Incline Village and Crystal Bay residents can participate in a green waste program this summer.

Waste Management’s pilot program is July 11-Oct. 28.

Residents must purchase approved recyclable green bags from Tahoe Supply Company or Ace Hardware in Incline Village. Customers may fill 12 bags without incurring an additional fee.

The plan is to take the waste to a regional biomass facility or chip it.

For more information, call (775) 831.2971 or (775) 832.1284.

By Carlos Alcalá, Sacramento Bee

The El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office needs to fix its treatment of women in the department and prevent deputies from using phony educational degrees to gain pay increases, according to the El Dorado County grand jury’s report released Friday.

The grand jury’s 2010-11 report focused three of its 12 sections on the Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff John D'Agostini

A newly elected sheriff, John D’Agostini, took over the department at the beginning of the year.

The report’s section on gender bias in the department outlined a female staffing level far below national averages, and a pattern of gender bias complaints that jumped in 2010.

Roughly 5 percent of sworn officers are women, according to the report. It contrasted El Dorado’s level to a national average of 12.8 percent in communities of similar sizes.

The department saw 12 gender bias complaints filed in 2010, double the number for 2008 and 2009 combined, the report said.

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• Owners of the Garfinkle building (former Mikasa site) are talking to South Lake Tahoe planning officials about a possible face-lift and roof on the Y eyesore. The owners are negotiating with a prospective tenant (who they won’t name until the lease is signed) to make the building suit the tenant’s needs. But right now it is just talk because the city has not received any applications.

• Squaw Valley’s Olympic Ice Pavilion has become the High Camp Roller Rink for the summer.

• Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has Lake Tahoe, Geneva and Rome on his summer itinerary.

• Naked Fish, the sushi place, has an open building permit with South Lake Tahoe to expand into the old Alpen Sierra coffee house site.

• Reno’s Artown has a slew of events throughout July.

By Kathryn Reed

South Lake Tahoe City Attorney Patrick Enright is scheduled to get a raise Tuesday before the council even evaluates him.

The 5 percent raise, which brings his salary from $146,740 a year to $154,077, is on the consent agenda. It’s not until after the regular meeting that in closed session the council is scheduled to discuss his annual evaluation. With furloughs, which go away Oct. 1, Enright would make $133,175 for the next three months.

Pat Enright

He was hired in June 2009 at a rate of $128,000 a year. At that time he signed a two-year contract. The current salary range for the city attorney position is $133,092 to $169,860.

Enright’s severance pay would be six months.

The council has set it up so he is on a five-year step like the rest of the employees. (All other city employees get a 5 percent raise based on the step system until they top out at step five.) However, as an at-will employee, the steps are not automatic for Enright. That is why the council must vote on the increase. The proposed increase would bring him to step four.

The council could treat this position like the city manager, which is not on a step basis. Raises are based on whatever the council would want to give that person.

On top of the raise, in the package is a $400/month car allowance, and extension of his contract through 2013.

The other item before the council is having Enright pay the same percentage into PERS other city employees pay, if they agree to do so in the future. Right now the city pays his 8 percent contribution.

The City Council meets June 21 at 9am at Lake Tahoe Airport. Here is the City Council agenda.

By Ming W. Chin

To those of us who care about preserving America’s democracy, a recent report on civics is cause for alarm. The National Assessment of Educational Progress found that 3 out of 4 U.S. students lack a basic understanding of democracy.

The study adds to a disturbing body of research showing that most people cannot identify the three branches of government and that, of the three branches, the public least understands the judicial branch and its role in our system of government.

Our Founding Fathers realized that an impartial and independent judiciary is necessary to serve as a check on the other branches of government, to promote equal justice and the rule of law and to protect individual and minority rights. In appointment letters to our nation’s first Supreme Court justices, President George Washington described the judiciary as “the chief pillar upon which our national government must rest” and “the keystone of our political fabric.” The late Chief Justice William Rehnquist once remarked that “it is not enough to have an impressive catalogue of individual rights in the Constitution if the judges who are called upon to enforce these rights are not truly independent.”

About 12 years ago, the truth and wisdom of these words were brought home to me when I met Emil Constantinescu, then the president of Romania. At the time, he was in the midst of forming a fragile democracy. He told me he once had been a judge under former President Nicolae Ceausescu but quit to become a geologist because he got tired of Ceausescu telling him how his decisions ought to come out.

Ming W. Chin is an associate justice on the California Supreme Court.

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The idea of Father’s Day was conceived slightly more than a century ago by Sonora Dodd of Spokane, Wash., while she listened to a Mother’s Day sermon in 1909. Dodd wanted a special day to honor her father, William Smart, a widowed Civil War veteran who was left to raise his six children on a farm.

A day in June was chosen for the first Father’s Day celebration — 101 years ago, June 19, 1910, proclaimed by Spokane’s mayor because it was the month of Smart’s birth.

The first presidential proclamation honoring fathers was issued in 1966 when President Lyndon Johnson designated the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day. Father’s Day has been celebrated annually since 1972 when President Richard Nixon signed the public law that made it permanent.

There are an estimated 70.1 million fathers across the nation.

Census figures show there were 1.8 million single fathers in 2010; 15 percent of single parents were men.

The estimated number of state-at-home dads is 154,000 in 2010. These married fathers with children younger than 15 have remained out of the labor force for at least one year primarily so they can care for the family while their wives work outside the home. These fathers cared for 287,000 children, according to America’s Families and Living Arrangements

The South Lake Tahoe Senior Center is hosting a National Mah Jongg program on Tuesdays at 12:30pm.

There is no fee for this program. Enrollment is open and all players are encouraged to attend.

For more information, go ti the Senior Center at 3050 Lake Tahoe Blvd., South Lake Tahoe or call Jennifer at (727) 867.4930.

By Kathryn Reed

TRUCKEE – It’s the perfect trifecta – food, adventure and lodging.

The Cedar House Sport Hotel offers all of this to guests, making for an uncomplicated stay and a new twist on an all-inclusive resort. It’s more than the average dining experience, more than the average outdoor adventure, and more than the average hotel.

Opened in 2006 by Patty and Jeff Baird, the Cedar House is about a mile from downtown Truckee. Inspired by their time spent in European sport hotels, they wanted to replicate that experience. With the acquisition last month of adventure company Tahoe Trips & Trails, the Bairds are able to be that all-in-one property they dreamed of creating.

The Cedar House Sport Hotel in Truckee has it all. Photos/Kathryn Reed

While people don’t have to stay at the hotel to partake in one of the adventures, especially since trips are all over the West, the hotel does make for a perfect launching pad to the outdoors.

Some trips are guided hikes, some combine food and the outdoors. And if a suggestion of where to go is what you want, that’s free for the asking.

Kayaking and river trips are available this time of year, with cross country skiing and snowshoeing available in winter. This barely touches on what’s available.

Patty Baird says the three main reasons to acquire the travel company were so they could market to the adventure traveler, attract corporate businesses interested in team building, and to offer guided hikes into the wilderness. The U.S. Forest Service limits the number of permits allowed for businesses like this, with the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit not allowing any. The Cedar House goes into the Tahoe National Forest, which Truckee is next to.

But adventure is relative. Across the street from the hotel is a regional park that offers disc golf, and within walking distance is a golf course. Northstar-at-Tahoe, Alpine Meadows and Squaw Valley are a quick drive for skiers.

Getting outside

A week ago Sue and I spent a night at the property – now wishing our get-away was longer. We designed our mountain biking adventure, but left most of the culinary experience up to Chef Jacob Burton.

With hitting snow on the Pole Creek trail (about 7 miles south of Truckee off Highway 89), maybe we should have asked the experts where to go. Nonetheless, our ride through the woods got our heart rate up as we kept going uphill. We found the route in Ken Castle’s “Tahoe” guidebook.

It’s definitely a scenic area we’ll get back to.

Not wanting to have too much for lunch, but wanting to act like we were on vacation – if just for a day – we drove to the River Ranch at the base of Alpine Meadows. The patio there is one of the best on the water eating experiences in the whole Lake Tahoe area.

The Truckee River is roaring by, the sun is shining and the drinks are flowing. Sue’s complaint about her CoCo Mai Tai was too much alcohol. I would have ordered another Tiki Torch if I wasn’t driving and heading to taste wine as the next stop.

Oh, and the $2.95 basket of fries is tasty.

Next stop was the Truckee River Winery – which boasts of being the highest and coldest winery in the country. Russ Jones has been making wine since the 1980s, with the tasting room open for about 18 months.

The winery is walking distance from the Cedar House. Stella, the restaurant at the hotel, sells Truckee River Winery wines and the winery sells Stella’s yummy breads.

The grapes are from throughout Northern and Central California, with all the winemaking and bottling done in Truckee.

We now have some bottles to drink this summer.

Eating at Stella

While Stella – the restaurant on site – is designed for hotel guests, locals often are found at one of the indoor or outdoor tables. It’s open for dinner Wednesday through Sunday from 5:30-9:30pm.

Burton is of the belief that what’s on the menu should reflect what’s in season. So, you may have liked one dish this month, but in the fall it may not be on the menu based on the ingredients not being in season.

“Everything is completely inspired by the ingredients,” Burton says, showing the garden that has just started now that the snow has stopped falling. “Our concept is unique. I don’t like to stick to a single cuisine. I don’t like to label it.”

Burton is into sharing his love for food. Recipes are online, including videos, and a place to ask questions about cooking.

The name Stella means star in Italian. The Bairds chose it for this reason as well as a restaurant by that name was on the property years ago.

Paul, our waiter, starts us off with slices of fresh made rosemary-olive and sourdough breads. I could have easily filled up on bread.

Sue’s tomato bisque has her barely able to set her spoon down, while my salad is refreshing.

Using what’s in season was clearly what Burton had in mind by making a bolognaise out of Bing cherries.

“They look like meatballs to us,” Burton said.

Before that night I didn’t like cooked cherries. Now, at least for this dish, I’m a convert. Oh my goodness, I wish I didn’t clean my plate so I could have had leftovers. To top it off, the fettuccine was clearly homemade. But the noodles were thin and delicate, adding a texture not often found in pasta dishes.

Sue enjoyed her halibut, raving about how flaky and tender it was.

For dessert we shared, though I think I had more than half, of the goat cheese cheesecake. I’ve only had cream cheese cheesecakes before, so this lemony concoction was quite a pleasurable experience.

The lodging experience

Walking across the parking lot, we ascend the stairs to our room. First, though, we take in the ambiance of the cedar exterior of the hotel lighted at night. We really do feel like we’re in Tahoe with all the wood and unobtrusive lighting.

Cedar House is a green hotel, and while that is what got it headlines five years ago, Baird admits it’s not a primary reason people choose the hotel.

“Green is totally incidental for bookings. People like it, but it’s not a driving force why people book,” Baird said. “But it helps us with our message.”

It also helps with lower utility bills.

From our spacious second-story balcony we look over the living roof on the main building. Water drains from the roof to gutters that supply water for landscaping.

The room is contemporary, but not austere. Simple things like instead of wasting space with a closet, a rack of sorts in the corner allows guests to hang clothes. Instead of an uncomfortable backboard to lean against in bed, the back doesn’t require a pillow.

Things guests won’t readily notice are solar tinted windows, no incandescent lighting is used, and the hot water system is tankless. This barely touches on the green features of the hotel.

A filling, yummy buffet breakfast back at Stella is part of an overnight stay. Dogs are allowed in most rooms, a bar is in the main area near comfy seating and a fireplace, and a hot tub is out back.

Cedar House Sport Hotel is the perfect get-away – my only complaint is it was too short.

Partial list of events:

July 16: The Forgotten Feast with Hank Shaw, author of “Hunt, Gather, Cook: Finding the Forgotten Feast,” is a celebration of wild plants and mushrooms, game and seafood. It begins with cocktails and a book signing by Shaw at 5:30pm and is followed by a five-course tasting menu inspired by Shaw’s book.

July 17-21 and Aug. 7-11: The Active Gourmand Tour is a four-day adventure for hikers who love to cook.

July 23 and Aug. 20: Cooking demonstrations on both days. Summer canapés and appetizers on July 23 features the basic composition of bite sized hors d’oeuvres, garnish and plating with four wines from California. Composed salads on Aug. 20 in an opportunity to learn to mix flavorful vinaigrettes and select specialty greens.

Aug. 18-21: A photography and hiking adventure.

For more information:

The hotel

Activities

Culinary experiences

Telephone: (530) 582.5655

Getting there:

From South Lake Tahoe, take Highway 89 along the West Shore. Pass Squaw Valley. Before hitting Truckee, turn right on West River Road. Turn right on Bridge Street, this turns into Brockway Road. Hotel is on the right at 10918 Brockway. Or, take Highway 50 west up Spooner Summit, turn left on Highway 28. In Kings Beach, turn right on Highway 267. Turn left on Brockway Road. Hotel will be on the left.

ngg_shortcode_0_placeholder (Click on photos to enlarge.)

By Jennifer LaRue Huget, Washington Post

New research suggests that consuming lots of olive oil is associated with a reduced risk of ischemic stroke.

A study published on-line Wednesday in the journal Neurology looked at olive-oil consumption among more than 7,600 people ages 65 and older in three French cities who had taken part in what’s known as the Three-City Study. After controlling for diet, lifestyle and stroke-risk factors, they found that “intensive” olive-oil users (those who used it for cooking and dressing their food) had a 41 percent reduced risk of ischemic (the kind caused by an artery blockage) stroke during the five-year follow-up period than those who reported using no olive oil at all.

The association did not hold true for hemorrhagic stroke (the kind caused by a ruptured blood vessel in the brain), in part because not enough of those strokes occurred among the people in the study to make a statistically valid connection.

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South Lake Tahoe BMX track is open for the 2011 season.

The track at 1100 Lyons Ave. and is open to all ages and abilities for open practice on Tuesdays from 5:30-7:30pm.

Weekly races take place on Thursdays. Sign ups are from 5:30-6:30pm. Race fee is $10.

For more information, call (530) 542.9337.

New this season — a mountain cross series will take place every fourth Thursday, with finals in September.