Sheriff appointment, termination of River Fire emergencies on Placer Supervisors' agenda

A variety of items are scheduled for review by the Placer County Board of Supervisors at its July 26 meeting. The first agenda item, scheduled at 9 a.m., is the appointment of Acting Sheriff (formerly Undersheriff) Wayne Woo as the Placer County Sheriff-Coroner-Marshal. Woo's appointment comes after the retirement of former Sheriff Devon Bell on July 6. According to the staff report, Section 404 of the Placer County Charter provides the board with the authority to fill a vacancy in an elective office with an appointee to hold the office until the next general election or the successor is "elected and qualified." According to the Placer County Clerk-Recorder-Registrar of Voters office, Woo received 63.55 percent of the votes in the June Primary. If approved by the board, Woo will serve as Sheriff for the remainder of Bell's term, effective immediately, and his term will begin in January 2023. The board is also scheduled to consider a contract amendment for the design of the Highway 49 sewer trunkline in North Auburn. According to the staff report, the board approved the contract with Stantec Consulting Services in April 2021 for $582,028 to design the upsizing project to increase the trunkline capacity to safely accommodate existing sewer flows and future development. Numerous constraints were identified in the original design concept, which was limited to a small downstream segment of the trunkline. The staff report notes the alternative design will include the design of an odor control system, three times more pipeline and multiple horizontal direction drilling locations for a total cost of $973,531. The board will also consider adopting a resolution to terminate the local emergency and local health emergency due to the River Fire that affected Placer and Nevada counties last August. The fire ignited Aug. 4 in the overnight camping area of the Bear River Campground, burned 2,619 acres, destroyed 142 structures and damaged 21. The fire was 100-percent contained Aug. 13. To secure federal and state assistance for recovery efforts, the board ratified a local emergency on Aug. 10. The local health emergency was ratified by the board on Aug. 31 due to debris and debris ash and potential residential food and water contamination due to the fire. According to the staff report, Placer County was included in the state-run debris program as a result of the proclamation, and 42 residential properties that opted in have been remediated and are ready for rebuild or have been rebuilt. The report notes the termination of the emergencies is being considered, as county staff believes the remaining recovery efforts are within Placer's capability. An update regarding the River Fire recovery efforts and the Bear River Campground, owned by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, were also provided during the Weimar Applegate Colfax Municipal Advisory Council meeting Wednesday evening. Placer County Parks and Open Space Director Steve Gayfield advised those in attendance the county would not renew its contract with Fish and Wildlife for management of the campground to focus its resources on county-owned properties, and would turn management and operation back to the state. Gayfield said Placer has notified the state of the decision and it was his understanding the state would keep the campground open for fishing. The agreement expires Nov. 12. Those in attendance advised the community's input was not sought regarding the contract renewal. Placer County Board Chair and District 5 Supervisor Cindy Gustafson advised she would be happy to receive public input and have staff work with the state on its plan for the transition. The Bear River Campground is not a scheduled item on the board's Tuesday agenda. Tuesday's meeting is scheduled at 9 a.m. The public is invited to attend at the County Administrative Center, 175 Fulweiler Avenue in Auburn, or online at placer.ca.gov/boslive. The agenda can be found at placer.ca.gov/DocumentCenter/View/62553/2022-072622-FINAL-Agenda.