News

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Nev. - In a move that shouldn't be surprising to anyone following the Douglas County School Board, four members of the board approved the hiring of John Ramirez Jr. as its next superintendent. This move was much to the displeasure of a majority of the public taking part in the meeting.

"This is a dark day for Douglas County School District," said Bob Franks Tuesday night.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - An active weather pattern continues overnight and tomorrow, according to the National Weather Service (NWS) in Reno. Snow showers are expected to return overnight for some areas above 5000 feet. Accumulations will be lighter, but some valley locations could
receive a few inches. Lingering snow is expected afterward until the next system swings by on Thursday and Friday. No significant impacts are expected at the moment.

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Nev. - Even with school closures due to snow, the Douglas County School District will still hold its candidate meet and greet for the two finalists for school superintendent.

On Monday, February 5 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., two finalists, Dennis Holmes and John Ramirez Jr., will be in the Douglas High School Commons to meet the public, and answer questions.

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Nev. - Due to severe winter weather and hazardous driving conditions, Douglas County Manager Jenifer Davidson has authorized the closure of County offices on Monday, February 5.

Sheriff Dan Coverley advises motorists to avoid nonessential travel during hazardous driving conditions. County officials are monitoring the situation and will reopen offices when safe to do so.

Aside from essential public safety, corrections, courts, and elections personnel, County offices will close for the day.

Representative Kevin Kiley, California's 3rd District, will be in South Lake Tahoe on Thursday, February 8 for Military Service Academy Night. Learn more about the five service academies starting at 4:30 p.m. in the Lake Tahoe Community College's Aspen Room adjacent to the library.

The five academies are the United States Military Academy, United States Naval Academy, United States Coast Guard Academy, United States Merchant Marine Academy, and the United States Air Force Academy.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The National Weather Service (NWS) in Reno has issued a Winter Storm Warning to be in effect from 10 p.m. Saturday to 10 a.m. Monday. Heavy snow is expected in the greater Lake Tahoe area and Mono County.

Snow accumulations 3 to 5 feet above 7000 feet along the Sierra crest. Snow accumulations of 1 to 3 feet below 7000 feet, except 1 to 4 inches for areas below 5500 feet in Mono County.

MEYERS, Calif. - Funding for the Apache Avenue Pedestrian Safety and Connectivity Project in Meyers is in place. Caltrans announced the awarding of $1.7 million in Active Transportation Program funds for the project and combined with multiple sources including federal and local funds the project is ready for El Dorado County (EDC) Board of Supervisors approval.

If approved by the Board on February 27, the project will go to bid with an anticipated start of construction in mid-May 2024, and completion this fall.

On Thursday, February 8, 2024, UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC) will be hosting a lecture about Infrastructure Resilience in the Face of Extreme Flooding, with Dr. Michael Gardner. The in-person event will be held at Sunnyside Restaurant and Lodge in their Mountainside Bar. Dinners will be 20% off for interested guests.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Good news for all customers of South Tahoe Refuse (STR)! Starting February 1, the food waste drop-off program is moving to a new location to allow for expanded days and times. STR’s residential customers can now drop off their food waste for free Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Recycle Buy-Back Center located at 2192 Ruth Ave., South Lake Tahoe.

Nevada’s nonrestricted gaming licensees reported a total “gaming win” of $1,432,633,317 for December 2023, according to the Nevada Gaming Control Board's monthly report released Wednesday. This amounts to a 9.04 percent increase compared to the same month a year ago when licensees reported a gaming win of $1,313,801,128. For the fiscal year to date (since July), the gaming win has increased by 5.49 percent with $8,005,945,288 in "win".

The "gaming win" represents the computed income of casinos before business expenses and taxes.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - An atmospheric river is heading to the California coast, and even though much of the precipitation is going south and north, Lake Tahoe should see some of its effects. After a few days of warm weather, a potent winter storm will bring windy and colder conditions with periods of heavy snow to the Sierra and higher elevations of northeast California, according to the National Weather Service (NWS) in Reno.

HOMEWOOD, Calif. - The Placer County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) investigations unit has identified 26-year-old Luis Sanchez-Cabada as a person of interest in the shooting that occurred on Monday in Homewood on the West Shore of Lake Tahoe.

At this time, PCSO said they believe this was an isolated incident and there is no additional risk to the community. The shooting on January 29 occurred on West Lake Blvd. near Silver Street near the Swiss Restaurant.

LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - With several storms forecast for the Sierra Nevada in the coming days, the snowpack may change, but as of today, the snow water equivalent of 10 inches measured at Phillips Station is 58 percent of the average for that location.

The Department of Water Resources (DWR) conducted its monthly winter measurement at Phillips Station near Sierra-at-Tahoe, west of Lake Tahoe. Staff found 29 inches of snow. One year ago, the statewide measurement was 214 percent of the average for this date.

The Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team (TFFT) including North Tahoe and Tahoe Douglas fire protection districts, California State Parks, Nevada Division of Forestry and the USDA Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, will continue burning this week at Lake Tahoe, conditions and weather permitting. Smoke may be present throughout the Lake Tahoe Basin and surrounding areas. View smoke management tips and the current air quality index at AirNow and the U.S.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The possibility of a ballot measure to move the City of South Lake Tahoe from a general law city to a charter city has been taken off the table for the time being.

Two members of the City Council, Mayor Cody Bass and Councilmember Scott Robbins, were appointed to a subcommittee to explore a possible ballot measure. Bass has long been a proponent of the charter city idea as a way to create more revenue by imposing a transfer tax on real estate transactions, something a general law city cannot.

EL DORADO COUNTY, Calif. - El Dorado County is in the process of updating its Defensible Space Ordinance. The Office of Wildfire Preparedness and Resilience (OWPR) will be hosting two public workshops to provide additional information on the proposed Ordinance amendments and address any questions or concerns, on on each side of the county.

Mark your calendar for February 13 in Meyers and 29 in Cameron Park to learn and ask questions about the County's defensible space ordinance changes and how they impact you.

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Nev. - On January 18, the Douglas County Board of County Commissioners adopted an ordinance that revises the oversight of China Spring Youth Camp from the 9th Judicial District Court to the Douglas County Manager’s Office. This ordinance will be effective February 1, 2024.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following calls only pertain to the South and West Shore, including Meyers, South Lake Tahoe, Meeks Bay, Tahoma, and the Echo Summit area. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at the time of the story.

January 18 - January 24, 2024

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16:12 GRAND THEFT REPORT - Occurred at Heavenly Valley Ski on Saddle Rd. in South Lake Tahoe. Disposition: REPORT TAKEN.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A woman was found Friday morning at Heavenly Mountain Resort after spending the night in a gondola cabin. It is unclear how she got there, and if she was in a gondola cabin near the lift base, or the middle above the slopes.

“The safety and well-being of our guests is our top priority at Heavenly Mountain Resort. We are investigating this situation with the utmost seriousness,” said Tom Fortune, VP and COO of Heavenly Mountain Resort and the Tahoe Region.

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Nev. - Lake Tahoe resident Zachary Nance, 36, has been sentenced to at least 35 years in prison for sexual assault and lewd acts he committed with two young girls over several years. In Douglas County court on Monday, Judge Thomas Gregory told Nance his sentence after one of the victims spoke in court, and two grandmothers read other victims' statements.

One victim was sexually abused by Nance from the ages of 8-12, another was 6 years old when he started.

Law enforcement made four drug-related arrests in Douglas and Washoe counties recently, taking a large amount of methamphetamine and fentanyl off the streets.

On January 16, just after midnight, a Douglas County Sheriff’s Office patrol deputy, along with DCSO K9 Officer Blaze, conducted a traffic stop in Stateline, Nevada. The two occupants in the vehicle, Krista Vincent-Blanchfield and Joseph Daniel Rasberry, both of Sacramento, were taken into custody after more than one pound of methamphetamine was found in their car.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The South Lake Tahoe City Council Chambers were in full Tuesday night, all there in support of an item not on the agenda. Keep Community First is a group of business owners and community members who oppose possible upcoming taxes on the ballot in South Lake Tahoe - a vacancy tax and a tourist occupancy tax (TOT) increase, as well as sharing their concerns about talk on a rise in the minimum wage.

The city council previously voted 2-3 for a vacancy tax to be put on the ballot, so the efforts to add one are by a citizen's initiative.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - In a vote of 4-1, the City Council voted Tuesday to raise the range of fines for VHR citations from $250-$1,000 to $1,500-$5,000.

The agenda item said, "The intent of increasing the fines, however, is
not to increase revenue, but to discourage and penalize violations, so the hope is that the number of citations issued will decrease with the increased fines."

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. - Members of the Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team (TFFT) will continue prescribed fire operations this week at Lake Tahoe, conditions and weather permitting. Smoke may be present throughout the Lake Tahoe Basin and surrounding areas. View smoke management tips and the current air quality index at AirNow and the U.S.