vacation

With the new South Lake Tahoe Vacation Home Rental (VHR) Ordinance going into effect on Friday, December 22, 2017, the police department took the first steps in acting on one part of that new document, the three strikes and you're out portion.

On Thursday, South Lake Police Department (SLTPD) sent certified mail notices to permitted VHR owners who have had one or two upheld violations in the last 24 months.

The City of South Lake Tahoe put the finishing touches to the new Vacation Home Rental (VHR) ordinance Tuesday, paving the way for what community members have asked for: More enforcement, better monitoring and rules to bring reasonable calm to their neighborhoods.

"This is a code with real teeth," said SLT Police Chief Brian Uhler. "It's a clear and simple message that we're not fooling around. There are strong laws for staff to carry out."

In their annual reorganization, the South Lake Tahoe City Council has voted in a new mayor and mayor pro tem for the year 2018.

Wendy David returns as mayor, a position she held in 2016. She was mayor pro tem during 2017.

Tom Davis returns as vice mayor for the fifth time.

"I want to thank the Council for your support," said Mayor David. "I want to look at how we want to move forward and focus on community conversation. It's what brings us together. Community conversation is the most important thing we'll do next year."

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at time of story.

Some of those recently added to last week's log:

11/17

10:58 p.m. - Driving without a license - Stockton Ave - A TRAFFIC STOP WAS CONDUCTED ON A VEHICLE FOR AN INFRACTION. IT WAS LATER LEARNED THE DRIVER OF THE VEHICLE WAS UNLICENSED. THE 32-YEAR-OLD FEMALE DRIVER WAS LATER CITED AND RELEASED.

Twelve years of Vacation Home Rentals (VHRs), what a sad place So. Lake Tahoe residential neighborhoods have become. Thanks go to local Realtors, out of town owners, and VHR rental agencies, who care mostly about money, not about the peace and tranquility of the local residents. But they’re not alone, we also have City and County officials that don’t represent the locals that elect them, instead it’s all about the tourists and their friends in the VHR business, some of those friends are elected officials.

Dear Editor;

In writing this letter, I am only expressing my own opinion and not that of
any organization or entity.

Vacation Home Rentals (VHRs) in the County are out of control. As is
evidenced by the number of residents complaining about noise, parking, trash,
over-occupancy, etc, it is time for our government representatives to act and
change the current ordinance to respect our rights to live in peaceful
neighborhoods.

There are many issues surrounding VHRs that need to be addressed, but I

Unknowingly, visitors to South Lake Tahoe are renting legitimate vacation homes through illegitimate parties, leaving them without money or a place to stay when they arrive.

South Tahoe Now has been warning people for years about renting both short-term and long-term homes through Craigslist, the online classified ad forum.

The South Lake Tahoe Police Department is warning potential vacation home renters that scams continue on Craigslist.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at time of story.

Some of those recently added to last week's log:

10/25

As with meetings concerning vacation rentals (VHRs) in the City of South Lake Tahoe, many residents from the county turned out to voice concerns with the El Dorado County's Tax Collector C.L. Cherie Raffety Wednesday.

What was different than the City's meetings, Raffety limited how the public could speak about noise, parking, occupancy, hot tubs, zoning and other issues they have in their neighborhoods. She broke up the issues and heard concerns, one subject at a time.

The El Dorado County Tax Collector will be holding a meeting to discuss vacation home rentals (VHRs) in the non-city limits portions of South Lake Tahoe on Wednesday, November 1 at 2:00 p.m. at the SLT library.

C.L. Raffety is holding the public meeting to discuss recent changes in the ordinance, and hear suggestions for amendments. Under consideration for changes include no sub-leases of vacation homes, signage requirements and looking at ways to eliminate clusters of VHRs in neighborhoods.

The South Lake Tahoe City Council voted Tuesday night to stop issuing permits for vacation home rentals (VHRs), at least temporarily.

Every year the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors venture to South Lake Tahoe to hold one of their meetings in the eastern portion of the county. This year's meeting will be Tuesday, October 17 at the Lahontan Water Board Annex at 971 Silver Dollar Avenue.

They usually hold their meeting when the South Lake Tahoe City Council does not have a meeting, but with the Council voting to change their October meeting dates recently, that is not true this year. It was too late for El Dorado County to change the date and they had to find a new venue.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at time of story.

Some of those recently added to last week's log:

9/28

1:30 p.m. - Annoying Phone Calls - South Lake Tahoe - SUSPECT SENT HARASSING TEXT MSG TO 16-YEAR-OLD FEMALE VICTIM.

El Dorado County initiated the "Good Neighbor Program" in 2014 after holding a public meeting on October 23 of that year.

Tax Collector Cherie Raffety said during the meeting that the County wanted vacation homes to be a good neighbor instead of creating a situation that causes Sheriff's deputies to be called out for excessive noise. Management companies were to go to neighbors, introduce themselves and leave contact info.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - It's been almost two years since Nolen Buchanan of Benicia, California first appeared in a Placerville courtroom as a 16-year-old, charged with the killing of his family in their El Dorado County vacation home and then setting it on fire.

The charred remains of Buchanan's father Adam, 38, his father's fiancée Molly McAffe, 37, and his 8-year-old brother, Gavin, were found in that Greenwood cabin on September 13, 2015.

Since that time, Nolen has been in the Juvenile Treatment Center (JTC) in South Lake Tahoe.

Vacation home rentals (VHRs) in South Lake Tahoe are again the subject of a City Council meeting. In an effort to come to an ordinance that satisfies all sides, the October 3 council meeting will look at several topics that were discussed at the September 5 VHR workshop.

I read with great interest Mayor Sass’s recent editorial of how he and Wendy David have been living, sleeping, and eating the VHR issue for over 2 years. I internalized these words and reflected how we, as responsible vacation home rental managers, have been dealing with inept City Councils and City Management for over 12 years.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at time of story.

Some of those recently added to last week's log:

9/6

7:27 a.m. - Bear Report at VHR - Horace Greeley Ave - A MALE COMPLAINED ABOUT A VACATION RENTAL HAVING TRASH AROUND THE HOME. UPON ARRIVAL IT WAS CONFIRMED A BEAR HAD SCATTERED THE RUBBISH.

9/7

The following 90 businesses took out business licenses with the City of South Lake Tahoe during the month of July, 2017 (spelling of the business names is taken directly from the City's website):

7/3

4-SEASONS DECOR
A STERLING AFFAIR
ARTIST TO YOU - METAL ART
BAKER HOME PRODUCTS
CALVIN LEE CLOTHING STORES
DESERT PARADISE CLOTHING
GERALD DEWEY SALES
HENERY'S NIGHT LIGHTS
PS DESIGN
ROYAL OIL MFG
STEVEN LN PROPERTY
SWEET FEATHER
SWEET JEAN'S NUTTY GOURMET
THOMAS PHOTO ARTS

7/5

4LEAF INC
KOA ARCHITECTS
OUR ART'S DESIRE LLC

7/6

CLASSIC CUT LAWN CARE

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - There are two topics that fills the City Council chambers: Marijuana and Vacation Home Rentals (VHR). Interested residents and other stakeholders in the City's proposed changes to the VHR ordinance not only filled chambers, but filled seats surrounding televisions in the lobby where the proceedings were aired.

After almost six hours of presentation and conversation, the City Council voted to bring back the new ordinance in one month on October 5.

"Our job is to make a decision, not continuing to kick the can down the road," said SLT Mayor Austin Sass.

Renting a home while on vacation is the trend in many tourist destinations, not only in Lake Tahoe, but across the globe. This new way of vacationing has not come without issues so many towns are creating ordinances or, like in Anaheim and other cities, banning them.

If you were hanging around Camp Richardson Thursday you may have caught some extra activity on the pier as the comedy series "Modern Family" was being filmed. Reports say the popular show's annual vacation episode is taking place in South Lake Tahoe.

Cast and crew have been seen a local spots enjoying dinner, including Edgewood Tahoe and star Sofia Vergara and the show's children actors, Ariel Winter, Nolan Gould, Rico Rodriguez and Aubrey Anderson-Emmons, have all posted on Twitter and Instagram about their Lake Tahoe adventures.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIF. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at time of story.

8/13

4:45 a.m. - Possession - James Ave - A SMALL CONTAINER OF COCAINE WAS FOUND IN THE PRISONER AREA OF AN EDSO PATROL VEHICLE. THE COCAINE WAS BOOKED AS EVIDENCE.

Over 700 bags of food have been distributed to the youth of South Lake Tahoe so far this summer thanks to a partnership between Bread & Broth 4 Kids (B&B4K) and Vail Resorts/Heavenly Mountain Resort.

Vail CEO Rob Katz and his wife Elana Amsterdam donated $125,000 to get a summer food program for youth up to the age of 18 started on the South Shore, and Bread & Broth and Family Resource Center worked together with Heavenly to make it happen.