Calaveras Board Denies Moratorium Exemption

San Andreas, CA — Much to the chagrin of Supervisor Tom Tryon, the Calaveras County Board of Supervisors Tuesday denied an exemption to the current moratorium on zoning and General Plan amendments.

The board passed the moratorium to give the Planning Department time to catch up on already submitted projects and slow the workload as an update of the General Plan takes place.

Developers of the proposed Mitchell Ranch project in Vallecito said they would pay $50,000 towards a regional water study if they were allowed to submit an application for a zoning amendment.

Supervisor Tom Tryon felt this was an overriding public benefit, but other supervisors disagreed. The vote was 2-3.

And the vote on a larger development, Wallace Lake Estates Unit 2, was delayed for three weeks to allow staff time to review issues that were raised during the public hearing. One major item of contention is whether there is enough groundwater to sustain the development.

Written by Vanessa Turner.