·      Friends of the Library in South Lake Tahoe is having a book sale Nov. 19 at 10am. Members are allowed to come in at 9am, and it’s possible to join that morning. The library is at 1000 Rufus Allen Blvd.

·      Through the Roots will be at Whiskey Dicks in South Lake Tahoe on Nov. 8. Doors open at 9pm. Tickets are $15 at the door.

·      U.S. News & World Report recognized Lake Tahoe among the 15 best places to go this winter.

·      The 3rd annual Bass Camp Onesie Party is Nov. 18 at Cargo Concert Hall in downtown Reno starting at 8pm. For tickets and more info, go online.

·       Douglas County Library in Minden is showing “Captain America Civil War” (PG-13) on Nov. 10 and “Into the Woods” (PG) on Nov. 17. Both are free and start at 2:30pm.

By Mary Orlin, Bay Area News Group

After 38 years, Tahoe City’s Wolfdale’s is a dining institution. When the restaurant first opened in Homewood, chef Douglas Dale’s mix of Japanese, Italian and California flavors was revelatory.

Now Dale has chronicled his culinary journey and the evolution of his restaurant, which moved to Tahoe City in 1986, in a new cookbook “Wolfdale’s Cuisine Unique” (Wolfdale’s Publishing, $35). Among the chef’s charming tales: Dale credits being a “cookie passer” in his New York kindergarten class with his career inspiration. And his fascination with Japanese culture and cuisine began during a college study-abroad stint in that country.

That experience still influences Wolfdale’s approach.

Read the whole story

By Richard N. Velotta, Las Vegas Review-Journal

The Las Vegas company that manages the casino at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort has received preliminary approval to acquire a majority interest of the Hard Rock Hotel at Lake Tahoe.

The state Gaming Control Board on Wednesday unanimously recommended approval of a series of management and ownership licenses for Paragon Gaming for the 539-room Hard Rock in Stateline.

Final approval of the licenses is expected by the Nevada Gaming Commission on Nov. 17.

Read the whole story

Lake Tahoe Community College is ushering in the holiday season with an adaptation of Charles Dickens’ classic tale “A Christmas Carol.”

The play will be presented in LTCC’s Duke Theatre from Nov. 12-20.

Written by LTCC theater director Susan Boulanger, she said this adaptation tells the Dickens masterpiece with humor and poignancy.

Twenty actors, including seven children, will play a multitude of characters. Local favorite Dave Anderson of Gardnerville plays the iconic character Scrooge. Other actors are Chris Scott, Russ Williams, Matthew Lee, Alicia Agnew, Amber Smith, Astraea Marion, Ellen Martin, Riley Mitchell, AnnaMaria Dixon, Tessa Dixon, and Wanda Smith, all from South Lake Tahoe. Joining them will be Fritz Schlottman of Dayton, and the children’s roles are played by Maddy Evans, Sam Evans, Sage Smith, Aspen Smith, Gilberto Aguirre, Kendall Wilson, and Yona Abiko, all of South Lake Tahoe.

There will be a holiday party before the matinée performance on Nov. 19 at 1pm, and the performance starting at 2pm. Patrons are encouraged to buy tickets in advance, or arrive early to purchase tickets for this special performance.

Thursday through Saturday shows start at 7:30pm; there are matinees Nov. 13, Nov. 19 and Nov. 20 at 2pm.

Tickets are $10 general admission, and $5 for seniors, groups of eight or more, children under 13, and for local students with a valid student ID card. Tickets may be purchased in advance at LTCC’s bookstore starting Nov. 7. LTCC’s Box Office will be open for ticket sales one hour prior to all performances.

To the community,

An open letter to Mr. Bruce Grego:

Your Nov. 2, 2016, letter published by Lake Tahoe News was filled with misinformation and a clear attempt to mislead the community about the Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber (Tahoe Chamber) and the current local political cycle. As chair of the board of directors, I am writing to call out your continued divisive tactics and clarify the facts.

First and foremost, there is no “Nevada-based” chamber in our community. You know this because we have repeatedly informed you and your cohorts that fully 70 percent of our more than 650 chamber members are California-based businesses. Our organization has offices in both California and Nevada and many of our events and programs, including the very successful Sample the Sierra, are held in California. Your continued use of the term “Nevada-based” chamber only seeks to divide our community rather than build our economy and support our local businesses.

Second, you know that the Tahoe Chamber has adopted a Tahoe Future 2020 Vision. This foundational document represents our members’ vision for the South Shore. It sets forth our organization’s commitment to economic vitality, quality of life, sustainability, infrastructure, and intellectual capital. Yet you consistently assail our motives for supporting these important community values and attack candidates who align with this vision.

Third, the Tahoe Chamber has a transparent endorsement process open to any interested candidates. Separately, Tahoe Chamber has a political action committee called the Tahoe Chamber Independent Expenditure Committee (IEC). This is a separate, lawfully registered organization created to support business friendly candidates who align with the Tahoe Future 2020 Vision. Despite these facts, you work overtime to characterize our process and motives as subversive. The reality is that Tahoe Chamber is proud to identify and endorse candidates with   platforms that align with the Tahoe Future 2020 Vision. The Tahoe Chamber IEC is proud to support these candidates through independent expenditures.

Mr. Grego, you present yourself as a community leader, but true leaders do not seek to divide a community. Your constant chorus of “Nevada vs. California” creates unnecessary animosity. It does not contribute to supporting our local businesses, the South Shore’s quality of life, the betterment of our community, or the improvement of our political governance. I encourage you to take a more positive approach to community leadership. In an attempt to assist you in this transformation, I invite you to meet with our executive committee or our full board of directors so we can collectively engage in a more fact-based approach to supporting our local businesses and creating a robust South Shore economy.

Jason Drew, chair Tahoe Chamber board of directors

The annual dump day is sponsored by Clean Tahoe and South Tahoe Refuse as a way to give people a cheap option to get rid of junk. Photo/Provided

By Kathryn Reed

One big negative to more visitors in the area is that they leave behind garbage for Clean Tahoe crews to pick up.

“We have definitely noticed a correlation between the busiest times of year and higher amounts of litter collected,” Catherine Cecchi, who heads up the nonprofit, told Lake Tahoe News.

Clean Tahoe works on the California side of the South Shore cleaning up litter. Sometimes it’s junk people leave on the curb, some of it is dumped illegally, other times critters have turned over cans or gotten into dumpsters.

The organization is necessary because people are not being responsible for their own garbage. Without Clean Tahoe, Tahoe would not be clean.

For the fiscal year that just needed, Clean Tahoe picked up 560 cubic yards of litter. The previous year 490 cubic yards were collected. This compares to 608 cubic yards in 2013-14 and 583.5 in 2012-13.

“I was honestly a little bit surprised at seeing an increase in illegal dump incidents, even though it wasn’t a huge jump — 191 in 2015-16 compared to 156 in 2014-15,” Cecchi said. “I’m not sure why that would have happened, but it is helpful for us to know so that we can consider possibly doing some outreach and education on the issue. We’d like to let people know that it is a punishable offense and also that Clean Tahoe has a program where we can haul items to the transfer station for residents.”

                                                                                  Source: Clean Tahoe

People still have to pay the dump fee, and Clean Tahoe adds a service fee. Seniors and disable residents can get a break on those fees.

Miscellaneous furniture, mattresses, and TVs continue to be the top three items that are abandoned.

A bright spot in the annual report is that the number of times crews responded to trash involving an animal decreased. In the city, the numbers dropped by 20 percent. There were 377 incidents in South Lake Tahoe and 59 in El Dorado County.

“It’s still higher than we’d like, but I think it’s decreasing in part because the city has been making it more of a priority for their Code Enforcement Division and because of the county’s ordinance requiring a bear bin after repeat offenses,” Cecchi said.

Two offenses in two years triggers the bear box mandate in the county.

Cecchi is hoping when the bear box loan program is implemented that the animal-trash incidents will become even less of a problem.

To the community,

For the past six weeks the STEEC (South Tahoe Environmental Education Coalition) has been busy presenting lessons for our Wonders of Water expanded edition or WOWEE.

Students in grades kindergarten through sixth grades got to experience some outdoor education stations due to the many wonderful agency and community partners that make up our STEEC group.

Once again I am reminded of what an amazing place we live in — not only for the breathtaking beauty of our surroundings, but also for our generous community.  Many thanks go to the Lake Tahoe Educational Foundation and the Optimist group for helping to fund this amazing program for our students. We served over 2,000 students. Thank you to the many wonderful presenters and volunteers who helped make this possible.

Beth Quandt, science outreach coordinator Lake Tahoe Unified School District

To the community,

Having served under many different school boards in my 42 years of teaching in the Lake Tahoe Unified School District, I know the importance of a dedicated, well-informed group of individuals who work cooperatively for the betterment of all the students and employees of the district.

I support Larry Reilly because he is dedicated to education as evidenced by his 39 years as an outstanding teacher. He is well-informed as to the changing laws and regulations governing education. His years as an athletic coach attest to the fact that he knows the importance of team work.

And most importantly, Larry Reilly is an advocate for all students.

As his friend and fellow educator, I encourage you to vote for Larry Reilly.

Anita Vieites, retired teacher

By Daniel Goldstein, MarketWatch

If home ownership is the first cornerstone of the American Dream, then a quiet cabin by the lake (if not a beach house with a view of a breathtaking sunset) in the mountains as far away from a Wi-Fi hot spot as possible probably runs a close second.

When people think of a cabin, they usually want a certain rustic look and that look is often heavy timber. Heavy-timber construction with exposed beams and columns as big as 6 to 8 inches wide often are a feature in cabin design, but are also more expensive than ordinary construction.

Sue Lowe, a senior vice president and broker with Chase International in Zephyr Cove, — where the median home value is $392,700, up 9.2 percent in the past year and forecast to rise another 5.6 percent in the year ahead — says prices for winter vacation homes in her market range from $100,000 to $10 million , and it’s typically because of strong demand and tight supply.

Read the whole story

This winter the Tahoe Resource Conservation District plans to tackle a new infestation of Eurasian milfoil at the Tahoe Vista boat launch.

This year TRCD treated 4.5 acres at Lakeside Marina and Beach, Crystal Shores marinas, Fleur du Lac’s outer harbor and in the Truckee River.

Treatment of Eurasian watermilfoil is important for water quality because the invasive plant raises pH, decreases oxygen, and increases water temperature, all of which alter the ecosystem and negatively impact recreation and public safety.

In 2010, TRCD, in collaboration with the Lake Tahoe Aquatic Invasive Species Program, began treatment of approximately 6 acres of aquatic invasive plants in the near shore by Vikingsholm. The control methods included bottom barriers, which kill plants by eliminating light, and diver-assisted suction removal, which physically removes plants and roots. After four years of comprehensive treatment, Emerald Bay remains free of aquatic invasive plants.

“While bottom barriers and diver-assisted suction removal have proven to be successful, there is a need to identify other techniques that could help us get ahead of the battle, particularly with persistent plant species such as curlyleaf pondweed,” TRCD District Manager Kim Boyd said in a press release.

Ultra-violet light is a potential solution, especially in low water years and in tight spaces within marinas. TRCD will continue to work with partners this winter to finalize environmental documentation and permitting so UV light can be tested in Lake Tahoe in 2017.

Funding for these projects has been provided by Truckee River Fund, Tahoe Fund, Rotary Club of Tahoe City, California Tahoe Conservancy, and Nevada Division of State Lands.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report