public comment

Lake Tahoe must improve its internal transportation systems before they can expect visitors to the region to get out of their cars and use different, and better, ways of getting around. That was the message during last week's Tahoe Talks presentation by Lake Tahoe transportation partners, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA), Tahoe Transportation District (TTD) and El Dorado County.

Stateline, Nevada – The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) on Wednesday released its Draft 2017 Regional Transportation Plan. TRPA updates the long-term plan every four years as a blueprint to prioritize and guide investments that will improve Lake Tahoe’s transportation system over the next 20-plus years.

With the passage of Proposition 64 in November, South Lake Tahoe and other cities around the state are taking a look at their codes and regulations to be consistent with requirements that came with the legalization of marijuana for personal use. Californians voted 57.13 percent in favor of the proposition. On a local level, the vote was very close in El Dorado County with 50.07 percent of the voters against the legalization of marijuana.

The Lake Tahoe Unified School District (LTUSD) wants families to know that, no matter what their immigration status is, South Lake Tahoe schools are a safe zone and all students are provided access to education.

Community members spoke before LTUSD trustees Tuesday, showing their support for all families and students in the district in light of President Trump's focus on immigrants. They asked the Board to take a strong and public stance against hate and to openly proclaim schools to be safe for all students, no matter their color, religion, nationality or immigration status.

"We will continue to stay open," said Cody Bass, founder and executive director of the Tahoe Wellness Cooperative after being told by the City Council Tuesday that he no longer has a Medical Marijuana Dispensary Permit to operate in South Lake Tahoe. "We are going to take this to the end."

One of his lawyers, James Anthony added, "They will be reviewing this decision in Superior Court."

Citing concerns for safety, under-age party goers and an already taxed law enforcement staff, the Douglas County Board of Commissioners denied an outdoor festival permit for SnowGlobe Late Night events December 29-31 at Stateline.

Chad Donnelly proposed the after-party each night of the annual concert to be held under a tent in the parking lot of Hard Rock Lake Tahoe from 10:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. The proposal was just in writing as neither Donnelly or representatives from the Hard Rock attended the meeting.

In a cost-cutting move, the Tahoe Paradise Resort Improvement District (TPRID) Board of Directors is looking at the possibility of consolidating their elections.

William E. Schultz, the El Dorado County Recorder-Clerk-Registrar of Voters, has presented the board with information on how to accomplish this goal which cost the small park district $5,833 in 2015. With just 605 votes cast in that election, this amount works out to be almost $10 per vote.

The interim Douglas County Manager, Larry Werner, just signed a contract to stay on board until December, 2017.

A contract for professional services with BHC Consultants, LLC for services provided by Werner was unanimously approved by the Douglas County Commission during their public meeting on August 4, 2016.

The contract will remain the same at a fixed cost of $14,333 per month with a $700 per month car allowance.

The U.S. Forest Service is planning a project to restore the Taylor and Tallac creek ecosystems, an area that provides habitat for numerous protected wildlife speciesfas well as being an important hydrological connection to Lake Tahoe.

Named the Taylor and Tallac Restoration Project, the USFS Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit will restore the large wetland complex where the two creeks were once connected through a series of four swales.

Public comment is sought on the Environmental Assessment, Initial Study and Initial Environmental Checklist.

Major components:

To televise or not televise, that was the question in front of the South Lake Tahoe City Council on Tuesday, April 19. While live streaming of the Council meetings is not required by law, it is something the City has done on both the internet and television since May, 2007.

The agenda item was added after discussion arose during the April 5 meeting when Mayor Wendy David asked that they stop televising the public comment portion of the meetings. Her comment caught many by surprise, even by some of her Council members.

During Tuesday's South Lake Tahoe City Council meeting, the Council gave direction to the City Attorney to create a policy on how non-agenda item public comments are televised.

While the public is always invited to speak during the public comment period, the Council will look at not televising the portions that aren't about agenda items. They will also look at continuing to televise those comments made by non-profits and other groups to publicize their activities and events.

The South Shore of Lake Tahoe is divided by lines. These state, county, and city lines work well on a map, but they do not define the day-to-day reality of the people who live and work in this community. In the last decade we have seen definitive projects reshape South Shore – Heavenly Village, Lakeview Commons, Harrison Avenue Streetscape. We have seen new bike trails and the opening of a bi-state park.

The public is invited to attend the next meeting of the Lake Tahoe Federal Advisory Committee (LTFAC) on Thursday, March 10, 2016 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the USFS offices in South Lake Tahoe.

On the agenda are issues related to federal activities in the Lake Tahoe Basin including an update to the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act, review of the environmental improvement plan and discussion on the comittee's future implementation strategy.

There are proposed amendments to the South Lake Tahoe Vacation Home Rental ordinance, ones that came about because of feedback from VHR permit applicants and those enforcing the ordinance.

The most recent VHR ordinance change took effect on October 1, 2015. Since then, there have been over 300 inspections scheduled, including new homes and renewals.

According to Amanda Nolan, the City's VHR Clerk, many of the properties inspected so far have required owners to make corrections to address inspection requirements.

The October 1, 2015 ordinance called for:

Thirty community members joined the City's Planning Commissioners and staff Thursday afternoon to get a pulse on what is desired for the future look of South Lake Tahoe.

The audience was handed an electronic voting device to give their opinions on 46 photos of what they found the most desirable, and the least, concerning signage and building design, as well as landscaping,

Those at the first of two meetings gave a wide range of opinions, just as is evident in the town as a whole. What some people find as attractive, others find as too resort-like.

During the September 15 South Lake Tahoe City Council meeting, a man who identified himself as Ross Tisanrich approached the speaker's podium during the public comment period. He said he was a local wildland firefighter and wanted to bring the use of pesticides to a halt. He told the council he would drink the chemical weed killer Round-Up if they wouldn't commit to ending the use of pesticides that get into Lake Tahoe.

The Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) is inviting the public to comment on planned transportation projects and improvements that include bicycle and pedestrian paths, buses systems, sidewalks and the V & T railroad.

In the Carson City area alone there are over $9 million in proposed projects.

The Lake Tahoe Federal Advisory Committee (LTFAC) is scheduled to meet from 9 a.m. to noon, June 22, 2015, at the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit Forest Supervisor’s office, 35 College Drive, South Lake Tahoe, Calif., 96150. LTFAC will address issues related to federal activities at Lake Tahoe.

Items on the agenda include an overview of committee history, review of committee charter, update on status of Lake Tahoe Restoration Act and Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act, and discussion of Committee’s future strategy.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Governing Board on Wednesday unanimously approved the Tahoe Transportation District’s State Route 89/Fanny Bridge Community Revitalization Project to realign State Route 89 through Tahoe City.

The project realigns State Route 89 to route through traffic over roundabouts and a new two-lane bridge across the Truckee River to reduce transportation conflicts among drivers, bicyclists, and pedestrians at the congested pinch point at the Tahoe City “Wye.”

Local rivers may be eligible for inclusions in the National Wild and Scenic River system, and the Forest Service is asking for public comment as they evaluate the rivers in the Lake Tahoe Basin.

A webinar will be held on March 31, 2015 from 4:00 p.m. to 5 p.m. to explain the process being used for evaluation by the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU).

The LTBMU encourages public comment as part of the evaluation process, which is in response to objections raised during the LTBMU Land Management Plan revision.

Boulder, Colorado has one. Portland, Oregon has one. Even Roseville and Truckee, California have one. If plans go as they appeared to during a presentation at the City Council meeting on Tuesday, South Lake Tahoe will soon have one.

What is it?

"It" is a combination BMX track and mountain bike skills park which will be located at the city owned Bijou Park.

Bijou Bike Park Association (BBPA) and Tahoe Area Mountain Biking Association (TAMBA) President Ben Fish laid out the proposed plan to the Council and community.

Cal Trans will make a presentation on replacing or rehabilitating an aging Echo Summit bridge during Tuesday's South Lake Tahoe City Council meeting.

The planned Echo Summit Bridge Replacement and Rehabilitation Project has been created because weather, age and use have caused severe deck cracking, extensive rust in the reinforcing steel and concrete cracking and spalling (breaking off into smaller pieces).

The bridge was built in 1939, is 30.76 feet wide and has three spans over Echo Summit.

Several areas of the Truckee River near Tahoe City are set for restoration because of erosion and degraded water quality caused by river users.

Years of people accessing the river and paved trail from Highway 89 pullouts has created the need for about 900 feet of stream bank and wet meadow restoration. This project will include reshaping the river bank through placement of woody material and boulders.

A decision to approve the retrofit project to revitalize the Tallac Historic Site was announced today by the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU).

The project, in the works for a few years, will improve recreational facilities, implement water quality BMPs, as well as upgrade paths, restrooms, parking and picnic areas.