Community Action
Planning for the Future

Residents of Georgetown, Camino and the Cool-Pilot Hill area in northern California are planning the future of their communities. In a series of meetings in each community, they are talking about what they like about their communities and what they lack. They are discussing what they want to improve and what they want to preserve. What they decide will affect the future of their communities.

The US Department of Agriculture and the US Forest Service have awarded these communities a grant to develop community action plans as part of an effort to assist areas where diminishing timber or agricultural jobs have hurt the local economy.

The grant provides money for a survey of residents and a series of three community meetings, culminating in a written community action plan for each community. Ideas that until now might only be the casual talk at the local cafe or soccer field can become the focus for community action.

The Sierra Economic Development District, an Economic Development Administration funded district in Auburn, California, has been working with local leaders in each community to identify and access both internal and external resources and to ascertain the wants/needs/desires for each community.

Community action plans help communities qualify for other grants to accomplish the dreams that the community has united around. In the process, communities often discover expertise among their own members for achieving the agreed-upon goals.

Once community members have talked about their dreams and written a community action plan that reflects those dreams, they can work together to make those dreams a reality.

The story of the little community of Mosquito is a good example of what can be done. When the California Department of Water Resources’ Division of Dam Safety decided that the dam on Finnon Lake was not earthquake-proof, it required the water level in the lake to be severely lowered. The lake no longer provided a place to fish and play. Firefighters no longer could use lake water for fighting fires.

Two years ago, Mosquito was awarded grant money for a community action plan. The focus of that plan was the commitment to bring Finnon Lake back to life. The community discovered within its members the expertise to do the work. People have come forward to volunteer their time. They have won additional grants needed for the project.

When the work is finished, the community will have a new dam, fish habitats built by local high school students in the restored lake, a remodeled restaurant by the side of the lake and camping sites and hiking trails around the lake for everyone to enjoy. A critical source of water for firefighting will stand ready. The work is slow and many obstacles remain, but the community knows its mind and knows the power of working together. The community action plan was the impetus for realizing what the community wanted, and it has been a crucial tool for winning additional grant money to accomplish the goal.

The communities of Georgetown, Camino and the Cool-Pilot Hill area have indicated the following desires which will be investigated:

• Community center
• Public pool
• Sidewalks
• Bike lanes
• Educational services, including programs for
  Spanish-speaking residents
• Gas station
• Pharmacy
• Youth center
• Upgrading the sewer
• Smaller-sized lots
• An equestrian center
• Vineyards
• A biking center
• Tourism compatible with the natural environment
  of the community.

More workshops are planned. The more people in each community who contribute their voice and commitment, the better the plans will be.

Editor’s Note: This article was written by El Dorado County Supervisor Penny Humphreys..For more information, contact her at (530) 621-6513 or bosfour@co.el-dorado.ca.us. Contact Betty Riley of the Sierra Economic Development District at (530) 823-4703.

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