citizens

El Dorado County Sheriff John D’Agostini has scheduled several town hall style meetings throughout the county and has invited to public to attend to discuss his new Sheriff facility in Placerville. The meetings by scheduled supervisorial districts in order to accommodate more people, though the South Lake Tahoe meeting will be held in Pollock Pines.

As we welcome in 2016, the City of South Lake Tahoe would like to reflect on the accomplishments of 2015. The following is a summary of accomplishments during 2015.

Strategic Priority: Fiscal Sustainability
The most important issue facing cities and local agencies is continued steadfast attention to the budget, both short term and long term fiscal impacts.
· FY 15/16 budget adopted on time and without use of alternative revenues (3rd consecutive year).
· Adopted 5-year Financial Forecast and 5-Year Capital Investment Plan.

he Washoe County Sheriff’s Office arrested two men today on charges of stealing gifts from generous citizens in the Galena Forest area. The two men have been identified as Sean Madigan, 51, and his son, Depaul Madigan, 22, both of Reno. They are accused of taking Christmas gifts homeowners generously left as a ‘thank you’ for waste services employees.

The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office was notified of the theft when several alert citizens called to report the suspicious activity. The homeowners were able to provide a vehicle description and a description of the subjects involved.

The Mountain Democrat Editorial Friday December 11, 2015 titled “Total recall a total waste of time” on page A5 is far below the minimum standards of an honest newspaper. The article uses accusations of gossip, vague personal attacks, and sneering degradation of “some of the people” to dismiss the serious issues plaguing our County government.

Joy Barney has dedicated her life to connecting youth to the land. In the process she has touched many lives, so it comes as no surprise that winning a national award for her, is all about inspiring others.

The visions are big for a new recreation center in South Lake Tahoe. A large indoor aquatic center, a senior center with services, a modern and sustainable building. A large gymnasium

Almost 50 people attended the first of four community meetings to discuss what the South Lake Tahoe Recreation Center will provide, how it will look and function. New Mayor Wendy David and Mayor Pro Tem Austin Sass were at the meeting long with members of the Planning Commission, Park and Recreation Commission, and other citizens.

The annual Barton Foundation Festival of Trees and Lights opened Wednesday at MontBleu with tree judging and the Senior Stroll.

The winners of the designer and school trees and wreath contests:

Designer Tree Category

Best Interpretation of Theme: No Place Like Home, by Cyndy Brown – Carlton

Most Elegant: Tantalizing Tango, by Belen Urrutia

Most “Out of the Box” (Creative): Steampunk Christmas, by Jeri Oishi & Enchanted Florist team

Best of Show: Tantalizing Tango, by Belen Urrutia

LTUSD Trees:

The local American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) office is currently seeking applicants for their South Lake Tahoe work training program. All applicants must be 55 and older, meet low income qualifications and apply through AARP.

They will be filling several jobs including a receptionist position at the Senior Center located at 3050 Lake Tahoe Blvd. Once applicants have been qualified through AARP, SLT Recreation Manager Lauren Thomaselli will be conducting interviews.

Much like the lake side of El Dorado County and the west slope don’t always see eye to eye, the Douglas County portion at the lake, and the valley residents are in the same situation.

The topic currently at the forefront is Buckeye Creek Reservoir, located in the eastern portion of Douglas County. BLM has most of the land in this undeveloped area, and the Douglas County Sewer Improvement District (DCSID) owns 1,001 of those acres.

El Dorado County Supervisor Sue Novasel recently laid out the County's focus on developing a three-year strategic plan, and how she and her fellow Supervisors want the public to weigh in.

During a special meeting of the South Lake Tahoe City Council on Monday, October 19, JoAnn Conner was publicly censured, a first of its kind for the City. An overflowing crowd spent over three hours in Council Chambers as comments were made both supporting Conner, and against what they said was "abusive, bullying and intolerant behavior."

In honor of National Fire Week October 4-10, the City of South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue Department held an open house at all three of their fire stations on Saturday. The public was invited to get information, learn about fire safety, get free swag and win raffle prizes.

STAT members were on hand at all three locations as well. STAT, which stands for South Tahoe Action Teams, is a program is designed to incorporate trained citizens in the field with the South Lake Tahoe Fire Department and other first responders during times of crisis.

A video depicting Nevada highway winter snow removal has been named a winner in the national “Faces of Transportation” competition sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO).

As El Dorado County prepares their three year strategic plan they are seeking input from the community on many different issues.

A survey is the first step, and can be taken here. This is the first step and it will be followed by local town hall meetings and focus groups. Information gathered will be presented to the County Supervisors and goal-setting teams.

There have been no meeting dates announced yet.

The South lake Tahoe Fire Department will provide a first responder training class called STAT; South Tahoe Action Teams, this Thursday, September 3rd. STAT is modeled after CERT; Community Emergency Response Team, held in other cities.

This program is designed to incorporate trained citizens in the field with the South Lake Tahoe Fire Department and other first responders during times of crisis. This is the first program of its kind in the Tahoe Basin.

The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors’ thoughts and prayers are with the Hallenbeck family for the loss of their son and brother, U.S. Forest Service Firefighter Michael “Mikey” Hallenbeck.

“Our hearts are saddened by the loss of Michael," said The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors. "We are indebted to Michael for his service in keeping the citizens of El Dorado County safe. Thank you for your dedication to our community.”

Douglas County Douglas County is hosting a Flood Outreach on August 6 from 3:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the CVIC Hall, Minden, NV. The event will give the public the opportunity to collect information, provide public input, and view flood damage maps.

“After our staff presentation on the flooding, we wanted to give citizens a place to gather and receive information from as many resources as possible.” said Douglas County Commission Chair, Doug Johnson.

Resources present at the event will include:

• Engineering/Stormwater Management

With rising temperatures pet owners need to be aware that the temperature inside vehicles can reach 120 degrees in a matter of minutes, even with the windows opened slightly.

We face some big, daunting environmental restoration challenges here at Lake Tahoe. But helping our environment every day can be as simple as riding a bike, walking, or taking transit. And the hundreds of people who participated in the Tahoe Bike Challenge this June, including many of our employees at the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, are showing how big of an impact our individual actions can have.

A 30-year old South Lake Tahoe man said his "life was boring and stagnant" so he made up being robbed at knife point at an ATM machine on Thursday, May 21.

Police were called to the El Dorado Savings Bank on Al Tahoe Blvd at 5:51 p.m. on Thursday, by a man saying he'd just been robbed. According to the police report, the "victim" said a man approached him as he was making a deposit. The "suspect", described as a white man between 30-34 years old and between 150 and 200 lbs, pulled a knife and asked for the man's wallet. He reported that the robber pulled out a $10 bill and left.

Liberty Utilities no longer wants to receive energy produced by coal so they have asked to end their contract with NV Energy's North Valmy Coal plant. Instead they are asking for a new contract that excludes all coal-fired resources.

Up to 20% of all power currently sent to Lake Tahoe comes from the large coal plant in Nevada as part of the existing contract with NV Energy, which ends in December.

The community is invited to an evening of celebration and honor, maybe a little roasting, and lots of good cheer for Joanne Shope, who has been the backbone of Christmas Cheer All Year for the past 20 years.

The celebration will take place at the Lake Tahoe Golf Course, located at 2500 Emerald Bay Road in South Lake Tahoe, CA.

I, like many of the other citizens of this beautiful city, enjoy the recent tourist-friendly developments created in the last decade. However, the city should place greater emphasis in revitalizing the run-down residential roads because the lack of sidewalks in these areas is unacceptable. As a solution, the city should begin projects to build sidewalks in residential areas because our residents would enjoy living a healthier lifestyle as well as experience an increase in their property values.

It is always a treat for me to see people in our community who display the American flag at their business and/or at home. Over the years this always reminds me of our Nation, our Constitution, and the freedoms we enjoy as Americans. Thanks to all of your readers who do so. While we are not a perfect Nation, government or people, our form of representative government gives us the greatest ability to make changes that improves the life, opportunities, and liberties of our citizens and all those who live here.