land

The latest round of funding through the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act (SNPLMA) includes more than $3 million for projects to help reduce wildfire risk in Lake Tahoe communities.

The funding award for Lake Tahoe is part of nearly $40 million going to projects around Nevada to reduce wildfire risk, conserve landscapes, restore wildlife habitat, and improve public recreation. U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announced the funding awards this January.

Recently, I had the chance to visit the much-hyped Tahoe: A visual History at the Nevada Museum of Art. Located in the hip, CalAve District wedged between downtown and midtown Reno, the museum offers locals to the region a taste of world-class art collections. During events like Art Town (a marathon of a hundred-or-so art related events in Reno during the month of July), the museum offers innumerable pieces from local and global artists alike.

Multimedia artist Cynthia Hooper, whose videos and paintings capture various landscapes found in California and Mexico, is bringing her artistic talents to Lake Tahoe Community College’s Haldan Gallery this winter. Research & Desire: Recent Videos and Paintings by Cynthia Hooper opens Thursday, Jan. 14, with an Artist’s Reception from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the Haldan Gallery. Hooper will give a short talk about her work at 5:30 p.m. Light refreshments will be served, and all are welcome to attend this free event. The exhibit remains open until March 18.

What would you like to see future buildings to look like in South Lake Tahoe? Made of stone and wood? Ski lodge look or a more modern city look?

Now is the time to share with city officials what you'd like the visual character to look like in town, and how it can be improved.

A Design Guidelines Public Workshop will be hosted by the South Lake Tahoe Planning Commission on Thursday, January 21 in the City Council Chambers at the airport from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

To make way for "Star Wars," Disneyland is about to launch its largest expansion ever, which means shutting down a significant chunk of the Anaheim theme park.

In January, 10 attractions and eateries will close — some temporarily, some permanently — only a few months after the resort hiked the price of annual passes as much as 31%. This spring, Disneyland's biggest rival, Universal Studios Hollywood, plans to unveil a widely anticipated Harry Potter attraction.

Placer County has made two attempts to buy lodging properties in South Lake Tahoe to give them needed tourist accommodation units (TAUs) for future redevelopment projects in the North Lake Tahoe town centers of Kings Beach and Tahoe City.

The county had offered the owners of the A & A motel $1.425 million for their property at 3520 Lake Tahoe Blvd. After demolishing the motel, the county would have restored the land beneath, earning a bonus ratio of three-to-one TAUs from the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, so the motel's 34 units would have been worth 102 to Placer County.

Those of us who live in South Lake Tahoe, or find ourselves visiting often, already know that the region is experiencing a rebirth, one that makes it exciting times to be there.

Trip Advisor customers feel the same way, voting South Lake Tahoe one of the Top Ten destinations in the country that are "on the rise."

The article:

There are five small pieces of property standing in the way of completing the Ski Run Blvd to El Dorado Beach Class 1 multi-use trail, and it was determined in a City Council vote that South Lake Tahoe can resort to using eminent domain if necessary in order to complete it.

The walking and biking path is ten feet wide, and as it crosses the land in front of the old Don Cheapo's Ski Rentals, Beach Retreat at Tahoe, Heidi's Restaurant and Tahoe Beach & Ski Club, the City needs easement in order to make the path the required width, make it safe, and have it landscaped.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU) is seeking comments on a proposal for the management and uses of existing roads, trails and facilities located on National Forest System (NFS) lands in the Lake Tahoe Basin.

Sometime in the future, one will be able to hop on a bike at Van Sickle Bi-State Park and travel on Class 1 trails to Sierra Tract, and hopefully beyond.

The concept for the trail where people would walk and bike safely off the main roads actually began in 1985. Caltrans owned land through the middle of neighborhoods where a highway was proposed, but when it was apparent that would never be built, the California Tahoe Conservancy (CTC) joined Caltrans in discussions to obtain the land.

Thirty South Lake Tahoe non-profits were given a share of $55,600 on Thursday, bringing the total the American Century Golf Championships have donated to the community this year to $107,100.

I'm proud to be an American,
Where at least I know I'm free.
And I won't forget the men who died,
Who gave that right to me.
And I'd gladly stand up next to you,
And defend Her still today.
'Cause there ain't no doubt,
I love this land, God Bless the U.S.A.

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.

Ohio voters soundly rejected a marijuana initiative Tuesday that would have legalized recreational and medicinal use of the drug, and would have limited commercial growing to a small group of investors who drafted and promoted the measure.

The initiative was failing 65% to 35%, with nearly 90% of precincts reporting.

“Issue 3 has been soundly defeated!” Ohioans Against Marijuana Monopolies crowed on Twitter. “No marijuana monopolies in this state!”

Smoke from prescribed burns moved into the Lake Tahoe basin on Monday, worrying many that there was a nearby out of control fire. Two huge plumes of smoke over the Sierras could be seen from Placerville during the afternoon.

Approximately 5,100 acres of National Forest land are slated to be burned this fall, winter and spring according to the U.S. Forest Service (USFS).

The lack of fields for soccer, baseball, football, softball and other sports has long been a point of contention in South Lake Tahoe.

Recognizing the value of recreation in South Lake Tahoe, along with the need for trails, fields and parks, Measure S passed by voters in 2000. It brought in $6,500,000 to be used to maintain new bike trails, acquire, construct, and equip athletic fields, upgrade of Paradise Park facilities and construction of an ice rink. The measure promised three new fields in South Lake Tahoe, they got one.

Over the past three years, a new master plan for the South Lake Tahoe airport has been in the creation process, from the awarding of a $315,000 grant from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 2012 to community outreach to Tuesday's presentation on a final design plan.

Successful conservation actions from a collaborative Lake Tahoe partnership spanning the past 15 years have helped the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decide today that Tahoe yellow cress (Rorippa subumbellata), a flowering perennial plant in the mustard family found only along the lake’s sandy shoreline, does not warrant federal protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

National Fire Week is October 4-10 this year, and in honor of it the City of South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue will have all three of their fire stations open to the public.

Each location will have different information, so visit one, or all.

There will be trucks on display, information about fire safety and raffle prizes.

From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. tour the following SLT stations:

Fire Station #1 located at 1252 Ski Run Blvd.
Fire Station #2 located at 2951 Lake Tahoe Blvd.
Fire Station #3 located at 2101 Lake Tahoe Blvd.

Always a crowd pleaser, the annual Firefest is on Saturday, September 26 at the South Lake Tahoe Airport from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

This free event highlights fire and life safety for children and families with exhibits and hands on demonstrations.

Helicopters will star at Firefest when they land at the airport. The three "Super Scoopers" currently making the airport their home will be parked on the tarmac as long as they aren't dispatched to a fire.

Editors Note: This is a reprint of an article that appeared in the San Francisco Examiner. Those of us who live in El Dorado County already knew this secret, but it is now out!

It may be gold (and God and gun) country, but visitors are beginning to satisfy other tastes in the Hangtown hills, from apple orchards, farm-side vacation respites and outdoor excursions to wines without an extra layer of price or pretense.

What once took hours of City of South Lake Tahoe staff time as well as weeks for applicants to get answers may soon be a one hour process.

Since it was organized in 2014, the City Attorney has been working with departments to update each section of the City Code. For portions that pertains to zoning, land use, development standards and building standards, City staff looked at ways to streamline the process and remove permit process portions of the code where possible.

Author Michael S. Green will discuss his book Nevada: A History of the Silver State in a free presentation at the Dangberg Home Ranch Historic Park on Sunday, September 27, at 10:00 am.
Michael S. Green, a leading Nevada historian, provides a detailed survey of the Silver State’s past, from the arrival of the early European explorers, to the predominance of mining in the 1800s, to the rise of world-class tourism in the twentieth century, and more recent attempts to diversify the economy.

Location

The United States Forest Service (USFS) and California Tahoe Conservancy (CTC) will be trading 1,961 acres under a proposed land swap on the north, south and west shores of Lake Tahoe. Urban lots would go to CTC and the larger parcels would go to the USFS.

The agencies will hold two meetings where the public will have the opportunity to review the plan and offer feedback.