plan

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - California Gov. Jerry Brown will lay out details of a revised state spending plan Monday after announcing over the weekend that the state's budget shortfall has swelled to...

Some seven years, countless meetings and 2,500 pages later, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency draft regional plan and supporting documents are finally ready for your reading enjoyment. The four to...

Some seven years, countless meetings and 2,500 pages later, the TRPA draft regional plan and supporting documents are finally ready for your reading enjoyment. While not the action-packed read of a Harry Potter or dark pleasure of "Fifty Shades of Grey," the four tomes of the TRPA holds some unexpected plot twists.

Key among those surprises is the Threshold Evaluation Study, a report I consider the prelude to the Regional Plan because understanding what worked well environmentally after the 1987 Regional Plan helps inform us what needs attention in the new plan.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit has released the draft Decision Memo for 2012 Capital Improvement Projects at Heavenly Mountain Resort. Improvements would include trail upgrades, a new surface tow lift, a new Kids Adventure Zone, an outdoor event facility, summer four-wheel drive tours and a new summer hiking trail. These projects are consistent with the improvements identified in Heavenly's Master Plan Amendment and are intended to improve the overall quality of the visitor experience.

South Lake Tahoe resident and Barton Health employee, Stella Ortega, made it to the top 10 on Dr. Oz Show-Transformation Nation: Million Dollar You segment. Ortega is among 10 finalists to earn a spot in the show's season-long initiative. Viewers can vote on which finalist they feel should win the grand prize of $1 million by going to www.doctoroz.com. The winner will be announced on “The Dr. Oz Show” scheduled to air on May 23.

The Avoid the 6 — El Dorado County DUI Task Force will be deploying DUI saturation patrols throughout into a number of cities supporting routine DUI patrols on Cinco De Mayo starting at 7 p.m. Saturday, May 5, 2012.  Additionally, CHP will be deploying saturation patrols onto freeways and in unincorporated county jurisdictions to stop, test and arrest impaired drivers who fail to use a designated driver.

(Editor's note: This is the next installment in a regular feature by South Lake Tahoe-based Certified Wellness Coach and Advanced Integrative Therapist Krista Kline. Visit her website at www.kristaekline.com.)

For the past few weeks I have started and stopped writing this column. I've had some real inspiration, awoken with “brilliant” ideas in the middle of the night only to sit down, start writing and get absolutely nowhere. My virtual trashcan seemed to be getting full while the ideas seemed empty.

STATELINE – Sixty days. That’s how long people have to review and comment on the environmental documents associated with the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency’s Regional Plan update as well as the transportation update.

Several environmental gains over the last five years have been made at the Lake Tahoe Basin, according to the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency’s “Threshold Evaluation Report” released Wednesday, which highlights water quality as a continued area of concern.

The comprehensive report offers a snapshot of the health of the ecosystem in the Tahoe Basin by documenting the status and trends of more than 100 environmental standards ranging from air and water quality to fish and wildlife. The biggest improvements were documented in air and water quality, and scenic resources.

CARSON CITY — Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval announced today that the state has reached an agreement with on-line retailing giant Amazon to begin collecting Nevada sales tax on purchases.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - California prison officials on Monday released a wide-ranging reorganization plan that calls for halting a $4 billion prison-construction program and bringing back all inm...

University of Nevada Reno interim chief Marc Johnson, who took over after the sudden death of administrative leader Milt Click, was selected by the state's Board of Regents as the 16th president of UNR.
“It is a high honor to have been given this opportunity,” said Johnson, who has served as UNR's interim president since April. “I am very gratified by the community and campus support of my candidacy.”

Education Driven
“The University of Nevada, Reno is a quality university with a statewide obligation and presence, and we will continue to communicate with our constituents statewide to better convey what the University represents and how it contributes to Nevada’s future,” Johnson added. “We will continue to grow the University’s national reputation and remain committed to being a University with hands-on learning opportunities that prepares students with the knowledge and skills to be contributing, successful citizens.”

Lake Tahoe's future is bound in thousands of pages of documents set to hit the public in coming days.The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency will release its Draft 2012 Regional Plan, Draft 2012 Regiona...

FLORISTON, Calif. - Hillsides charred by a 2001 wildfire might finally bloom with fields of native plants this spring, thanks in part to a restoration plan sponsored by the Sierra Business Counc...

LAS VEGAS — Gov. Brian Sandoval today told conservative business group Keystone Corporation that his decision to support a two-year extension of taxes that were scheduled to expire eliminates the need for any new taxes to balance the state budget.

With the ski and board season winding down, it’s almost time to catch some fish in the High Sierra once again.
On Saturday, April 28 the 2012 fishing season will open for all applicable lakes, reservoirs, streams, creeks and rivers in California. The season will then remain open until Thursday, Nov. 15.
If you’re new to the Lake Tahoe and Sierra, here’s some information that can be useful if you would like to fish on that Opening Day or the entire opening weekend:

“Destiny,” said William Jennings Bryan, “is not a matter of chance, but a matter of choice.”
A year ago, the City of South Lake Tahoe made some choices that resulted in a clear and methodical business plan. We chose to focus on five core missions. That sounds simple enough, but how many times are the words government and focus used in the same sentence?
But it is amazing what a little focus can accomplish. In less than a year, our city is making real progress in pulling ourselves out of the morass that was so scathingly profiled in the 2009/2010 Grand Jury Report.

CARSON CITY – A little-known benefit of Nevada’s public employee pension plan is the right to purchase up to five years of service towards retirement.
Referred to by some as “air time,” or the ability to add years of retirement without actually putting in the time in a public sector job, the benefit can allow state and local government workers to retire early, collecting annual pensions years before they would be eligible otherwise.

It is official. Kirkwood Mountain Resort is now officially under the umbrella of ski industry giant Vail Resorts, Inc.

Thank you for printing articles by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency executive director and North Tahoe Preservation Alliance representative regarding the proposed TRPA Regional Plan (April 7-10 e...

Fitch Ratings affirmed South Tahoe Public Utility District on Monday as part of its ongoing survey of public agencies, noting the ratings outlook remains within the organization remains "stable."
The firm, which positions itself as a global rating agency dedicated to providing value beyond the rating through independent and prospective credit opinions, research and data, gave the water and sewer district a AA+ rating, noting $10.8 million sewer revenue certificates of participation. The ratings agency also asserts that STPUD continues to have strong reserves in place that protects the district against a reduction in its property tax revenues.