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May the frost be with you! Special Olympics Nevada and Northern California will host the annual South Lake Tahoe Polar Plunge fundraiser beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 18, in the icy waters of Lake Tahoe at Zephyr Cove Resort. The 2017 Polar Plunge will feature a “space odyssey” theme and raise funds and awareness for Special Olympics and its athletes.

Over the last two decades, the Lake Tahoe Region has become a national leader in fighting the introduction and spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS) that threaten to harm its world-renowned environment and the $5 billion recreation-based economy it supports.

The Lake Tahoe Region is working with other partners throughout the American West to better safeguard waterbodies and improve national invasive species policies. We are also working with the boating industry to help manufacturers design watercraft that are less likely to carry AIS and are easier to inspect and decontaminate.

South Lake Tahoe, Calif. – Starting February 4, customers at the Ross Dress for Less store in South Lake Tahoe can support the local Boys & Girls Club by making a monetary donation at the checkout counter during the month of February.

Every year, nearly four million young people are served by Boys & Girls Clubs. To celebrate these extraordinary efforts, Ross Stores, Inc. announced that it is partnering with Boys & Girls Clubs of America with a four-week program called, “Help Local Kids Learn.”

It’s been great seeing all of my friends and acquaintances who have lived here for less than 10 years posting photos and sharing how Snowmageddon 2017 has blown them away. I did the same when I first moved to Tahoe back in the 70’s and storms like this were not uncommon. Back then playing was more important than clearing the snow. I had a big Dodge Ram 4x4 pickup and I j drove over the snow in my driveway and packed it down. I did not own a snowblower and can’t remember shoveling much. One year the packed snow was so high I could not get the truck under the carport.

Snow Days. Kids love 'em, parents maybe not so much.

Last week's five snow days, and a lack of one this week caused some parents to raise concern with how the Lake Tahoe Unified School (LTUSD) decides when to close school for the day.

Closing school is always a tough call for school superintendents across the country, so what is the science behind closing schools when it snows in the Lake Tahoe Unified School District?

The South Lake Tahoe City Council members voted unanimously to declare a state of emergency in the city after widespread flooding occurred after an atmospheric river passed over the community on January 7 and 8, 2017. The flooding was replaced by several feet of snow through January 12.

While the total impact on the community during the storm has yet to be tallied, making the declaration directs state and federal funds to South Lake Tahoe to alleviate the financial burden should major repairs be needed.

Friday's board meeting of the California Tahoe Conservancy (CTC) was delayed almost two hours due to ice on the road near near Zephyr Cove, causing it to close, and those weren't the only icy conditions on the South Shore that day.

The other ice could be felt during the meeting as conflict of interest, ethics, integrity, suspicious actions and lack of transparency were the theme of the day.

All three items on the agenda Friday were placed there amid a stressed relationship between the City of South Lake Tahoe, El Dorado County and Patrick Wright, the Executive Director of the CTC.

Tahoe Coalition for the Homeless (TCH) would like to thank Champion Floors to Go for their donation of carpet and floor runners to the South Lake Tahoe Warm Room. This donation helps keep our guests cozy and comfortable in our facility this winter. With recent extreme weather patterns in Tahoe, we are proud to offer overnight refuge from the elements to men and women who are experiencing homelessness.

Four years ago this month, TRPA approved the 2012 Regional Plan. The landmark plan charts a course to restore Lake Tahoe’s environment and revitalize our communities and it was forged through Herculean work by California, Nevada, local governments, the public, and dozens of other partners.

Many Tahoe Basin stakeholders once questioned if we could work together, but the Regional Plan ushered in an era of collaboration. Today, the answer is how can we work together more efficiently. By building and strengthening partnerships we have made remarkable progress. This year was no different.

Late Friday night, the U.S. House of Representatives joined the U.S. Senate in passing the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act of 2016, which will bring $415 million in future funding to Lake Tahoe over the next seven years. The decision brought cheers from many local agencies, including the League to Save lake Tahoe and the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.

The Placer County Board of Supervisors approved a grant agreement at their meeting this week, paving the way for $1 million from Sutter Health to come into the community to help house the chronically homeless.

The county will use the money to purchase housing units for participants in Placer County’s Whole Person Care Pilot program which coordinates physical health, behavioral health and social services for the homeless and others with poor health outcomes. Those in the program will receive rental subsidies and supportive services through the grant funding.

Vail Resorts has called on the United States Congress to approve the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act of 2015. This Act provides $415 million in funding and reauthorizes important Lake Tahoe restoration activities that began in 1997 and refocuses federal, state and local efforts toward reducing wildfire threats, improving water quality and clarity, and combating invasive species. All of these are important to the local economy at one of the most visited lakes in the world.

The three members of the Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District Board went out into the community to thank the voters.

Here is their message to the residents of the district:

It's been four months since the 27th annual celebrity golf tournament at Edgewood Tahoe, but area nonprofits continue to reap financial rewards from the tournament sponsor, American Century.

6:00 a.m. 11/9 Update: It took awhile for ballots to be counted, but 100 percent of the precincts have now been counted for El Dorado County and South Lake Tahoe. The results are unofficial as some mail-in ballots will still be tallied.

Former councilwoman Brooke Laine and hospital executive Jason Collin will be headed to the South Lake Tahoe City Council in what turned out to be a close race with local politics newcomer, Tamara Wallace. Current Councilwoman JoAnn Conner will not be returning for a second term.

SLT City Council results, the top two vote-getters win:

Hello South Lake Tahoe,

As you reflect on voting for the Lake Tahoe Unified School District Board of Education Trustee in Area 1, I respectfully ask for your thoughtful consideration.

All candidates for South Lake Tahoe City Council were given the same questions. With just one day to go to the elections, we will be featuring their answers and a video of their interview with Tahoe Regional Young Professionals through the day.

Jason Collin, 43, Administrative Director of Post-Acute Services & Owner/Race Director for Epic Tahoe Adventures, 8 years living in Tahoe.

Discuss your interest in serving on City Council. What is your prior experience in working with civic, community or governmental organizations?

All candidates for South Lake Tahoe City Council were given the same questions. With just one day to go to the elections, we will be featuring their answers and a video of their interview with Tahoe Regional Young Professionals through the day.

Brooke Laine, 52, Branch Manager, US Bank, Born and raised in SLT

Discuss your interest in serving on City Council. What is your prior experience in working with civic, community or governmental organizations?

Learn how forest health and fuels management activities in the Lake Tahoe Basin create effective community protection from wildfire during a free tour on Saturday, November 5 in South Lake Tahoe from 10:00 a.m. to noon.

Those attending will get an in-depth perspective of forest management and what it means to reside within a Fire Adapted Community.

The Tahoe Resource Conservation District in partnership with local fire districts, and other agencies has established the Tahoe Network of Fire Adapted Communities program to educate people on wildfire preparedness.

Dear Community,

Tahoe Coalition for the Homeless (TCH) would like to thank Caesar’s Foundation and Harrah’s & Harvey’s Lake Tahoe for their support. In September the Caesar’s Foundation awarded TCH with a $10,000 grant to operate the South Lake Tahoe Warm Room. These funds will help provide overnight refuge from the elements to individuals and families experiencing homelessness in the winter months. Additionally, the Harrah’s Employees Reaching Out (HEROs) were very helpful in our pilot season by providing volunteers and donating supplies.

The Board of the Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber of Commerce (Tahoe Chamber) has announced its position on seven local ballot measures in the City of South Lake Tahoe and Douglas County.

Yes on Measure P

With three productions a year, and just seven degrees issued in five years, Lake Tahoe Community College is looking at eliminating their theater program and moving toward a community theater model.

Theater staff at the college were advised on Tuesday that LTCC administration is recommending to the Board of Trustees that they’re recommending discontinuing the theater program.

Over the past 1.5 years, administrators have been going through a process that included research on program vitality at the college.

The CEO of Vail Resorts, Rob Katz, and his wife Elana Amsterdam, have donated $2 million to the 12 communities where his company has operations, including South Lake Tahoe.

The Boys and Girls Club of Lake Tahoe (BGCLT) was given a donation of $125,000.

“We are so grateful to have been chosen by Rob as the recipients of his South Lake Tahoe donation, and overwhelmed by his personal generosity to our community,” said Jude Wood, Executive Director of BGCLT.

$825,000 is headed to El Dorado County for help in removing trees dying from the extreme drought and related bark beetle infestations.

With an estimated 66 million dead trees in the state of California, Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency almost one year ago.