By Claudio Milano, Joseph M. Cheer and Marina Novelli, The Conversation

The summer holidays are in full swing – and protests against overtourism have begun (yet again) in a number of popular European cities. Overtourism is not a new problem.

Barcelona, in particular, is at the center of these mounting concerns about the rapid growth of tourism in cities, especially during peak holiday periods. In fact, Destination Barcelona estimates that there were 30 million overnight visitors in 2017, compared to a resident population of 1,625,137.

But across southern Europe protests and social movements are growing in number. This has led to the formation of organizations such as the Assembly of Neighborhoods for Sustainable Tourism (ABTS) and the Network of Southern European Cities against tourism (SET). They are at the forefront of the fight against overtourism and the impact it has on local residents.

While many tourists want to “live like a local” and have an authentic and immersive experience during their visit, the residents of many tourism-dependent destinations are seeing the unique sense of place that characterized their home towns vanish beneath a wave of souvenir shops, crowds, tour buses and rowdy bars. They are also suffering as local amenities and infrastructure are put under enormous strain.

It is a truly global issue. Other destinations where overtourism has reached disruptive proportions include Palma de Mallorca, Paris, Dubrovnik, Kyoto, Berlin, Bali and Reykjavik. Recently, Thai authorities were forced to act when the number of tourists visiting Maya Bay, the beach made famous by Danny Boyle’s film “The Beach,” led to shocking environmental damage.

What does overtourism look like?

We define overtourism “as the excessive growth of visitors leading to overcrowding in areas where residents suffer the consequences of temporary and seasonal tourism peaks, which have enforced permanent changes to their lifestyles, access to amenities and general well-being.” The claim is that overtourism is harming the landscape, damaging beaches, putting infrastructure under enormous strain, and pricing residents out of the property market. It is a hugely complex issue that is often oversimplified.

It can have an impact in multiple ways. The international cruise industry, for example, delivers thousands of passengers daily to destination ports. While comparatively little is returned to communities, cruise activity creates physical and visual pollution.

City residents also bear the cost of tourism growth. As cities transform to cater for tourists, the global travel supply chain prospers. This coincides with increasing property speculation and rising costs of living for local communities. AirBnB, for example, has been accused of reducing housing affordability and displacing residents.

Amsterdam wants to take direct action to prevent this by banning short-term rentals and directing cruise passengers away from the city center. AirBnB is also making efforts to address the problems they are accused of creating.

Things are made worse by the fact that key destinations are mostly unprepared to deal with overtourism. According to the Italian sociologist Marco d’Eramo, in 1950 just 15 destinations were visited by 98 percent of international tourists, while in 2007 this had decreased to 57 percent. This indicates the rapid expansion of global tourism beyond established destinations.

Overcrowding and the establishment of typical tourism-focused businesses, such as clubs, bars and souvenir shops, overwhelm local businesses – and rowdy and unmanageable tourist behavior is common. This diminishes the unique ambience of destinations and leads to crowd and waste management pressures.

Clearly, tourism brings jobs, investment and economic benefits to destinations. But overtourism occurs when tourism expansion fails to acknowledge that there are limits. Local government and planning authorities have so far been powerless to deal with the overwhelming influence of the global tourism supply chain. This has led to widespread “tourist-phobia” – first described by Manuel Delgado more than a decade ago as a mixture of repudiation, mistrust and contempt for tourists.

Dealing with overtourism

Dealing with overtourism must now be a priority. But despite the mounting howls of protest, tourism promotion endures – and unsustainable hordes of tourists continue to descend on cities, beaches and other natural wonders.

Managing the flow of tourists seems an improbable and unwelcome task. But some cities have taken drastic measures to limit the effects of overtourism, including the introduction of new or revised taxation arrangements, fines linked to new local laws, and “demarketing”, whereby destinations focus on attracting fewer, high-spending and low impact tourists, rather than large groups.

But it’s a fine line to tread. If tourist arrivals to a destination decline suddenly and dramatically it would likely have considerable economic repercussions for those who rely on them.

Overtourism is a shared responsibility. City administrators and destination managers must acknowledge that there are definite limits to growth. Prioritizing the welfare of local residents above the needs of the global tourism supply chain is vital. Prime consideration must be given to ensuring that the level of visitation fits within a destination’s capacity.

The global tourism supply chain also bears a major responsibility. It must ensure that product development achieves a balance between the optimal tourist experience and a commensurate local benefit. Tourists must also play their part by making travel choices that are sensitive to the places they visit and those who live in and around them.

Tourism should be part of the wider destination management system, which must also consider transport and mobility, the preservation of public spaces, the local economy and housing, among other aspects of daily life. Research, planning and a close and ongoing dialogue between city administrators, the tourism industry, civil society groups and local residents are essential.

Perhaps overtourism is a symptom of the present era of unprecedented affluence and hyper mobility, a consequence of late capitalism. We need to urgently rethink the way cities are evolving to uphold the rights of their residents.

Claudio Milano is a researcher, lecturer and consultant in tourism, Ostelea – School of Tourism and Hospitality; Joseph M. Cheer is a lecturer, School of Languages, Literatures, Cultures & Linguistics, Monash University; and Marina Novelli is a professor of tourism and international development, University of Brighton.

Jessica Youssi

A Modesto woman who left last weekend for Lake Tahoe and then went missing has been found.

El Dorado County sheriff’s deputies said, “Jessica (Youssi) has been located safely.”

No further details were released.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

Placer County supervisors this week agreed to take steps to purchase an 11-acre plot near Dollar Hill for $3.6 million that could be developed into affordable housing.

The property, located on North Lake Boulevard just northeast of Tahoe City, was previously approved for a mixed-use housing and retail development and retains its development rights for residential and commercial use. Its expired permit approved 128 housing units – 78 affordable apartments for seniors and 50 market-rate units – as well as 4,800 square feet for commercial use.Dollar Hill offers an ideal site for achievable housing, with easy access to TART bus routes, schools, North Lake Tahoe’s downtown centers of Tahoe City and Kings Beach and the Dollar Hill Trail.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency has also designated it a “preferred affordable housing area,’”which could make it eligible for more units than zoning density would otherwise allow.

A recent study by Beacon Economics commissioned by the county’s Economic Development Office showed that while local housing prices are increasing at a rate slightly lower than elsewhere in California, median local wages are actually decreasing, worsening the problem.

Under the terms approved this week the county would pay a $50,000 refundable deposit, with a 120-day investigation period to explore the feasibility of a workforce housing project, find a housing developer to build it and secure funding for the land purchase. The county may exercise up to three three-month extensions to complete its investigations, with an additional $20,000 deposit for each. All deposits would be applied to the final sale price if the county buys the land.

Funding for the purchase could come from a variety of sources including the Placer County Housing Trust Fund, transient occupancy tax revenue and possibly local partner agencies and philanthropists. The Tahoe Truckee Airport District Board of Directors is expected to vote on a proposal to allocate $500,000 toward the purchase.

Due to an increase in projected public attendance, the Aug. 2 Douglas County Board of County Commissioners will be at the CVIC Hall located at 1604 Esmeralda Ave., Minden.

Live streaming will not be available.

While the meeting will start at 10am, the vacation home rental items will not be heard before 3pm. The Rancho Sierra project will not be heard before 5pm.

The agenda is available online.

The Lisa Maloff University Center at Lake Tahoe Community College will open Aug. 16 offering associate to master’s degree programs.

Through LTCC’s partnerships with Sierra Nevada College and Brandman University students may earn degrees on LTCC’s campus in global business management, psychology, liberal studies, applied studies, a master’s degree in education, and a teaching credential.

The 7,000-square-foot University Center was made possible by a $5.8 million donation from South Lake Tahoe philanthropist Lisa Maloff.

The college is hosting two open houses: Aug. 22 from 4 to 6pm and Aug. 23 from 5:30 to 7:30pm.

Sierra Nevada College classes in the new center start Aug. 20, and Brandman University classes begin Sept. 4.

LTCC is in talks with other potential partners including Washington State University, which may offer hospitality management courses at the center.

·      The Douglas County Community Health staff urges parents and guardians to take advantage of the back-to-school immunization event on Aug. 11 in Minden. There is also walk-in immunization clinics every Monday afternoon.

·      University of Nevada Cooperative Extension presents Noxious Weed Identification and Control on Aug. 8 from noon-1pm at the Washoe County Cooperative Extension Office, 4955 Energy Way in Reno, as part of the Green Industry Continuing Education Series.

·      Moises Fonseca is Douglas County Sheriff’s Department’s newest deputy.

·      Cassidy Marchini of South Lake Tahoe was selected as a first-year member of the 2018-19 Clippers Spirit, the dance team of the NBA’s L.A. Clippers. The Clippers Spirit is an elite dance team made up of world-class professional dancers.

·      El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office Explorer POST 457 earned first place for critical incident scenario at the 8th annual Central Valley Explorer Competition on July 13-15.

By Jen Trew

Each year, the typical American family tosses out $2,275 worth of food and beverages. About 15 to 20 percent of the produce we buy is wasted. But as we all know, eating a diet full of fruits and veggies is good for your health and longevity.

Jen Trew

A few simple tasks can help each of us eat healthier and reduce food waste:

·       Before food shopping, take inventory of what you have on hand. Make a plan for using up fresh items in your kitchen before they go bad.

·       Buy only what you need. Make a list of how produce will be served once purchased.

·       Store produce properly. If it’s refrigerated at the store, it should be at home as well.

·       Some plants emit a gas that speeds up ripening in other plants. These include avocados, bananas, mangos, peaches, apples, melons, and tomatoes. Don’t keep these in the same bin with other fruits and veggies.

·       Some produce has a shorter life span than others, such as mushrooms, tender greens, berries, herbs, and summer squash. Use these first.

·       If your produce is nearing its end, lay it out on a sheet pan and freeze for later use.

Repurposing leftovers is a great way to minimize food waste.

Try these tips:

·       Have a leftover night for dinner toward the end of the week.

·       Everyone gets a small portion of each item.

·       Roasted veggies and leftover grilled chicken are great for topping a baked potato or rice as an easy meal.

·       An egg scramble or salad made with leftover veggies is another tasty way to use up what you have.

Jen Trew is a registered dietitian at Barton Health.

Placer County Board of Supervisors this week approved $4.9 million in funding for trail planning and construction as well as other capital projects in the Lake Tahoe area.

The Capital Projects Advisory Committee evaluates project proposals based on how well they advance key priorities outlined in the county’s Tourism Master Plan for the region. The committee makes recommendations to supervisors on which projects should receive funding allocated from transient occupancy tax collected in eastern Placer County.

This year the committee reviewed and evaluated 29 grant applications totaling more than $36 million in TOT funding requests. The committee recommended 18 projects. The remaining projects are still being considered by the committee and will be brought before the board later this year.

More than 70 percent of the approved TOT funds will go to projects that focus on trail planning and construction. Several trail projects are part of the Resort Triangle Trail System, which connects the North Lake Tahoe town centers Tahoe City and Kings Beach with nearby mountain resorts and Truckee through highways 89, 28 and 267. 

The remaining approved projects focus on transportation and visitor facilities, including a visitor center at Donner Summit, a performing arts center at Northstar and parking facilities and bike repair stations in Tahoe City. A full list of the approved projects is available here.

South Lake Tahoe public safety agencies will be participating in National Night Out on Aug. 7 from 4-8pm at Regan Beach located at 3199 Sacramento Ave.

National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live.

In South Lake Tahoe, National Night Out is a partnership between El Dorado County, El Dorado County Sheriff’s Department, California Highway Patrol, South Lake Tahoe Police Department, South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue, Barton Health, California Conservation Corps and South Tahoe Action Teams.

Support the 2018 Toys for Tots campaign by bringing a new, unwrapped toy to donate.

The 2018 Honda Accord Touring is new and improved. Photos/Larry Weitzman

By Larry Weitzman

Competition and free markets are a wonderful thing. And the competition in the mid-size sedan market is beyond fierce. Toyota’s new Camry set some new standards so what does its chief rival do, try to do something better. Honda hopes it exceeded the Camry with its new Accord. Did it? The cars are so close, it almost comes done to which headlight assembly looks better? Honda wins that one, but what about the rest of the new Accord?

My tester was the top of the line Touring 2.0T with a 10-speed auto torque converter cog swapper which is perhaps a tie in as this new Accord starts its tenth generation. Everything was standard, no extras. It had everything anyway down to lane keep assist, full power, leather and NAV. In other words, the lock, stock and barrel, a phrase meaning buying the entire gun, the whole enchilada with nothing left off the option plate.     

Honda’s new body strongly resembles the new Civic, the same window line, similar tail and head light shapes. The flanks are different but some will have trouble differentiating the two different models.

Honda get a bigger wheelbase, riding on a 111-inch wheelbase (interestingly the same as a Camry) and while length remains the same at 192 inches. It is a bit wider at 73 inches and it stands 57 inches tall, about an inch shorter. But the inside has grown as the new Accord is half a cubic foot shy of being classified as a full-size car. Without a sunroof Accord becomes a full-size car by a couple of cubic feet. It is a roomy ride.

You won’t find a V-6 under the hood and no, it’s not located in the trunk either. The 278 hp V-6 is no more an option. Now the Honda sports two turbo motors, a 1.5L of 192 hp found in lesser models (and in many Civics) and a 2.0L turbo monster motor found in my tester that is similar to the 306 hp Civic Type R except “only” knocking down 252 hp at 6,500 rpm and a monstrous 273 pounds of twist from 1,500 to 4,000 rpm. That is prodigious as you will see. It sends that power to the front wheels where 61 percent of its weight resides.

Specifications
Price $24,465 to $36,695
Engine
1.5L DOHC, 16 valve turbo directed injected inline four cylinder 192 hp @ 5,500 rpm 192 lb.-ft. of torque @ 1,600 rpm – 5,000 rpm
2.0L DOHC, 16 valve turbo directed injected inline four cylinder 252 hp @ 6,500 rpm 273 lb.-ft. of torque @ 1,500-4,000 rpm.
Transmission
CVT 1.5L
10 speed torque converter automatic 2.0L
Configuration
Transverse mounted front engine/front wheel drive
Dimensions
Wheelbase 111.4 inches
Length 192.2 inches
Width 73.3 inches
Height 57.1 inches
Track (f/r) 62.6/63.1 inches
Weight 3,428 pounds
Weight distribution (f/r) 61.2/38.8 percent
Wheels 19-inch alloys
Tires 235/40X19
Passenger volume 102.7 cubic feet
Trunk volume 16.7 cubic feet
Fuel capacity 14.8 gallons
Turning circle 39.4 feet
Steering lock to lock 2.23 turns
Performance
0-60 mph 5.72 seconds
50-70 mph 3.20 seconds
50-70 mph uphill (6-7 percent) 4.02 seconds
Top speed Who cares?
Fuel economy EPA rated 22/32/26 mpg city/highway/combined. Expect 28 mpg in rural suburban driving and 37 mpg on the highway at legal speeds.

Even with 26 less hp, Accord outperforms its predecessors scampering 0-60 mph in a quick 5.72 seconds. It will run from 50-70 mph in just 3.20 seconds and the same task up a steep (6-7 percent) grade only slows that time to 4.02 seconds. Throttle response is strong and with the 10 speeder there is no turbo lag. Power is right now. This 2.0L mill is exceptionally smooth and quiet.

Full economy is average with EPA numbers of 22/32/26 mpg city/highway/combined. But expect better. My Accord averaged 28.1 mpg for 443 miles od varied driving. On a long 40-mile two-way highway run at 70 mph, the Accord averaged 37.6 mpg with some traffic. Part of the excellent highway mileage is due to an engine that spins just 1,700 rpm at 70 mph. Fuel tank is a small 14.8 gallons. It should have at least two more gallons of capacity.

Handling initially felt sloppy and loose, very un-Honda like. It has great creds, four-wheel state of the art independent suspension, a wide 63-inch track front and rear, a super quick electric power steering rack that goes lock to lock in just 2.23 turns, and wide 19-inch alloys shod with low profile 235/40 series rubber. But first impressions felt like a 1994 Buick Regal sedan I happened to drove last week. Weight is not an issue at 3,428 pounds (interestingly the base hybrid version weighs less at 3,342 pounds and even the top of the line Touring hybrid weighs exactly the same as the non-hybrid Touring edition. In other words, there is no weight penalty for the Accord hybrid). A base LX Accord with the 1.5L turbo is nearly 300 pounds lighter than the Touring edition.

But here is the deal, my Touring tester is lighter by about 40 pounds from the prior 9th generation and stiffer in torsional rigidity. Honda now has a Two-Mode Driving System and Adaptive Damper System that actually works, big time. Leave it in normal and you get reasonably nimble handling with some body roll and a super smooth ride that most drivers want. However, put it in Sport mode with a button push and the Accord tightens up like the edgy Honda you expect. Ride suffers little while handling sharpens up like a sporting sedan. Turn in is very crisp. The good news is that the Honda edge in handling is still there.

The Active Damper System also besides adjusting shock damping, also works on other components, like steering (it gets real), throttle mapping and the tranny gets sporty as well. Even Active Sound Control enhances engine sounds. It works big-time as the Honda handling I was so familiar with was back and improved, shaper than ever while still giving granny a great Sunday ride including silence from wind, tire and engine noise. Honda has put the new Accord into a noise abatement program and it has definitely worked as it is noticeably quieter than previous Accords. Thanks Honda.

Accord comes with every safety acronym including Honda Sensing which now recognizes traffic signs. I mentioned lane keep assist and the brakes are large four-wheel discs and they are powerful. Headlights are also fantastic as well as beautiful.

Inside is a soft leather interior with sublime seats up front and new found huge legroom in the rear. Instrumentation however gives the drivers choices that should be automatic in that you can have a fuel computer or an analog tach. In Honda’s defense a graphic tach can be displayed in the Heads-up display, but it’s not the same. Having the trip computer helps improve your fuel economy and with a ten-speed tranny, the tach is less necessary except for detail types like me.

The sound system is a bit difficult to operate with its touch screen, but in a couple of weeks it should be second nature, HVAC is a piece of cake. Trunk is a huge, almost 17 cubic feet.

Pricing for the well-equipped Accord with the 1.5L, 192 hp four banger, starts at $24,465 including $895 for shipping from its Marysville, Ohio, assembly plant. My top of the line Touring stickers for $36,695 all in. But one might consider it a near luxo ride which it is. Great power, good fuel economy plus very good handling and a ride I prefer when in Sport mode makes the Honda a perennial contender for sales champ and a continual Car and Driver top ten pick (31 times) of all cars for sale under $60,000.

Larry Weitzman has been into cars since he was 5 years old. At 8 he could recite from memory the hp of every car made in the U.S. He has put in thousands of laps on racetracks all over the Western United States.