city council

Twenty-one days after the election, the final results have now been certified by the El Dorado County elections department.

The closest race was for the three open seats for South Lake Tahoe City Council. The top vote getter was long time local Wendy David who had 18.05 % of the vote with 1727 residents feeling confident she'd represent them well. Coming in second was incumbent Tom Davis who received 1461 votes, or 15.52% of the vote. Austin Sass moved ahead of incumbent Angela Swanson and ended up with 1318 votes to Swanson's 1289, just .31% difference.

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.

Janet McDougall used the public comment portion of a recent South Lake Tahoe City Council meeting to speak of her concern that people would lose access to Connelly Beach. Council members took interest and the subject is on Tuesday's Council agenda.

McDougall, a resident of South Lake Tahoe since 1963 and a graduate of South Tahoe High in 1975, spent 17 years working in the city attorney's office in town. She said that during that time she saw a growing amount of beaches becoming unavailable to the public.

It's been eight days and there is still no official count from last Tuesday's election. With 100% of the precincts counted by 1 a.m. November 5, El Dorado County election employees have been counting the absentee and provisional ballots since then. They released their third report of the count today, showing little change from Friday's numbers.

Dear South Lake Tahoe voters,

Quite simply, thank you for your support of my candidacy and election to your South Lake Tahoe City Council. I am humbled and honored by your support and will strive to represent you as residents and our City as a whole.

Thank you to all of the candidates that ran in this election. I learned so much from each of you. You have my respect and admiration as well.

With just 13 votes separating two candidates and deciding who will be on the South Lake Tahoe City Council, thousands of uncounted absentee and provisional ballots could actually change the outcome.

El Dorado County election officials told South Tahoe Now today that an estimated 12,000 absentee ballots and 1,000 provisional ballots may take until Thanksgiving to count. By law they have 18 days to certify the election and all votes must be counted by then.

100% of the ballots from polling locations have now been counted in the El Dorado County and City of South Lake Tahoe elections. The following is the result pending some absentee ballots that still need to be counted.

County Supervisor Area 5

Sue Novasel - 59.92% 3529 votes
Kenny Curtzwiler - 39.58% 2331 votes

City of South Lake Tahoe City Council
Top 3 win a seat

Wendy David 18.00% 1205 votes
Tom Davis 15.56% 1042 votes

You've seen the ads, you've heard the commercials and you've read the materials that all lead to your voting on Tuesday, November 4. Tuesday is Election Day!

On the South Shore we have a few different races to decide along with state issues and candidates, and it's not as simple as filling in the bubbles on your ballot.

South Lake Tahoe residents will have a chance to see the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors in action on Tuesday, October 28 as they have their meeting on the east slope.

Many topics pertaining to the South SHore will be on the agenda.

The South Lake Tahoe Parks, Trails and Recreation Master Plan will be presented by a consultant team. A vote will then be taken on whether to approve the plan and start the environmental review process. Those costs would be split with the City of South Lake Tahoe.

Most of us moved to Meyers because it's a rural community, away from the City & tourist congestion. I am pro-growth, most locals are, as long as it's appropriately sized growth for our community. The proposed Meyer's Plan however, opens the door to a Mega Resort, with incentives for large development and in my mind, lacks long range planning.

I started going to planning meetings last summer, just to listen, but it wasn't until December that I got really concerned. Here's a timeline of events, from my perspective:

To avoid going down the bankruptcy path as many cities had to over the past few years, the City of South Lake Tahoe today adopted resolutions to restructure the wage and benefit packages of its employees.

The new wage and benefit plans include a mixture of more clearly defined benefits and contributions. It was the undefined plans of the past that caused $25M in unfunded liabilities.

In front of a packed council chambers full of firemen and other staff, City Manager Nancy Kerry unveiled the results of negotiations between five of the six employee groups and the City.

The South Lake Tahoe City Council recently voted to offer reduced parking tickets to businesses in the Heavenly Village in order to get more of them on board with offering validation to their customers.

Businesses can now pay one dollar for an hour of validation. The movie theater pays $.35 per hour for their tickets. They previously offered free validation to movie goers for four hours of parking but that will now be reduced to three hours.

The city is looking for ways to advertise participating businesses on signage in the city owned garage.

The El Dorado County Planning Commission will be holding a public hearing and workshop on the Meyers Area Plan at the South Lake Tahoe City Council Chambers on October 16 from 9 a.m. to noon.

The public has a chance to give input and share ideas on the plan which will be an update of the existing 1993 Meyers Community Plan.

The plan's goal is to:
1) Be a comprehensive land use plan for Meyers;
2) Realize Meyers’ Community Vision;
3) Provide consistent and simplified rules;
4) Assist in achieving Tahoe
Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) Thresholds;

A special City Council meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 1st to adopt the 2014/215 budget. City Council meetings are always open to the public and the agenda is on line.

Running for elected office is one of the most humbling experiences a person can have. You’re allowing yourself to be scrutinized by your community, people can take shots at your positions, and you have to move forward with calm and ease the entire time. I knew I wanted to make a difference in our community after completing the TahoeChamber’s Leadership Lake Tahoe program, little did I know that I’d be taking action and running for City Council so soon.

Earlier this year the California Tahoe Conservancy (CTC) purchased three properties in order to provide open space, improve water quality and remove blight.

The first of these properties, the Alta Mira Building, was demolished this week.

"We hope these acquisitions will be just the first wave of our renewed
efforts to partner with the City in helping to revitalize South Lake Tahoe," Tom Davis said in May when the Conservancy Board voted to purchase the building for $2.5 million. He sits on both the Conservancy Board and South Lake Tahoe City Council.

To the Community,

I offer a friendly challenge to my fellow city council candidates to make South Lake Tahoe a “Sign Free” zone this campaign season. Whether or not they take me up on the offer, I am forgoing them and focusing my energy instead in walking neighborhoods and listening to what is on voters’ minds.

The seven candidates for South Lake Tahoe City Council were at Wednesday nights Candidate Forum at Lake Tahoe Golf Course. The Tahoe Chamber and Tahoe Daily Tribune hosted the evening which had Rabbi Evon Yakar moderating the questions and answers.

About 100 people showed up to listen to panel who were given questions prepared by the chamber's new political committee as well as those asked by the audience. The questions were asked of different candidates so not everyone was asked the same one.

Lake Tahoe Community College gained the support of the South Lake Tahoe City Council today in their pursuit of $55,000,000 in bond funds through Measure F. The Council voted unanimously to adopt the support resolution.

Dr. Kindred Murillo, Superintendent/President of the Lake Tahoe Community College District, was on hand at Tuesday's City Council meeting to provide an explanation of what the bond would mean to the South Shore community and answer any questions the five council members had.

The former City Council building on Lake Tahoe Blvd is the new home for El Dorado County Mental Health. They'll be packing up their current Johnson Avenue offices on Friday, September 5 and are planning on opening in their new location on Monday, September 8.

Shawna Brekke-Read has been named the City of South Lake Tahoe's new Development Services Director. She is heading to the Sierra from the Bay Area where she has been the Town of Moraga's Planning Director for the last three years.

City Manager Nancy Kerry made the announcement Thursday. “I am very pleased to announce the selection of Shawna Brekke-Read to join the City’s organization leadership team. We are fortunate to recruit a professional of her caliber, experience and tenacity. I am confident Ms. Brekke-Read will serve the community and City Council well.”

Seven candidates are vying for the three open seats on the South Lake Tahoe City Council in November. Incumbents Angela Swanson, Brooke Laine and Tom Davis are going up against Wendy David, Matt Palacio, Bruce Grego and Austin Sass.

With so many candidates to choose from it will be important come election day to vote for the three you feel can lead the City for the next four years.

Marijuana is a major concern for many in our City. As part of the City Code, our City Council provided for a safer community by allowing marijuana grow operations only after a permit is obtained. The permit process provides for a building official to inspect for things like:

1. Safe wiring—adding large number of “grow lights” overburdens conventional electric outlets and can cause fires.

8/24/14 Update - this event has been canceled according to MontBleu Resort.

Almost once an hour a military veteran commits suicide in the United States according the the Department of Veterans Affairs and among those on active duty the number is still sobering, one a day.

In an effort to bring the plight of American military members suffering from Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) and Post Traumatic Stress (PTS) to the forefront, a Broadway like show and wellness festival are coming to South Lake Tahoe.