road

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Highway 50 over Echo Summit may close up to 14 days this September to allow the Caltrans contractor to install new girders and demolition work on the existing bridge structure.

There will be two meetings to inform the public of the potential closure and detour (see attached map). Local residents and businesses will be issued passes to use Johnson Pass Road as a detour during the closure, which if in place would be toward the end of the month. More information on that will be provided at the meetings and not before.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - There are still almost two months left of scheduled roadwork around the Lake Tahoe Basin before winter hiatus. Most traffic-interfering work will be limited from 6:00 a.m. August 30 through 8:00 p.m. September 3 for Labor Day weekend. Exceptions may be granted depending on the work and route.

State Route 89 (Placer County): Motorists can expect intermittent short delays on State Route 89 at Sugar Pine Point State Park in Tahoma from 6:30-9:30 a.m. on Saturday, August 24 and from 6:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, August 25 due to the Lake Tahoe Triathlon.

STATELINE, Nev. - A draft of the vision plan for the Kahle Drive and Lower Kingsbury areas along the US 50 corridor between Lake Parkway and Elks Point Road will be unveiled during a community meeting on Wednesday, September 4.

The meeting will be held from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Tahoe Transportation Center, 169 US Highway 50, across from the Lakeside Inn and Casino where LTVA and Tahoe Chamber have their offices.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The Tahoe Arts Project is holding their annual Music on the Beach Thursday, August 22 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at Tahoe Lakeshore Lodge and Spa on Bal Bijou Road, South Lake Tahoe.

Niall McGuinness, Kyle Rothchild, Geoge Tavoularis, Wesley Orsolic, Liz Broscoe and Lowell Wilson will take the stage as the sun sets.

Hear from your favorite local musicians while enjoying the beach, sunset and friends. Bring your low-back beach chairs, blankets, food and drink.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - There are still about two months left of scheduled roadwork around the Lake Tahoe Basin before winter hiatus. The following are the Caltrans projects in the Lake Tahoe Basin and El Dorado County:

LONG-TERM PROJECTS

U.S. Highway 50 (El Dorado County): Work continues on a $5.2 million project to upgrade metal beam guardrail and construct concrete barriers at 89 locations from the Red Hawk Undercrossing to 1.9 miles west of the junction with State Route 89 in Meyers. Completion is expected in spring 2020.

Hersh Herschman was never a certified tennis professional, but many of those who he instructed would say otherwise.

Born Marlin Joseph Herschman on Jan. 12, 1943, in St. Ignatius, Montana, he would always be best known as Hersh or The Hersh Man. He died Aug. 7, 2019, at The Chateau at Gardnerville in Nevada of inoperable brain cancer. His wife, Sheryl, and best friend for more than 40 years Greg Painter were with him. He was 76.

After graduating from St. Ignatius High School in Montana in 1961, Hersh joined the U.S. Army for two years. He spent two summers at West Point.

When is low-income housing developed by a Transportation Agency? This seemingly simple question is looming before our City Council and has been pushed back to the next City Council meeting. It is, in fact, the first domino in the efforts of the Tahoe Transportation District (TTD) and the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) to move forward with the Loop Road II Project.

7:00 p.m. Update: A fire along Highway 50 Wednesday burned 16 acres after being started when a truck towing a trailer caught fire after having a flat tire at 1:21 p.m. The El Dorado County Sheriff's Office evacuated some home in the area when winds took the flames from the highway in towards a neighborhood.

All residents have been allowed to go back home. Firefighters will stay at the scene overnight to patrol and watch for hotspots.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – When risk of catastrophic wildfire becomes too great, local electric utilities may turn off the power for extended periods of time. While your first thought might be eating all the ice cream in your freezer, don’t forget to think about your water use. South Tahoe Public Utility District (District) urges customers to conserve water during power outages to make sure there is enough water to fight a fire.

Times are good for the auto industry, everyone makes good cars and it’s been that way for about a decade. That goes for full-size trucks, too. But some cars are better than good, some are great and some super-great and Honda/Acura makes great cars and a few super great ones. This new Acura RDX is almost super-great like I would call the Acura TLX SH-AWD A-Spec.

If Acura new radio system was more user-friendly as it’s claimed to be it might make the super great rating. Sometimes it wouldn’t respond to my finger touch. The idea works, but the execution didn’t work all the time.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - "This is a nightmare," says life-long South Lake Tahoe resident Monica Eisenstecken.

Her summer has been filled with preparing to fight the South Lake Tahoe Planning Commission's decision in June to allow Verizon to place a 112’ monopine cell tower next door to the home her dad built (it could go as high as 123' with a ten percent change allowed).

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The Lake Tahoe Basin and El Dorado County Roadwork schedule for Caltrans projects.

Most traffic-interfering work will be limited from noon Thursday, August 1 through 8 p.m. Monday, August 5 and noon Wednesday, August 7 through 8 p.m. Monday, August 12 for Hot August Nights.

LONG-TERM PROJECTS

State Routes 28/89 (El Dorado and Placer County): Work continues on a $4.8 million project to remove dead and dying trees from State Routes 28 and 89 in various locations of El Dorado and Placer counties. Completion is expected this fall.

5:25 p.m. Update: The El Dorado County HazMat Emergency Response team has confirmed that the powder substance found in a package delivered to Barton's supply chain this morning is not hazardous.

The sequestered employees have been released and the back entrance of the hospital is now accessible to the public.

"Barton is thankful for the local agencies who collaborated with us to ensure the safety of staff and patients," said Mindi Befu, Barton's Director of Marketing, Public Relations & Patient Experience.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A lead from the Las Vegas FBI led law enforcement to South Lake Tahoe to confront what they thought to be a woman intent on harming herself and perhaps others with a bomb.

2:20 p.m. update - Highway 50 is open with no controls at Kyburz.

KYBURZ, Calif. - If you are traveling over Echo Summit today you may want to take a different route, or plan on extra time on the road.

The California Highway Patrol has responded to a major crash between two SUVs in the Whitehall Canyon area near Kyburz. Initial reports show a car turning onto the highway was struck at about 11:30 a.m. and the aftermath is causing a big delay with eastbound traffic starting at Bridle Veil Falls.

At least one person has been transported.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A 13-year-old boy on a Lime Scooter was hit by a car Tuesday night as he was riding it in the fast lane on Highway 50 in South Lake Tahoe.

According to South Lake Tahoe Police Department Sgt. Nick Carlquist, a group of about one-half dozen kids on scooters were heading west on the highway in the #2 lane, or better known as the slow lane of the road. They completely took the lane over said Carlquist, forcing drivers into the other lanes and causing a traffic hazard.

Wind down mid-July on a delicious and relaxing note! Please join us at Black Bear Lodge www.tahoeblackbear.com this Tuesday July 23, 5pm to 7pm in the back gardens for a special wine tasting with Bella Grace Vineyards www.bellagracevineyards.com . This sustainably-focused, family owned & operated vineyard is located just down the road in Amador County, with one of the few elite female winemakers in California.

Tasting flights are $10,and the cost is deducted from the price of any bottle purchased. Snacks and cheese pairings and our wine, beer, & bites menu will also be served.

We’ve finally settled into a spectacular Tahoe summer. Like a shooting star, summer is fleeting, with the Fourth of July already in our review mirror. With all the outdoor recreation that summer affords us here at Lake Tahoe, here’s one more experience worth noting.

If you’re looking for a stunningly beautiful bike ride or a perfect pathway on which to take a walk, the new East Shore Tahoe Trail is unparalleled. Dignitaries recently gathered to celebrate the trail’s grand opening at the end of June. The path is a three-mile link between the south end of Incline Village and Sand Harbor.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - In an attempt to address traffic concerns on side roads in the Meyers area, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) and El Dorado County (EDC) conducted a test and put up two road closures on Sunday, July 7, 2019.

Barriers were placed at the intersections of Highway 50 and both Sawmill and North Upper Truckee roads in an attempt to keep westbound holiday traffic out of the neighborhoods and on the highway. In addition, they were also evaluating the traffic backup on both roads and the routing of traffic by directional apps like Waze and Google.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Bread & Broth is putting the "fun" back into fundraising and bringing back their unique Burlap & Denim BBQ and Ranch Tour on Saturday, August 24 from noon to 4:00 p.m.

When tested exactly three years ago, I called the Mitsubishi Outlander a high value, bang for the buck CUV. Now with compact, small-midsize CUVs all costing in the mid $30K range and more, the Mitsubishi stands out even more as my extremely loaded three rows of seats Outlander GT stickered for $36K all in including the boat from Japan. While the price is up a minuscule three percent, additional content and improvements have increased the value quotient. And that quotient grows as inflation would have boosted the price by at least six percent.

Stellar violinist Alex Eisenberg joins TOCCATA-Tahoe Symphony Orchestra and Chorus for Sibelius’ phenomenal “Violin Concerto.” The concert opens with Rossini’s famous “William Tell Overture,” and closes with Beethoven’s spirited “Symphony #8.” Performances in South Lake August 2; in Reno and Gardnerville July 27 & August 4, or a special event at Genoa Lakes Golf Club July 31st.

A semi truck going down the valley side of Kingsbury Grade apparently lost its brakes just above Hussman Meadow about halfway down about noon on Tuesday.

According to a witness driving behind the truck, the driver of the commercial vehicle was riding his brakes and they were smoking, and that he was taking the corners too fast.

The Nevada Highway Patrol (NHP) is investigating the incident.

The driver of the truck was transported to Renown Medical Center in Reno with a laceration to his head.

The road was reduced to one lane during the incident but has now reopened.

You know how frustrating it is for residents who live on North Upper Truckee, Sawmill, and countless other ‘shortcut’ streets during holidays when everyone is trying to leave town on their roads, usually driving too fast, backing up traffic, and not showing much respect for the people who live there?

That’s my life every day.