By Kathryn Reed

The $1.1 billion settlement to bring sidewalks along state highways in California will have no affect on the dilapidated or nonexistent walkways in Lake Tahoe.

“All of our new projects are compliant. The suit had to do with older facilities,” Caltrans spokesman Mark Dinger told Lake Tahoe News.

South Lake Tahoe is not a pedestrian-friendly town. Photo/Kathryn Reed

This means the projects on the books for Tahoe already have sidewalks included in them to meet Americans with Disabilities Act criteria. None will be retrofitted because of the settelment, Dinger said.

In 2010, Highway 50 between Trout Creek and Ski Run Boulevard is slated to be upgraded. But when the rest of South Lake Tahoe will have sidewalks or other parts of the basin will get them remains a mystery.

Throughout many towns in California state highways are the main thoroughfares. Caltrans maintains 2,500 miles of sidewalks on state highways, which includes overpasses and underpasses.

Two disabled people filed the lawsuit in federal court in 2006. The settlement with Caltrans was reached this month. A federal judge will review the settlement in January, with final approval expected at an April hearing.

South Lake Tahoe officials were unaware of the settlement when reached for comment last week.

By Matt Weiser, Sacramento Bee

Lake Tahoe, Clear Lake and four other large lakes in Northern California and Nevada are warming faster than the surrounding atmosphere, suggesting climate change may affect aquatic environments faster and sooner.

The findings are reported in a new study led by researchers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.

Lake Tahoe is one of several California-Nevada lakes that is warming. Photo/Kathryn Reed

They used 18 years of temperature data from satellite sensors. It is believed to be the first time data have been dissected to reveal lake surface temperature over a period that long.

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Fresh snow is on the slopes of Lake Tahoe this morning, with more white stuff expected to fall today. Here is the ski report brought to you buy Curtis Fong, the Guy from Tahoe.

Michelle Larsen has become a partner at the accounting firm David & Johnson Ltd. in Zephyr Cove.

Larsen has more than 10 years of public accounting experience. After graduating from UC Davis and working for Deloitte & Touche in San Francisco, Larsen settled in South Lake Tahoe and joined David & Johnson Ltd. eight years ago.

Michelle Larsen

She specializing in tax planning and preparation for individuals, small businesses, estates and trusts.

By Kathryn Reed

STATELINE — It was hard to applaud when all I wanted to do was figure out what just happened.

I never figured it out.

Joseph Gabriel, the 2009 Best Stage Magician, dazzled a nearly full house Saturday on opening night  of his nine-day stint at MontBleu.

Joseph Gabriel is at MontBleu through Jan. 3.

Birds are something this illusionist is known for. They kept appearing and disappearing without any rhyme or reason.

Why they don’t just fly off is a mystery unto itself.

Audience participation is a huge part of the night. Don’t sit up front if you are shy.

Ashley, who lives on the South Shore and isn’t fond of birds, was selected to hold a box. She looked – nothing in it. Before she knew it a bird flew from the container she was holding.

She told her tablemates she didn’t feel any movement in the box, nor did the weight of it change.

Hmmmm.

Head scratching was a big part of the evening as Gabriel and the women he works with, including his wife, Katalin, kept pulling off one illusion after another.

People seemed to be cut in half and stuffed in boxes. Just when Gabriel walked into a box he came out under a drape of sorts. How he got from Point A to Point B is still a mystery.

One woman ended up in the audience – even though the audience thought she was in a box on stage.

Gabriel brought a guy from the Bay Area on stage who was supposed to mimic his every move and voice command. The guy did OK right until the end. Gabriel was able to turn shredded paper into a hat for the guest. The participant could only place pieces of paper on Gabriel’s head.

Juggler Bryson Lang added to the show with his ability to bounce, toss and spin various size balls.

This is one of those shows where sitting close is a good idea. Gabriel isn’t Siegfried + Roy of Las Vegas and white tiger fame, but he is good. The price for the 90-minute show is worth it. Plus, it would make for a good family outing.

Things to know:

• Joseph Gabriel will be at MontBleu in Stateline through Jan. 3

• Adult tickets $29.95, $12.95 for those 17 and younger

• www.tickemaster.com, 800.648.3353

• Show starts at 8pm, doors open at 7:30pm

By Guy Rocha

On a Reno television weather broadcast, the weatherman referred to the Sierra Crest and then images of peaks in the Carson Range were displayed in the background. The Sierra Nevada crest line, nevertheless, is west of Lake Tahoe in California. In fact, virtually all of the Sierra Nevada is in California. What’s wrong with this picture?

Most geoscientists would tell you that the Carson Range is a spur of the northern Sierra Nevada and perhaps 80 million years old. The appendage begins in the south at Carson Pass in Alpine County, Calif., skirts Lake Tahoe — a much younger geologic feature — in a northward arc into Nevada, and ends just south of the border town of Verdi in Washoe County, some 52 miles in length (71 percent in Nevada and 29 percent in California). The Carson Range, including Job’s Peak, Job’s Sister, Genoa Peak, King’s Canyon, Slide Mountain and Mount Rose (the highest point in the Nevada portion of the range at 10,776 feet), serves as a majestic backdrop for the Reno/Carson City/Carson Valley metropolitan area. The highest point in the Carson Range is Freel Peak at 10,881 feet on the border of Alpine and El Dorado counties in California and south of South Lake Tahoe.

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South Tahoe Refuse will recycle Christmas trees from Dec. 28 through Jan. 8.

Christmas Trees will be collected on your regular refuse collection day.

Trees will be chipped and used for revegetation and composting.

Remove all decorations and nails. Trees must be 6 feet or shorter and not be flocked.

Tangled Roots Creative Writing Workshops in Truckee.

If you want to connect with a writing community and improve your writing practice, the instructor says you’ll find inspiration and motivation in this fun and supportive group.

You will read, write, discuss, and generate new material each week (no homework).

This workshop offers tips and technique for all experience levels and is designed to explore any genre of writing.

Karen Terrey has an MFA in creative writing and teaches writing at Sierra Nevada College.

Four-week sessions run:

· Jan. 11-Feb. 1

· Feb. 8-March 8 (no class 2/15)

· March 22-April 12

Classes are Monday nights from 6:30-8 in downtown Truckee, $60/session.

Contact Karen Terrey at (530) 386.3901 or email tangledrootswriting@gmail.com to sign up or for more information.

Reno Gazette-Journal

New airport security measures caused by a suspected attempted bombing on an international flight to Detroit seem to have minimal impact at Reno-Tahoe International Airport, an airport spokeswoman said.

Because of increased security by the Transportation Security Administration, airport spokeswoman Trish Tucker recommended people get to the airport extra early.

“It wouldn’t be surprising if there’s more security as people are processed through security checkpoints,” Tucker said.

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By Neil Baron, Reno Gazette-Journal

Made it through a rough 2009? Had a great year? It’s time to toast the potential of new beginnings in 2010. There’s reason to celebrate in downtown Reno, where the midnight fireworks show will return after being cancelled in 2008. Whether you’re heading to Tahoe or sticking around Reno and Sparks, there’s plenty to choose from for a night out on New Year’s Eve. Here’s what we found.

All places have Champagne toasts at midnight, unless otherwise specified.

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