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• CAMERON PARK 3321 Durock Rd Bldg A (530) 676-2446 • EL DORADO HILLS 4640 Post Street (916) 293-5665 • PLACERVILLE 85 Placerville Dr. (530) 622-6956
C ALI FORN IA’S OLDE ST NE W SPAPER
– E S T. 18 51
– Midweek Edition – VOLUME 175 • ISSUE 18 | $1.00
mtdemocrat.com
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2026
DESIGNING DREAMS
Cameron Park man revives a rare classic Chris Woodard Staff writer
A
PLACE ADDRESS LABEL HERE
t an airshow in Oshkosh, Wisc., years ago Glenn Gordon of Cameron Park stopped in his tracks. Parked on the field was a freshly restored 1930s Ryan-ST, polished metal gleaming in the sun. It looked less like transportation and more like sculpture — a reminder of the golden age of aviation. Gordon, already a pilot and lifelong builder, felt something click and he decided he wanted to restore one. Reality quickly set in. Only about 80 Ryan STs were built in the 1930s, and very few have survived. Most sit in private collections. Even the roughest “project” airframes were financially out of reach. The wake-up call was sobering, but Gordon has always been an improviser. If he could not restore one, maybe he could build one. Gordon started asking around aviation circles if anyone made a replica kit. No one had. Then he heard about a builder in Colorado, Nick Pfannenstiel, who was quietly designing one himself. Gordon tracked him down. Pfannenstiel and his company, Timber Tiger Aircraft, had begun developing a Ryan ST-inspired aircraft, but it was still early in the process. Gordon, who had built airplanes before and built a
Photo by Ken James/ California Department of Water Resources
The California Department of Water Resources (from left) Engineer Derick Louie and Engineer Jordan Thoennes conducts the third media snow survey of the 2026 season at Phillips Station in the Sierra Nevada.
February storms provide much-needed snowpack boost ■ Statewide snowpack remains
below average
Department of Water Resources News release
bring the project to the world of CAD,” Gordon said. In a 3D digital space, the team could spin the airplane, check
SACRAMENTO — The Department of Water Resources on Feb. 27 conducted the third snow survey of the season at Phillips Station. The manual survey recorded 28 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent of 11 inches, which is 47% of average for this location. The snow water equivalent measures the amount of water contained in the snowpack and is a key component of DWR’s water supply forecast. Statewide, the snowpack is 66% of average for this date. Today’s snow survey results show an increase from last month’s measurements following a series of cold, major snow-producing storms that ended a five-week dry period. Unfortunately, the recent storms were not enough to get the state back to average conditions for this time of
■ See PLANE, page A8
■ See SNOW SURVEY, page A2
Photo by Leonardo Correa Luna
Glenn Gordon poses with the first 1930s Ryan-ST prototype, which he helped design. The Cameron Park resident is in the process of building another version of the plane. career in mechanical design, offered to help bring the project fully into computer-aided design. He saw a path forward that would make the aircraft not
just a prototype, but a viable kit for other builders. What followed would reshape both men’s projects. “I quickly helped
Mark Hornstra named new CPCSD general manager Noel Stack Editor
Mountain Democrat photo by Noel Stack
“I’ve really grown to like this community,” Mark Hornstra shared during a walk around Cameron Park Lake. The feeling was confirmed mutual last month when the Cameron Park Community Services District Board of Directors named Hornstra the new general manager. Hornstra will take over from interim GM Maurice Johnson on March 22. “Mark is going to do an outstanding job,” Johnson told the Mountain Democrat. “I have 100% faith in Mark.” Johnson became interim GM in February 2025 after the board the month prior voted to exercise a 30-day termination-without-cause clause in thenGeneral Manager Alan Gardner’s contract. About a week after Johnson started his new role, Hornstra resigned as the El Dorado Hills Community Services District general manager after months of turmoil within that district. Hornstra joined the CPCSD shortly after as the parks and facilities supervisor.
Mark Hornstra joined the Cameron Park Community Services District about a year ago and later this month will become the district’s newest general manager.
■ See HORNSTRA, page A2
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2 col (3.3”) x 1.5” Mountain Democrat 2 col (3.3”) x 1.5” Mountain Democrat 2 col (3.3”) x 1.5” Mountain Democrat