president

Rob Lake has performed his illusion shows all over the world, and now he'll be bringing his show over the holidays to the South Shore Room at Harrah's Tahoe from December 22 to January 7.

The 33-year-old Norman, Oklahoma native told South Tahoe Now he's never been to Lake Tahoe before.

"I'm really, really exited," said Lake.

Lake caught the magic bug as a 10-year-old when he saw a magic show with his family. "I knew immediately then and there I was going to be a magician," he said. Lake said most of his training comes from the school and public libraries.

3::45 p.m. update: The Kings Beach man killed in an accident at Northstar has been identified as 35-year-old Dennis Baltimore, a ski instructor at the resort. His Facebook page says he was also once a Zipline Guide at Heavenly Mountain Resort in South Lake Tahoe.

According to reports, Baltimore had been on his skis on Village Run about 12:00 p.m. when a snowboarder in front of him hit a patch of ice and lost control. He tried to avoid the snowboarder but he crashed into rocks and a creek bed.

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.

Jeff DeFranco will become the fifth superintendent/president of Lake Tahoe Community College on February 1, 2016, succeeding Dr. Kindred Murillo who is leaving to take the same position at Southwestern College in Chula Vista.

The LTCC Board of Trustees announced their selection at Tuesday's board meeting. DeFranco is currently the school's vice president of administrative services, a job he has held since 2012.

"This is very surreal," DeFranco said as he addressed the trustees after the announcement. "It's a dream come true."

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.

Sue Lowe of Chase International was recently in London to showcase the luxury Lake Tahoe real estate market, just a handful of agencies asked to take part in the show which attracts affluent buyers from throughout Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

They say it's always hard to say goodbye, and that was evident Tuesday evening during the final board meeting for three of the five Lake Tahoe Unified School Board members.

After nine years on the board, Dr. Larry Green chose to not seek a third term, and Dr. Michael Doyle lost in his re-election bid. Adam Jones filled the seat of Sue Novasel for the past two years after she became a county supervisor. He chose not to run this November.

Heavenly Mountain Resort and Northstar California Resort announced today that the resorts are now targeting Wednesday, Nov. 23 as their opening day instead of this Friday.

Shops, restaurants and activities in Heavenly Village and The Village at Northstar will still open Friday, Nov. 18. Heavenly will offer scenic gondola rides and Ridge Rider Coaster tours Saturday, Nov. 19 and Sunday, Nov. 20.

A new federal law goes into effect on December 1 that entitles salaried employees to get overtime pay if they make less than $47,476 per year. To help people understand this change they are holding a lunchtime workshop on Wednesday, November 16 from noon to 1:30 p.m. at Tahoe Mountain Lab.

According to the White House, an estimated 4.2 million white collar workers will become entitled to overtime pay when they work extra hours as a result of the new rule, and wages for workers will increase by $12 billion over the next 10 years.

Dr. Kindred Murillo was one of the top three finalists for Chancellor of the Contra Costa Community College District (CCCCD), but during a special meeting on Friday, that job was given to the chancellor of University of Minnesota Crookston.

'I was honored to be a finalist, and I wish Dr. Fred Wood the very best," Murillo told South Tahoe Now.

This November, please vote YES on Proposition 52. Proposition 52, the Medi-Cal Funding and Accountability Act, extends the current partnership between the state and California hospitals to help fund the health care needs of 13 million children, seniors, and low-income families in California.

In the last two years, the number of Med-Cal recipients in South Lake Tahoe has doubled. El Dorado County receives $20,136,379 in federal funding each year and without this money our working families who would not be able to afford health care services.

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.

Dan McLaughlin, 66, Sales Manager for Lake Tahoe Television, has lived in Lake Tahoe for 43 years.

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.

JoAnn Conner, 67, Small Business Owner, 35 years in SLT.

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

The current crime and police officer staffing statistics in City of South Lake Tahoe is consistent with the State of California as a whole. Most of the crimes for which the Safe Neighborhood and Schools Act have mandated a reduction in criminal penalties have increased in our city. Also consistent with state-wide statistics is the reduction in numbers of South Lake Tahoe police officers available to address local crime.

In an effort to clear up misinformation about the proposed US50 Community
Revitalization/Loop Road Project, the Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber of Commerce (TahoeChamber) hosted a public meeting Thursday evening at the Lake Tahoe Resort Hotel. With the amount of negative public comments and voiced skepticism during past meetings, Measure T, and in social media, a larger group was expected than the 35 people who attended (and many of those were Tahoe Transportation and Tahoe Chamber staff).

Amgen Tour of California announced today that professional cycling will return to Lake Tahoe, May 11-12, 2017. The Amgen Breakaway from Heart Disease Women's Race will include the overall start and Stage 2 on consecutive days. The women’s competition will conclude with a third stage in Elk Grove, May 13 and the final in Sacramento, May 14.

The men's race is skipping Lake Tahoe this year and is set to begin in Sacramento on May 14.

Measure P will be a key initiative on the City of South Lake Tahoe’s Nov. 8 ballot as a tourist-only tax to help rebuild the area’s aging Recreation Center.

Without raising taxes on local residents and businesses, Measure P will bring an estimated extra $2 million a year to support the community. The Lodging Association has voted unanimously to support further recreation in South Lake Tahoe. If passed by a two-thirds vote, Measure P will increase transient occupancy tax by 2 percent to 12 percent.

Dr. Kindred Murillo, President of Lake Tahoe Community College, is one of three finalists for the Chancellor position for Contra Costa Community College District. Along with Murillo vying for the job are Eugene Huff and Dr. Fred Wood.

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.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE - Barton Health has hired seasoned human resources leader Elizabeth Stork as their new Human Resources Director.

“We are pleased to have Elizabeth on board,” said Dr. Clint Purvance, Barton Health’s CEO and President. “She brings both the tools and passion for helping our employees deliver consistently exceptional care and reach their full potential.”

Stork has more than 15 years of experience working in human resources. She most recently served as the Vice President of Human Resources for a non-profit home health and hospice agency in Washington State.

The Tahoe Mountain Lab founders were honored Thursday for their creation of a unique business that promotes the expansion of opportunities in the South Lake Tahoe community.

California Speaker of the Assembly Anthony Rendon has appointed Belinda Valles Faustinos to the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) Governing Board. Her appointment follows the recent resignation of Governing Board member Elizabeth Carmel, a fine art landscape photographer who represented the Speaker’s office on the board for the last three and a half years.

For a 90-day trial period, the City of South Lake Tahoe will hire an outside security firm to assist with enforcement of the Vacation Home Rental (VHR) ordinance.

Many complaints have been voiced at City Council meetings about the lack of enforcement and the fact that part of the justification of the increase in fees for the vacation home permits was to go to staffing that department.

The announcement this week of a buyer for the undeveloped portion of the Chateau at the Village has been met with excitement over new investments in South Lake Tahoe.

Owens Financial announced Kawana Meadows Development, LLC entered into a purchase agreement for $42.5 million for eight acres of the project, leaving the 3.5 acres currently home to the Zalanta and completed retail Chateau portion in the hands of Owens.