Controversial Martis Valley West project approved by Placer County Supervisors

The Placer County Supervisors today approved one portion of the controversial Martis Valley Project on 1,052 acres adjacent to the Northstar California Resort, west of State Route 267.

Known at Martis Valley West, the project will add residential and commercial uses while permanently preserving 6,376-acres known as the East Parcel. Even though the acres will be preserved, 760 units and 6.6 acres of commercial area previously approved for the East via the Martis Valley Community Plan will be transferred to the West Parcel.

“This is bad news for Lake Tahoe," said League to Save Lake Tahoe Executive Director Darcie Goodman Collins, PhD. "By approving Martis Valley West, Placer County is consenting to threats to Tahoe for which no solution has been proposed. In their decision, the majority of supervisors ignored the environmental laws California has set up to protect important places like Tahoe. This sets a terrible precedent."

A portion of the West Parcel (662 acres) would be rezoned from Timberland Production (TPZ) to Residential, allowing for the development of residential units and associated commercial, homeowner amenities, and small community retail uses.

The remaining 390 acres on the West Parcel would remain designated Forest and would be zoned TPZ.

"Traffic is one of the most significant sources of pollution threatening the Lake’s clarity," added Goodman. "This decision brings us too close to the threshold for car trips in the Tahoe Basin, a figure expressed in vehicle miles traveled. Cumulatively, traffic from the proposals at Martis and Squaw would bring Tahoe within 3 percent of Tahoe’s threshold for vehicle miles traveled."

By a vote of 4-1, the Supervisors went against the County's Planning Commission who voted 5-2 against the project in July. At that time, the Commissioners agreed with concerns about the potential effects of the project on Lake Tahoe water quality, traffic and emergency evacuation procedures from County staff.

"California environmental law is meant to ensure adequate analysis of the negative impacts of proposed development, and requires solutions be implemented to address the impacts that cannot be avoided," Goodman said in a statement. "No solutions were advanced to address the project’s estimated increases in traffic at Tahoe."

Due to the approval of Martis West, future development in the Lake Tahoe Basin could be affected due to the fact that the area is nearing the threshold of miles traveled in the Basin. The Tahoe Regional Plan Update would then require all projects in the basin to provide environmental benefits to Lake Tahoe.

"Will it become a new norm for area jurisdictions to ignore threats to Tahoe, and pile up development just outside the Lake Tahoe Basin?" said Goodman. "Organizations such as ours will continue to advocate for Lake-friendly redevelopment and a stronger set of protections for Lake Tahoe.”