Ace Hardware on Lake Tahoe Boulevard in South Lake Tahoe closed today.
“We just can’t make it. We cannot afford to keep the store open,” said Neil, who answered the phone Monday afternoon, but would not give his last name.
He said the closure had nothing to do with the DIY store opening nearby last year. He said the closing was “a personal thing”.
— Lake Tahoe News staff report
All South Tahoe High School parents are invited to Spring Term Welcome on Feb. 3 from 5-7:15pm.
This night gives parents an opportunity to meet their student’s teachers, review course descriptions, course objectives, homework requirements, and grading procedures. Parents will learn more about the school and the programs.
A reception will be in the library from 5-5:0pm. Several student groups and community organizations will be represented. Classroom visitations will begin at 5:40pm.
It’s time to get on the mountain to find those powder stashes.
Here is the ski report from Curtis Fong, the Guy from Tahoe.
Moe is a sweet 15-month-old boy who spent much of his life chained up outside. He would love an active owner who will take him to training classes. Moe is unsure of most other dogs and needs to be an only pet until he learns that other dogs are fun to play with.
Moe is neutered, microchipped, and vaccinated.
He is at the El Dorado County Animal Services shelter in Meyers, along with many other dogs and cats who are waiting for their new homes.
Call (530) 573.7925 for directions, hours, and other information on adopting a pet.
For spay-neuter assistance for South Tahoe residents, go online.
— Susan Baumflek
• The February issue of Sunset magazine mentions Tahoe a few times – 968 Park Hotel in South Lake for being green, Northstar for a nighttime snowshoe, Truckee as a runner-up for a place to own a vacation home, and Lake Tahoe as third runner-up as a year-round playground (Bellingham, Wash., Bend, Ore., and Boulder, Colo., beat Tahoe).
• Tahoe has been selected for an International Mountain Bike Association Subaru Trail Care Crew visit this year.
• High Altitude Medicine & Biology has published a study linking suicides and people living at high altitudes.
• South Lake Tahoe’s Rosemary Manning writes about her Iron Girl experience for Marlo Thomas’ website – yes, That Girl.
• WinterFest, Lake Tahoe’s Gay/Lesbian Ski Week, is March 6-12.
• Did you know Lake Tahoe News had more than 100,000 pageviews in the last month from people accessing the site from nearly 100 countries and more than 2,600 cities? Ready to advertise? Contact Lisa Huard at lisahuard@sbcglobal.net.
Sierra-at-Tahoe is offering discounted lift tickets for Snowsports Week – Feb. 7-10. Tickets are discounted to $35 from $71 for a full-day lift ticket.
Tickets are only valid during Snowsports Week. Lift tickets may be purchased locally, but must be purchased in advance.
Each year money from this event fund five nonprofit organizations — Barton Memorial Hospital Foundation, Lake Tahoe Community College Foundation, Lake Tahoe Educational Foundation, Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care, and Sierra-at-Tahoe Education Foundation – all within the South Shore community.
Tickets will not be available at Sierra-at-Tahoe.
Sales locations:
7/11 on Kingsbury Grade;
Powder House at Heavenly Gondola and Pioneer Trail; Explore Tahoe;
Sports LTD in the Village Center;
Rainbow Mountain Sports;
Super 8 Motel;
CVS pharmacy at Bijou and the Y;
Lake Tahoe Community College Bookstore;
Barton Foundation;
Raley’s at the Y;
Lira’s Market;
Tahoe Paradise Chevron;
Sunrise Ski & Snowboard; or
call Barton Foundation at (530) 543.5909.
By Darrell Smith, Sacramento Bee
Sacramento-area small-business development centers will receive more than $600,000, among the first in a wave of federal SBA grants to fund job creation programs, hire more small-business counselors and support microbusinesses across the country, the U.S. Small Business Administration has announced.
“It’s about jobs, jobs, jobs – creating these jobs,” said Panda Morgan, director of the Northeastern California Small Business Development Center’s Greater Sacramento office, which will receive $100,000 as part of the award.
“Who has the potential to hire? It’s small business. We survive on the well being of small businesses,” Morgan said.
In all, nearly $3.9 million is headed to small-business centers in Alaska, Idaho, Iowa, Michigan, South Carolina and here in Northern California – six initial awards that are part of $50 million in funding included in the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 that was signed into law in September.
The $616,586 grant for the Northeastern California Small Business Development Center also includes funding for other centers in Butte, San Joaquin, Shasta and Yuba counties, which cover a territory stretching from the Oregon state line south to Stockton and east to Lake Tahoe.
By Nancy Cauley
This school year, I’ve committed to having a higher visibility with the students and parents. I make it a point to get outside and greet students as they arrive at school and again in the afternoon as they leave. It’s great to see you parents as you deliver or pick up your children.
Similarly, I spend every day I’m on campus in the lunchroom. I enjoy this part of the day because I can check in on the students, ask how they’re doing, and make sure they eat their lunch whether it’s “brown bag” or a cafeteria meal. In that vein, I want you to know that I make every effort to have your children eat all of their lunch. Often, they’ve devoured the chips and chocolate bar, but have left the sandwich behind. I commonly tell students to eat their sandwich before the treats.
At times, after discovering that a student has not eaten the “meat and potatoes” part of their lunch, I will instruct them to return to the table to finish even after they’ve been dismissed to go back to class. Children can’t function properly in the classroom on a bag of chips and a Jell-O snack; and frankly, neither could I — believe me, I’ve tried and it’s not pretty.
I also extend this policy to the snacks sold in the cafeteria twice a week for grades 4-6. Students are not permitted to purchase snacks unless they’ve eaten the protein part of their lunch and have finished their milk. Quite honestly, I don’t endorse the snacks sold in the cafeteria because they are generally unhealthy — over-processed and full of sugar and fat — which is why I am a stickler on whether or not a child is allowed to buy a snack, especially if they didn’t eat their meal.
Trust me, I love sweets and certainly think that a balanced diet can include a little “something extra” in the way of treats, but I also know that growing bodies need protein and good carbohydrates. I hope you understand my desire to ensure that each child at ZCES consumes a healthy, tasty lunch.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call the office or speak to me directly.
Nancy Cauley is principal of Zephyr Cove Elementary School.
By Kathryn Reed
What people may begin to notice as they drive around South Lake Tahoe is something is missing.
But what?
Clutter. Clutter in the form of signs.
Signs are changing in South Tahoe to help motorists find things easier. Photo/Provided
“Wayfinding is intended to be an intuitive way to find your way around the community. It is not intended to be glaring or offensive,” explained B Gorman, executive director of the Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber of Commerce.
This collage of signs shows what led to the desire to make changes. Gorman said it’s the absence of visual clutter people will notice most.
Her group helped spearhead the challenge to bring uniformity to signs throughout the South Shore, with the El Dorado side the first to implement the program. The chamber took Carl Ribaudo, a marketing specialist on the South Shore, up on is idea this was something the community needed.
South Lake Tahoe put $66,000 toward the project and El Dorado County $42,500.
It is just now that signs are popping up in town even though the project started being discussed in spring 2007. A major cog in the wheel of progression is a state highway runs through the middle of town. Caltrans and NDOT have particular rules about signage on state highways.
NDOT, according to Gorman, would not proceed until its California counterpart took action. When NDOT may consider wayfinding again is not known.
“We tried to explain to Caltrans we are different,” Nancy Kerry said. Kerry worked on the program while employed by the chamber and then when she was hired by South Lake Tahoe.
That difference is that in addition to regular signage on a state highway, the small towns that dot these roads also need to let people know where things like the library, marina and beaches are.
“It was exciting when Caltrans said we can make this work,” Kerry said. “They are separating the town destinations from the highway destination needs.”
What won’t be seen on the highway signs are lots of color and fun symbols like what San Francisco has with an icon of Italy pointing to North Beach and a crab for Fisherman’s Wharf.
The city may be able to get more creative with signs that are not on the highway, and to possibly incorporate an alpine motif.
But the ski resort and marina symbols people are accustomed to will remain, but incorporated into that uniform look.
“It’s important to bring some consistency in sign style because when you are traveling down the road, if there are a lot of different signs, whatever the message is gets lost because you have to read so many things,” Kerry said. “If there is consistency in size, color, font and style, then you only notice what has changed, which is content. You can get to where you are going faster and easier.”
The new signs are cleaner, more uniform. The 22 signs Caltrans approved are slated to be in place before the Amgen Tour de California bike race in mid-May that starts in South Lake Tahoe.
“It makes the community look more appealing for the visitor and residents,” Gorman said of wayfinding.
By Lindsey Sine, U.S. Snowboarding
ASPEN -– Jamie Anderson of South Lake Tahoe put down solid spins and combinations Sunday to take home the fifth X Games slopestyle snowboarding medal of her career with a bronze. Enni Rukajarvi of Finland took the gold, becoming the first rookie to win women’s slopestyle since the sport was introduced at the X Games.
“The competition was great today,” said Anderson. “All the girls rode so well and I am really stoked that I finished with the bronze and that Enni [Rukajarvi] won.”
Anderson took the silver medal at X Games in 2010, and she’s also been on a hot streak, winning the first two Winter Dew tour slopestyle competitions this season.
To score the win, Rikajarvi’s run included a 50/50 and 180 out, another 50/50, a backside 360, front side 360 a backside 540 and a cab 720 over the money booter for a score of 92.66.
With a score of 89.33, the silver medal went to Great Britain’s Jenny Jones, who was attempting a three-peat in the event.
Official results, 2011 Winter X Games Aspen, Slopestyle
1. Enni Rukajärvi, Finland, 92.66
2. Jenny Jones, Great Britain, 89.33
3. Jamie Anderson, South Lake Tahoe, CA, 86.00
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7. Hana Beaman, Salt Lake City, 52.66
8. Janna Meyen-Weatherby, Big Bear Lake, CA, 46.33