retail

The public has been on a long journey with the Tahoe Transportation District over the US50/South Shore Community Revitalization project, one that has followed twisted roads and endured roadblocks and detours.

Now it appears the project, also known as the Loop Road, is on the back straightaway, approaching the final turn and homestretch.

People at Lake Tahoe are working together like never before to restore our environment, revitalize our economy, and improve our communities. We saw significant progress all around the lake this year. And our progress is sustainable with continued partnership and collaboration, so critical to tackle the many challenges and important decisions on our horizon.

The South Lake Tahoe City Council voted to rescind the ban on single use plastic bags in retail outlets during Monday's meeting. Mayor Wendy David and Mayor Pro Tem Austin Sass were the only ones who wanted to continue the ban but were outvoted in the 3-2 vote.

This week we had a request for help from a family whose 10 month old German Shepard got his muzzle stuck in a knuckle bone purchased from a pet store. He had eaten out the center of the bone and the bone became lodged onto his jaw. After the owner tried for an hour to remove the bone it became apparent that an emergency vet appointment was need. The bone had broken his tooth and was causing extreme pain. Alpine Animal Hospital was nice enough to squeeze them in right away and was able to remove the bone with a minor surgery.

Heavenly Mountain Resort, Northstar California Resort and Kirkwood Mountain Resort will all be having job fairs at the beginning of November, and new this year, 15- and 16-year-old teens can now be employed.

They are accepting applications for the upcoming 2015-16 winter season as well as having the job fairs.

On June 14, 2014, the South Lake Tahoe City Council voted to delay the implementation of the second phase of the plastic bag ban in the city. Originally slated to begin on October 15, 2014, the Council, by a vote of 3-2, moved the start date out one year to October 15, 2015.

Now that the second phase of the ban has started, Mayor Hal Cole wants to revisit that portion of the ban.

Cole said he wants to undo the ban on plastic bags for retail stores and asked for the topic to be on an upcoming agenda.

"The Factory Stores at the Y" will soon be transformed into "The Crossing at Tahoe Valley" if the plan is approved by the City of South Lake Tahoe. In January, 2015, The Sutter Capital Group of Sacramento announced they had purchased the property after it fell into bankruptcy.

South Lake Tahoe is continuing its renaissance with businesses undergoing changes with either complete makeovers, remodeling or demolition and rebuilding.

Over the past several months, South Tahoe Now has been highlighting all of the changes along the South Shore. But we're not done yet as the changes continue.

Elements Day Spa, a full service day spa and retail shop, will introduce its new location and services to the public during a grand opening from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 3. The new location is inside of Fitness Evolution at 2565 Lake Tahoe Blvd. Owner April Vadnais will provide complimentary chair massages, along with raffle prizes, refreshments and appetizers. Tahoe Chamber will officiate a ribbon cutting during the grand opening.

Since South Lake Tahoe is the perfect place to get outside and enjoy the fresh air, a local hotel is adding an incentive for guests under the ago of 17 to get out and explore.

Several South Shore businesses were among those honored during the 2nd Annual Douglas County Spotlight Awards. The Spotlight Awards recognize businesses in seven different categories: Retail, Restaurant, Manufacturing and Production, Sports and Recreation, Entrepreneur, Business and Professional Service, and Tourism and Hospitality.

The ceremony was held the County’s Financial State of the County event on Thursday, June 11.

The businesses were selected based on achieving some or many of the following eligibility criteria:

Twenty years and many meetings later, the Tahoe Valley Area Plan unanimously passed the first of two final hurdles at Tuesday's City Council meeting.

In the first reading to adopt the three resolutions which make up the plan, Mayor Hal Cole and the City Council thanked everyone who was part of the long process to start shaping things up at the "Y". "This plan will have an impact for years to come," said Cole.

Tot to Tot, a gently-used children’s clothing, toy and equipment store, recently celebrated two years in business in South Lake Tahoe. To celebrate this occasion, owner Erin Elliott invites the community to a ribbon cutting and open house on June 2 beginning at 4:30 p.m.

Elliott first realized the need for quality used children’s items in Tahoe when she became a mother five years ago. With little luck finding affordable children’s items in the South Shore, Elliott yearned for the prices and quality found in gently-used clothing and equipment stores in larger cities.

Now that weather is favorable for roadwork, Caltrans and NDot have begun their projects around Lake Tahoe and the surrounding areas.

Long term projects:

State Route 89 (Placer County): Work continues on a $70.1 million project from Tahoma to the "Y" junction with State Route 28 in Tahoe City on Lake Tahoe's West Shore that will upgrade storm water drainage and treatment systems, add curb and gutter, resurface and realign the road, add new left-turn pockets and widen shoulders on a 9-mile stretch of the highway. Completion is expected in fall 2016.

As a thank you to area residents and employees, the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Lake Tahoe is hosting a free industry night for locals on the last Sunday of every month featuring live concerts in Vinyl. The first monthly event is Sunday, April 26 with a performance by Forget the Roses. Doors open at 8 p.m. and the show starts at 9 p.m.

Summer in South Lake Tahoe means being outdoors and enjoying life, and the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino announced today one more thing to enjoy: more outdoor concerts.

A temporary 7,500 seat outdoor area is being created on the back parking lot of Hard Rocky Hotel & Casino in Lake Tahoe in order to host the “BaseJam Summer 2015 Outdoor Concert Series.”

A summer full of concerts at the new casino on the South Shore will start with the 3rd Annual Lake Tahoe Reggae Festival on June 27. Also booked is the Lake Tahoe Bluegrass Festival which is slated for July 11.

Living local takes on new meaning now that those living close to South Shore can reap big rewards thanks to a new Backstage Pass Rewards Program at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Resort that is exclusive to local area residents.

Good news for shareholders of Vail Resorts Thursday after the results for the second quarter of the fiscal year were released. Vail operates real estate, ski resort and lodging segments including Heavenly, Kirkwood and Northstar Mountain Resorts in Lake Tahoe.

Vail Resort's net income was $115.8 million for the second fiscal quarter of 2015, representing a 95.3% increase compared to the same period last year.

Legal marijuana was a $700 million dollar industry in Colorado last year, according to a Washington Post analysis of recently-released tax data from the state's Department of Revenue. In 2014, Colorado retailers sold $386 million of medical marijuana and $313 million for purely recreational purposes. The two segments of the market generated $63 million in tax revenue, with an additional $13 million collected in licenses and fees.

Renovate, improve, contemporize and rebrand. That is what Burke Fathy says Sutter Capital Group plans to do with the former Factory Stores at the Y.

"The property needs to be repositioned," said Fathy, a partner with Sutter, told South Tahoe Now. "We are going to rebrand it from a factory store and make it more mixed tenant and give it new life."

The Sacramento investment group recently purchased the center after it fell into bankruptcy after years of mismanagement, Fathy said.

When reflecting over the past year it's hard to remember all that happened in one's life, unless you're good at keeping a journal and you have time to re-read it.

As I look back at what happened in South Lake Tahoe over the last 365 days, a lot happened, but what may seem to be a top story to me may not seem as important to a reader.

I reviewed our analytics, the numbers that are kept to show how many people read South Tahoe Now stories at any given point, and drew from those numbers to come up with the "South Lake Tahoe's Top Stories of 2014."

Tucked deep inside the 1,603-page federal spending measure is a provision that effectively ends the federal government's prohibition on medical marijuana and signals a major shift in drug policy.

The bill's passage over the weekend marks the first time Congress has approved nationally significant legislation backed by legalization advocates. It brings almost to a close two decades of tension between the states and Washington over medical use of marijuana.

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, aka the Woz, will be in South Lake Tahoe to help raise funds for Lake Tahoe Unified School District. In partnership with the local Hard Rock Cafe, Wozniak will autograph any laptops, iPhones, t-shirts or other personal items brought in for a suggested donation to LTUSD.

For his "State of the City" address, South Lake Tahoe Mayor Hal Cole took everyone on a trip through the city, celebrating the successes of the last year and creating an anticipation for a future seen with new investments, an improved economy, more businesses and a community that will continue to thrive.