Perhaps to the surprise of some people in our town, the Forest Ranch Project is alive and well. With changes that are little more than cosmetic to those of us who opposed the size of the previous project, this new and improved version (“Forest Ranch Specific Plan Version 1.0 September 2009”) still totals 2,213 dwelling units and, at least to the project’s owners, will eventually house over 4,000 people. Even using their conservative estimate, this will essentially double the population of Foresthill and the surrounding area.

The new “Version 1.0” has been percolating for a while with the knowledge of various leaders of the chamber of commerce. The fact that it has been “under the radar” and not known by our forum members until now should give us some concern

I am not anti-growth and not anti-chamber, nor do I wish to make life more difficult for the struggling business owners here, but this project will overwhelm county resources in the area of public health and safety, as the previous supervisor for our district came to realize.

Our current supervisor, Jennifer Montgomery, has expressed concern regarding the issue of potential wildfires here on the Divide. As this project moves forward, hopefully transparency on this issue will result in serious discussions that continue to be given the brush-off by the owners of this project who do not live here and never will.

Ronald Flodine, Foresthill