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GRASS VALLEY, Calif. —

In the years since the Grass Valley area bustled with gold mining activity, the community, as it's known today, has taken shape.

That’s why a grassroots effort has formed in Grass Valley to prevent gold mining from making a comeback.

| WATCH | Those interested in watching the public hearing can view online here

“The downtown itself has become a cultural and scenic destination," said Traci Sheehan, coordinator with the MineWatch campaign. “People flock to Grass Valley to experience the quaint downtown and the wineries.”

Sheehan and others from her organization, which is composed of local, state and federal groups, plan to attend a special public meeting of the Nevada County Planning Commission Wednesday morning to express their opposition to the reopening of the old Idaho-Maryland mine — a site that hasn't been up-and-running since the mid-1950s.

“There's a lot of community opposition across the board. Across the political spectrum,” Sheehan said. “We're concerned on how it will impact our quality of life, our local economy, air and water. There are many issues.”

According to Nevada County, planners for the Idaho-Maryland Mine project first submitted an application for the project in November 2019.

Since that time, it has proceeded through various steps.

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“The county is being asked to consider if we want to approve or deny the Grass Valley underground mine project,” said Nevada County public information officer Taylor Wolfe.

In a statement to KCRA 3 regarding Wednesday’s meeting, Jarryd Gonzales, a spokesperson for project planners Rise Gold said:

“We are pleased the Planning Commission Staff Report unequivocally recommends the Planning Commission certify the Environmental Impact Report. Reopening the Idaho-Maryland Mine has always been about more than creating hundreds of good-paying jobs; it's about building an environmentally conscious mine, and the staff's recommendation to certify the EIR is a validation of our project vision. We appreciate the planning staff's hard work and look forward to the Planning Commission hearing.”

Wednesday’s planning commission hearing, where public comment is being accepted, is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. and runs through 5 p.m.

For those who can’t attend in person, instructions for how to submit a public comment and live-stream the hearing can be found on Nevada County’s website at this link.

Once the planning commission makes its recommendations on the final environmental impact report, it will go to the county board of supervisors (no earlier than August). At that time, more public comments will be accepted. The board will then make a decision about whether the Idaho-Maryland Mine project will go forward.

Many in the community have said that they are ready to express their opinions about the proposed project to county leadership and to the company that wants to see Grass Valley return to its gold mining roots.

“Many of us feel that mining is our past, not our future. We need to invest in our existing businesses,” said Sheehan. “We're going to implore them to reject the mine and reject the environmental impact report.”

When Grammy-nominated singer Molly Tuttle wrote the song “Grass Valley,” she was reliving a pivotal childhood experience when she used to accompany her dad to the Father’s Day Bluegrass Festival in the Nevada County town. “People playing 'neath the pines—heard the music floating from the stage,” goes the song. “Pitched our tent and walked around, my heart opened to the sound.”

In the latest episode of the California Now Podcast, Tuttle talks with host Soterios Johnson about her ongoing love for Grass Valley, a little town surrounded by pine trees in the Sierra foothills. Johnson also welcomes two Grass Valley locals who share more about this Gold Country gem, located about an hour north of Sacramento, and 90 minutes east of Lake Tahoe.

California Now Podcast

Exploring Grass Valley

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The episode begins with Tuttle, whose bluegrass album Crooked Tree has helped earn her a 2023 Grammy nomination for Best New Artist. Tuttle grew up in Palo Alto and found early musical inspiration from her father, a bluegrass guitarist, and the festivals they attended—the kind where many fans bring their own instruments for campground jam sessions. “It's such a nostalgic place for me,” Tuttle says of Grass Valley, noting that “there are a few other festivals throughout the year at that same campgrounds—like the Strawberry Music Festival, and now Hangtown, and California WorldFest. Every time I'm there, no matter what festival, you'll see a lot of the same people, same kind of vendors, and it just it brings back a lot of good memories.”

California in general is an under-the-radar bluegrass hotspot, Tuttle notes, pointing to artists such as David Grisman, Tony Rice, “and of course Jerry Garcia. Palo Alto is where Jerry Garcia is from. He used to play the banjo and had a bluegrass band there, and I think the Grateful Dead has had such a big impact on a lot of the folk music and the bluegrass jams that you find [here].”

Music is only the beginning of Grass Valley’s quirky charms, says the podcast’s next guest, Sonya Krimsky, the events manager at the Holbrooke Hotel. The Grass Valley local uses words such as “adorable,” “quaint” and “idiosyncratic” when describing her adopted home town, but also admits with a laugh that she has also called it “a cross between Twin Peaks and Schitt's Creek. Everyone has their personalities—the town crier, the town gossip—that you only find in a small town.”

The Holbrooke Hotel, she says, is another one of the town’s personalities, which is closely tied to Grass Valley’s Gold Rush origins (the Empire Mine State Historic Park sits right outside town). The hotel is “the most prominent building in the downtown,” she says, thanks in part to its central location and also due to the fact that in Grass Valley, “nothing is taller than four stories.” Grass Valley and neighboring Nevada City both have a lot of “old Gold Rush buildings,” she says, and the hotel’s style is “almost Edwardian or Victorian, but it's unique to the Motherlode area, and so we call it Motherlode architecture.”

The hotel’s recent makeover, she says, has created more open spaces and added updated décor, but also involved restoring the building’s original mahogany, as well as the copper walls of the Golden Gate Saloon. The bar is extra special, she says since the hotel “was founded first as a saloon for all those gold miners. It's the oldest and longest running saloon in California history.”

Once it also became a hotel in 1853, Krimsky adds, another fascinating chapter began in the building’s history. Back then, “getting here was arduous,” she says. “You couldn't cross the Sierra Nevada easily or safely—and so these weren't just one night or weekend stays. You would stay for months.” The hotel had several famous guests back in those days, she says, including writers Jack London, Brett Harte, and Mark Twain, who tried prospecting for gold himself. “Mark Twain supposedly stayed in what's now room 2, the corner suite,” she says. “It has this beautiful balcony access, and he would sit out there with his bourbon or his whiskey and heckle people as they rode by.”

Today you can still feel some of that colorful history when staying at the hotel, from The Iron Door bar (rumored to have been a brothel and speakeasy in earlier days) or the hotel’s “Haunted by History” tour. “I've never actually seen a ghost,” Krimsky says, “but sometimes I get that feeling that if these walls could talk, there are some stories still playing out.”

Also in this episode, Grass Valley local Patrick Millar gives his answers to the California Questionnaire. The owner of Gold Vibe Kombuchary, Northern California’s first hard kombucha taproom, weighs in on his ultimate California culinary experience, the best boutiques in Grass Valley, and his vision for a perfect day. “I’d be a tourist in my own town,” he says. “Bop around town, go down to the Yuba River and hang out with friends. The Yuba River has big white granite boulders, turquoise water, and there are things about that river that are in my mind better than going to the beach. It's just fantastic.”

Nevada County is the place to be for the 4th of July, Independence Day celebrations.

Grass Valley activities begin at 8 a.m. until 10 a.m. with the annual Family Pancake Breakfast on West Main Street between the clock tower and the Holbrooke Hotel.

The Twins Cities Church in Grass Valley will be hosting breakfast and carnival games for children under a large shaded tent for the cost of $5.

Between the pancakes and the parade, the Nevada County Concert Band will set up and play on the patio of Sergio’s Caffe’ at 109 Mill Street from 9 - 10 a.m.

“Throughout the parade, the band will play intermittently if there's a lull in activity,” Mary Ann Boyer from the Grass Valley Chamber of Commerce and Grass Valley Downtown Association said.

At 10 a.m. the parade will begin on W. Main Street and Mill Street, turning right on Neal Street and continuing on S. Church Street ending at Condon Park, according to Boyer.

The reviewing stand is on Mill Street where Nevada County Supervisor Ed Scofield and his wife, Carol, will announce and introduce each community group or decorated float.

“We have about 55 entries to the parade,” Boyer said.

When the parade ends, probably around 12:30 p.m., W. Main and Mill Street will transition for evening events from 5 - 9 p.m.

The Mill Street independence Day party will include entertainment, food vendors and refreshments available for purchase.

On one stage Rewind Press Play is scheduled, playing rock music ranging from the 1950’s to modern hits with guest appearances from Jim Meyers as Elvis Presley.

Perfect Stranger, a second band will be in front of Gary’s Place at 158 Mill Street.

Tony Siquig and his all star band Perfect Stranger play classic rock, blues, Santana and more, according to the band’s Facebook.

The GVCC operates the beverage booth. Beer from BrewBilt Brewery, wine from Sierra Starr Vineyard & Winery and cider from Ponderosa Cider Company will be available.

Satellite Spirits, which is the Southfork Vodka Company, will have a pop-up booth selling specialty drinks named a ‘Southfork Sparkler.”

Budget Blinds of Grass Valley, featuring indoor and outdoor window coverings, is another sponsor who named a specialty Independence Day drink called ‘Shades of Freedom.”

A conglomerate from McKnight Crossing Shopping Center, Mesa Management in association with Levendi, a Napa Valley winery, will be providing mood-changing cups that turn red or blue when cold liquid is poured inside them.

The owners of Chevron McKnight and Main Street Chevron, the family of Kabul Singh, are also title sponsors providing free battery operated fans for participants, according to Boyer.

A free fireworks show will begin at 9:30 p.m. at the interchange of Dorsey Drive and can be viewed from various locations around Grass Valley.

Other sponsors include Mike Bratton from State Farm and Grass Valley Provisions along with 14 other businesses in Nevada County.

I don’t think I am alone in saying that, for every good friend, there’s a good nickname. If you think about it, how many people in your life do you refer to by some moniker that isn’t what’s on their birth certificate?

Nicknames run from the mundane to the obvious. Some are lifelong tags while others fizzle out like the flavor of the day. But those keepers? Boy, are they keepers.

My dad as a log truck driver used so many nicknames that it wasn’t until I was in my 30s that I realized “Woodrat” wasn’t really his name. Not only that but he’s a talented violinist; would you ever deduce that from the name “Woodrat?” Of course they all had their CB handles, including my pops who will, without question, answer to “Shotgun.” Some of their handles bordered on ludicrous, but they all meant something. Joe Honey was “Sourdough,” while Randy Ayer was “Moonbeam.”

As they’d check out, they’d advise each other: take ‘er easy.

And think about all the people around town who we know solely by their nickname. Immediately I think of “Sparky” Parker, aka David Parker. There’s Buzzy Presser and for years Babe Childers eschewed his given name, Hobart. My parents remember Sharky Holbrooke, BabyDoll and Mama Sigourney, Buzz Kopp, and of course Jonesy (as do I).

Then there were the friends/strangers from high school to whom my friends and I all gave names. They don’t know it but there are people out there who we secretly called “The Woman,” The Judge,” and my favorite: “The Founder of the Clinic on the Hill.” (That was one of our weirder ones, and was named after a lyric from a Steely Dan song.)Don’t ask me why but we as teenagers—and younger—felt the need to assign people with names they knew nothing about. Further, we knew nothing about them either; we just had fun making up names.

There was also “Two Tone Crop Top” which is what we called our friend Shawn who was blonde on top and brown on his shaved underlayers. And don’t forget about “Davey Wonka” which our friend Dave Sindorf called himself in our high school yearbook. Our football buddy we called “Ray Finkle” after the misfortune kicker in “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” even though Ryan Fellers (same initials) was a remarkable quarterback.

In my own family alone, we’ve had a MeaMa, a Gami, a Sooze, a Bubba, a Big Hunk, a Mutt, and a Big Al. Apparently my grandpa Harold Nobles was called “Geez” by family members and “Fuzzy” by others. One guy even called him Charlie.

This is where I admit that I have at least three solid nicknames: one my dad calls me (Babe), one select friends and I call me (Moondog), and then “the one”—the one that has stuck with me since I was nine. Anyone close to me knows my nickname which I am not going to share, simply because it is a little private to me. I know it’s anticlimactic, but some things shall remain private. (At least for me. My poor mom.) Even though so many I know use it, I want to keep it safe to me. It has been read multiple times on national television, but there’s that anonymity of relaying of it without anyone seeing my likeness. (And no, it wasn’t “America’s Most Wanted.”)

And if you think as a redhead I didn’t have involuntary nicknames growing up, you’re sorely mistaken, although in retrospect I think they were more jabs than nicknames. I can’t tell you how many times Jeff Hansen called me “Shortcake.” Or how many times Matt Struck called me “Copper Top.”

What is your nickname? How did you get it? I am genuinely curious, so feel free to write in and share your story.

Meanwhile, this week’s Very Important Pup is Jessie. I am confident she has a litany of nicknames. Don’t we all come up with the most ridiculous, inexplicable versions of our pets’ names? I mean, how do you go from Thelma to Vern? There’s really no sense in it at all.

Anyway, Jessie is a super important friend I met at the Madelyn Helling Library. Jessie has been a therapy dog for about six years and was on her way into the library so kids learning to read could read to her without judgment or fear; Jessie will always lend an ear. To say this dog is sweet is an understatement.

Jessie is nine years old and she has been visiting the library for about four years. She is a yellow lab, and her humans got her when she was just a pup.

“She is our only child dog,” her human mama said. “For her age she is really healthy, knock on wood. She’s getting a little white. The therapy dog program is really well organized here now. She likes people better than the dogs.”

And this week there is a bonus: welcome the first Very Important Puss. This is Tiger Booty. He is a very sweet cat who likes to roam around a little bit. Sometimes if I have my door open I will be working and something will catch my attention out of the corner of my eye. My heart has nearly stopped when I see old Tiger Booty walking in like he owns the place. Once he jumped on my lap and nearly deleted a huge story I had been working on. I never lure him in, never feed him, he is not allowed on my furniture, and I do have his mom’s number in case of an emergency. He’s just a sweet kitty with six toes, checking out the world.

As you read this, yesterday was my birthday. I turned 45. Halfway to 90! I am having a Dolly Parton themed birthday party. Like many, Dolly is my hero and I owe her a special debt of gratitude for the song “Jolene.”

Growing up a redhead, as aforementioned, I was mercilessly teased. When Dolly wrote and performed a song about being jealous of another woman with “flaming locks of auburn hair” I knew I must not be that bad off. Plus her commitment to childhood literacy through her Imagination Library is astounding; her organization has donated over 200 million books around the world. What an admirable lady, and one that deserves to be embossed on the cocktail napkins and plates I bought for the party (that I can hopefully avoid using). I think she and Jessie would make good friends.

Aloha, Nevada County. Enjoy this amazing weather while you can! I feel like these warm temps are the universe’s birthday gift to me; one last swim and we’ll call her a day. Be well, and take ‘er easy.

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Blake Heauser’s chainsaw slowly rumbled quiet. Sounds of tall trees splintering and crashing under the weight of the freshly fallen snow cut through the stillness, as the latest round of winter weather bore down on the town, tucked into the foothills in northern California. He had cleared a path through the wooded debris for now but with more storms in the forecast it might not last.

Heauser had spent days trying to remove fallen trees from the roads that snaked through the hillsides in his community in Grass Valley, even as those roads disappeared under the heavy snow. He and others worked around the clock to ensure vulnerable neighbors could either evacuate or were able to safely remain in their buried homes, while grappling with the effects of prolonged and widespread power outages that left some without heat or pumped well water.

“This is the craziest storm I know of,” Heauser said. “It was relentless – it just kept snowing and snowing and snowing.”

Tucked amid a sea of conifers that slope into the Sierra Nevada range, the beautiful and rugged terrain has always posed elements of danger for those who live there. But conditions are intensifying, adding new fears over what the future holds for California’s picturesque and historic mountain towns.

Even as locals grapple with the effects of this very wet winter, the threats from wildfires linger just months away. The extremes have tested key infrastructure across the seasons, adding hazards for even the most resilient and prepared residents. They are also inextricably linked.

Drought-weakened trees, unable to withstand the heavy snow loading their branches and the howling winds that tore through these slopes and canyons, thrashed against homes and fences. Branches ripped through power lines and littered thoroughfares before being buried in snow, hindering both emergency access and escape.

Severe storms have caused calamity across the state, coating even balmy parts of California – from the San Francisco Bay area to the Hollywood hills – in a dusting of white. Higher elevations, meanwhile, were buried.

The toll is still being tallied as communities begin to dig out from the aftermath. Buildings have crumpled under the weight of accumulating snow and more than a dozen deaths from a snowed-in area of southern California may be linked to the storms.

Yosemite national park has announced it will remain closed through 17 March – a “best-case scenario” as a result of “significant snowfall” while the Central Sierra Snow Lab, housed against the Sierra near Donner Pass, reported more than 50 ft of snowfall already this season.

The San Bernardino county mountains were among the hardest hit, leaving residents and visitors trapped for weeks without the ability to secure food or emergency supplies as widespread power outages left neighborhoods dark and cold. At least five people were found dead in their homes as the snow-stricken area began to return to normal.

California Governor Gavin Newsom activated the state California guard and proclaimed a state of emergency in 13 counties to assist during the height of the storms. But the widespread effects choked off resources as impacted areas across the state called for more help.

Nevada county, which stretches from the lower lying areas north of Sacramento, over to Tahoe national forest and to the eastern edge of northern California, has borne the brunt of power outages for the past week, leaving thousands of households without light and heat for days while rain and snow continue to fill the forecast without reprieve.

Energy provider Pacific Gas & Electric has scrambled to repair downed poles and lines left scattered by the storms, but the lack of ability to get equipment into the rugged and frost-laden terrain has proven difficult and inhibited progress.

Meanwhile, dozens of displaced residents have sought refuge in overnight warming centers or in Nevada City’s historic hotels that typically house tourists during this time of year. All through last weekend as the snow fell in flurries, neighbors congregated in coffee shops swapping snow-shoveling stories and cold escapes from their mountainside homes. Many though, weren’t able to leave.

Record numbers of calls have come in to emergency response lines as desperate friends, relatives, and employers sought help for those who could not be reached for days.

“We have been to countless streets that have absolutely nothing left of their regular infrastructure,” said Conrad Ball, deputy sheriff with the Nevada county sheriff’s office mobile crisis team. Ball and his partner, social worker clinician Stacy Green, are one of several teams trying to get to each and every person flagged for welfare checks. But the list is long, and growing.

On a frigid Friday evening, the team spent more than 12 hours visiting residents, careening over narrow berms and chewed-through terrain. High in the hills, the smell of crisp pine is cut by wood smoke and gasoline, the remnants of last-resort heating in darkened neighborhoods. Mailboxes and trash cans have all but disappeared under thick mounds of snow as car-shaped lumps signal where vehicles have been abandoned. The occasional sign signals an obscured driveway, while others plead for plowing help.

There is 560 miles of roadway through these mountains, much of which is now buried in snow. Even an all-terrain vehicle slides and struggles to churn through the thick frost, bumping over the fallen power lines that snake across the roads.

Ball and Green have been able to assist dozens of families, either by ensuring loved ones are ready to weather the rest of the storm, providing essential supplies, or aiding in evacuations. Often though, Ball said, calamity was avoided because residents nearby were able to get there sooner. “That is a common thing with these storms,” he said. “Everyone sets their differences aside and really help each other out.” It’s essential part of life in these remote areas.

“If you don’t have others to help you out,” Ball added, “it is not survivable.”

Stuart Baker, the executive director for the chamber of commerce in Nevada City, a historic district and tourist town that houses the seat of the county, said it’s not an uncommon sentiment. Even with strong assistance and support it’s not been easy.

Baker is one of many displaced by the storms, as snow piled high on his home covered vents that enabled him to use a furnace safely. His power has been out for a week. This isn’t the first time – but it is the worst, he said.

“We had snowmageddon and it felt like it was a once-in-a-century storm,” he said, referring to a previous weather event the community named after it blew through last year. “And it wasn’t as bad as this one. So we don’t have a word for this,” he added, laughing with a grimace. “We already used the best word we had.”

Nevada City resident Visa Uksina, who could only reach his home by snowshoes this week, agreed. “It is getting more and more intense,” he said, now safely out of his home and catching his breath in the more accessible downtown area where shops and restaurants provided warm refuge for those still without power. “It’s beautiful and terrible at the same time.”

It’s a feeling that hits hard for Heauser, too. Born and raised in this area, he returned with his wife to raise his own family in Nevada county. With a two-year-old daughter and another on the way, there’s a precarious balance between building a life on the land that feels like home and ensuring they stay safe as the threats mount.

As a corporate pilot who has to spend stretches of time away, he said he worries that his family will have to evacuate without him during the summers or lose power and heat in the winters. There’s only one way in and one way out, and “it is constantly in the back of your mind”, he said. But the storm has been enough of a distraction for now.

“It has all been a blur,” he said of the last week, when the family lost their power. Soon after, their generator shorted out, frying some electronics as it went down, including their hot water heater. With his toddler pitching tantrums, they retreated to his parent’s house nearby. Even there, toppling trees are a threat, already claiming a fence and a shed.

Heauser has spent most of the days since out in the elements helping others.

There was an older couple who were without power and heat and relied on oxygen machines. Some folks needed paths shoveled so they could leave their homes. And, Heauser of course has been out with his chainsaw, clearing the fallen trees. It’s been a team effort, he said.

“We have all been ping-ponging around and seeing where we can help,” Heauser said. “If we are tired they will tap in.” Along with the pristine natural beauty, that’s what keeps his family here, making the added worry worth it. For Heauser, it comes down to the people.

“If neighbors need a hand, we will dig ’em out,” he said. “Our neighborhood is situated well. As long as the trees quit falling – we will be OK.”

May 20, 2023 – Rough and Ready, CA – Nevada County Sheriff's Office officials report that on Friday, May 19, 2023, at approximately 5:20 a.m. a vehicle was reported stolen from Harper Lane off Spenceville Road in Penn Valley. California Highway Patrol responded to the victim’s residence to take the theft report, while our dispatchers from the Nevada County Regional Dispatch Center put out the description of the vehicle to patrol units. Deputy Taylor King and his K9 partner “Vito” were in the area and spotted the stolen vehicle on Rough and Ready Highway and attempted to conduct a traffic stop. The driver of the vehicle failed to yield, and a pursuit was initiated westbound into Rough and Ready.

After a short pursuit, the suspect exited the vehicle and ran from Deputy King and Vito, who together chased the suspect on foot. After the suspect refused to stop despite announcements that the K9 would be deployed, “Vito” was commanded to apprehend the fleeing suspect. The suspect, identified as 42-year-old Michael Loy Gordon of Grass Valley, was taken into custody and booked into the Wayne Brown Correctional Facility for Vehicle Theft, Resisting Arrest, Evading, Vandalism, and Receiving Stolen Property.

Just this week, Sheriff Shannan Moon along with several other California Sheriffs, met with Governor Gavin Newsom at the Capitol (pictured below) to discuss their perspectives on several pending bills before the state Legislature in the 2023 session. Sheriff Moon shared her opposition to many of the bills that restrict or ban tools that allow law enforcement to provide services that keep our communities and law enforcement officers safe. One such bill that is high on her list to oppose, is AB 742 (Jackson) – a bill that would prohibit the use of K9’s in a patrol capacity. The Sheriff has been working with our Nevada County Board of Supervisors to submit a letter of opposition from the County, which will be presented at the upcoming board meeting next Tuesday, May 23, 2023, as brought forth by Supervisor Sue Hoek and Supervisor Lisa Swarthout. We thank the Board for their support in this action.

Sheriff Moon re-authorized the K9 Program at NCSO in 2020. We have seen firsthand the success of our K9 program in helping to keep our community and our deputies safe. If AB 742 were to pass, arrests like this one could be much more difficult to achieve in the safe manner in which this occurred today. Patrol K9’s are a valuable de-escalation tool and less lethal force option. If K9 units are eliminated as a force option for law enforcement, California peace officers will lose a specialized and extremely effective de-escalation tool in use of force situations.

Nevada County Deputy Taylor King and his K9 partner “Vito”

Sheriff Shannan Moon with several California Sheriffs, met with Governor Gavin Newsom at the Capitol

Source & photos: Nevada County Sheriff's Office