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Vast areas of California's Central Valley are sinking faster than in the past as massive amounts of groundwater are pumped during the historic drought, state officials said Wednesday, citing new research by NASA scientists.

The data shows the ground is sinking nearly two inches each month in some places, putting roads, bridges and vital canals that deliver water throughout the state at growing risk of damage.

When South Lake Tahoe became a city in 1965 there will freeway sized billboards in the community along Pioneer Trail and Highway 50. Since then, code has been written, and re-written over the years, all meant to improve the visual quality of South Lake Tahoe.

The City Code details all requirements about the type, placement, and scale of signs within different land use categories.

What would you do if you had a family miniature golf business you wanted to pass onto your four children? Build three more, of course!

In 1972, Bill and Mary Koplin built Magic Carpet Golf on land they purchased from Marjorie Springmeyer adjacent to what was once the South Lake Tahoe amusement park. Marjorie had overheard Bill and his real estate agent talking in a local restaurant about Bill's plans for building the course. "I have a piece of property I can sell you," Marjorie told them.

Perched around a secluded campfire in the Rocky Mountains, Glenn Martin jerked forward, said, "Ow," and died. The wayward bullet that struck him in the national forest has campers and other users calling for changes in recreational shooting policy.

Martin, 60, died July 3 in the Pike & San Isabel National Forest, 30 miles southwest of Denver. The 3.1-million-acre forest holds the record for the most gun-related violations reported in the country, a review of federal records by the USA TODAY Media Network shows.

An updated Lake Tahoe Basin Community Wildfire Protection Plan will be presented to the public during the Lake Tahoe Environmental Summit on Monday, August 24, 2015. This new Community Wildfire Protection Plan was collaboratively developed by the 18 member organizations of the Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team (TFFT) and is the culmination of a three-year planning effort.

Supervisor Sue Novasel, Lake Tahoe’s representative on the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors, announced the formation of an ad hoc committee that will engage a visioning process related to future development and use of County-owned properties and facilities in South Lake Tahoe. The vision committee will join with two members of the City Council and staff in collaborating toward mutual facility goals.

The Governing Board of the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency today unanimously approved the Tahoe Valley Area Plan the City of South Lake Tahoe created to guide community revitalization and environmental restoration in a district centered around the “Y” intersection of Highways 89 and 50.

Fire crews are mopping up after responding to a small brush fire in Rabe Meadow on Sunday afternoon.

Firefighters from Tahoe Douglas Fire Department (TDFD) and the U.S. Forest Service got early control of the fire which was burning in dry brush on Forest Service land just northeast of the bike bath.

The fire is under investigation according to Fire Marshal Eric Guevin. "Anyone with information is to call the Forest Service or TDFD via 911," said Guevin.

This week, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency voiced its strong support for legislation to reauthorize the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act that has been introduced in Congress by Tahoe’s Senate delegation.

Sponsored by U.S. Senator Dean Heller (R-Nevada) along with Harry Reid (D-Nevada), Dianne Feinstein (D-California), and Barbara Boxer (D-California), the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act would authorize up to $415 million in federal funding over 10 years to help continue critical environmental restoration work at Lake Tahoe.

Heavy rains over the past 48 hours have given firefighters the help they needed to contain the Washington Fire burning south of Markleeville.

As of 5 p.m. on July 4, the lightning caused fire was 99% contained after burning 17,790 acres.

Fire crews will continue to construct the remaining fire line and mop up hot spots along the perimeter. A smaller contingency of firefighters and equipment will remain on the incident with the type 3 management organization while still meeting incident objectives as outlined in the transfer of command.

A proposed solar panel project on 260 acres of Park Cattle Company land won approval by the Douglas County Planning Commission in May, but residents opposing the solar farm with its 148,277 panels are fighting back. They are taking their complaints to the July 2 meeting of the Douglas County Commissioners led by local residents Steve and Mary Walker who filed an appeal right after approval of the planning commission.

Nevada and 12 other states took swift action Monday to challenge an Obama administration rule expanding the federal government’s authority over non-navigational waters.

The suit, joined by Attorney General Adam Laxalt with the blessing of Gov. Brian Sandoval, was filed in federal court in the southeastern district of North Dakota on the same day a final rule expanding the definition of “Waters in the United States” was published in the Federal Register.

With illegal and unattended campfires the cause of over 90% of wildfires in the Lake Tahoe Basin, new fire restrictions go into place on July 1, 2015. Campfires and charcoal barbecues will be restricted to designated recreation sites, and other fire-related activities are prohibited until the end of fire season.

“Increased fire danger due to the ongoing drought combined with warmer and dryer weather is a big concern for the basin," said U.S. Forest Service fire management officer, Kit Bailey. "Fire restrictions help reduce the possibility of human caused fires.”

U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) officials are asking Burning Man organizers to provide "excessive" comforts such as flushing toilets, washers and dryers, and vanity mirrors in a compound for high-level government officials staying in Black Rock City.

A Burning Man spokesman estimated the compound would cost the event more than $1 million, bringing its 2015 permit fees to about $5 million. The renderings of the compound obtained by the RGJ also show various accommodations set aside for VIP visitors but don't indicate who the visiting dignitaries will be.

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 press time and the story will be updated when provided.

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Chautauqua performer Michael E. Fischer will portray Carson Valley rancher Heinrich F. Dangberg in a free presentation at the Dangberg Home Ranch Historic Park.

Location

The Lake Tahoe Unified School District unveiled their new website which will provide schools, staff and the public with more information than has ever been made available on line before.

One can now navigate through the district site and land on each school's web page, visit departments, school programs, accountability report cards as well as community news and resources.

The site can also be translated into ten languages. Users simple select the arrow on the top right side.

As the City of South Lake Tahoe celebrates the 50th anniversary of its incorporation, there is a long forgotten town that was once along the shores of Lake Tahoe.

Travelers came west in droves in 1849 after the discovery of gold near Placerville. Many used the Tahoe Wagon Road which is known as Pioneer Trail today. When the first major silver deposit in the United States was discovered in Virginia City in 1859, many of those same gold hunters traveled over that same road into Nevada.

Homelessness has many faces. Some are old, some are young. It affects all races, religions, and sexes. It can be triggered by a poor economy, inconsistent work, a medical catastrophe, and death of a family member. In the Lake Tahoe Unified School District (LTUSD), there are 246 homeless students (1).

I recently sat down with one of those students to understand a day in the life of a homeless student.

"This is astounding and I have not seen anything to this degree in the years I've lived here." Those were South Lake Tahoe City Councilwoman JoAnn Conner's words after hearing how several agencies will work together to make the Middle School Connectivity Plan a reality.

Her sentiments were echoed by her fellow council members and the mayor after seeing how multiple agencies can leverage their funds and plan together for a network of connecting trails through South Lake Tahoe that will keep pedestrians and bikers off unsafe roadways.

An Open House for the Meyers Area Plan (MAP) will be held on Wednesday, May 6 at the Lake Tahoe Environmental Magnet School located at 1095 East Bernardino Avenue from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Tahoe Douglas Rotarians spent Saturday cleaning out the historic Osgood Toll House, the oldest standing building in South Lake Tahoe. They took out hundreds of items including windows, doors, window frames, shutters and boards. After removing them they cataloged each item, cleaned and dried them and then stacked them back in the toll house.

A wildland fire off of Highway 395 was quickly contained by the Douglas County East Fire District Friday afternoon.

At approximately 4 p.m., the report of a fire burning just north of Stephanie Lane in Minden, NV came into dispatch. The quick moving fire spread to the dry sagebrush along the highway, closing the northbound land between Minden and Carson City for awhile.

By 6:30 p.m. Friday the fire was 95% contained and the road has reopened. It is estimated at this time that 3-4 acres burned.

The University of California, Davis and the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency recently released their yearly water clarity readings for Lake Tahoe. The good news: Mid-lake water clarity improved significantly in 2014, with an average reading of 77.8 feet. That’s 7.5 feet greater than the average reading for 2013, and almost 14 feet greater than the 64.1 feet measured in 1997, Lake Tahoe’s lowest recorded clarity.