SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Lake Tahoe Community College (LTCC) broke ground on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, on the Tahoe Basin Public Safety Training Complex, the first facility of its kind in the Tahoe Basin dedicated to training firefighters, forestry professionals, emergency medical technicians, and other first responders.
The ceremony drew students, elected officials, fire agencies, community partners, and representatives from the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office to the LTCC campus, where construction of the nearly 100,000-square-foot training complex is set to begin. The facility is scheduled to open in fall 2027.
“It’s not only a meaningful day for Lake Tahoe Community College and for our students, but a meaningful day for the Tahoe Basin, the state of California, the state of Nevada, and really the entire western United States,” said LTCC Superintendent/President Jeff DeFranco. “The students that will be trained here will help protect this great region of the West.”
The complex will include a multi-story training tower with live-fire capability, more than two acres of training tarmac, a 7,000-square-foot equipment storage facility, and multiple training hydrants with a water reclamation system. It will support LTCC’s Fire Academy, Fire Science, Forestry Education, Emergency Medical Services, and Search and Rescue programs.
The project is funded through $17 million in state, federal, and local support, including California Community Colleges Fire and Forestry Pathways funding, LTCC’s voter-approved Measure F bond, and federal appropriations.
LTCC Board of Trustees Chair Tony Sears noted the significance of completing the final major project tied to Measure F, the $55 million bond approved by South Tahoe voters in 2014.
“A facility like this does not come together because of one person or one funding source,” Sears said. “It happens through collaboration, partnership, and shared commitment.”
With the Public Safety Training Complex as its final major project, Measure F has proven to be far more than a $55 million investment. The bond helped leverage more than $70 million in additional funding from state and federal grants, philanthropic partnerships, and private donors, bringing total investment in LTCC’s campus to nearly $125 million.
Pamela Haynes, current board member and former board president of the California Community Colleges Board of Governors, spoke at the ceremony on behalf of the statewide system, which contributed $7 million to the project through the Fire and Forestry Pathways program.
“Lake Tahoe Community College was selected not only to receive funding for this facility, but also to serve as a statewide leader in helping support and strengthen fire and forestry workforce education across the community college system,” Haynes said.
South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue Chief Jim Drennan, one of the founding partners of LTCC’s fire academy, reflected on how far the program has come since its launch in 2006.
“Seeing it come to fruition solidifies not just the commitment from the college, but a strong commitment from all of the partner agencies here in the region,” Drennan said.
Until now, students and working professionals seeking similar training have had to travel outside the Tahoe Basin, often to Roseville, Carson City, Reno, or beyond. The new facility will eliminate that barrier for residents of a mountain community where weather, distance, and cost can make travel difficult.
Tree removal will begin in the coming weeks, with construction to follow. The facility is on pace to open to students in fall 2027.
LTCC would like to thank its public safety program funders: CAL FIRE, California Resilient Careers In Forestry, California Tahoe Conservancy, El Dorado Community Foundation, Marin Community Foundation, Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation, and the Tahoe Fund.
For more information, visit ltcc.edu/pstc
Photos from the ceremony provided by LTCC:
