUST be prepared. The time is NOW to plan, prepare, stay aware and know your evacuation routes. Please CLICK HERE to view Cal Fire’s wildfire evacuation guide. I also encourage you to visit the CalFire website for information on ways to prepare for wildfire including; getting your to-go kit ready, creating a wildfire action plan, and preparing now.
For current information on the River Fire, including ways you can volunteer or donate, please CLICK HERE.
Please be vigilant with your actions, stay safe and keep your thoughts with everyone who is currently dealing with wildfire firsthand. Our Placer County community, near and far, will need to come together to help each other through this devastating time.
In service,
Cindy Gustafson, District 5 Supervisor
EASTERN PLACER COUNTY TOWN HALL
THURSDAY, AUGUST 12 @ 6PM
As we close in on the last few weeks of a busy summer season, Placer County staff and the Board of Supervisors have continued to advance pilot efforts to address the impacts of increased visitation to our Eastern Placer communities and to seek solutions to our workforce housing needs. These issues and impacts are by no means unique to our region, in fact resort communities throughout our country have struggled with similar problems. Researching solutions that have been effective in other jurisdictions has allowed us the opportunity to learn from the best practices and customize efforts in our area.
County staff and I feel it’s extremely important to provide our community with all the information and resources you might need and we invite you to join us on Thursday, August 12 at 6pm for a Virtual Eastern Placer County Town Hall. We have prepared a robust agenda with a focus on the many efforts we are undertaking to address workforce housing.
Other Updates Underway
GROVE STREET SIGNAL
After decades of discussing a variety of options, Placer County is piloting a signal that would control and make pedestrian crossings safer at this key intersection. Pedestrian activity at the Grove Street intersection has been the cause of significant traffic delays in past summers. The pilot project is being monitored and evaluated during our peak busy summer season and the results will be checked against data while it was an unregulated crosswalk. One of the issues that has been identified, is the delay due to allowing left hand turns out of Grove Street. Adjusting the timing at the signals may help but won’t eliminate delays. The study will look at traffic volumes with and without signal and how those volumes may translate into the extent of delays folks are experiencing. We appreciate the feedback and experience that many of you are providing. Staff will evaluate and discuss future efforts at a fall NTRAC meeting. LEARN MORE
SHORT TERM RENTAL MORATORIUM
For a number of years, short term rentals have been a growing concern in Eastern Placer County. During the fall of 2019 a new ordinance and permitting process was established and was implemented in January of 2020. The effectiveness of this ordinance and its implementation are being evaluated. There is also significant documentation available indicating that short term rentals are increasing housing values in resort communities. This moratorium is a “time out” while information is collected as to how best to balance our community’s needs and demands. We are not the first region to address these growing issues. Many, if not most, communities throughout the country have begun restricting, regulating, instituting caps, and other efforts in order to preserving community character and needs. Housing is extremely difficult and costly to build. Shortages for workforce housing are evident even in larger communities but resort communities are suffering the worst. Finding the right balance is critical to the well-being of our community. We will be seeking further input and collecting data for the discussion of how to address these issues. LEARN MORE
PLACER EXPANDS TART CONNECT THROUGH THE WINTER SEASON
The Placer County Board of Supervisors approved $530,000 in transient occupancy tax funds to expand the TART Connect on-demand transit pilot program for the winter season. The funding will allow continued TART Connect service from December through April 2022, and will expand service into the Cedar Flat and Carnelian Bay area neighborhoods, now covering all Placer communities along Lake Tahoe. LEARN MORE
JOINT AIR QUALITY ADVISORY
Placer County Public Health and Placer County Air Pollution Control District have issued an air quality advisory in part due to the potential for wildfire smoke impacts from the River Fire in Nevada and Placer counties. Additionally, the public should be prepared for a strong potential for poor air quality conditions through Sunday, August 8, from smoke from wildfires elsewhere in northern California. This air quality advisory is issued based on the National Weather Service, Sacramento forecast of a wind shift to northerly winds that would bring smoke into our area. LEARN MORE
POLL WORKERS NEEDED IN NORTH LAKE TAHOE
The Placer County Elections Office still needs poll workers in North Lake Tahoe for the upcoming September 14 California gubernatorial recall election. Poll workers who are bilingual in Spanish are in special need, too. A training class for election poll workers will be held in North Lake Tahoe on September 9. LEARN MORE
Contact information:
175 Fulweiler Ave., Auburn, CA 95603
Supervisor Cindy Gustafson: cindygustafson@
District Aide Kelly McCaughna: kmccaughna@placer.
District Aide Sophie Fox: sfox@placer.ca.gov
Assistant District Aide Lindsay Thayer: lthayer@placer.ca.gov
