Recent News, Updates & Developments
Our Board was reconstituted and reenergized in 2017 following the Pocket Fire, and we have been making significant progress on many fronts since then. We now have over 100 of our community households as AVCL Members and thank you all for your support. If you haven’t joined with us, please do. It’s easy and free. Just go to the Membership section on this site. If you do sign up, you will be getting emails of all of our updates immediately along with their attachments as new developments occur.
Throughout our efforts, we have been working closely with Supervisor James Gore and with Johannes Hoevertsz, the Director of the Sonoma County Department of Transportation and Public Works. We are pleased to report that we have their full support for the Asti Crossing permanent bridge project and our other efforts. They have been instrumental in moving the bridge project forward.
The June 26 and June 5, 2022, Updates below discuss the huge steps that have now been taken by the Board of Supervisors (BOS) to help make the permanent bridge a reality. Following through on these commitments will still be contingent upon support of the affected community members. This means they will need to approve the Special Financing District (SFD) to assure the County that they are prepared to contribute, if needed, their fair share of the costs involved by agreeing to cover 20% of the original estimated project cost of $20M, or $4M. The earlier October 21, 2021, Update below discusses the progress toward obtaining approval of setting up the Special Financing District (SFD). The May 27, 2021, Update discusses the BOS earlier commitment to spend $250K to commence the engineering work needed for the bridge project. It also seeks volunteers to help get out the vote to pass the SFD. Before this, the October 24 and September 18, 2020, Updates discuss the PG&E $149 million settlement with Sonoma County and its possible benefit for the permanent bridge project. The June 9, 2020, Update discusses the meeting of the BOS in which the Board voted unanimously to proceed with the first step in the funding for the permanent crossing.
Taking all these recent steps together, it is looking like a permanent Asti Crossing Bridge will finally become a reality 100 years after the Cloverdale Chamber of Commerce first asked the then BOS for such a bridge!
JUNE 26, 2022, UPDATE: HUGE STEPS FOWARD ON THE PERMANENT BRIDGE PROJECT
With our great thanks to Supervisor James Gore and Johannes Hoevertsz, their efforts have now led to the Board of Supervisors (BOS) agreeing to take some huge steps forward on the permanent bridge project for the Asti Crossing.
On May 24th, Johannes, with strong support from Gore, obtained BOS approval for Sonoma to enter into a professional services agreement with TRC Engineers, Inc., a large international engineering firm, to do the full environmental and bridge design work-up required to build the bridge. This resulted in the County entering into an extensive contract with a "not to exceed" value of $3,986,231 covering all aspects of all that needs to be done to be able to put the project out for bids to be built. The work to be done by TRC includes all of the environmental and bridge design work needed, along with all roadway engineering, hydraulic analysis, geotechnical design, rights of way work, utilities, traffic control, etc. The contract is 115 pages long and is detailed and comprehensive. The work to be done is to go forward in three phases. And, to be clear, the County obligates itself to only do Phase One at the cost of $350,000 This is the $350,000 previously approved by the BOS described in our earlier Update messages. The balance of the contract is subject to the County finding the funds to go forward with Phases 2 and 3.
So, while the County now has a contract to truly get the project to the point of being “shovel ready,” there is no guarantee that the work will be done. It will remain critically important that everyone in the affected District vote to approve the formation of the Special Financing District (FSD) when the time for voting arrives.
In Johannes’s submission to the BOS, he places the cost of the project at $30 million, not $20 million. He advises that this was done to give the project some “elbow room” should the costs come in higher than originally anticipated. He advises, however, that the County will not be asking our SFD to fund more than the 20% of the $20 million, or $4 million, originally requested of those in the District.
We had also previously reported that the vote for the SFD has been delayed because County Counsel insists that the environmental work-up for the project be completed before it can go out for a vote. The BOS acknowledges this which is why it is asking TRC to promptly move forward with its environmental work-up for the project. In fact, that work has already commenced with biological assessments now underway.
In another huge step forward, Friday a week ago, the BOS agreed to commit another $1.5 million toward moving up the environmental work being done by TRC. So this will be bringing the environmental and design work by TRC seriously into Phase two of its contract. It should also help in moving the project closer to the point where we can move forward with the SFD vote. It had been looking like that vote would be delayed until into early next year. Hopefully this new funding will help make it happen sooner.
Again, our sincere thanks to James Gore and Johannes Hoevertsz for all they are doing to help make the permanent bridge a reality.
JUNE 5, 2022 UPDATE: A BIG STEP FORWARD
We write to let you know, first of all, that it looks like the Summer Bridge will be opening by Wednesday, June 15th. Most of the work is done, and the scheduled opening date of June 15th should hold.
At its May 24,2022, meeting the Board of Supervisors (BOS) took a serious step forward on the Asti Permanent Bridge Project. The BOS approved the awarding of a contract for environmental studies for the project. Specifically, it authorized the Department of Transportation and Public Works (TPW) to engage engineers to prepare preliminary engineering plans and environmental studies. It granted funding of $350,000 and authorized the use of other funds, if necessary, to compete the studies.
So the Permanent Bridge Project is definitely on its way. This will all remain contingent upon the passage of the Special Financing District (SFD) when the time to vote comes. As that time comes, we ask that everyone in the proposed District submit their ballots in favor of the SFD and the bridge and that you encourage your neighbors to do the same.
The County now has added an excellent website entitled the “Asti Permanent Bridge” which will also be providing updates along with short videos of support for the project from fire and safety officials and several others. You can access it by subscribing to the related County channel at: permanentastibridge@sonoma-county.org.
FEBRUARY 25, 2022,UPDATE: THE BRIDGE IS HAPPENING - VOTE LIKELY THIS OCTOBER
We are pleased to report solid progress in making the permanent bridge over the Asti Crossing a reality. We expect the Board of Supervisors (BOS) to be voting at its September meeting to approve the bridge project and the formation of the Special Financing District (SFD) to support it. They will be authorizing the SFD to go up for a public vote by all of us in the proposed District to occur during the 45 days following their meeting. If a simple majority of the votes submitted are in favor of the bridge and the SFD, they will be approved, and the bridge will finally be happening. We write now to give you a full update and to attach a copy of the brochure we have prepared that should answer most of the questions you and others may have about the project It also addresses its many benefits to you and to our community.
We ask that all of you be sure to submit your votes in favor of the bridge and the SFD when the time to vote comes. We are also seeking more volunteers to reach out to your neighbors.
1. Favorable Vote by Board of Supervisors Expected in September:
We anticipate that the BOS will be voting in favor of the permanent bridge and the formation of the SFD at its September meeting. This will include adopting the independent engineers' report establishing the boundaries of the SFD and proposed parcel assessments, approving the formation of the SFD, and authorizing it to move forward to a vote by those of us in the proposed District. More details are addressed in our attached brochure.
2. How Voting Will Be Conducted:
The same independent company that established the SFD boundaries will be conducting the voting which will take place over the 45 days following the BOS's September meeting. The company will mail out ballots to the owners of every parcel in the District and be responsible for counting the ballots submitted and tallying the votes.. Every owner has the right to vote and will do so by filling out and returning their ballots. The voting will be in proportion to your assessment. So the votes of owners of our larger vineyards and businesses whose parcels will be assessed at multiples of private residences will count at that multiple. As an example, the vote of a business property assessed seven times that of a residential owner will count seven times the vote of the residential owner.
The counting of the ballots submitted will be done on a “protest vote” approach. That means that the SFD will be defeated only if a majority of those who turn in their ballots vote against the project and the SFD. This makes it crucial that you submit your own ballot in favor of the project and the SFD when the time for voting comes. It also emphasizes the need to get your fellow neighbors to do the same. If the majority of the votes actually submitted are in favor, the bridge project and the SFD will be approved and, after 100 years, the Asti Crossing will finally get its permanent bridge.
3. Maximum Annual Assessment and Potential Grants Could Make It $0:
As you know, the County has committed to cover 80% of the expected $20M cost of the project, or $16M, with the SFD committing to cover 20% or $4M, if necessary. The County has also committed that any grant monies received for the project will be applied first against our $4M. So if $4M or more in grants is collected, the actual assessment to each of us will drop to $0. However, initially, the amounts of the assessments to be recommended by the independent company will be what would be needed to cover the full $4M. Those amounts will be determined closer to the BOS September meeting when the likely financing terms for the project will be better known and will be available at that time. However, it currently appears that the maximum annual assessment for a residential property owner would be $700 and likely considerably less. Also, as explained in the attached brochure, those whose homes are furthest from the bridge will be paying less than those closer.
The County now has an experienced staff of three actively working on obtaining grant funding toward the bridge project. Our Director Geoff Peters, who is also highly experienced in obtaining grants for charitable and other organizations, is also actively working with the County in the grant efforts. Among the sources being pursued are Rural Development grants from the USDA, infrastructure grants from FEMA, and ecology grants from private sources. If the SFD passes and considering the progress being made with the engineering work for the bridge and environmental work-up described below, there is a good chance that the project could be deemed “shovel ready” or “shelf ready.” This would greatly enhance the chances for obtaining grant funds for the bridge.
4. The SFD Will be Only for the Bridge Project:
It should be pointed out that the SFD's sole purpose will be to assist with the bridge funding, if needed. It can be used by the County only for the bridge and for no other purpose. Once the bridge is funded, the SFD will be dissolved.
5. Serious Progress with the Engineering and Environmental Work for the Bridge:
The County has issued its call for bids for the engineering work needed for the bridge. It is significant that the bids being called for are not just for the initial phases of the engineering work needed, but are for the entire project! The bids are due March 4th. We are personally hoping the winning bid will be that of the Cornerstone Structural Engineering Group, the highly experienced bridge builder we initially retained through AVCL Member contributions to do the Preliminary Design Report that helped to launch this whole project.
The County’s staff and a recently hired consultant are continuing to do the environmental work-up needed for the project. We expect they will have their initial report done in time for the BOS September Board meeting. All of the various environmental agencies whose approvals will be required for the project are on board.
6. County Public Outreach to Commence Soon:
The County will be commencing its own outreach program to encourage all property owners in the District to support the bridge and formation of the SFD. We expect the County will be mailing out notices next month to all property owners in the District announcing the pubic meeting. We believe the Q & A session will be led by Supervisor Gore joined by Johannes Hoevertsz, Director of Sonoma’s Department of Transportation and Public Works, and Cloverdale’s Fire Chief Jenkins. The program is being developed by the County’s Communications Department and is intended to provide full information and transparency to everyone affected by the bridge project and the SFD. This will be done entirely independent of our AVCL, and we encourage all of you to attend to hear what the County has to say.
7. The Bridge and the Attached Brochure:
We encourage you to open the attached brochure. It leads off with a photo of what the bridge will look like. It is a clean, modern, attractive bridge made with cast in place concrete. It will have two lanes plus a bike/pedestrian lane. It will be maintenance free and above the 100 year flood level, so it will always be open regardless of storms and river flooding. The brochure provides a good summary of the many points in its favor, and we believe will answer most of the questions you may have about the project and the SFD.
Please feel free to pass on the PDF of the brochure below to others in the District you may know. Please also ask them to be sure to submit their votes when the voting occurs and to vote in favor of the project.
8. Call for Volunteers:
Several of you have already volunteered to contact your immediate neighbors before the voting starts to encourage them to submit their votes in favor of the bridge and the SFD. However, we need more volunteers, and it would be great if you can volunteer to help. If you can assist, please let Steve Johnson know by emailing him at steve@alexvalley.org. We will provide you copies of the brochure to use when reaching out to your neighbors.
9. The Summer Bridge:
Right now it is looking like the installation of the Summer Bridge for this year will be approved. The current plan is to commence installation on Memorial Day, Monday, May 30th, a little ahead of the normal June 15th installation date.. The pull-out date remains October 15th for now.
10. Here’s the Brochure:
Click here to open the brochure.
OCTOBER 21, 2021, UPDATE: WELCOME RAIN MEANS SUMMER BRIDGE MAY BE COMING OUT + PERMANENT BRIDGE STATUS
The Summer Bridge:
The rainstorms coming in now are greatly welcomed and much needed. However, with the rains will come the removal of the Summer Bridge. No removal is scheduled as of this time, and the State has continued to issue one-week extensions every week after October 15th. However, Johannes Hoevertsz, our Director of the County Department of Transportation and Public Works, advises that if we receive 2” of rain or more in these storms, the County will be required to remove the seasonal crossing. So watch the precipitation records over these next several days, and you will have a good idea of the Summer Bridge status yourself.
The Permanent Bridge Project Is Moving Forward, But Not So Fast:
In our Update sent out on May 27th, we reported the good news that the Board of Supervisor (BOS) had approved spending $250K to commence the engineering work for the permanent bridge at the Asti Crossing. As we said, this was a solid sign that the permanent bridge will become a reality. It continues to be just that, but not as quickly as we had hoped. We said that we were also optimistic that the BOS would be moving forward quickly to authorize the establishment of the Special Financing District (SFD) and that a vote for the District could be expected in the near future.
What they say about “the best laid plans oft going astray” applies a bit here. It appears that County Counsel insisted that a CEQA environmental clearance would need to be prepared before there could be a vote on the SFD. We felt that this was an overreach, as nothing environmental happens with just there taking of a vote, and that, instead, the CEQA clearance should be connected with the construction of the bridge itself, not the vote. Arguments against the insistence did not prevail, and Johannes and his team have already commenced the environmental workup that should satisfy County Counsel’s request. This workup will now need to be completed before we can move forward toward getting a vote to set up the SFD. The good news is that this will likely result in an early environmental approval for the project. Instead of a couple of years to obtain full environmental approval, Johannes now believes it might be done within a few months. It is thought that the preparation of an environmental “Mitigated Negative Declaration,” instead of a full EIR, may satisfy the environmental requirements for the bridge. This quicker approach should work in large part because of the coordination that has already occurred with the four environment agencies involved that has resulted in their unanimous support for the project. Johannes believes that this environmental work up might now be completed within six to eight months. With one month already put in by his team, this would push the vote for the SFD out to sometime between next April and May. Prior to that vote, Johannes should be able to obtain BOS approval of setting up the SFD and of its proposed boundaries and assessments, which we will be able to communicate to you well before the voting.
In the meantime, the engineering work needed should be able to get underway. Johannes is just waiting for the structural engineering company that did the Feasibility Study and preliminary design work for us to get past an administrative hurdle to be in a position to bid for the work before he sends the job out for competitive bids. He already has the $250K in funding to commence the design work and believes that another $100K might become available.
In another very good development, the BOS has authorized $2.5 million to fund vegetation fire control work throughout the County. Within this, each Supervisor has $100K for their own discretionary spending for such protective work in each of their Districts. Johannes believes Supervisor Gore will be spending some of this money for preventive work north of the First Street Bridge where there have been several recent small fires breaking out.
The really good news for all of us is that, with these rain storms, it is looking like we have survived this fire year without any major local fire threats. Let’s hope that this will remain true in our future.
OCTOBER 5, 2021, UPDATE: SUMMER BRIDGE STATUS AND SUPERVISOR GORE
The Summer Bridge will be remaining in place for now. Johannes Hoevertsz, the Director of the Sonoma Department of Transportation and Public Works, advises that, while the Fire Season continues and with no rain forecast in the future, there are no plans to schedule the removal of the Summer Bridge in the foreseeable future. This, of course, could change if the weather pattern changes, and significant rain starts to appear likely.
We will let you know when the current non-removal status changes.
You should also know that Supervisor James Gore, who has been so supportive of all of our endeavors, will be up for reelection next year. Supervisor Gore and Johannes Hoevertsz, the Director of the Department of Transportation and Public Works, have been the key movers absolutely instrumental in moving the permanent bridge project forward toward reality. Your AVCL Board Members will be making individual contributions to Gore’s reelection campaign and we would hope that several of you will join with us. Our plan is to bundle all of our individual checks to the Gore campaign and submit them together, so that Supervisor Gore can appreciate the significance of his AVCL backing. To join wth us, please make your check payable to the “Friends of James Gore for Supervisor 2022” and forward it to our Director, Geoff Peters, at 1126 Highland Ranch Road, Cloverdale CA 95425. When all of the checks are gathered and forwarded to the Gore campaign, they will be accompanied by a letter from us listing all of the individual donors, without identifying the amounts given, so that all participating will receive credit.
We hope you will join with us in supporting Supervisor Gore.
MAY 27, 2021, UPDATE: COUNTY APPROVES $250K FOR PERMANENT BRIDGE - AND CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS
The Summer Bridge:
Great news! Work commenced today on installing the Summer Bridge. So it will soon be open. Our thanks to Johannes Hoevertsz and his Department of Transportation and Public Works for their continued efforts to get agency approval for an early installation considering that the fire season is upon us. All of the five involved agencies have now given their approvals, and Johannes had his team ready to go. Also, our apologies to Bob Coey and his NOAA Fisheries Agency, as we had indicated in our last Member Update message that the “fishery agencies” were resisting early installation. We were totally wrong as to Bob. He was actively helping lead the efforts for early agency approval and was totally on board with NOAA Fisheries support.
So to Johannes, Bob, and to all concerned, our thanks. It will be a relief to have the bridge in.
Huge Step Forward for the Permanent Bridge:
We can now say that the Permanent Bridge project is officially underway. With thanks to Supervisor James Gore, the County Board of Supervisors (BOS) approved on Tuesday spending $250 K to commence the formal engineering work for the permanent bridge. This now makes the permanent bridge solution very real. We can’t say enough about the team work and great support of Supervisor Gore and Director Hoevertsz. They, along with the great support of our AVCL Membership, are making this happen.
Special Financing District & Call for Volunteers:
County authorization for the formation of the Special Financing District (SFD) is the next step. Supervisor Gore and Director Johannes want to keep the momentum going, and the SFD approval will likely be on the BOS’s agenda for its mid-July meeting. As we have reported, the SFD will be committing to cover $4 M, or 20% of the bridge’s anticipated $20 M cost, with the County paying 80% or $16M. However, with the bridge engineering work commencing, there will be a greater possibility of obtaining grant financing for the bridge which the County has agreed will be first applied against the SFD’s $4 M obligation. This could potentially cover any cost to our property owners. First we have to get the SFD passed when it comes up for a vote.
It is likely that the SFD vote will happen fairly quickly after the BOS approval in mid-July. We are preparing a brochure pointing out all the multiple benefits of the permanent bridge that will be part of a community outreach program. We expect the outreach effort to commence with a webinar by Supervisor Gore and Director Hoevertsz, to be followed up by a door-to-door get out the vote campaign. We already have several of our Members who have volunteered to contact others in their immediate neighborhood to encourage them to vote for the SFD and the bridge. But we need more. If you are wiling to contact a few of your neighbors on our own street, can you please let us know by a return email? We will be conducting a Zoom training session where we will be answering all of your questions and your neighbors’ likely questions about the project and the SFD. We will also provide you with copies of the brochure which will simplify your task of persuading your neighbors to submit their votes in favor of the bridge.
This has been a great week for the the Asti Crossing. Your own support has played a huge role in getting us here.
MAY 11, 2021, UPDATE: SUMMER BRIDGE INSTALLATION
We are writing to let you know that the date to commence the installation of the Summer Bridge at the Asti crossing remains to be June 15th. Because of the low water flow in the river and the current Red Flag warnings and early fire danger this year, our Director of the Sonoma County Department of Transportation and Public Works, Johannes Hoevertsz, has been trying to obtain agency approval for an earlier installation. Unfortunately, the fishery agencies involved have been unwilling to agree to move up the installation date. So it remains to be June 15th.
We will let you know if anything changes, but right now any change looks unlikely.
OCTOBER 24, 2020, UPDATE: MORE SOLID PROGRESS ON THE PERMANENT BRIDGE
With great thanks to Johannes Hoevertsz, the Director of the Sonoma County Department of Transportation and Public Works, it appears that another large step forward to making the permanent bridge a reality is about to happen. While the majority of the $149 million in PG&E settlement funds will be going to “Tier 1” fire damage related matters, the Board of Supervisors (BOS) will be dedicating a portion to “Tier 2” “Generational Projects” - County projects that will benefit generations to come. Johannes believes that the Asti Crossing permanent bridge is such a project and will be asking the BOS to start funding its design.
While the BOS is fully involved with fire related claims right now, by the end of the year or in January the latest, Johannes intends to be asking the BOS to commit $200K to $250K for the first steps in the design process. This would represent about 35% of the total design cost for the bridge. It would cover a more specific determination of the type of bridge to be built and the cost for an Alignment Study that would determine the best location for the bridge and what will be needed for road access to both ends of the bridge.
Once this 35% of the design work is done, the needed environmental studies can commence, and Johannes will be taking steps to start that process. While such studies can take up to two years to complete, we and Johannes are hopeful that they can be done in a far shorter period of time. There are two reasons for this optimism. All of the agencies involved are already fully familiar with the river and the environmental impacts from all of the work done for the Summer Bridge over the years. And secondly, all of the agencies have already expressed their strong desires to have a permanent bridge built to replace the annual Summer Bridge installations.
Johannes, along with Supervisor James Gore, are dedicated to getting the bridge built. Their actions are truly speaking louder than words. However, when Johannes will be submitting his request for this design funding to the full BOS, we will be coming back to you asking that you all contact the BOS in support of the request.
And, by the way, with no rain in sight and with the Red Flag warnings continuing, there are no plans to pull the Summer Bridge out any time soon.
SEPTEMBER 18, 2020, UPDATE: $149 MILLION PG&E SETTLEMENT WITH SONOMA COUNTY - REQUEST FOR LETTERS TO THE BOS
You should know that there has been major progress on the Permanent Asti Crossing Bridge Project which will be the subject of our next message coming to you shortly. But right now, we are writing because the County of Sonoma has received a $149 Million settlement from PG&E for all the damage caused by its fires and power shut downs in the County. The County Board of Supervisors (BOS) will begin deliberations about how to use the funds next month with, as you can imagine, a broad range of claims being submitted seeking part of the funds.
Our Board Member Geoff Peters, whom as you know, has been instrumental in establishing the COPE and CERT Programs protecting our community, has prepared the attached draft letter to the BOS advocating for more funds to be committed toward all the efforts to make us more resilient against the threat of wild fires. The permanent bridge project is not specifically mentioned, however Geoff feels it is implicitly included.
Our request is that as many you as possible please submit this letter, or one modified in any way you wish, to the BOS so that they have your input before the serious deliberations begin. Feel free to add a specific reference to using some of these funds for the permanent bridge if you care to. Its essential role as an escape route for our community in the event of a wild fire is certainly a critical element for the safety and resiliency of our community
JUNE 9, 2020, UPDATE: WELL DONE & THANKS
We are pleased to report that, this morning, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors unanimously passed the proposal for the first stage of the funding for the permanent bridge at the Asti Crossing.
There was a huge response of written and oral comments of support submitted to the Board before their meeting from so many of our AVCL Members and from many others in the community. We sincerely thank all of you for taking the time to submit your comments. They were thoughtful, strong, and clearly had the desired impact.
We also want to again thank Supervisor James Gore and Director Johannes Hoevertsz for all of their excellent work to bring the project to this stage and for the submission made to the full Board of Supervisors. It truly is looking like we are going to finally get a permanent bridge built.
So what exactly was passed was the commitment to pay $55,000 “to evaluate formation of [a] special assessment district and other financing and other funding options.” This is the first step of what will be the larger funding approach in which we expect that the County will be funding at least 80% of the project. After the meeting, Supervisor Gore confirmed to us that the 80% County funding is the plan. It is this 80% commitment that will make this all happen, We are are continuing to work to find other potential funding sources to go toward the remaining 20%. The main impact of the formation of a special assessment district at this point is to demonstrate to the Supervisors that we, as a community, are prepared to make some contribution toward the project. It does not at all mean that we will ultimately be on the hook for the 20%. We are optimistic that other sources will be found to greatly reduce the amount our community may ultimately be asked to contribute toward this 20%.
So stay tuned. We will continue to keep you updated. But, for now, thanks so much to all of you who submitted the supporting comments.
MAY 29, 2020, UPDATE - SUMMER BRIDGE OPENING & SERIOUS PERMANENT BRIDGE PROGRESS
We hope you are all doing well and coping with the COVID 19 restrictions. We can brighten your day a bit, as it looks very likely that the Summer Bridge will open next Friday, June 5th. Our thanks to all involved in getting the installation approved and done. It will be a relief to have it in place as this will likely be a dry and dangerous fire season.
We are also pleased to report that very serious momentum is developing for the permanent bridge project.
Summer Bridge Opening:
Although our Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTPW) Director, Johannes Hoevertsz, asks that we say it is still “tentative,” it looks highly likely that the Summer Bridge will be open for business next Friday, June 5th. After it is open and has had some traffic on it, it will be shut down briefly so that the dust retardant surface treatment can be applied. We should then be good to go for as long as the bridge is allowed to remain in place this year.
Serious Progress Toward a Permanent Bridge:
As we reported to you in our Jan.17 Update message, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors (BOS) had unanimously agreed to have Johannes and his Department develop a plan to present to the Board for a permanent bridge at the Asti Crossing. The plan recommending how to move the project forward has now been put together by the DPTW and will be presented to the BOS at its next meeting on June 9th. Most significantly, the DTPW’s plan will be proposing that the County fund 80% of the project. We are hopeful that the plan will be approved by the BOS which will move the project to a whole new stage. We can now say with some confidence that this stage will be the one where the bridge will actually get built. At the interest rates currently available to the County, it can fund this 80% for an annual cost of less than it is paying each year now to put in and take out the Summer Bridge. By funding the 80%, the County will acquire a permanent, basically maintenance free, bridge that, once paid off, will entirely remove the crossing expense from the County’s budget.
Last night, the Press Democrat published a good article showing how close we are getting now to having the bridge built. It can be read at: https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/10994998-181/supervisors-eye-permanent-solution-as. Note that Johannes is quoted as saying "If all goes (according) to plan, the project would get underway in 2023 or 2024 and take two or three years to finish.”
With the County committing to cover 80% of the cost, it will leave a much more manageable 20% to be funded from other sources. We have been working hard to obtain a commitment like this from the County to limit the amount our property owners might ultimately be asked to contribute. As mentioned in the article, some of this might come from a taxable Special Financing District (SFD). At its June 9th meeting, the BOS will be asked to fund the setting up of such a SFD so that they know there will be a way by which those benefitting from the bridge can also be making a contribution, if needed. It is important to note that such a SFD would be entirely different from the inequitable per parcel tax proposed a few years ago. Here any assessment would be based upon the specific benefit the bridge would provide to each parcel in the district. So the major users, such a vineyard operations or the campground would be paying far more based upon their far higher usage. We believe any ultimate charge to a single family residence would be quite modest. We also say “ If needed,” because we are continuing our search for other sources of funding to minimize what we may ultimately be asked to contribute. As we reported in our May 5th Update, our AVCL Board Member Geoff Peters and Adriane Garayalde have been working together to find grant money for the bridge. Working with the County, they have put together, and have just submitted, a grant application to the California Department of Transportation that could possible provide as much as $3.5M in funding for the design, planning and permitting for the bridge. The proposed bridge matches the criteria set forth for such grants, so it has a fair chance of success. Also, Gallo continues to seriously consider providing a land easement for the possible addition of secure parking and river access at the west end of the bridge. Such an addition could open up other potential sources of funding from agencies such as the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District and the State of California Wildlife Conservation Board.
Multiple letters of support for the permanent bridge have also now been submitted to the BOS and greatly strengthen the chances of the plan being accepted and approved by the Board next week These letters include the two described in our last (5/5/20) Update from the two most critical environmental agencies involved, NOAA Fisheries and California Fish and Wildlife. Further letters of support have also now been submitted to the BOS from: the Northern Sonoma County Fire Protection District and the Cloverdale Fire Protection District, the City of Cloverdale, and the Cloverdale Chamber of Commerce. And more letters will be coming.
We have said that we are looking at 2020 as the year to get the permanent bridge project officially launched. It looks like we are getting there!
MAY 14, 2020, UPDATE - SUMMER BRIDGE OPENING DELAYED
Disappointing news. The Summer Bridge will not be opening tomorrow. It now looks like a May 26 opening date, but no promises.
The reason given for the delay was a "low fire risk and environmental agency concerns.” The NOAA Fisheries agency advises that it has given its approval to install the bridge, as the juvenile salmonoids are now gone and not an issue. It appears that we have an endangered species concern with yellow legged frogs that are in the area and that tend to migrate about when we have the rain we have been having. The frogs are reportedly a Calif. Fish and Wildlife agency concern. So, hopefully, the frogs will take care of themselves, and we can get the bridge installation approved and in by the 26th.
We will keep you posted.
MAY 5, 2020 UPDATE - STRONG SUPPORT FOR PERMANENT BRIDGE & FUNDING PROGRESS
Support for the Permanent Bridge:
The two most critical environmental agencies that have control over the Asti Crossing bridge issues have just written the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors advising the BOS of their strong support for the permanent bridge and indicating their willingness to work with the County to make the bridge happen. Copies of their letters are attached and are well worth a read.
With this support, it is thought that environmental approval for the project from the four agencies involved can likely be achieved within one year’s time instead of the three to four years that could otherwise have been required. Early coordination by Director Johannes Hoevertsz and his Department of Transportation and Public Works and our AVCL group with these agencies has contributed to this excellent development.
In the attached April 13, 2020, letter from NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service, the history of concerns and regulatory steps over protected fish species and their habitat is reviewed. It is noted that a permanent bridge would eliminate the annual impacts of the construction and removal of the temporary bridge on the Endangered Species Act listed fish. The letter concludes:
"Therefore, towards reducing the impacts on ESA listed species, and additionally serving the County and local community towards addressing their fire and flood safety concerns,
NMFS would support the concept of a permanent bridge, and will work with the County, the Corps, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and other resource agencies toward pursuing this goal and future permitting for eventual construction.”
Similarly, the April 29, 2020, letter from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife reviews its past involvement with the temporary bridge and concludes:
"CDFW supports a permanent bridge and is committed to continue to work with the Sonoma County Department of Transportation and Public Works and other stakeholder groups on
the project’s design, planning and implementation phases to reduce recurring biannual impacts to the Russian River, and the state and federally listed salmonid species present, as well
as provide safe and effective egress for residents in eastern Cloverdale in the event of wildfires.”
We are hopeful that a similar letter of support may soon also be issued by our local Fire Districts. (It has since been issued.)
Summer Bridge Installation Update:
A reason why the County hopes to have the Summer Bridge quickly installed by May 15th is that the Russian River has largely changed its course back to the original channel on the east side. This will allow the County to use just the old temporary span bridge. The now greatly reduced flow on the west side will be dealt with by installing a culvert pipe under the gravel roadway with no need for the Bailey Bridge put in last year.
Some Bridge Funding Progress:
Nothing definite yet, but in on-going talks with Supervisor Gore and Director Hoevertsz and in a conference call last Friday with State Senator Mike McQuire and Gore’s office, we are hopeful that a proposal for County and State funding for the great majority of the permanent bridge cost will be put forward in the next few months. Our AVCL Director Geoff Peters and Adriane Garayalde are working together to also find grant money for the bridge. Ms. Garayalde’s family has been here for multi generations, and she has been hugely involved in Russian River protection and enhancement projects as the Coordinator of the Russian River Confluence organization. She also works with the County as a grant consultant.
APRIL 30, 2020, UPDATE - GREAT NEWS - SUMMER BRIDGES MAY OPEN MAY 15TH !
We have some good news to pass on. The Summer Bridges are coming!
With great thanks to Johannes Hoevertsz, the Director of Sonoma’s Department of Transportation and Public Works, it appears that his Department has successfully petitioned the four environmental agencies involved, for their approval for an early installation of the Summer Bridges. Absent such a petition, the normal installation date would be July 1st. Johannes advises that it appears they have been successful and now plan to move equipment in to begin the installation, next Monday, May 4th! With the challenge of his workers having to respect social distancing, he nevertheless hopes to have the two bridges ready to open by Friday May 15th.
This will be outstanding, if it can happen. If you see Johannes, or want to write him at the above email address, please give him your thanks.
We have more encouraging news to report regarding the permanent bridge project and will be passing it on shortly.
JANUARY 17, 2020, UPDATE - A BRIDGE UPDATE & COMMENCEMENT OF CERT TRAINING
Happy New Year Everyone. We hope you all had a delightful holiday. We write to give you an update regarding the permanent bridge project and the commencement of the Citizens Emergency Response Team (CERT) training program.
The Permanent Bridge Project:
Are you missing your Summer Bridge crossing? It is tough with the bridges gone, but our thanks again to Director Johannes Hoevertsz and to our Supervisor James Gore for having kept the Summer Crossing in as long as they did.
We are committed to making 2020 the year that the permanent Asti Crossing Bridge project gets formally underway. We are off to a good start thanks to Supervisor Gore. Gore presented the critical need for the permanent bridge to the full Board of Supervisors at its December 10, 2019 meeting. He did an excellent job of laying out the need for the bridge to his fellow Board Members. Your AVCL Board members, Joe Reynoso, Preston Addison, Peter Turbott, Rob Davis and Steve Johnson all spoke on behalf of the project. The critical safety need for the bridge was stressed, both as an essential evacuation route and as access for first responders. Environmental aspects were stressed both in decreasing the disturbance to the sensitive fish habitat caused by the Summer Bridge installation each year as well as avoiding the wear and tear on vehicles and the roads by having to drive around when the bridges are out and saving an estimated 8 million pounds of CO2 emissions each year. The economic/financial argument for the permanent bridge was significant, with Joe Reynoso pointing out that the County would be saving money by funding the permanent bridge. With the annual cost of putting the bridges in and out each year now projected to be $425,000 per year and likely increasing with time, if the County would commit those same funds to paying for a bond to fund a permanent bridge, they would essentially cover the full cost of the project. They would also fix the cost of the crossing, saving the County any inflationary cost of the crossing in the future and have a basically maintenance free permanent crossing over the river.
The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously giving the County Department of Transportation and Public Works authority to work directly with citizens groups such as our AVCL and with others to develop plans for a permanent crossing.
As our next step, we are seeking to set up a meeting with Supervisor Gore, Director Johannes Hoevertsz of the TPW, and with Senator McGuire, who has been a strong supporter of a permanent bridge in the past, to see if we can get commitments to seek the funding needed for the project.
As we start to get more traction for the permanent bridge, we will be reaching out to all of our Members for their vocal support when it will be most effective.
CERT Training has Commenced - You are Invited to Join In:
Our COPE/CERT programs are growing and doing well. The COPE program - Citizens Organized to Prepare for Emergencies - now has a good number of the residents in our community who have signed up for the One Call Now alert system and have also had their properties GPS mapped for features First Responders need to know about. If you are not already signed up, you really should be. Just contact Cecile Peters at cpeters@gpeters.net or Steve Johnson at steve@alexvalley.org expressing your interest, and we will get you on the list to come by and get you covered. The value of these programs is being recognized by other communities with over twenty similar COPE programs now set up throughout Sonoma County.
The CERT program - This Citizens Emergency ResponseTeam program provides training and certification for those of you who have an interest in being better prepared for any emergency and in becoming qualified to assist first responders and your neighbors when an emergency occurs. With your certification as a CERT Team member, you will have been trained to assist with emergency evacuations, first aid, triage, first responder support, and other skills that give our first responders more freedom to deal with the fires or other emergencies they are facing. Our AVCL organization, and particularly our Board Member Geoff Peters, were responsible for getting the program set up and off the ground. It is now being conducted under the auspices of the Cloverdale and Geyserville Fire Departments which are able to obtain Cal Fire grants to support the program including one now pending for $155,000.
The schedule for the upcoming CERT training programs is attached to this message. There are both adult and teen programs, and we already have over 80 potential volunteers signed up. Our Geoff Peters is leading the training. You may know him as the one who previously formed the Highland Ranch Fire Brigade and bought and maintains its fire truck. After receiving his own CERT training, he went on to obtain its “Train the Trainer” certification and took his CERT Program Manager training at the Los Angeles Fire Department. He was recently interviewed by the Cloverdale Reveille. These are some of the comments contained in the Reveille’s article:
" According to Peters, participants will learn “first aid, light search and rescue, triage, disaster psychology, incident command structure, fire chemistry and fire suppression using extinguishers, and topics related especially to wildfires and earthquakes. The program concludes after about 18 hours of classroom instruction and practice exercises with two mass casualty incident disaster simulations for an additional six hours — one in the morning and one in the afternoon on April 11.”
“For CERT trained volunteers, the first rule is to take care of yourself and your family before volunteering to help your community,” he continued. “Further, much of CERT training can lead to better preparedness in non-disaster emergencies like injuries from falling or car accidents or a stovetop fire or a gas leak. Trained CERTs can often become trained good Samaritan neighbors in non-disaster emergencies. Skills like stopping the bleeding, clearing the airway, splinting and bandaging, safe victim extraction, all can be useful in an household or other non-disaster emergency.
"Our goal is to have well-trained volunteers helping their neighbors so that first responders can do jobs that only they are trained to do,” Peters said. “A better prepared community is a safer one and a community where neighbors help each other is a better one to live in.”
So please take a look at the attached schedule. If you are interested in signing up or have any questions, please contact Geoff Peters at gpeters@showa-farm.com or at 301-675-7741.
OCTOBER 26, 2019, UPDATE - BRIDGE REPRIEVE TO NOV. 14TH, BRIDGE FUNDING, & EVACUATION UPDATE
A lot is going on, and it could not be more clear that we need to have that permanent bridge solution to what we are experiencing right now! When the time comes, you will be getting a call for total community support for the bridge. We trust that all of you will be with us.
Johannes Hoevertsz, the Director of the Sonoma Department of Transportation and Public Works, and a big supporter of a permanent bridge, advises that the Summer Bridges will now be left in place at least until November 14th. With the Kincade Fire threatening all of us, the need for the bridges could not be more clear.
Our Supervisor James Gore, also a big supporter, has indicated that he will be starting the process to see if County funding for a major portion of the cost of a permanent bridge can be obtained. Aside from the critical and obvious safety need for a permanent bridge and the essential access it will provide, there is huge economic justification for a County financial commitment. Sonoma County would save over $300K/year for not having to put in and remove the Summer Bridges (which cost well over $400K this year). If the County would dedicate this amount instead to the funding of a bond for a permanent bridge, with the current low interest rates, that bond would cover most of the cost of the permanent bridge. So, while it seems like a no-brainer for us, Supervisor Gore will be needing all of your support for his efforts.
Regarding the Mandatory Evacuation notice we have all received, do not discount it! As you know from the mandatory evacuations just ordered for Healdsburg and Windsor, this fire is growing and is a huge threat. For our area, while the fire is not at our doorstep, the notice was issued with the recognition that the extreme winds predicted to begin later this afternoon could change things very quickly. Our order was issued to assure that all of us are either out or are at least prepared to move out quickly. If things turn really ugly, they may do so very quickly. It is essential that we do not have a situation where we are all over each other trying to get out.
So be smart, stay safe, and we hope our next message can bring better news!
JUNE 5, 2019, UPDATE - SUMMER BRIDGE & RIVER ROAD SPEEDING
We are writing to give you an update on the status of the Summer Bridge. We are also asking that you take it easy driving on River Road.
Summer Bridge Update:
You can see the problem the County is facing from the drone photo below provided to us by Johannes Hoevertsz, our Director of Sonoma's Department of Transportation and Public Works. It was taken just a week ago, on May 30th. You can see the supports for the old Summer Bridge on the right and the broad new course of the river down the middle. Johannes, Supervisor Gore, and the County are committed to getting a temporary crossing in before our fire season really starts up, but it will be some time after the usual opening date of June 15. We showed you the alternative designs the county was considering in our last update. A decision has been made to go with a two bridge solution that will include our old Summer Bridge and a new “Bailey Bridge” to go over the new channel. We understand that the environmental agencies involved have given a green light to go forward and that the bridges can be installed under the current permits, which will greatly help move this project forward.
The shocker is that the projected cost for this installation is $665,000. Johannes has recently gone back to compute the real annual cost of putting in and taking out the Summer Bridge each year in years past. The actual cost has run between $160,000 and $200,000 per year. (Note - This annual cost projection was later increased to $425,000/year). These figures and the huge increase this year do argue for a permanent bridge solution not only for our collective safety, but also to stop this annual cost for the County.
While the June 15th opening date won’t be met this year and there had been some doubt about the cost involved, the good news is that the County is going forward and currently believes we may have the bridges installed by July 4th.
Speeding on River Road:
With the great new paving on River Road, it is easy to find yourself speeding on it, isn’t it? Please don’t! We’re sure you all know that we have already had one fatality this past February, when that nice young man from Cloverdale went off the road and hit a tree by Palomino Road. Johannes, who lives in Cloverdale by the way, has been trying to do something about this. He and his Department of Transportation and Public Works have put up those signs on River Road and in other locations in the County with speeding issues. These are the “Slow Down”, "Don’t Kill” and “Don’t Die” signs that he had installed at each end of our section of River Road. They are a bit raw, but do get the message across. Someone removed the Don’t Kill and Don’t Die signs shortly after they were first installed over a month ago. Last week, Johannes had those two signs redone and reinstalled at each end of River Road. Within hours on the same day those two signs were taken again. Johannes will have more signs made and put them in again.
MAY 17, 2019, UPDATE - BRIDGE UPDATE & REQUEST FOR COPE INFORMATION
We are writing to give you an update on the status of the Summer Bridge. We are also requesting, if you haven’t already done so ,that you please fill out and return the attached COPE information form so that we can give you immediate warning of any future emergencies and have a way to assure that you, your family, and your property are safe.
The Bridge:
Regarding the Summer Bridge, all County and environmental agencies involved fully appreciate the need to get the bridge installed for the safety of all of us during the upcoming fire season. Everyone is actively working on finding a solution. As you know, the shifting of the course of the Russian River to the west side of the river bed, away from the normal bridge location, has greatly complicated matters. The objective has been to try to get something installed for us by June 15th. But there are still issues of how to address the situation, so that meeting the June 15th date, in our own view, may be unlikely. We’ve attached the County’s schematic of the different temporary bridge location solutions they are considering in addition to the original bridge location. You can see that it is not a simple problem. We don’t believe a final resolution had been decided upon as yet. Cost may also be a factor, depending upon how much more the County would have to come up with to get us the temporary bridge.
We will keep you posted. Clearly a permanent bridge is the real solution. In this regard, we have been meeting with Supervisor James Gore and the Director of the Department of Transportation and Public Works Johannes Hoevertsz, who are totally committed to finding a way to get a permanent bridge built. We are getting more optimistic that, with their support and with your own support, the bridge might actually happen.
Your COPE Form:
Our COPE program is getting close to being up and running. We are tied in with our local fire agencies and are acquiring and will be installing sophisticated weather stations with cameras on our ridges, all of which will be providing real time warning and information regarding fires or other emergencies. If you haven’t already done so, please do send in your own contact information and the requested information about your property needed to help protect you and your property. This is not going to be a system where you get all kinds of extraneous messages. It will only be used to give you immediate notice of a real impending emergency and to keep you updated regarding the danger involved. It will also provide the means to be sure that you and your family are accounted for in the event of an emergency and to let the first responders know if you need help.
APRIL 25, 2019, UPDATE - WILL WE HAVE A SUMMER BRIDGE? COPE IS HAPPENING
The Summer Bridge:
Have you been down to the Summer Bridge location to see what has happened to our river? The floods caused it to completely change its course away from the Summer Bridge location. It is now running along the opposite bank, on the west side of the river bed. This presents an issue of whether it will even be possible to have a Summer Bridge this year. However, all the agencies involved recognize that there is going to be a huge fire load this year from all the grasses now growing as a result of all the rain we have had, and they are actively looking for a solution. They fully appreciate the fire response and escape necessity of the Summer Bridge during the fire season. They are hopeful that a solution will be found, but a delayed opening of the bridge should be expected.
This development further shows the absolute need for a permanent bridge. This bridge is not just a question of convenience as some may still be saying. It is a very real safety necessity for all of us living on the east side of the river. While the design proposal is still being worked up, it is clear that a permanent bridge would have to span the full width of the river bed. It would not be affected by the river changing course like this and would remain fully available year round.
Time to Submit Your COPE Form:
The COPE early warning system is happening. Geoff Peters has obtained additional grant money to acquire serious camera equipped weather stations to be installed on the ridges east of us to provide real time information of any fire threats. We have the One Call Now automated phone tree system in place to give everyone in the system immediate alerts and updates and to allow you to respond to confirm you have the message and are ok or need help. Critical information about you and your property is being confidentially coordinated with our fire fighting agencies to assure that first responders can most effectively protect you and your home.
The only missing factor now, may be you! Many of you have submitted your COPE Information Survey forms and are now being put into the system. But if you haven’t done so yet, please take a few minutes to complete the form attached below and return it to us. This is truly a situation where the life that you save may be yours. Your completed form should be returned to Steve Johnson either electronically at steve@alexvalley.org or by mail to 1176 Asti Ridge Road, Cloverdale. He will forward your information to our Board Member Geoff Peters for inclusion in our confidential COPE data base.
MARCH 3, 2019, UPDATE - COPE PROGRAM GRANT - ALERT SYSTEM & INFORMATION FOR FIRST RESPONDERS
We have some very favorable developments to report which are getting us much closer to the alert system that will provide all of us with immediate notice of any serious threat to our safety and to a system to assist first responders.
We have received a $9,070 grant from the Wine Country United Way to help us implement the COPE (Citizens Organized to Prepare for Emergencies) program we previously described. This is the neighbor helping neighbor assistance system we are setting up to assure that all property owners and their families are notified and accounted for in the event of a major emergency event and to make the information that firefighters need about you and your property immediately available to them.
Our thanks to our Board Member Geoff Peters and his wife, Cecile, for their ongoing efforts to get the COPE program going for all of us. It was Geoff who successfully sought the grant from the United Way and Cecile has been getting all of those on Highland Ranch ready to be plugged into the system. Several of you have offered to help in your own neighborhoods, and we will very soon be reaching out to you to assist in getting others in your immediate area on board.
The United Way grant provides funds for us to acquire advanced communications (phone tree) software, install Fire Department Knox Boxes with property and owner information for first responders in each of our neighborhoods, provide reflective address signs where needed, install a weather station, and to provide fire hose adapters to assure that all the hydrants at our homes and in our neighborhoods can be used by firefighters. The grant is conditioned on all of this being completed by the end of June. So, we will be contacting you soon asking for some help to be sure that we get this done.
Alert and Notification System
We have now signed up for the powerful communications software program called One Call Now that will make our alert system both immediate and highly effective. It allows voice, text, and/or email messages to go out immediately to specific geographic areas, groups or everyone on the system without the need for neighborhood representatives to pass the messages on. The sender just records or types the message and hits send, and One Call Now delivers it to all the intended recipients. The system is interactive so if you receive a phone call, text, or email message, you can respond to show that you got the message. It also allows us to ask questions - such as are you sheltering in place? Do you need help? - and for responses to be sent back and collected and then coordination with COPE volunteers and first responders.
The system also allows for separate communication links to be set up that could be used by our various HOAs and other neighborhoods to have their own easy messaging systems just for their members for such things as notices of applications for use permits or warning about obstructions to travel (e.g. “fallen tree on Palomino Road”).
We need volunteers who will literally go door to door in their neighborhoods to sign people up for this system. The more people we sign up, the more efficient will be the volunteer and first responder reactions to emergencies because we will know who needs assistance and we will be able to communicate to you accurate local real time information provided to us by the fire and police officials. Some of you have already indicated your willingness to assist and we will be in touch. If you haven’t told us yet and would be willing to contact others in your immediate area, please respond to this email letting us know you can help. It’s important.
Assistance to First Responders
The County is currently preparing neighborhood “fire run” maps and an online interactive system for us that will allow those who volunteer to participate to provide owner names, contact information, property addresses, and parcel numbers for everyone in each of our neighborhoods. Again, we will be asking those of you who can assist to reach out to others on your own street to get them signed up. If they agree to be part of this, a neighborhood volunteer with an AVCL secure i-Pad will be able to walk each property with the permission of the owner-resident and automatically “geo-locate” such items as propane tanks, water tanks, any hazardous materials, out-buildings, fire hydrant locations, presence of animals, etc. on their properties.
This information, along with the contact information, will go into confidential Sonoma County digital “fire run” maps for use by firefighting and police agencies to assist them in more quickly and effectively dealing with any fires or other emergencies in our area. It will also be placed into confidential binders that will go into locked, secure Knox Boxes to be located in each of our neighborhoods that will give firefighters the same information when they arrive on the scene in the event digital communication is disrupted. This on scene information will also be particularly important when our local firefighters are busy in other sectors of a wildfire and out of area firefighters who are unfamiliar with our neighborhoods are called in to assist.
With these steps, our goal is to have our community COPE program fully in place and operational by this June. In addition, we will be working with the Cloverdale Volunteer Fire District to develop a CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) program with volunteers who receive approximately 25 hours of training to assist first responders in the even of various types of emergencies (wildfires, earthquakes, floods, etc.) When our COPE and CERT programs are in place, they will bring a new measure of security that will make us far better prepared to deal with future emergencies.
Please do let us know by email (steve@alexvalley.org) or (cpeters@gpeters.net) if you can assist in helping gather the needed information.
NOVEMBER 1, 2018, UPDATE - Feasibility Study for the Permanent Bridge, Repaving of River Road, and Launching of COPE
Working with Supervisor James Gore and Johannes Hoevertsz, the Director of the Department of Transportation and Public Works, them, we have already accomplished two major matters. The first was that the 2018 opening of the Summer Bridge was the earliest in recent memory, and we are now working to keep the bridge in place this year as long as reasonably possible. In this regard, we have been greatly assisted by Bob Coey, the NOAA Fisheries representative, who has been assisting our Board and who significantly aided in getting early approvals from the several agencies involved.
The second accomplishment was the repaving of River Road south of Crocker Road to the Washington School Road. The result is the beautiful new road now serving our community. Again credit and our thanks go to Gore and Hoevertsz.
Regarding the Permanent Bridge, we are making serious progress and are determined to make it happen. With your support, it will get done. Here too, Gore and Hoevertsz are fully on board. However, they sought our help to kickstart the project by funding a Feasibility Study for the bridge that is required to set the County wheels in motion. This is not something the County could fund at this stage without going through a lengthy authorization and bid process. So it has been up to us to raise the approximately $20,000 needed to get the study and report done. It is also appreciated by the Board of Supervisors that we now “have skin in the game.” With County approval and your support, the AVCL signed a contract in July with the potential bridge builder, Cornerstone Structural Engineering Group, the company that did the recent retrofitting of the Healdsburg Bridge, to do the needed study and report. They agreed to do the needed work for us at a reduced rate. Their price to us is $20,000 instead of the roughly $80,000 such a study would usually cost.
The very good news is that, to date, we now have over fifty Members who have signed up with the AVCL. We appreciate this strong support for what we are doing. If you are reading this and still have not signed up, please do. Just go to the Membership section; it’s simple to join with us.
The further excellent news is that, with thanks to all of you, we are now very close to raising the $20,000 needed for the study. We now have $19,000 in hand. $10,000 of this was paid to Cornerstone in July as the needed deposit to have them commence their work. The commitment of your AVCL Board to this project was demonstrated by each of our Board members contributing $1,000, with one putting in $2,000. We would also like to acknowledge the property owners of Crocker Estates, the great majority of whom contributed $500 each, with one putting in $1,000. We also received contributions from Dutcher Crossings and Ken Wilson. The fact is that every contribution helped to get us here, and our thanks also goes to all of you Sustaining Members, as your $50 membership payments also truly helped!
Any further contributions would, of course, be welcome. They can help get us over this last $1,000 needed for the study and for future expenses which are sure to come for this project. Checks should be made payable to AVCL and sent c/o Steve Johnson, AVCL Secretary, at 1176 Asti Ridge Road, Cloverdale.
We are now very pleased to also report that, in appreciation for the almost $20,000 we have raised, Supervisor James Gore has advised us that the County will be committing matching funds of $20,000 to be spent on moving forward with the environmental studies that will be required for the bridge project. So our kudos and thanks to Supervisor Gore!
We had previously reported that Gore and Hoevertsz' Department of Transportation were considering adding the bridge project to County requests for a possible $5 million grant from FEMA. However, a condition for any such FEMA funded project is that it has to be completed within three years. Although every effort will be made to get a bridge built as quickly as possible, with all the environmental and other regulatory hurdles it will be facing and the time for construction, it would not be possible to meet this FEMA three year condition. So it has been agreed that County resources at this point are better spent in getting a head start on the environmental work and approvals that will need to be obtained for the bridge.
The other major development to report to you is that our AVCL has decided to launch a COPE (Citizens Organized to Prepare for Emergencies) program for our Asti neighborhoods east of the Russian River. Here too, we will need your participation to get this up and running. Your participation will be mainly to provide information that will allow others to contact you in the event of an emergency and to provide firefighters with information needed to protect you and your property. This information will be maintained confidential and used only by those with a need to know. Several other Sonoma neighborhoods are in the process of setting up COPE programs and, here too, Supervisor Gore is a huge supporter of getting this done. These are neighborhood self-based systems to assure that all property owners and their families are notified and accounted for in the event of a major emergency event and to make your needed property information immediately available to firefighters Please refer back to the Fire Protection menu section for more details and how to submit your COPE information.
The Pocket Fire brought home the need for a permanent bridge to all of us. To keep things in perspective, here is the excellent article written shortly after the fire about the Highland Brigade's efforts to keep the fire from reaching our homes. It will give you some idea of how close we all were in October 2017, to our own community devastation:October 27, 2017: "Fighting the Pocket Fire with the The Highland Brigade"
JUNE 23, 2018, UPDATE - ASTI BRIDGE UPDATE - IT'S TIME TO MAKE IT HAPPEN - PLEASE HELP
We are writing to give you a quick update.
We have just signed the contract with the bridge builders, Cornerstone Structural Engineering Group, to do the Feasibility Study. This study and its report will be the key to getting everything moving forward with the County and with the various agencies that will be involved with getting a permanent bridge built. We have now raised over $13,000 toward the $20,000 needed for the study and report. Many of you have pitched in to help reach this $13,000 level, and you have our great thanks. If you haven’t yet contributed and you are in a position to do so, now would be the perfect time to act. We have great momentum going with the County which we need to keep going. So please help fund this feasibility project any way you can. Your checks should be made payable to the Alexander Valley Citizens League and sent c/o Steve Johnson at 1176 Asti Ridge Road, Cloverdale CA. 95425.
If you haven’t yet signed up as Members on our website, it would be good to have you join us now as a Member. It's pretty simple. Just go to the Membership section on the site: alexvalley.org and fill out the simple form. As a Member, you will be assured to get all of our communications and updates. Also, if you have signed up to be a Sustaining Member and haven’t yet sent in your $50 in dues, please do so now. Your check should also be made payable to the Alexander Valley Citizens League and sent to me at the above address.
Thanks for your interest and support!