February 26, 1975 (8 pages)

Land divisions Wed., Feb. 26,1975 The Nevada County oe 7 Decision on policy, ordinance “For the purpose of land division gross area means the total area of property to the center line of any street, highway, road, water way or ‘public utility easement.’’ With this unanimous decision supervisors hope to settle once and for all the lingering and differing interpretations of board policy and county ordinance on the subject of gross and net as related to land divisions. The settlement of the ongoing and highly confused debates between supervisors, staffers, engineers and real estate persons concerning interpretation of policy and ordinance did not come easy. At times it was almost .a pitched battle with Chairman Tom Turner, the board champion, for the eventual description of gross area. Turner’s chief complaint was that county staffers had not referred questions of interpretation back to the board, which makes policy. “There is a fine line and we can’t bring everything back to the board. Exercise of certain discretion is part of our job,’’ defended County Counsel. Leo Todd. Eric Rood had ‘“cheard enough’’ to assure himself there was a great area of differences of opinion. “The way the ordinance was drafted all divisions of land are regulated by the county,”’’ contributed Director of Public Works Terry Lowell. ‘Are you saying the ordinance is not compatible with the board’s intent?” queried Willie Curran. “Even the state law is not perfect that is why we have an attorney general and courts,”’ offered Planning Director Sharon Boivin. Because of the “uncertain” way policy comes into being Lowell suggested that all future items be in ordinance form. Ed Sylvester, an engineer, “didn’t give a damn” what the county requires. He just wants to be certain what the requirements are. To avoid “putting the staff in a bind” he would like to see all Policy in written form. Turner thumbed through ordinances and board minutes, past and present, and got the idea ‘‘there are conflicting definitions in two ordinances.” “There are not as many reruns on television as there are re-runs on net and gross problems,’’ complained Dean Deniz, representing real estate interests. < Todd tossed the ball to the board with “It’s obviously a disagreement -you the supervisors are the referees. Tell us what you want.”’ Because Turner could “almost make the motion in his sleep’’ he volunteered the successful motion that ‘should resolve the problem once and for all.’’ Supervisors also had a first go-around with compliance with the new state subdivision act which becomes effective March 1, 1975. Planning. Director Mrs. Boivin, and Wes Zachary, assistant director of public works, offered their efforts to bring this county into compliance by the deadline. After a lengthy and technical re-hash of the old subdivision ordinance and proposals for a new one the discussion was reset for 1:30 p.m. next Tuesday. Mrs. Boivin proposed some changes, some of which were controversial, for the new county subdivision ordinance. Deniz and Sylvester wanted the old ordinance ‘“‘left alone’’ except’as necessary to change it to conform to state law. ‘‘Let’s not solve old problems by creating new ones,’’ Sylvester urged. And there was yet more to come concerning county policy. --County counsel and the director of public works were ordered to revise the county electrical ordinance so that size 14 wiring is acceptable here. Turner, who is in the electrical business, initiated the discussion resulting in the motion. He referred to rising . CLASSIFIED Chappie bill aimed at legislator bid changes Assemblyman Gene Chappie has introduced Assembly Bill 641, a measure which would require that all contracts for construction or alteration of legislative offices within the Capitol be awarded on the basis of competitive bidding, to be approved by the Department of General Services. The bill also requires-that any purchase of supplies, office equipment and other merchandise must go through the bidding process. According to Chappie, ‘*Present law specifically exempts the legislature from having to go out to bid for either the purchase of equipment or for alterations or construction of its offices.”’ However, the Chappie ‘measure, if passed and signed into law, will require that any contract entered into by the legislature through its rules committees which exceeds $1,000, must meet the same requirements as any other state agency in this regard. construction costs and the trend to purchase and move mobile and factory built homes in the county. He said the county electrical ordinance is-in conflict with the state and suggested clarification to bring them in compliance. He claimed the present. code is more stringent than the state’s. He contended, and. Chief Building Inspector Chuck Coen agreed, that the state code is as safe or safer than the one imposed by the county. There are some of these type homes in the county in which the walls must be ripped open and wiring changed because, although they comply with state code, they are not as specified by the county. The chief building inspector said there are five factory built homes waiting at the county line because of the differences between the county and state requirements. The directive to county counsel and director of public works implied that the five “waiting at the county line” would fall under the new specifications. —Snow loads for mobile homes had another day at the board too. A new state law effective September 1 requires snow loads of 30 pounds at the 2001 to 2,500 foot elevation; from no elecation to 2,000 feet the requirement is 20 pounds. A motion was made to implement the _ new _ state requirement but on further study it appeared there was some. confusion concerning elevations. After considerable discussion the motion was withdrawn. After more discussion including reference to snow loads at various elevations and to snow roof maintenance in mobilehome parks, the final decision was to keep snow loads, as they are now, at 20 pounds per square foot below 2,500 feet until the date that state law will apply. And that is the board’s intent.as of right now. AbdbS 10. Crafts and Services rer ROBERT L. ROSS, JR. QPTOMETRIST 147 Mill St., Ph. 273-6246 40. Miscellaneous for Sale ttl we Susi WILLSON‘S SWAP meet March 1 & 2. Call 273-0456. 11465 Nev. City Hwy. Sit back and let classified ads do the, selling, renting or buying for you. Earl G. Waters Biennial conventions Despite the complaints about. the unduly lengthy campaigns, California’s major political parties have acted in concert.to string them out even further. This must be the effect of the change of the biennial party conventions from midsummer dates preceding elections to winter meetings following the general elections. It means that aspiring candidates who feel they must appear at such conclaves are necessarily now required to make known their availability and commence campaigning a full year before the spring of election year. Such was the case at the Democratic and erm party conventions held in Sacramento during the past month. The Democratic rally brought out some Presidential hopefuls seeking to enlist early support from the state which will send to the 1976 national convention the nation’s largest delegation. Former U.S. Senator Fred Harris and former Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter were on hand as were U.S. Senator Lloyd Bentson of Texas, Pennsylvania Governor Milton Shapp and Arizona Congressman Morris Udall. Curiously, Washington’s Senator Henry Jackson, considered by many to be the strongest frontrunner for the 76 nomination, skipped the show. So, too, did other prominent Democrats who have previously been candidates and cannot yet be counted out for the next race. Hubert Humphrey, George McGovern, Birch Bayh, Eugene McCarthy and Edmund Muskie were among fhe missing. And, one who figures to have great influence at the 76 convention if he is not himself a candidate, Governor George Wallace, also passed up the gathering. Perhaps it was wise since California’s Governor Jerry Brown stole the stage in a brief appearance, even though he has made‘ no pretentions at being a Presidential candidate, at least not in 1976. But for those who did come to the party it was clear they have now obligated themselves to many long months of campaign work and expense. The Republican convention two weeks later did not. attract _afty Presidential aspirants, excepting former Governor Ronald Reagan who isn’t yet a publicly avowed candidate. It did, however, draw a declared 1976 opponent of Senator John Tunneyand several other potential challengers. Unlike Senator Alan Cranston, who was viewed as nigh unbeatable by the Republicans in the 1974 contest, and the election proved their estimates of Cranston correct, Tunney is considered an easy target for almost anyone. Because of this, former Lt. \ Governor Robert Finch made an obvious attempt to discourage competition of the 76 GOP senatorial nomination by announcing his candidacy weeks before the convention. The effort wasn’t altogether successful as California’s Goldwater, Congressman Barry M., Jr., State Senator Dennis Carpenter and Dr. William Banowsky, Pepperdine College prexy, were on the svene. All three have been itching to run for Tunney’s seat. State Senator Bill Richardson, who handily defeated Dr. Earl Brian last year for the honor of being the Republican challenger of Cranston, was actively present and may well be considering another shot at the U.S. Senate, this time against Tunney. It is an irony, in a state where most already agree that campaigns extend over too many months by reason of the distance between the June primaries and the November general elections, © that. the major parties would have created the situation wherein the campaigns now will extend a year longer. As even those who merely observe have come to learn, campaigns are _ expensive propositions, made un_ necessarily costly by the early primaries. It was not. always thus nor need it be continued.For many years California primaries were held in late August. This was changed, presumably temporarily, during WW II on the premise more time was. needed to permit those overseas in the military to exercise their franchise. But the June primary has become a fixture and efforts to change it have run into opposition from some county clerks who contend they need the extra time and from those who wish to avoid a separate primary solely for Presidential preference. Others say the clerks would really have no problem although a few-changes in present law might be necessary. They also point out there might not be any need for a special presidential primary if California changed its dates. The contention is the state is too big to ignore and the national convention dates would be changed.This would have the additional benefit of shortening _ the Presidential campaigns. WINS SECOND PLACE Robert Paasch of Chicago Park, a senior agricultural engineering major at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, and his team, _recently won'second place at the Southwestern Livestock Exposition in Ft. Worth, Tex. He was also on the livestock judging team which won the carload intercollegiate judging competition at the National Western States Show in Denver, Colo.

Land divisions Wed., Feb. 26,1975 The Nevada County oe 7 Decision on policy, ordinance “For the purpose of land division gross area means the total area of property to the center line of any street, highway, road, water way or ‘public utility easement.’’ With this unanimous decision supervisors hope to settle once and for all the lingering and differing interpretations of board policy and county ordinance on the subject of gross and net as related to land divisions. The settlement of the ongoing and highly confused debates between supervisors, staffers, engineers and real estate persons concerning interpretation of policy and ordinance did not come easy. At times it was almost .a pitched battle with Chairman Tom Turner, the board champion, for the eventual description of gross area. Turner’s chief complaint was that county staffers had not referred questions of interpretation back to the board, which makes policy. “There is a fine line and we can’t bring everything back to the board. Exercise of certain discretion is part of our job,’’ defended County Counsel. Leo Todd. Eric Rood had ‘“cheard enough’’ to assure himself there was a great area of differences of opinion. “The way the ordinance was drafted all divisions of land are regulated by the county,”’’ contributed Director of Public Works Terry Lowell. ‘Are you saying the ordinance is not compatible with the board’s intent?” queried Willie Curran. “Even the state law is not perfect that is why we have an attorney general and courts,”’ offered Planning Director Sharon Boivin. Because of the “uncertain” way policy comes into being Lowell suggested that all future items be in ordinance form. Ed Sylvester, an engineer, “didn’t give a damn” what the county requires. He just wants to be certain what the requirements are. To avoid “putting the staff in a bind” he would like to see all Policy in written form. Turner thumbed through ordinances and board minutes, past and present, and got the idea ‘‘there are conflicting definitions in two ordinances.” “There are not as many reruns on television as there are re-runs on net and gross problems,’’ complained Dean Deniz, representing real estate interests. < Todd tossed the ball to the board with “It’s obviously a disagreement -you the supervisors are the referees. Tell us what you want.”’ Because Turner could “almost make the motion in his sleep’’ he volunteered the successful motion that ‘should resolve the problem once and for all.’’ Supervisors also had a first go-around with compliance with the new state subdivision act which becomes effective March 1, 1975. Planning. Director Mrs. Boivin, and Wes Zachary, assistant director of public works, offered their efforts to bring this county into compliance by the deadline. After a lengthy and technical re-hash of the old subdivision ordinance and proposals for a new one the discussion was reset for 1:30 p.m. next Tuesday. Mrs. Boivin proposed some changes, some of which were controversial, for the new county subdivision ordinance. Deniz and Sylvester wanted the old ordinance ‘“‘left alone’’ except’as necessary to change it to conform to state law. ‘‘Let’s not solve old problems by creating new ones,’’ Sylvester urged. And there was yet more to come concerning county policy. --County counsel and the director of public works were ordered to revise the county electrical ordinance so that size 14 wiring is acceptable here. Turner, who is in the electrical business, initiated the discussion resulting in the motion. He referred to rising . CLASSIFIED Chappie bill aimed at legislator bid changes Assemblyman Gene Chappie has introduced Assembly Bill 641, a measure which would require that all contracts for construction or alteration of legislative offices within the Capitol be awarded on the basis of competitive bidding, to be approved by the Department of General Services. The bill also requires-that any purchase of supplies, office equipment and other merchandise must go through the bidding process. According to Chappie, ‘*Present law specifically exempts the legislature from having to go out to bid for either the purchase of equipment or for alterations or construction of its offices.”’ However, the Chappie ‘measure, if passed and signed into law, will require that any contract entered into by the legislature through its rules committees which exceeds $1,000, must meet the same requirements as any other state agency in this regard. construction costs and the trend to purchase and move mobile and factory built homes in the county. He said the county electrical ordinance is-in conflict with the state and suggested clarification to bring them in compliance. He claimed the present. code is more stringent than the state’s. He contended, and. Chief Building Inspector Chuck Coen agreed, that the state code is as safe or safer than the one imposed by the county. There are some of these type homes in the county in which the walls must be ripped open and wiring changed because, although they comply with state code, they are not as specified by the county. The chief building inspector said there are five factory built homes waiting at the county line because of the differences between the county and state requirements. The directive to county counsel and director of public works implied that the five “waiting at the county line” would fall under the new specifications. —Snow loads for mobile homes had another day at the board too. A new state law effective September 1 requires snow loads of 30 pounds at the 2001 to 2,500 foot elevation; from no elecation to 2,000 feet the requirement is 20 pounds. A motion was made to implement the _ new _ state requirement but on further study it appeared there was

some. confusion concerning elevations. After considerable discussion the motion was withdrawn. After more discussion including reference to snow loads at various elevations and to snow roof maintenance in mobilehome parks, the final decision was to keep snow loads, as they are now, at 20 pounds per square foot below 2,500 feet until the date that state law will apply. And that is the board’s intent.as of right now. AbdbS 10. Crafts and Services rer ROBERT L. ROSS, JR. QPTOMETRIST 147 Mill St., Ph. 273-6246 40. Miscellaneous for Sale ttl we Susi WILLSON‘S SWAP meet March 1 & 2. Call 273-0456. 11465 Nev. City Hwy. Sit back and let classified ads do the, selling, renting or buying for you. Earl G. Waters Biennial conventions Despite the complaints about. the unduly lengthy campaigns, California’s major political parties have acted in concert.to string them out even further. This must be the effect of the change of the biennial party conventions from midsummer dates preceding elections to winter meetings following the general elections. It means that aspiring candidates who feel they must appear at such conclaves are necessarily now required to make known their availability and commence campaigning a full year before the spring of election year. Such was the case at the Democratic and erm party conventions held in Sacramento during the past month. The Democratic rally brought out some Presidential hopefuls seeking to enlist early support from the state which will send to the 1976 national convention the nation’s largest delegation. Former U.S. Senator Fred Harris and former Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter were on hand as were U.S. Senator Lloyd Bentson of Texas, Pennsylvania Governor Milton Shapp and Arizona Congressman Morris Udall. Curiously, Washington’s Senator Henry Jackson, considered by many to be the strongest frontrunner for the 76 nomination, skipped the show. So, too, did other prominent Democrats who have previously been candidates and cannot yet be counted out for the next race. Hubert Humphrey, George McGovern, Birch Bayh, Eugene McCarthy and Edmund Muskie were among fhe missing. And, one who figures to have great influence at the 76 convention if he is not himself a candidate, Governor George Wallace, also passed up the gathering. Perhaps it was wise since California’s Governor Jerry Brown stole the stage in a brief appearance, even though he has made‘ no pretentions at being a Presidential candidate, at least not in 1976. But for those who did come to the party it was clear they have now obligated themselves to many long months of campaign work and expense. The Republican convention two weeks later did not. attract _afty Presidential aspirants, excepting former Governor Ronald Reagan who isn’t yet a publicly avowed candidate. It did, however, draw a declared 1976 opponent of Senator John Tunneyand several other potential challengers. Unlike Senator Alan Cranston, who was viewed as nigh unbeatable by the Republicans in the 1974 contest, and the election proved their estimates of Cranston correct, Tunney is considered an easy target for almost anyone. Because of this, former Lt. \ Governor Robert Finch made an obvious attempt to discourage competition of the 76 GOP senatorial nomination by announcing his candidacy weeks before the convention. The effort wasn’t altogether successful as California’s Goldwater, Congressman Barry M., Jr., State Senator Dennis Carpenter and Dr. William Banowsky, Pepperdine College prexy, were on the svene. All three have been itching to run for Tunney’s seat. State Senator Bill Richardson, who handily defeated Dr. Earl Brian last year for the honor of being the Republican challenger of Cranston, was actively present and may well be considering another shot at the U.S. Senate, this time against Tunney. It is an irony, in a state where most already agree that campaigns extend over too many months by reason of the distance between the June primaries and the November general elections, © that. the major parties would have created the situation wherein the campaigns now will extend a year longer. As even those who merely observe have come to learn, campaigns are _ expensive propositions, made un_ necessarily costly by the early primaries. It was not. always thus nor need it be continued.For many years California primaries were held in late August. This was changed, presumably temporarily, during WW II on the premise more time was. needed to permit those overseas in the military to exercise their franchise. But the June primary has become a fixture and efforts to change it have run into opposition from some county clerks who contend they need the extra time and from those who wish to avoid a separate primary solely for Presidential preference. Others say the clerks would really have no problem although a few-changes in present law might be necessary. They also point out there might not be any need for a special presidential primary if California changed its dates. The contention is the state is too big to ignore and the national convention dates would be changed.This would have the additional benefit of shortening _ the Presidential campaigns. WINS SECOND PLACE Robert Paasch of Chicago Park, a senior agricultural engineering major at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, and his team, _recently won'second place at the Southwestern Livestock Exposition in Ft. Worth, Tex. He was also on the livestock judging team which won the carload intercollegiate judging competition at the National Western States Show in Denver, Colo.