The land where private docks have been built at Donner Lake is the subject of a lawsuit.

The nonprofit Save Our Shores Donner Lake is suing the California State Lands Commission. The issue is who owns the land where the docks are.

The nonprofit is a group of Donner Lake lakefront property owners

The state owns the lake, but even that is questioned in the lawsuit.  The nonprofit claims the state is trying to claim more ownership that it rightfully has. The two sides are debating where the high water mark is.

The crux of the lawsuit involves the docks themselves.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

Tahoe Keys Boulevard has several inches of water on it on Feb. 9. Photo/Kathryn Reed

By Kathryn Reed

The Upper Truckee River in South Lake Tahoe has reached flood stage, is expected to be higher than it was in January and could reach 1997 levels.

“The Upper Truckee River changed course. It took the easiest way through the snow,” Jim Marino, South Lake Tahoe assistant public works director, told Lake Tahoe News.

It has done so at multiple locations through Meyers and South Lake Tahoe.

It is beyond its banks near the mouth of Lake Tahoe. Flood stage is 10.5 feet. On Thursday morning it was at 11.63 feet.

Adding to the flow of the river is that the dam at Echo Lake is removed each winter. Water is pouring down from there, reaching the Upper Truckee River in the Christmas Valley area.

Meyers is contending with a slew of water issues, with the wet stuff reaching garages and homes.

In South Lake Tahoe water is flowing onto Venice Drive, which city officials closed off early this afternoon. Snow was moved into the parking lot of the commercial complex at Venice and Tahoe Keys Boulevard as a dam of sorts.

For the first time in at least 20 years the weir on Venice Drive has been opened, though not fully, to ease the buildup of water in that lagoon.

Tahoe Keys Boulevard has standing water near the entrance to the housing area. The neighboring state streets like Michael Drive, Dover Court, Colorado Street and Montezuma Avenue are all experiencing significant flooding.

“I just looked at the radar. I don’t see a break for another six or seven hours. It’s going to get heavier,” Marino said at 1:40pm Feb. 9.

The Upper Truckee River near Cove East on Feb. 9 is swollen beyond its banks. Photo/Kathryn Reed

There is a flood watch until 4am Feb. 10 and a winter storm watch until 1am Feb. 11. Snow levels are supposed to drop to between 7,500 and 8,000 Thursday afternoon, falling to lake level by Friday afternoon. And now there is thunder.

No mandatory evacuations have been declared in the city, though some people have voluntarily left their houses. Douglas County has set up a shelter at the Community and Senior Center (pets welcome), 1329 Waterloo Lane, Gardnerville.

Crews throughout the region are out in full force addressing issues as they arise.

The city is keeping an eye out on the mobile home park on Blackwood Avenue. Homes on Woodbine Road are another concern. Bill and Shirley streets behind the Knights Inn have been flooding since the 1940s, and continue to today.

What has crews scrambling is that water is showing up in places where it usually doesn’t. Part of this is because it is going through snow and making its own path, and part because there is no place left for it to go.

On Highway 50 at Bridal Veil Falls the eastbound No. 2 lane is blocked by a boulder the size of an SUV. Caltrans crews will need to blast it to move it.

Boulders and an unstable hillside on Highway 50 at Logan Creek on the South Shore is preventing through traffic to Carson City. Crews are still working in the area, putting in a gravel berm. But there is no word when it will reopen. Don’t expect it to as the rain keeps coming.

Kingsbury Grade is open, but there are delays. Traffic is periodically being held in both directions as crews clear the road of debris. Compounding the backup on the Carson Valley side is that Muller Street and Genoa Lane are closed.

For current highway conditions, click on the state icons on the home page of Lake Tahoe News.

The Emergency Operations Center in Carson Valley is now open. It is staffed with more than 24 mission critical positions, mostly supported by Douglas County staff, East Fork Fire Protection District, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office as well as volunteers, Carson Valley Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Authority, Carson Valley Conservation District personnel, the Douglas County CERT Team. The Douglas County flood hotline is 775.783.6404.

Officials are encouraging residents to be prepared for the possibility of road closures and power outages. This is true no matter where one lives in the Tahoe-Truckee area.

By Paul Deanno, KPIX-TV

It appears California has come out of the drought, with a fury.

Atmospheric rivers, more commonly known as Pineapple Express storms, fueled by Hawaiian tropical waters, have pounded the Bay Area, and the state, with rain.

But this is not new. Over 100 years ago California was in the same boat, literally. The rain started to fall just before Christmas, and it didn’t let up for over 40 days. The Central Valley became a lake.

It was 1862. Leland Stanford was sworn in as California’s 8th governor. But he wouldn’t start his term in Sacramento because California’s capital city, along with much of the state, was 10 feet under water.

Read the whole story

·      Registration is open for Tahoe Rim Trail Association’s summer youth backcountry camps. For more info, go online. 

·      The North Lake Tahoe Bridal Faire is Feb. 26 from 11am-3pm at the Olympic Village Lodge.

·      Paul Wowk, owner of Colorado-based Snowshoe magazine, says Northstar is one of the best places to try snowshoeing for the first time.

·      Zion-I and with guests Jon Wayne & the Pain on Feb. 17 will be at Whiskey Dicks Saloon in South Lake Tahoe. Must be 21 or older. Advance tickets are $18 at The Spot and Whiskey Dicks and online. Tickets go up to $20 on the day of the show. Doors open at 9pm.

·      Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber of Commerce is having a mixer Feb. 23 from 5-7:30pm at the Beacon in Camp Richardson. Cost is $10 for members, $20 for others.

By Tom Miller, KCRA-TV

More than 60 homes in South Lake Tahoe and surrounding communities have flooded –- the result of relentless rain and melting snow.

Snow berms that have built up along the side of the road are acting like dams, steering the water down the street — and in many cases, down driveways and into homes.

Scott Bolton moved into a 104-year-old cabin on Bill Avenue in South Lake Tahoe that now has water in its kitchen, living room and bedroom.

Read the whole story

To the community,

Nikki Verdile, one of the incredible sponsor volunteers from Beach Retreat & Lodge, was really happy to be helping at the Monday meal at Grace Hall on Jan. 30.  

“This opportunity was educational in so many ways,” commented Verdile. “I met new people, heard wonderful stories, and best of all, everyone was so thankful for the food and help provided. This was so rewarding and the Beach Retreat is so happy for the opportunity to give back to this beautiful community.”

Verdile, along with fellow Beach Retreat co-workers Lori Cramer, Erik Cramer, and Emily Sabbato arrived at 3pm to begin their volunteering to help at the Beach Retreat’s sponsorship dinner. They began by packing food giveaway bags with fruit, veggies, milk, eggs, butter, canned goods and breads/pastries; moved on to serving fried whitefish with homemade tartar sauce, zucchini, potatoes wedges, coleslaw and a side of garlic bread and ended their evening helping to clean and clear the dining hall area.

B&B thanks the Beach Retreat & Lodge for sponsoring their first Adopt a Day of Nourishment, and for the hard working and happy team that they sent to assist the B&B volunteer team. 

The help and support that B&B receives from our sponsors, donors and volunteers is overwhelming and has such a positive impact on the lives that we touch and care for. 

For more B&B program information, go online.

Carol Gerard, Bread & Broth

By Kathryn Reed

In the same week that much of Northern California, including the Lake Tahoe Basin, is contending with flooding, the State Water Resources Control Board said water conservation is necessary.

South Tahoe PUD had voiced its disgust with this regulation prior to the Feb. 8 decision via a letter to the water board. General Manager Richard Solbrig told his board the district will maintain the odd-even three-day week watering days that it has imposed for 10 years. The district was way ahead of the curve in recognizing conservation is important. It’s the more drastic regulations under the drought rules that STPUD has issues with.

“These regulations have helped Californians rise to the occasion and show what they can do with conservation, while providing flexibility based on differing local water supply conditions across the state,” state water board Chair Felicia Marcus said. “We are beyond happy that water conditions continue to improve this year, but the rainy season isn’t over yet and some areas of the state continue to suffer significant drought impacts. As glorious as the first half of the season has been, we know that weather can change quickly, and vary depending on where you are, so it is most prudent to wait a bit longer until close of the rainy season to take stock of the statewide situation and decide what to do next.”

By keeping the drought measures in place it means an additional 270 days of consumption reports, “stress tests,” and water-use cuts.

Flooded Tahoe meadows make drought restrictions seem ludicrous. Photo/Kathryn Reed

“This decision is blind to the plain fact seen on every mountain, river and reservoir in the north state. We are flush with water, and they know that, but this lays bare their ‘permanent drought’ plan that will let them limit and control water use forever to meet their environmentalist agenda,” state Sen. Ted Gaines, R-El Dorado, said in a statement. He represents the California side of the Tahoe basin. “There has been so much talk about sanctuary cities and sanctuary states lately, all relating to immigration. But now I’m convinced that California citizens need a sanctuary from unelected bureaucrats who won’t call off the drought when people are all but having to canoe to work because of the rain

Wednesday’s keep the drought rules decision was on the same day the state was trying to figure out the appropriate level of flow down the damaged spillway at Oroville Dam. What is being called a cavity opened on the spillway on Feb. 7 from all of the water that has been released. The spillway is necessary to maintain reservoir operations. With rain in the forecast through Friday and upcoming spring runoff, that spillway is needed.  

The dam is sound, and no imminent threat to the public exists, authorities said.

The statewide water savings numbers were also released Wednesday. In December, 20.6 percent less water was used compared to the base year of December 2013.

STPUD had its January numbers available last week, saying the district used 18 percent less water than January 2013.

Solbrig said since the peak water consumption year of 2007 STPUD has cut that figure by 33 percent.

Publisher’s note: This editorial is from the Feb. 6, 2017, Reno Gazette-Journal.

If prosecutors, defense attorneys, the police or any other agent can come into a newsroom and take a reporter’s materials, journalists cannot do their jobs independently.

Yet that is what an attorney in a local drug case demands.

Theresa Ristenpart represents Braden Riley, one of nine defendants arrested as part of a federal investigation into a Reno opioid distribution ring.

She served RGJ breaking news reporter Marcella Corona and the RGJ with subpoenas for any materials involving contact with a former Washoe County jail inmate that she thinks might help her client.

Read the whole story

By Meghin Delaney, Las Vegas Review-Journal

State Sen. Don Gustavson is using history as his guide as he again attempts to require Nevada students to learn cursive handwriting by the end of third grade.

Gustavson, R-Sparks, has even included the Founding Fathers in his cursive cause, which began with the 2015 legislative session and continued last week when he filed essentially the same bill draft that previously died in committee. This time around, he believes testimony from history and education experts will propel SB86 into law.

Other states — including Florida, California, Louisiana and Alabama — have re-introduced cursive through legislation or adjusting state education standards.

Read the whole story

By USSA

ST. MORITZ, Switzerland – Canada’s Erik Guay became the oldest World Champion in alpine skiing history, winning the men’s super G Wednesday at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships. Travis Ganong (Squaw Valley) was the top American in 14th.

For Guay – the 35-year-old veteran of the Canadian Ski Team and one of only three athletes competing at these World Championships who also competed in the 2003 World Championships in St. Moritz – this victory was made even more special by sharing the podium with his teammate Manuel Osborne-Paradis, who finished third. Norway’s Kjetil Jansrud was second. Wednesday’s race was the first time that two Canadian men have finished on the podium in World Championship history.

Guay, who started bib 14, Jansrud with bib 9 and Osborne-Paradis bib 26 enjoyed a slight advantage of watching earlier racers tackle the fast, technical and challenging course.

“When you go early like that, you don’t really know how the course is going to run. You don’t get the course reports,” said Ganong, who started bib 4. “It was an open, fast set. The jumps were actually bigger than the downhill training yesterday. It was a really tricky set, really fast speeds, and it’s a World Championship event, so everybody is pushing super hard.”

Starting early, though, Ganong did provide crucial course information for his teammates, including Ryan Cochran-Siegle (Starksboro, Vt.), who finished 28th, and Tommy Biesemeyer (Keene, N.Y.), who posted top-five times at the first three intermediate splits before leaning in and booting out on a tough left-footer, and not finishing.

Wednesday’s race came at the one-year mark away from the first day of the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea.