funding

El Dorado County Sheriff D’Agostini has created a new position and assigned a full time deputy sheriff to patrol the Rubicon Trail, 40 hours every week, during the OHV season. In the past most of the staffing for the Rubicon Trail was on overtime, and was limited by grant funds.

The July 4th Holiday and fireworks celebrations always bring an influx of boaters to the Lake Tahoe Basin. With sunny skies and warm temperatures predicted for the 4th of July holiday week, boaters are urged to Clean, Drain and Dry their boats before arriving at one of 5 roadside inspection stations in the Tahoe to avoid delays and decontamination fees.

Needed improvements at the Thunderbird Lodge got a lift on Wednesday when the Nevada Commission on Tourism announced the Lake Tahoe site was among several to win an improvement project grant.
Grants were awarded to 19 different projects. The announcement was made by Nevada Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki.
NCOT's Projects Relating to Tourism Grants program help fund infrastructure improvements that will attract visitors, and after a temporary suspension due to a decline in tourism revenues, the grants were reinstated this year.

The City of South Lake Tahoe and Lake Tahoe Community College Connect Community Education are sponsoring the Renovator, Repair, Painter (RRP) and Supervisor Trainings for local area contractors. The Lead Safe Worker 8-hour training for Renovators, Repair and Painters is being offered at LTCC campus on June 30th, July 20th, August 4th, and September 14th. The cost to attend the training is $50 and up to two workers from each local company are welcome to participate.

A new bus service at Lake Tahoe that will run from Incline Village to Sand Harbor Beach State Recreation Area will begin this month.
A collaboration of the Tahoe Transportation District, the Nevada Division of State Parks, Nevada Department of Transportation, Nevada Highway Patrol and Washoe County School District will inaugurate the East Shore Express, a pilot Park and Ride bus service beginning June 15 through Sept. 3, 2012.

The El Dorado County Health and Human Services Agency's Home Energy Assistance Program has heating and cooling funding available for eligible El Dorado and Alpine County households that need emerge...

Leadership Lake Tahoe produced a new kind of fundraiser on Ski Run Boulevard April 28 called the Unforgettable Supper Stroll and Storytellers’ Night. Event organizers Kalia Knutson, Jeff Sterns and Jeff Cowen aimed to combine three goals into an innovative event: raise funds for the Friends of the Library, promote local businesses during the shoulder season and highlight South Tahoe’s local history to promote pride in the community.

Tahoe Family Solutions announced today that they have received a $25,000 grant from United Way of Northern Nevada and the Sierra to address the fast growing need for affordable mental health care throughout the Lake Tahoe Basin and surrounding communities in Nevada and California. Tahoe Family Solutions services in providing affordable psychiatric care and family counseling were rated as a top priority by UWNNS’s board and volunteers.

Projects for the Meyers community will be discussed tonight, Wednesday, April 18, at the Lake Valley Fire Protection District office. The Meyers Roundtable Committee will take up the following:

— Presentation of Road Runner Canopy Project
— Government reports
— Report on the Meyers Community Plan Update
— Public Forum – discussions are to be no longer than 5 minutes per issue due to time constraints

All attendees are encouraged to park on Keetak Street due to limited on-site parking. The meeting will be held in the mobile unit located behind the fire station.

With the Washoe Tribe's offering and support of El Dorado County Supervisor Norma Santiago, a move is underway to rename Lakeview Commons Park at South Lake Tahoe in time for an official June 20 dedication.
Given its 6,000 year history, the Washoe Tribe has presented the name Tahnu Leweh (Pronounced Tah-New Lay-Way) which, in native language, means "all the people's place." It is a name the Tribe would like to gift to El Dorado County and South Lake Tahoe as a symbol of peace, prosperity and goodness, said Darrel Cruz, Culture and Language Director for the Washoe Tribe.

The existing 2 percent Transient Occupancy Tax, which is up for renewal on the June 5, 2012 ballot, has funded a number of North Lake Tahoe public improvement projects and services since voters first authorized it in 1996.

The renewal, called Measure F, is not a tax increase and, if passed, would continue to be paid by lodging guests only via the TOT bed tax when they spend the night in North Lake Tahoe. North Lake Tahoe residents would not be taxed under Measure F.

A community meeting, hosted by El Dorado County Supervisor Norma Santiago, will take place on Wednesday, April 4, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Lake Tahoe Environmental Science Magnet School (formerly Meyers Elementary School). This meeting will be a first step towards implementing an update of the Meyers Community Plan. The agenda includes a presentation by Supervisor Santiago in which she will review major components and past processes along with identifying current community assets.

With mortgage interest rates below five percent and housing prices at record lows, local first time house hunters with modest family incomes may benefit from El Dorado County’s First Time Homebuyer Loan Program.

CARSON CITY - The Nevada Division of State Parks is accepting applications for the 2012 round of the Recreation Trails Program. Nevada's apportionment is approximately $589,488, but more funding ma...

Lake Tahoe clarity improved in 2011, but overall has remained nearly stable since 2000, according to a summary issued by UC Davis scientists who study the lake. Data released today by the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center and the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency reported the average annual clarity level for 2011 at 68.9 feet, a 4.5-foot improvement over 2010, when average clarity levels were the second-worst on record.

CARSON CITY – The state Board of Finance was told today that Nevada now expects to receive between 30 and 33 cents on the dollar in recovery from a $50 million investment loss when Lehman Brothers unexpectedly filed for bankruptcy in September 2008.
Nevada state Treasurer Kate Marshall said the state initially expected only 10 to 11 cents on the dollar when the firm filed for bankruptcy protection during the height of the nation’s financial crisis.

(Editor's note: The following ran in the January issue of the Tahoe Mountain News. The second part of the series that examines public agency salaries for managers is in the February issue, on newsstands now.)

Here are the latest salaries and benefits available for the South Lake Tahoe Public Utilities Commission, the South Lake Tahoe City Council, El Dorado County Board of Supervisors, the Douglas County (Nevada) Board of County Commissioners, the Lake Tahoe Unified School District board and the board of the Douglas County School District.