My top five impressions as your new Placer County District Two Supervisor

It has been a little over a month since I officially started my term as Placer County District Two Supervisor. I wanted to share a few reflections with you… a "top five" of things I've been reminded of in the past 45-plus days. 1. Regional collaboration is alive and strong in Placer. What an honor and privilege it is to live in a county where leaders from all jurisdictions work together for the good of all. There are no "lines" when it comes to grocery shopping, frequenting restaurants or hiking on trails. We are blessed with local officials who think about the bigger picture and know that impacts in one jurisdiction bleed over to our neighbors and seek to find solutions for those impacts. 2. We are growing fast… and growing well. Placer County will grow by tens of thousands of people over the next few decades. It's imperative that as we grow by population, the county provides the level of public safety services and staffing that we need to meet the demands of that growth. With the Placer County Conservation Program in place, as development happens, we'll be protecting more than 47,000 acres of contiguous open space for our residents (and wildlife) to enjoy… forever. Having the infrastructure to support that future growth is incredibly important and we'll rely greatly on our regional collaboration to make sure we can meet those needs. 3. State mandates are one of our biggest challenges. Placer County's biggest threat is that we're in the state of California. The requirements to meet our Regional Housing Needs Allocation are difficult, and if we don't meet the state's goals for housing, we are faced with the potential loss of our land use authority. With the passing of Prop 47, our law enforcement's hands are often tied and criminals who would previously be taken off the streets are now let go with merely a ticket… or sometimes not even that. With wildfires being a newer "fifth season" in California, extremely stringent state and federal environmental restrictions make it incredibly difficult to complete large-scale forest thinning and maintenance. We're doing everything we can to maintain our local control in the areas where that's possible and keep our forests healthy. 4. We are a place that promotes innovation and entrepreneurialism. Placer's innovative approaches are models for other areas of the state. Our Regional Homelessness Planning Group, Middle Fork Project (a hydro-generation project designed to conserve and control waters of the Middle Fork American River), Probation's cutting-edge mobile outreach program, and our unique ag tourism industry make us a place that inspires creativity and partnerships. 5. There's no better training for this job than my last one! I was blessed to spend more than five years preparing for my current role as I served as district director for the former Supervisor, Robert Weygandt. That job prepared me to have a seamless transition. I already knew and understood the issues at hand, the challenges coming in the future and what exactly the role of a county supervisor is in all of that. I've thought nearly every day how fortunate I am that I had that training! And while I still have much to learn, it prepared me well and set me up for success to serve you better. I am honored to be serving you on the Placer County Board of Supervisors, and look forward to continuing to grow in my knowledge and understanding of the county over these next four years! Shanti Landon is the Placer County Supervisor for District Two, which includes Lincoln, Sheridan and west Roseville. You can reach her office at slandon@placer.ca.gov or 530-889-4010.