Highway 89 construction this summer worries business owners

While the summertime tourist to South Lake Tahoe should only be slightly affected, business owners along Highway 89 are worried about their livelihood with overnight road construction and blocked driveways.

During Thursday evening's Caltrans informational meeting at South Tahoe High, several owners of lodging properties, restaurants, sports and retail stores spoke about their concerns during the project which will last from mid-April to mid-October in 2015 and could even extend into the 2017 building season.

From 2006 to 2020, Caltrans is spending over $530 million on the state's Tahoe roads from the South Shore to the North Shore. This amount is being spent to build new storm drain systems and paving some shoulders to protect water quality. The new drainage system will capture stormwater runoff and filter out dirt, oil and litter before it gets to the lake.

From the "Y" to just north of Cascade Road, work being done will include the widening of the two-lane highway portion of the stretch to provide 4-foot wide paved shoulders; curb, gutter and sidewalk additions in the four lane highway section; a pedestrian-activated beacon and lighting addition at Camp Richardson, new highway pavement surface and stormwater runoff collection and treatment.

Depending on the weather, the project will start around the middle of April at the "Y". Before Memorial Day, two-12 hour crews will work around the clock from 10 p.m. Sundays through 11 a.m. on Fridays.

After the Memorial Day holiday and until Labor Day, work will be done only at night, from 9 p.m. Sunday to 7 a.m. Monday, then 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Tuesday through Friday.

None of the work will be conducted during holidays or weekends according to Nathan Alterton, one of the several Caltrans employees on hand to answer questions at the informational meeting.

The Highway 89 project's contractor is Qualcom of Minden, NV. Don Garcia, owner of Don Garcia Excavating & Paving in South Lake Tahoe is a major sub-contractor of the roadwork.

Summer visitors to the Camp Richardson/Valhalla area for weddings, shows and other events will need to plan differently since normal parking spots may not be available. The dirt parking area in front of the entrance to Valhalla will be removed during this project. The U.S. Forest Service asked CalTrans to include this in the project according to Alterton. In it's place will be boulders along the roadway to prevent future parking. He said he wasn't sure when that portion of the project would be completed, just that it will be done at some point before completion.

Sue Anderson, owner of Anderson's Bike Rental, spoke with the Caltrans reps since her outdoor bike rental business is in the middle of the roadwork area. She left feeling better as they eased her concerns about clients being able to rent bikes.
During her busiest months the roadwork will only be at night.

At the opposite end of the spectrum was David Latshaw, owner of the Fireside Lodge. Since work is only being done at night, his clients will be very affected. "I wish they had told us about working at night months ago instead of two weeks before they start," he said. Latshaw is worried about cancelled reservations and people wanting to check out once they've experienced a night of the construction.

Latshaw said he was surprised nobody from City staff was at the meeting.

Councilwoman JoAnn Conner was there though, and listened to the business owner's complaints and concerns. "I want to make sure everyone stays informed," Conner said. "I'd like to open dialog with Caltrans concerning shifting construction schedules to not impact businesses."

Most of the project will not require lane closures, but, at the point the crews are installing new drainage systems. Cyclists and pedestrians may need to walk on the opposite side of the street than they normally do at times as well.

Equipment for the road project will be stored when not being used on property Garcia owns near Jewell Rd.

If you'd like to keep informed of current and future CalTrans work in Lake Tahoe, sign up for the email alerts here. You can also visit their website at www.tahoeroads.com.