building department

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. The South Lake Tahoe City Council unanimously passed an urgency ordinance during their special meeting Thursday, one that relaxes the regulations regarding temporary signage, building permit fees, and outdoor restaurant seating rules.

As the City and County move into Governor Newsom's Stage 2 plans, restrictions placed on some places of business to promote social distancing and safety practices will not allow many to reopen in the same manner as pre-pandemic.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A home on Idaho Avenue in South Lake Tahoe had two fires overnight, resulting in damage to both the house and garage.

At 5:52 p.m. February 1, South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue (SLTFR) was called out to the home after what appears to be ashes placed in the garage caught on fire. The fire was knocked down and after being cleaned up, the fire crew left.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A 71-year old local man was transported to Barton Hospital for evaluation after he experienced a medical issue while driving on South Shore Drive Monday afternoon. He veered off the road and into the garage of a home.

Emergency personnel responded to the 4:10 p.m. call June 3 and upon arrival found the car had crashed through the garage. Nobody was home at the time but she arrived shortly after.

The South Lake Tahoe building department inspected the structure and damage was limited to the garage.

There were no injuries.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - An agreement has been reached between the City of South Lake Tahoe and Tahoe Wellness Cooperative (TWC) after over two years of court proceedings between the two.

During the closed session portion of Tuesday's City Council meeting, the four councilmembers allowed to participate voted unanimously to accept the signed agreement between the City and TWC. Councilmember Cody Bass had to recuse himself from voting since he is the owner and president of TWC.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A Nissan pickup truck ended up in a South Lake Tahoe home on Saturday afternoon after being struck from behind by a Dodge Ram truck.

At 1:30 p.m. on August 25, the driver of the pickup truck was driving on Pioneer Trail when he stopped to turn onto Herbert Avenue. He was struck from behind by the Dodge and passed out. His pickup then freewheeled down Herbert and crashed into a home at the corner of Warr Road and Herbert Avenue.

The driver was transported to Barton Hospital with undisclosed injuries. There were no other injuries.

Lake Valley Fire Department (LVFD) crews responded to a roof collapse off of Nahane Street Wednesday morning. The flat roof and deck collapsed over the garage of the Meyers area home had due to a heavy snow load.

A neighbor saw the damage March 22 and called it in, but they are unsure of when the incident actually occurred.

Crews immediately shut off the gas to the property and notified Liberty Utilities, Southwest Gas, the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Department and Building Department.

The historic building that housed a liquor store and other businesses in South Lake Tahoe suffered significant damage after a heavy snow load contributed to the collapse of the building's roof early Monday morning.

A quick response by South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue (SLTFR) saved a Merced Avenue four-plex from major damage Wednesday night.

At 10:54 p.m. December 14, SLTFR received a call of fire in one of the four two-story units. When they arrived they found the bottom floor engulfed. Within seven minutes, the fire was knocked down according to South Lake Tahoe Fire Chief Jeff Meston.

A lawsuit against the City of South Lake Tahoe over the fees charged to those who rent out their homes as vacation rentals was won by the City in court this week. The June 23 verdict was received by all parties on June 28.

Judge Steven Bailey of the El Dorado County Superior Court issued an 11-page decision supporting the City's rights to charge fees to recover their costs in administering the VHR ordinance, including staff time for accounting, planning, building department, administration, code enforcement and other costs.

In order to improve customer service, the South Lake Tahoe Permit Center expanded their hours of operations.

Beginning today, August 17, the center will be open 8 a.m. - 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, with no closures during the day.

The City recognized the need to provide quality customer service to the development community. The new hours of operation will help assist individuals and businesses who want to invest in the community, improve their buildings, and build new projects by providing more opportunities for permit processing needs.

In order to ensure motels and hotels being used as long term housing were kept decent, safe, sanitary, and affordable, the City of South Lake Tahoe has created a Single Room Occupancy (SRO) ordinance. At Tuesday's City Council meeting, the first reading received unanimous approval and support.

The ordinance gives the lodging community guidelines to follow if renting out units more than 30 days.

Safe and habitable units will be made available within the next twelve months once the design and maintenance standards are approved at the next council meeting June 16.

Ten people had to find other accommodations Monday night after a suspicious fire started at the Tahoe Pines Lodge and destroyed three units.

The lodge in South Lake Tahoe is located behind the Sno-Flake Drive Inn and is used primarily as a residential motel. The American Red Cross gave the displaced residents rooms at the Howard Johnson Express Inn for three days.