south tahoe public utility

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Back in the 1940s, before South Tahoe Public Utility
District existed, sewage flowed directly into beautiful Lake Tahoe. Citizens rallied to sign a petition to form the District and this year marks our 70th anniversary. From a single septic field to an award-winning 7.7 million gallon per day wastewater treatment facility, with 100% recycled water and biosolids, a lot
has changed over the years.

The South Tahoe Public Utility District Board of Directors extended the COVID-19 Rate Relief Program to assist residents and businesses that are facing financial
hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The District’s COVID-19 Rate Relief Program offers a 50% credit up to $3,000 for the next quarterly sewer bill for customers in need.

“We’re extending the rate relief program because our community just entered another phase of restrictions, which could cause economic hardship for our customers,” says Randy Vogelgesang, Board President.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Those in the North Upper Truckee neighborhood in Meyers are still until a boil water advisory but that could be lifted Thursday. The South Tahoe Public Utility District (STPUD) has received good results on their first set of water samples from the North Upper Truckee neighborhood.

STPUD collected 30 water samples from the affected Tuesday evening. The tests for chlorine residuals came back normal (ranging from 0.4 to 0.8 parts per million) and no coliform bacteria was detected in any of the samples.

More ballot counts have been released by the elections departments at both El Dorado and Douglas Counties.

EL DORADO COUNTY

El Dorado County election officials have released another tally of ballots counted. The results remain the same as of the November 10 count. Votes Cast: 116,744 of 135,554, or 86.12 percent of eligible voters.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The El Dorado County Elections Department has tabulated another 16,320 ballots. They plan to have the count of 9,200 mail-in ballots completed Friday. Then there will be about 1,200 provisional ballots left to count and some ballots that were waiting on signature corrections.

At this time, 105,725 ballots have been counted of the possible 135,554 voters (77.99%).

10:46 P.M. UPDATE: Both El Dorado County and Douglas County have released an updated count at this hour. For El Dorado County, 149 of 209 precincts have now been tabulated. Depending on the area, Douglas County shows about 72 percent of Tuesday's votes listed.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - There are three open seats on the South Tahoe Public Utility Board of Directors this election season, two for a four-year term and one for a two-year term.

South Tahoe Now reached out to the candidates and below are their answers to a set of questions. For the two four-year terms, incumbent Kelly Sheehan is running for reelection, Duane Wallace is running after being appointed to fill Jim Jones's spot on the board until this election, and they are joined by David Peterson.

The Tahoe Chamber collected 190 nominations from the community for the 13th annual Blue Ribbon Award to celebrate the businesses, non-profits and individuals that make the South Shore of Lake Tahoe so unique. Local businesses have been a resilient backbone of the community throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and honoring their contributions, achievements and milestones is more important than ever before.

The levels of toxins associated with blooms of blue-green algae have reached above the "danger" level at Red Lake in Alpine Count, and at the "warning" level at Indian Creek Reservoir.

The Alpine County Health Department has been working with The Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board, California Department of Fish and Wildlife (Red Lake), South Tahoe Public Utility District (Indian Creek Reservoir), and the Alpine Watershed Group (AWG) in determining these levels.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - – The South Tahoe Public Utility District (STPUD) Board of Directors adopted a temporary COVID-19 Rate Relief Program during their last meeting to assist residents and businesses that are facing financial hardship due to the pandemic. This new program offers a 50 percent credit to one quarterly sewer bill for customers in need.

“This pandemic has impacted some in our community more than others,” said STPUD Board Presdient Randy Vogelgesang. “We felt that we needed to do our part to help our customers who need it the most.”

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - There are several candidates who turned in their paperwork to run for office by the August 7 deadline, but with no incumbents running for South Lake Tahoe City Council, the deadline for that office is extended through August 12.

As of Friday at 5:00 p.m., the following candidates turned in their paperwork (there still may be some in transit):

South Lake Tahoe City Council (Two open seats)
Bruce Grego, Attorney/Advocate
Leonard Carter, Retired
Daniel P Browne, Jr., Retired Businessman
Cristi Creegan, Business Owner/Volunteer

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - South Tahoe Public Utility District invites private well owners to take a 5-10 minute survey about their well, water usage, and any concerns they may have concerning their well. For participation in the survey the District is offering guidance on well maintenance, a free site check to help prevent contamination from entering the well, and free water testing to understand the well’s water quality.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - For the second time since the COVID-19 pandemic started,
the South Tahoe Public Utility District Board of Directors approved waiving late fees for water and sewer bills due at the end of June.

“We recognize that some in our community are financially struggling,” says Randy Vogelgesang, Board President. “Waiving late fees for bills due during COVID-19 provides customers some relief.”

Customers with questions or those facing hardships are encouraged to contact the District at (530) 544-6474 to find out about various services and payment options available.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - There will be a special board meeting for the South Tahoe Public Utility District (STPUD) on Thursday, June 11 starting at 9:00 a.m. to discuss who will fill the remainder of Jim Jones's term.

Jones, a longtime member of the board, passed away on May 7.

Nine residents filled out an application and expressed a desire to be the temporary board member until December 2020. Jones's seat would have been up for election in November.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A subcontractor working at the site of a new Verizon cell tower near South Tahoe Public Utility District died Thursday after falling headfirst into a 35-foot by six-foot hole.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - South Tahoe Public Utility District is accepting applications to appoint a Board Member to serve through December 4, 2020, the one left vacant with the passing of Jim Jones.

Interested applicants must be a registered voter within the District boundaries and can apply by submitting a letter of interest and resume to mguttry@stpud.us by Tuesday, June 2, 2020.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - On May 7, 2020, South Lake Tahoe lost a steadfast advocate for safe, clean drinking water and reliable wastewater services. James R. Jones, 77, a local engineer and avid sailor, served on South Tahoe Public Utility District’s Board of Directors for 39 years (1977-1989, 1993-2020). During his tenure on the Board, Director Jones focused on building for the future, instead of 'kicking the can down the road.’

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Work has begun on two phases of the 3.86-mile long South Tahoe Greenway Shared-Use Trail (Greenway) that will connect Sierra Boulevard in Tahoe Sierra Tract to the Van Sickle Bi-State Park near Stateline in South Lake Tahoe.

The project was approved in 2011 and 2016 and will provide users with a safe way to travel by non-motorized means off of the highway through the heart of South Lake Tahoe. The whole length will include neighborhood connectors and the ability to join the popular trail from the Y to past Baldwin Beach.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The South Tahoe Public Utility District (STPUD) is warning residents that while cleaning surfaces with disinfecting wipes to reduce the spread of COVID-19 is encouraged, discarding them and paper towels in the toilet is not.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - There is a rapidly changing response to the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, with businesses, nonprofits, and agencies having to change procedures and policies often.

At this time, the following closures or change to business practices have been announced:

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – On Tuesday, February 11, 2020, South Tahoe Public Utility District discovered food-grade oil in their Christmas Valley water tank during a routine inspection. Up to one gallon of food-grade oil leaked into the 200,000-gallon water tank due to a mechanical issue and the tank was immediately taken out of service. Results from the water samples collected from the top and
bottom of the water tank and two neighboring homes meet all drinking water standards.

There is no evidence that oil entered the water distribution system.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The Lake Tahoe community is invited to a public meeting about climate change adaptation hosted by the California Tahoe Conservancy, South Tahoe Public Utility District, Tahoe Transportation District, Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, and their partners on February 26 in Stateline, Nevada.

The meeting will be from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, 128 Market St, Stateline, Nevada.

Every day we wash our dishes, fill our water glass, and flush the toilet, likely without thinking much about the systems required to make this all possible. I’d like to think we are doing our job so you don’t have to think too much about it.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Tahoe Conservancy (CTC) Board has authorized spending $1,036,750 to implement three high-priority projects to reduce fire risk and improve forest health in South Lake Tahoe and on the west shore.

During their meeting on Thursday, the CTC Board approved funding for projects that include:

- Spending up to $211,250 on forest thinning on Conservancy land in the South Lake Tahoe Ski Run and Bijou neighborhoods,

- A grant to the South Tahoe Public Utility District for up to $338,000 for forest thinning on the grounds of its treatment plant, and