By Lauren Salkeld, Epicurious

Thanksgiving may be a holiday about plenty, but some years your wallet simply won’t support that much abundance. With these 10 money-saving tips, your Turkey Day can still include an impressive feast.

Read on for ways to save on groceries, plus ideas for making even the most humble ingredients shine.

1. Serve Soup: It might seem extravagant to serve a first course, but a few inexpensive ingredients can make a spectacular soup that will help fill guests’ bellies when the main course is a little skimpy. Plus: Many soups call for aromatics like onions, carrots, and celery, which you probably already purchased to make stuffing, or to stuff inside the turkey cavity. Potato-based soups, such as our Sweet Potato Soup with Buttered Pecans or Creamy Fennel and Potato Soup, might be your best bet; potatoes and sweet potatoes were not dramatically affected by the drought and so prices are not expected to rise this year. Other options include Butternut Squash Apple Soup, Cream of Cauliflower Soup, and Chestnut Soup with Sourdough Sage Croutons.

2. Brine Your Bird: Purchasing a supermarket turkey, instead of an organic, heritage, or farmers’ market bird, is an easy, obvious way to save money. To get the best flavor and texture from your bargain bird, brine it. To dry brine, rub the turkey in a salt and herb mixture, and let it sit in the refrigerator (brining usually takes about an hour per pound). To wet brine, soak the turkey in a salt-water solution (herbs, spices, and aromatics can be added as well as other liquids like beer or molasses), in the refrigerator, for several hours or overnight.

3. Pick a Star Herb: Fresh herbs might seem like a high-ticket item, but if you don’t already own the dried alternative, fresh is the way to go. You can often buy a bunch for a few dollars and they’ll deliver tons of flavor. Also consider that even though dried herbs seem like a better deal, they’ll likely expire, and lose their flavor before you get a chance to use the whole container. To save money, pare down your herbs to one or two and use them in different ways throughout the meal. And if you have any extra, dry them for using later.

4. Shop Seasonally: In-season ingredients are likely to be less expensive so build your menu around those. Brussels sprouts are at their peak right now making them a much more economical option than green beans. Another tip: Rather than roasting whole Brussels sprouts, shave or shred them for a more bountiful presentation. The leaves can be sautéed or served raw. Try our recipes for Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad with Fresh Walnuts and Pecorino and Sauteed Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Smoked Ham and Toasted Pecans.

5. Scratch and Save: If your kitchen is well stocked with basics like flour, butter, sugar, and yeast, it often makes more financial sense to bake from scratch. So skip the frozen pie dough and the par-baked rolls, roll up your sleeves, and make pie dough and rolls from scratch.

6. Buy Frozen or Canned: We usually prefer fresh vegetables, but canned or frozen veggies are a great way to save money at Thanksgiving. If your family loves corn pudding or green peas on Turkey Day, check the price of frozen — many brands are flash frozen and will still have all the flavor and nutrition of fresh. Canned pumpkin is usually cheaper than fresh and most recipes are designed for it, so it’s a smart way to save. Plus, unlike in 2011 when pumpkins suffered because of Hurricane Irene, the drought had little effect on these sturdy crops and prices are expected to remain flat this year.

7. Make Dessert Multi-Task: Dessert will leave a lasting impression so you don’t want to scrimp too much. But if you’re smart about it, you can hit several nostalgic holiday notes in one fantastic finale. Try our recipes for Pecan Pumpkin Pie or Caramelized Apple and Pecan Pie.

8. Dress Up Dessert: Add an extra flourish to dessert and your guests will likely forget that the overall meal wasn’t as bountiful as usual. Heavy cream can be a little pricey (and prices are expected to be high this year) but a little goes a long way. Pick up a pint and whip it into light, lofty whipped cream that will make simple pies and cobblers seem more special. Vanilla ice cream will do the same.

9. Improvise to Save: Buying a large package of something when you only need a small amount is a big waste of money. If your pie recipe calls for shortening and you don’t already have some on hand, use butter instead. If your cranberry relish includes orange zest but you only have lemons and limes, they can easily be substituted.

10. Make It a Potluck: If hosting Thanksgiving is threatening to break the bank, don’t be afraid to ask for help. That can mean enlisting a few guests to pitch in with side dishes, dessert, or wine. It can also mean turning the feast into a potluck. Big communal meals are fun, and because everyone puts their own spin on dishes, they make for an interesting, diverse meal.

By Aaron Sankin, Huffington Post

California has a poverty rate of 23.5 percent, the highest of any state in the country, according to figures released this week by the United States Census Bureau.

The only other geographic region with an equivalent poverty rate is the District of Columbia, with 23.2 percent. The second most poverty-stricken state was Florida, at 19.5 percent.

The recognition of California’s shockingly high poverty rate comes as a part of a shift in the way the Census Bureau measures its data. When the government began examining poverty back in the early 1960s, the line for determining who fell underneath the threshold was determined solely by looking at food costs.

In the decades since, there’s been increasing criticism this benchmark, as it doesn’t take into account tax rates and assistance programs such as food stamps, child care expenses and medical costs. In examining its most recent data, the Census Bureau considered these previously ignored factors, deemed the “supplemental poverty measure.”

These new metrics have yielded quite different results than in past years. Under the traditional definition of poverty, for example, California’s rate is 16.3 percent.

“We’re seeing a very slow recovery [nationally], with increases in poverty among workers due to more new jobs which are low-wage,” University of Wisconsin-Madison economist Timothy Smeeding told the Associated Press. “As a whole, the safety net is holding many people up, while California is struggling more because it’s relatively harder there to qualify for food stamps and other benefits.”

The Golden State’s jump between the supplemental and conventional measures was the largest swing of any state, and the Sacramento Bee attributes it to California’s high cost of living.

“There are several important differences between the official and supplemental poverty measures,” explained Census Bureau economist Kathleen Short in a statement. “For instance, the supplemental measure uses new poverty thresholds that represent a dollar amount spent on a basic set of goods adjusted to reflect geographic differences in housing costs. The official poverty thresholds are the same no matter where you live.”

Under the supplemental measures, the national poverty rate jumped by a full point up to 16.1 percent, or just under 50 million individuals. The poverty rate for minors dropped from 22.3 percent down to 18.1 percent, while the rate for seniors (ages 65 and above) nearly doubled to 15.1 percent.

By Gordy Megroz, Skiing

It was April 19, 2011, and Ian McIntosh, then a 29-year-old skier from Pemberton, B.C., felt invincible. His confidence had been building as he conquered steep Alaskan faces while shooting scenes for Teton Gravity Research’s One for the Road. Each run he took was more treacherous than the last.

And so it went until McIntosh decided to ski a line he had initially eschewed as too hairy. He even skipped inspecting the line from aboard the film crew’s helicopter, a precautionary step he normally took.

As McIntosh approached the rollover, he realized he wasn’t moving fast enough to air beyond the huge field of jagged rocks below. He hit hard, lost balance, and cartwheeled 400 yards. By the end he was alive, but he’d torn the labrum in his hip, broken his left femur, shredded his quad muscle, and torn his meniscus.

“We use fear to judge what is safe and what isn’t,” he says today, still rehabbing from all his injuries. “My mistake was getting complacent and forgetting about the risks.”

These days, McIntosh isn’t the only skier making that mistake. Across the sport, top athletes are ending up maimed and worse. A number of stars have died in high-risk circumstances — Shane McConkey, Doug Coombs, Billy Poole, Ryan Hawks, Arne Backstrom, Jamie Pierre, Kip Garre, and more. All the carnage has some wondering why so many experienced skiers are taking such extraordinary risks.

“Nobody wants to die,” says Robb Gaffney, a Squaw Valley psychiatrist and veteran big-mountain skier. “But people have ways of convincing themselves that what they’re doing isn’t that dangerous. They’ll come away from a few dangerous situations successfully and begin to identify as the guy who takes risks and can conquer them.”

But it’s not just hubris that’s getting skiers into trouble.

Last season, 12 experienced skiers trekked into the backcountry near Stevens Pass, Wash. Despite considerable avalanche danger, a few felt the terrain would be safe to ski. They rationalized that they’d skied it many times before in similar conditions without incident. Then a massive slide broke loose, killing three.

“The data shows that familiarity appears to create tolerance for high avalanche conditions,” says Ian McCammon, a Utah-based avalanche researcher and educator. “People think there’s a risk reduction because they know the terrain so well. But the snowpack is always different.”

Equipment designed to make the backcountry safer may also play a role. Pro skier Elyse Saugstad was caught in the slide. She survived by deploying an air-bag backpack. But Gaffney warns against the bloated sense of security that gear can provide.

“It remains to be seen if the air bag will actually save more lives or drive people into more dangerous situations.”

Then there’s ski-porn, now easily accessible via mouse-click or iPhone.

“In the past, two or three guys went out did a few tricks and that was it,” says Gaffney. “Now they go home and put a video of those tricks on Facebook. Other guys see that and try to outdo those tricks. There’s an instinctual drive to push things to the next level.”

Riley Bergseng, 27, was trying to find that next level while competing in the Freeskiing World Tour in Kirkwood last season. Instead, he cartwheeled through rocks and tumbled over a 30-foot cliff, tearing ligaments in his knee and nearly losing his leg.

“I wouldn’t have normally skied that line,” he says. “I pushed myself because it was being broadcast, there was a big crowd, and I wanted to win.”

Still, Bergseng says he’ll be right back out there next winter. “My mom asks, ‘Why are you doing this?’ Because I love it,” he says. “There’s no better feeling than flying over a gap.”

Ian McIntosh has a similar perspective. “That accident isn’t gonna hold me back,” he says. “What brings me joy is risk taking. It makes me feel more alive than I ever have before. I crave it. I need it in my life or I become depressed.”

If that sounds like an addiction, well, it is. “For risk takers, doing crazy things is an experience not unlike taking a drug in the sense that it involves a dopamine high,” says Tom Schonberg, a neuroscientist at the University of Texas.

Adds Gaffney: “The feelings described by somebody who regularly skis off cliffs are the same feelings described by drug addicts that I treat.”

But there’s something else going on in the brains of risk takers, and it may be the most compelling explanation for the uptick in mountaintop audacity. Several recent laboratory studies show that the brains of risk takers function differently from the brains of more cautious people.

“In risk takers,” says Schonberg, “the region of their brain that responds to value or reward becomes more active with increasing risks, whereas the self-control regions of their brain are not active enough to suppress the pursuit of greater risks.”

Given that skier numbers have risen sharply in the past 20 years, it just may be that more people biologically predisposed to taking risks are skiing.

For those people, can the urge to go big in dangerous situations be controlled? Julian Carr, the man most famous for hucking a front flip off a 210-foot cliff in 2006, believes it can. Carr says he has the ability to make rational decisions about the risks he’s about to take.

“I go through a checklist,” he says. “Do I have the skill set to do this? Are the conditions right? If something is off, I’ll walk away. That’s only happened once, at the Gargoyles near Alta. All my friends hugged me. I think it was because they were happy to know I had the ability to say no.”

But Gaffney sees Carr’s calculated approach as an anomaly within the sport.

“My prediction is that we will see an increase in the rate of deaths and injuries,” he says. “I can’t say comfortably that we won’t.”

Tahoe Forest Health System will be sending someone on an all expenses paid trip to Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans. To get in the game, just purchase a raffle ticket, or two or more.

All proceeds benefit the Gene Upshaw Memorial Tahoe Forest Cancer Center.

Each raffle ticket is $100, and only 300 tickets will be sold. Tickets must be bought in person and are available now at the Tahoe Forest Health System Foundation offices Monday through Friday 9am–5pm located at 10975 Donner Pass Road; Fifty Fifty Brewing Company at 11197 Brockway Road and Bar of America at 10040 Donner Pass Road.

The drawing will be Nov. 26.

By Anjeanette Damon, Las Vegas Sun

Rest easy, Nevada. You’re still a battleground state.

At least so say political operatives on both sides of the aisle.

Admittedly, they may have a bit of a vested interest in saying so. Presidential battleground status opens the spigot to tens of millions of advertising dollars.

By the last count compiled by the Washington Post, $54 million was spent on Nevada airwaves to influence the presidential election here this year — that’s about $53 per vote cast here.

But some are questioning whether Tuesday’s results support the claim that Nevada’s six electoral votes are worth fighting over anymore.

President Obama last week won Nevada convincingly for the second time. In fact, his margins in 2008 and 2012 far exceeded former President George W. Bush’s Nevada margins in 2000 and 2004.

Democrats have 90,000 more registered voters than Republicans. They have a well-financed party structure in place — an organization noticeably absent on the Republican side. And they have control of the state Legislature.

Some might say that doesn’t sound like the metrics of a true swing state.

Indeed, it’s starting to sound a lot like New Mexico — previously a battleground state before turning convincingly blue beginning about four years ago and disappearing from the presidential campaign radar screen.

Is Nevada in danger of becoming the dreaded flyover state that the presidential contenders pass by in between campaign stops in Colorado and fundraising stops in California?

Republicans, with a tinge of apprehension in their voices, say: Not yet.

“This is the bluest purple state in the country,” said Mac Abrams, Sen. Dean Heller’s campaign manager. “But we’re still a purple state.”

Perhaps Heller’s victory is an indication of that. The Republican barely defeated Democrat Shelley Berkley, whose campaign was hamstrung from the beginning by a House ethics investigation.

But Republicans also point to the fact that Nevada’s most popular politician, Gov. Brian Sandoval, is a Republican. The party represents half of Nevada’s congressional delegation. And although the GOP narrowly lost an attempted takeover of the state Senate, the number of voters statewide backing a Republican candidate for the Legislature almost equaled the number of voters backing a Democratic candidate.

“Yes, we’re still a battleground state,” Republican strategist Robert Uithoven said. “However, we need to do significant work within the Republican Party to keep it a battleground state.”

And that’s where the argument becomes more than just how much battleground status increases the bottom lines for television station owners.

If Republican presidential contenders cede Nevada, they’re pretty much handing it over to the Democrats. And that’s not necessarily good for Republican candidates down ticket.

“At this point, it’s the Republicans’ responsibility to keep us a battleground state,” Uithoven reiterated.

Democrats aren’t about to take Nevada for granted, either.

“Clearly it’s more Democratic than it used to be,” one Democratic operative said. “I think you can call it a Democratic-leaning state, but I personally feel less confident about calling it a solidly blue state.

“I don’t think we’re there yet. And Democrats have to be careful not to go down the same flawed path Nevada Republicans went down.”

Just a decade ago, Republicans were the powerful party in Nevada. Democrats had no party structure to rely on, held only one statewide office and seemed unable to wrest control of the state Senate away from the Republicans.

The story is a cautionary indication that the political balance of power in Nevada can easily execute an about-face.

So will Nevada voters have the same level of television ads, robo-calls and door knocks to complain about again in four years?

“I think they will,” the Democratic operative said. “If either side takes Nevada for granted, I think they do it at their own peril.”

Soroptimist International of South Lake Tahoe and Soroptimist International of Tahoe Sierra are accepting applications for the Women’s Opportunity, Violet Richardson ,and Ruby awards.

The Women’s Opportunity Award is bestowed upon women in the community who provide primary financial support for their families, and who are enrolled in or have been accepted to a vocational-skills training program or undergraduate degree program. The local winners will each receive $2,000 and are eligible to compete at the region and national competitions.

The Violet Richardson Award is a recognition program for young women ages 14-17 engaged in volunteer deeds within their community or school. Each recipient will receive $100.

The Ruby Award honors women who have worked to improve the lives of women and girls through their professional and/or volunteer work. Awardees will receive a $100 donation for the nonprofit organization of their choice.

Contact Pam Barrett at zippygirl1@att.net or (530) 545.3388 or Sandy Williams at kesan7@sbcglobal.net or (530) 541.2844 for additional information and applications. Deadline is Dec. 1.

By Mike Dunne, Sacramento Bee

Varieties of grapes and styles of wine often develop fan clubs.

There’s Zinfandel Advocates & Producers, the International Riesling Foundation and the Rhone Rangers, to name a few that have been around awhile.

The most obscure and most hopeful just might be Nebbiolo Enthusiasts & Believers. It’s a casual group led by Tom Hill, a New Mexico wine enthusiast especially keen on nebbiolo, and Ken Musso, a former Burlingame firefighter who tends a vineyard planted to nebbiolo in El Dorado County.

Once a year, they gather maybe 30 or 40 fellow travelers to talk about the grape and the wine it yields and to taste examples that range from old to new. This year’s session was convened in late June on a patio of Karmere Vineyards & Winery in Amador County’s Shenandoah Valley.

Participants were mostly growers and vintners, and much of their discussion focused on where and how to grow nebbiolo so it would produce expressive wines, how to handle the grapes so their wines would be commercially and critically successful, and how to persuade consumers that here is another wine worth making room for at the table.

Virtually everyone in the group developed their passion for nebbiolo by way of barbaresco and barolo, widely seen as the wines that show nebbiolo at its most profound. Barbaresco and barolo hail from the Piedmonte region in northwest Italy. They provide the historic template, but it isn’t necessarily fitting for California, where growing conditions and winemaking traditions are far different from what they are in Italy.

In addressing this point, Sacramento grocer Darrell Corti, long a student and advocate of Italian wines and the principal speaker at the NEB gathering, urged the assembly to get over whatever dreams they might entertain about producing barbaresco and barolo in California.

Nebbiolo in California may be capable of yielding a wine that is quite good, especially if it is treated like pinot noir, producing a wine light, graceful and charming, but it won’t be barbaresco and barolo, Corti warned.

The subsequent tasting, involving about 20 nebbiolo-based wines, most of them Californian, showed that while the grape has potential in the state, its acceptance by consumers will take an attitude adjustment. The wines generally were bright but so thin in color that they could be mistaken for rosés – orange-tinged rosés. Yes, their tannins were fierce, but beyond them often resided a playful and refreshing cherry fruitiness.

Their smell often was enticingly floral as well as fruity. Their flavor sometimes carried a nuttiness evocative of sherry. Their structure was solid, their acidity zingy, which helped explain why some older nebbiolos on hand, from both California and Italy, had aged splendidly.

Ken Musso had a couple of his wines on hand, including his current nebbiolo, the Due Vigne di Famiglia 2008 El Dorado County Musso Family Vineyard Nebbiolo. Two years ago, I wrote here of his 2007 version of the wine, describing its smell as ripe yet fresh, its flavor juicy with cherries, berries and autumnal nuts, and its acidity surprisingly zesty for a California wine.

The 2008 continues that family resemblance, though the cherry fruitiness is more lush, the oak less pronounced. Both are sturdy wines, meant more for rich cuts of beef than seafood or poultry.

With the 2008, Musso blended 10 percent barbera into the nebbiolo, which he credits with giving the wine deeper color, a fruitier flavor and more complexity. He continued his practice of aging the wine in 300-liter hogsheads of Hungarian oak, a technique he learned of while visiting estates in Piedmonte.

Musso’s nebbiolo vineyard is 2,400 feet up the Sierra foothills at Garden Valley. There, the soil runs to decomposed slate high in rocks and low in nutrients. Nevertheless, nebbiolo flourishes in that setting, at least when it comes to producing canes and leaves. As to grapes, his nebbiolo vines are stingy and unpredictable.

“It’s vegetative as all heck. It enjoys growing leaves more than fruit. Nebbiolo is very difficult to coax grapes out of,” Musso said. When he walks through his stand of nebbiolo as harvest nears, he no longer is surprised to find maybe half a dozen vines in a row with no grapes at all, then one with maybe 2 pounds of clusters, another with 6 pounds.

“They seem to take turns,” he says of individual vines. “We’ll get a good crop one year, but the next they’ll take a breather.”

Despite the challenges both in vineyard and in the marketplace, Musso is so committed to nebbiolo and so encouraged by results that he’s grafted some of his dolcetto vines to nebbiolo, expanding his plot of the variety to 3 acres.

At his tasting room, people were enjoying and interested in his dolcetto, but when he brought out his nebbiolo, they got really excited. Curiously, tasters interested in the nebbiolo have been younger rather than older, and they’ve come at it with an interest solely in trying something new, without barbaresco or barolo framing their expectations, says Musso.

Expect unsettled weather through the weekend.

Kirkwood and Squaw Valley open today.

Here is the Nov. 16ski report.

— Curtis Fong

By Mandy Kendall

The holidays can often be a double-edged sword. On one hand it is wonderful getting friends and family together, but on the other hand, the reality can often have even the closest families coming to blows (physically or verbally). Extended travel, house guests, hosting, cooking, overindulging and the odd skeleton in the closet can make for some tense times around the holiday season.

There is often a tendency for us to try to be all things to all people during the holiday season. The perfect hostess, the perfect cook, the perfect housekeeper all sounds very desirable, but ultimately can leave us feeling exhausted, underappreciated and left wondering why we bothered in the first place (again). Admitting that we are human and accepting, or asking for, help could result in a much more enjoyable experience.

Mandy Kendall

So in true Qwik-e tradition here are some tips for helping to make this holiday season a much calmer and more enjoyable time.

Prepare — The older I get, the more I rely on lists. Lists help map out timings and job delegations. A list of jobs on the fridge, with spaces for names alongside, gives family members an opportunity to choose what jobs they dislike the least. You may be surprised to find out what people prefer doing when given a choice. You can then take charge and allocate jobs randomly if the kids (big kids included) don’t sign up voluntarily. If you are going to delegate dishes for your guests to bring, try and leave yourself with dishes a) you love cooking and b) can be prepared as much in advance as possible. That way everyone arrives to the gathering ready to start having fun.

Delegate — I know some of us like to think we can do everything ourselves, but the fact of the matter is a) it’s a pretty lonely, and a lot of hard work when we do and b) people generally like helping as it makes them feel useful. Utilize guests/neighbors/kids/friends who offer to help…they likely wouldn’t have offered if they didn’t want to help. Even those who don’t offer (you know who you are) can be asked to do small jobs to make sure everyone is part of the day and no one person is left doing everything. A meal where each guest brings a pre-arranged dish makes for a much more relaxed and enjoyable time all round. The host is less stressed and can enjoy their guests rather than slaving away in the kitchen and guests feel like they have really contributed to the event.

Be realistic — There are only so many hours in the day and time becomes a precious commodity especially around the holidays. Start with how much time you really have, then take away how much time you would like to have for yourself to enjoy the occasion (be selfish here; you deserve it). Then you can decide what to do with the remainder and remember a job delegated is a job you don’t have to do … giving you more time.

Say no — It’s OK to say no. People will still love you and may even end up respecting you more for your decisiveness. Adding an alternative suggestion or solution that suits you better, or at least explaining why you’ve said no, can help take the sting out of turning someone, or something, down. However, if your reason for saying no is just because you don’t want to, sometimes just leaving it at no is best.

Pace yourself — Having a protein rich breakfast will help you resist the urge to snack throughout the day when prepping in the kitchen. A bit more protein (a protein drink or bar perhaps) a little while before the main meal will also help you from overeating.

Stay hydrated — We all get a little fractious when we are dehydrated and alcohol will have a much greater affect on you (and you will likely drink more than you mean to) if you are thirsty.

Don’t forget to breathe — If all else fails, take yourself somewhere quiet (even if that’s the bathroom) and just breathe in and out for a couple of minutes. It may also help to focus on the word “accepting” when breathing in, and “releasing” when breathing out.

Be thankful –– This is a day of Thanksgiving for all that we have, and that it is a day of sharing with friends, family and loved ones. Start the holiday meal with everyone saying one thing they are grateful for. This will help bring all the guests together and may also help diffuse any tense moments that may have happened before the meal … or even prevent some occurring after.

Wishing you all a very happy, peaceful and thankful holiday.

Until next time.

Mandy Kendall operates Health Connective in South Lake Tahoe, which aligns wellness seekers with their ideal wellness provider. If you have questions, would like some advice, or would like to request some Qwik-e tips on any health and well-being topic, drop her an email at connect@healthconnective.com or keep an eye out on Lake Tahoe News for regular Qwik-e tips on how to make healthy changes one Quick and Easy step at a time.

To the community,

I’m writing to our community to share my thoughts about the Regional Plan update because I care about the future of Lake Tahoe.

I love Lake Tahoe —in sickness and in health and I’m committed. I was born and raised here and now, with my wife of 13 years, I’m raising my family and working in the ski industry. I’m a community volunteer for nonprofits and have worked on large scale events for our communities around Lake Tahoe.

A while back, things were good in South Lake Tahoe, and our economy was good. Work was easy to find and many families enjoyed a high standard of living. I was able to build a career, buy a home and become an active part of this wonderful community.

Things are different now. We’re losing the community feeling, young people don’t feel this is a place to come to find a career or purchase a home. The street I live on has changed. Kids have grown up and moved away because they can’t find viable options to build their new careers. I see very few new families moving in to the area because they can’t afford to live here.

We can’t stay the same. “The same” is a losing proposition. We must attract new residents to help us recreate back into the viable community that our region once was. I think the Regional Plan with its focus on mixed-used design and community centers is step in the right direction. A big step.

Think of all the businesses that didn’t change and they went out of business. Are we willing to let Tahoe go out of business because we won’t change? Because we won’t put a plan together that protects the environment and allows the economy to thrive? We can do this, but will we?

Thank you for listening to my comments. Please approve the Regional Plan on Dec. 12 without delay.

Sincerely,

Sean Sweeney, South Lake Tahoe