Homewood project delayed at least one year
Homewood Mountain Resort’s legal troubles are not over, which means renovating and essentially re-creating the West Shore ski resort won’t happen this summer.
The Third District Court of Appeal still must rule on a case involving JMA Ventures, owners of the resort, and California Clean Energy Committee. A decision could come this summer, but by that time it will be too late have all the financing and bid documents put together. Plus, it’s only possible to move dirt in the Lake Tahoe Basin between May 1 and Oct. 15.
The nonprofit that filed the suit lost in Placer County Superior Court in 2012. The group is challenging the project based on the environmental document, saying traffic will be a problem and energy use will rise.
JMA, at least when the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency approved the project in 2011, expected to spend about $500 million to build a boutique hotel, condos, townhomes, grocery store, restaurant, retail spa and pool. The latter being on-mountain and open to the public.
Upgrades to existing chairlifts are part of the plans, too.
— Lake Tahoe News staff report
This project should have never been approved. If you drive on Hy 89 this summer you will know why, its just common sense.
It was approved by every agency and upheld in court.
This project should be scaled way down to reflect public safety on Highway 89 and to maintain the west shore’s small town neighborhood lifestyle. The approval of this way out of scale project by local politicians with likely conflicts of interest from developer campaign contributions and done for tax revenues isn’t worth the resulting impacts from this project. The Appeals court should over rule the local Superior court.
Another project that’s way out of scale for the area.