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– E S T. 18 51
– Weekend Edition – VOLUME 175 • ISSUE 13 | $1.00
mtdemocrat.com
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2026
Students exercise their Free Speech right Separate wrecks kill Fifth-grader Jayce tells fellow Schnell School students why basketball is his favorite sport on the fourth day of Speech Week on Feb. 12.
Shelly Thorene Staff writer
K
indergarten through 5th grade students at Louisiana Schnell Elementary in Placerville had the opportunity to practice their public speaking and active listening skills during the school’s first Speech Week celebration with a focus
Mountain Democrat photo by Shelly Thorene
■ See SPEECH, page A12
two on Highway 50 Shelly Thorene Staff writer
Two people died within about 12 hours of each other in separate Highway 50 wrecks in the El Dorado Hills area, the California Highway Patrol has confirmed. Officer Andrew Brown with the Placerville CHP told the Mountain Democrat a man in his 20s driving a Nissan Titan truck eastbound on Highway 50 was killed around 3:25 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 10, when his vehicle crossed over a guardrail and went ■ See WRECKS, page A12
February 16, 2026
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Supes greenlight Shingle Springs gas station with conditions Noel Stack Editor
The proposed ARCO AM/PM gas station and car wash at the southwest corner of Durock and South Shingle roads received unanimous support from the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors last week, reaffirming the Planning Commission’s earlier approval — with one change. Supervisors modified the timeline, resetting the commercial project’s start of construction so it coincides with the start of the county’s Highway 50/Ponderosa Road/South Shingle Road interchange improvement project or June 1, 2028, whichever occurs first. Supervisors directed staff and
Courtesy rendering
When completed, the ARCO AM/PM will include 12 fueling positions, a convenience store and a car wash. applicant Strauch and Co. to coordinate a joint construction effort. The AM/PM will consist of a 3,349-square-foot convenience store, a 100-foot-long
automatic car wash and a 4,606-square-foot fuel canopy with six fuel islands, 12 fueling positions and three underground storage tanks. The Shingle Springs
Community Alliance appealed the Planning Commission’s November 2025 approval of the project, an action that brought it before the Board of Supervisors last week. The alliance’s
presentation outlined its opposition to the project, arguing: • The Ponderosa interchange area is already congested and dangerous, with injury and fatality rates well above the state average. It is heavily used by student drivers and parents accessing schools in the area, including Ponderosa High School. • This project would generate thousands of trips through this already congested area. • Egress from the project site is insufficient and relies on frequently congested Durock Road. Alternatives to Durock Road are dangerous and disruptive. • El Dorado County voters and El Dorado ■ See CONDITIONS, page A8