·      Quinn Deveaux & the Blue Beat Review will be at the Boathouse Theatre on the South Shore on July 29 at 7:30pm. For more info, go online.

·      Barton Health is putting on a talk about robotic surgery on Aug. 6 from 6-7pm at Lake Tahoe Community College’s board room. The talk is free. Bradley Anderson will discuss the potential patient benefits, including less pain, less blood loss, and shorter hospital stays.

·      The 13-day Marine light attack helicopter training that was set to begin at Lake Tahoe Airport on July 27 has been canceled.

·      The Carson City Mint Coin Show and Fair is Aug. 21-22 at the Nevada State Museum and the Carson Nugget. The fair includes activities for children, prize drawings, lectures, coin sales and free appraisals with admission. Admission is $4 to both sites for one day. The event runs from 9:30am-4:30pm that Saturday and until 4pm on Sunday.

·       The Placer County Sheriff’s Office will dedicate the intersection of Elm Avenue and Highway 49 in Auburn to Deputy James Machado on July 23 at 10am. On July 13, 1978, Machado was shot and killed with his own service weapon during a struggle with an escaped mental patient.

Nevada Highway Patrol will be working around the clock to urge drivers and riders to slow their speed in an effort to eliminate the recent spike in statewide fatalities.

Troopers will be focused on enforcing speed limit laws through Aug. 10.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatalities Analysis Reporting System, Nevada has seen a 10 percent increase in fatalities to date compared to the same time last year.  The same data shows that the increase could have been avoided if motorists had adhered to posted speed limits.

Troopers urge drivers and riders to take extra care between 6pm and 6am when visibility is decreased and the majority of speed-related fatalities occur. Unlawful speeds increase the potential for loss of vehicle control, reduce the effectiveness of occupant protection equipment, decreases stopping distance in instances of danger, and increases the degree of crash severity leading to more debilitating injuries.

·      The second annual Lake Tahoe Dance Connection will consist of a camp from Aug. 12-14 and a dance intensive weekend Aug. 15-16 on the South Shore. To register, call 530.541.4660, ext. 717. Lake Tahoe Dance Connection is a product of the Lake Tahoe Community College Dance Department and Connect Community Education.

·      FNCTN and Tahoe Blue Vodka’s Triple Crown of Bartending competitions continue July 26 from noon-4pm at Steamers Bar & Grill in South Lake Tahoe. The event is free and open to all ages, with $10 tastings of 10 samples for attendees 21 and over.

·       On July 23 Saint Joseph Community Land Trust will receive a portion of the proceeds from Casey’s – An American Cantina (formerly Coyote Grill). The restaurant is in Round Hill next to Safeway.

·       There will be an open house July 29 from 5-7pm about the Envision Donner Pass Road corridor improvement project that goes from Coldstream Road to the McIver roundabout in Truckee. The meeting is in council chambers at the Truckee airport.

·       Tahoe Paradise Resort Improvement District’s board will meet July 23 at 6pm at the park.

·       Friends of the Library is having a book sale July 25 starting at 10am at the South Lake Tahoe branch at 1000 Rufus Allen Blvd.

·       “Duck Dynasty” star Willie Robertson landed 12 feet 1 inch away from the pin in the Korbel hole-in-one contest at the ACC. Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care was the nonprofit recipient of $5,000 from the Korbel Toast Life Foundation.

·       The third annual Hemophilia Walk & 5K is Sept. 12 at Virginia Lake Park in Reno. To register, go online.

·       Séan Cummings, the Tahoe Bagpiper, will play on the lawn of the South Lake Tahoe Library on July 22 at 6pm – for free. Bring a picnic. The library is at 1000 Rufus Allen Blvd.

·       Here is the El Dorado-Tahoe roadwork schedule for the week.

Wag, Waddle and Walk is today in South Lake Tahoe.

The on-leash walk starts at the Al Tahoe Post Office parking lot and finishes at Sierra Pizza on Al Tahoe Boulevard

Non-aggressive canines and people are invited to meet at the post office at 5:30pm July 20.

There will be a recall competition at 6pm for $5. This event will test contestant’s training of the “come” command.
Dog may be left in a “sit” or “down” position or held by assistant behind starting line. If the dog is left in “stay”, it may not change positions until owner calls.

The next Wag, Waddle, Walk on will be Aug. 17 at 5:30pm starting at Mireya Ortega’s dental office at 1060 Ski Run Blvd.

Scott Kellerman, who with his wife, Carol, created the Kellermann Foundation in order to expand the work they were doing to empower the Batwa pygmies to break the cycle of poverty and poor health will be in South Lake Tahoe on July 22-23.

Soroptimist International of Tahoe Sierra will be hosting a reception July 22 from 5:30-7:30pm at the home of Kerry and Wendy David at 1300 Keller Road, South Lake Tahoe. On July 23 from 7:30-8:30am at the senior center in South Lake Tahoe Kellermann will be giving a presentation about his work.

The public is invited to both events.

For additional information about the Kellermann Foundation, go online.

“Unmask!” is the theme of the teen summer reading program at the Douglas County Public Library.

The library’s teen advisory board is showing “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” on July 25 at 5:30pm in the Minden Library meeting room. Pizza, popcorn, and soda will be served.

This free event is sponsored by the Friends of the Douglas County Public Library and is open to all teens.

For more info, call 775.782.9841.

Buildings in South Lake Tahoe in the 1970s. Photo/Lake Tahoe Historical Society

In the 1970s, eateries in this Highway 50 landmark included Karmelkorn & Homemade Candies, Danelo’s Italian Delicatessen, and Shakey’s Pizza Parlor.

The facade of the building was restored a few years ago. Photo/Bill Kingman

Four decades later, the same area in today’s remodeled building features Tep’s Villa Roma restaurant. Lake Tahoe Coin Jewelry & Loan is next door, left in the above photo.

Fifty and more years ago, the entire building was home to Nel’s Variety & Tahoe Supply Company. Since the 1960s, occupants have included the above named, a casino-wear store, telephone service, unemployment office, furniture store, and others.

— Bill Kingman

Lane closures and reduced speed limits will be in place on South Carson Street and Highway 50 in the Spooner Summit junction area beginning July 19.

The 9pm-6am closures are anticipated to last for approximately one week.

Crews will be constructing a drainage culvert underneath the freeway. During freeway construction, the culvert will house a conveyor system which will be used to move nearly 600,000 cubic yards of earth from the construction site to a gravel storage pit. Running underneath the freeway, the conveyor system will not interfere with traffic when installed. The conveyor system will alleviate the need to transport the earth across South Carson Street by truck, eliminating months of potential traffic delays and impact. After freeway construction completes, the culvert will become part of the roadway’s extensive storm water system to help convey water more efficiently and safely.

The work is part of the approximate $42 million Carson City Freeway Phase 2B-3 project that includes extending the highway between Fairview Drive and the Spooner junction. The project is expected to open in 2017.

The Truckee chapter of the Experimental Aircraft Association had a Young Eagles rally at the airport on Sunday.

Nine pilots and 19 ground volunteers turned out for the event.

The EAA’s Young Eagles program was started in 1992 with the goal of introducing 1 million kids to aviation by giving them a free airplane ride. They easily surpassed that goal and have kept the program alive, with volunteer pilots having flown more tha 1.9 million Young Eagles.

“Free airplane rides are just part of the Young Eagles experience,” said Tom Meadows, Young Eagles coordinator, said in a press release.  “We hope to kindle a dream that will lead them into the aviation community.”

After the Young Eagles’ flights they receive certificates and logbooks, and their names go into the World’s Largest Logbook in Oshkosh, Wis.