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Mountain Democrat
2010 2023
2022
Mountain Democrat going biweekly Mountain Democrat staff Mountain Democrat photo by Eric Jaramishian
Developer Angelo Tsakopoulos owns approximately 9,500 acres off Latrobe Road south of the El Dorado Hills Business Park. Tsakopoulos’ company AKT Investments is partnering with UC Davis Health in proposing development of a “healthy living” community consisting of more than 8,000 housing units on 2,800 acres of Tsakopoulos’ land.
‘Revolutionary community’ goes under the microscope Eric Jaramishian Staff writer
The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors and the public last week got a chance to learn more details and give feedback on a proposed project the developers say will be dedicated to helping people live longer and healthier lives. In a collaborative effort between UC Davis Health and its researchers, and AKT Investments, the two parties are planning and designing the Community for Health and Independence. The project is geared toward housing older adults and those with disabilities on roughly 2,800 acres of
land owned by developer Angelo Tsakopoulos, founder of AKT, south of Folsom and El Dorado Hills. Representatives from both parties made a presentation to the board looking to convince supervisors of the need for the innovative development, which would require environmental studies and amendments to the county’s general plan to accommodate more than 4,300 mixedhousing units and a 200-acre research health complex center south of White Rock Road. The nature of the meeting was to bring awareness of the proposed project to the public. No decisions have been made. “For projects like this, there
are not a lot of examples out there, so we are really treading in somewhat new territory and it will take a lot of coordination,” said Karen Garner, El Dorado County Planning and Building director. During the presentation, Dr. Thomas Nesbitt with UC Davis Health, who studies “effective ways to deliver care to rural communities,” shared history of the proposed development. He told the board he led an effort to build a broadband network to remote rural hospitals and clinics and to develop technology that helps provide better health care and telemedicine to elders. ■ See COMMUNITY, page A9
The Mountain Democrat will no longer publish a Monday edition after May 6. After that date the newspaper will adopt a biweekly print schedule. “We’ve been a triweekly newspaper for the past 15 years and believe now is the right time to make this move” stated Richard Esposito, Mountain Democrat publisher and COO of McNaughton Media. “I believe we can better serve our readers and advertisers with a solid Wednesday midweek edition and a strong Friday weekend edition,” Esposito said. “As our readers continue to migrate online, we need to stay flexible to reach them on the platforms where they’re engaging with the news,” said Editor Krysten Kellum. “With this change, we can free up more resources for real-time newsgathering, as well as more in-depth reporting on the stories that matter to El Dorado County residents.” Current subscribers of the print edition will continue to have free access to the online edition with a greater emphasis of local news published there in conjunction with print editions. “We’ll extend existing subscriptions to account for the absence of the Monday edition,” said Ian Balentine, Mountain Democrat distribution manager. “We currently don’t publish on federal holidays due to the absence of mail delivery.” The Mountain Democrat shifted away from motor carrier delivery to mail delivery in 2022 due to the high cost of fuel and the state’s continued threat of forcing newspapers to recognize newspaper carriers as employees instead of independent contractors. Questions regarding delivery should be directed to (530) 344-5000 Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
A Bunch of support for youth teamwork Odin Rasco Staff writer
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A team of boys from Gold Country
Basketball Inc. faced down El Dorado High School’s girls varsity basketball team April 24 at the Boys and Girls Club of El Dorado County West Slope’s Placerville Clubhouse as part of an ongoing series of community outreach games. The rhythmic bounce of a basketball and the squeak of tennis shoes speeding across the court filled the air as the girls and boys ran from hoop to hoop. By halftime the boys (called the Golden Eagles) had secured a 15-point lead. The Golden Eagles saw a fair share of ■ See TEAMWORK, page A8
Mountain Democrat photos by Odin Rasco
After a close game between the Gold Country Basketball Inc. boys and the El Dorado High School girls varsity team at the Boys and Girls Club Placerville Clubhouse April 24, all the players and some supporters came together for a group photo to celebrate the occasion. The game was one of many community outreach games played by the Golden Eagles, a team of at-risk youths who bring their all to the court.
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