·      Personal fireworks of all kind are illegal in the Lake Tahoe Basin.

·      Northstar Beerfest & Bluegrass Festival is July 3 from 3-6:30pm in the village. Advanced tickets are $30 and day-of tickets are $38.

·      The Art of Gelato is open in the Ski Run Marina center in South Lake Tahoe.

·      Here are the El Dorado-Tahoe and Sierra roadwork schedules from Caltrans for the week.

·       Kaitlyn Dias of Cameron Park discusses her role in Disney/Pixar’s “Inside Out”:

Delivering mail in Tahoe has not always been easy. Photo/Lake Tahoe Historical Society

A sign at the above very early post office has the words “Tahoe Island Park” on the smaller sign. This pre-dates the residential area of the same name that today adjoins the Tahoe Keys on the South Shore which didn’t get developed until the 1950s.

Provided by Carol Van Etten

Carol Van Etten, who runs a historical website, said that two miles northeast of Tahoe City on Highway 28 an area named “Tahoe Island Park” was surveyed and mapped in November 1910. It is the dominant portion of today’s Lake Forest at North Shore. Van Etten believes the top photo was taken in nearby Tahoe City or simply “Tahoe” as the post office there was officially known until 1949.

Bijou Post Office
Photo/Lake Tahoe Historical Society

More than 100 years ago the Bijou Post Office existing in a small lean-to attached to the building labeled “Store.” Many decades later, Bijou would become the first main post office in South Lake Tahoe.

Before the city was formed, there were distinct postmarks for each office, such as Bijou, Al Tahoe, Stateline, Tahoe Valley and Meyers.

Today, the outgoing local mail is postmarked Reno, NV, unless it is metered, or if it is postmarked manually at a local post office.

Two local postmarks before South Lake Tahoe was formed. Photos/Bill Kingman

There was a Tahoe Keys Post Office which operated briefly from 1959 until 1962 as a branch of the Tahoe Valley Post Office.

This was once a post office in Camp Richardson. Photo/Bill Kingman

One more now-extinct local post office and postmark was Camp Richardson, Calif. It operated from 1927 to 1973.

— Bill Kingman

North Tahoe Public Utility District board of directors may change the election format to an election at-large model like what South Tahoe Public Utility District just did.

An online survey is asking district customers what they think. It will be available until Sept. 15.

The board will vote Oct. 13.

Since formation in 1948, the NTPUD has elected its five-member directors by specific “seat numbers” serving staggered four year terms.

·       A construction kickoff meeting to discuss South Lake Tahoe’s Sierra Tract Erosion Control Project, Phases 3 and 4 is set for June 30 at 6pm at the South Lake Tahoe Recreation Center, 1180 Rufus Allen Blvd.

·       Jack Connell is now executive chef at PlumpJack Cafe & Bar located at PlumpJack Squaw Valley Inn.

·       Construction of Bijou Bike Park in South Lake Tahoe will start in July.

·       The 4th annual Kirkwood Mountain Classic Cross Country race is July 12. Online registration closes July 9.

·       Photographer Dirk Yuricich’s exhibition Textures of Water will be at his studio-gallery June 27-July 16 from 1-6pm and by appointment. The studio is closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays. The opening reception is June 27-28 from 1-6pm, 171 Shady Lane, Stateline.

The U.S. Marine Corps will be in South Lake Tahoe on a 13-day training mission from July 27-Aug. 8.

The Marine Light Attack Helicopter Training Squadron 303 is based out of Camp Pendleton. Squadron 303 trains all future pilots for the Marine Corps Cobra and Huey fleets.

The training will include day and night flights of multiple aircraft between the airports in South Lake Tahoe, Minden and Carson City.

The higher altitudes better prepare the Marines for future missions, such as the recent humanitarian relief efforts in the mountains of Nepal.

·       The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency hearings officer will consider an applicant’s request to tear down the structures at Barton Ranch at 2pm June 29. The meeting is at TRPA offices, 128 Market St. in Stateline.

·       The Fields Advisory Committee of the South Lake Tahoe Recreation Facilities Joint Powers Authority on July 15 from 5-7pm at Lake Tahoe Unified School District board room, 1021 Al Tahoe Blvd., South Lake Tahoe.

·       Follow this website to track this year’s Pony Express ride.

·       League to Save Lake Tahoe is having an Eyes on the Lake training on July 24 from 10am-1pm in Tahoe City. RSVP online for location and additional information.

·       Tahoe Paradise Resort Improvement District’s board is meeting June 25 from 6-8pm at the park.

Hundreds of volunteers will hit Lake Tahoe’s beaches on July 5 from 8:30am to noon to remove trash left from July 4 festivities.

Staff from the League to Save Lake Tahoe and its partners will be stationed at a beach with free raffle prizes, refreshments, and cleaning supplies. Bring a refillable water bottle.

During last year’s July 5 cleanup, League volunteers and staff collected and sorted nearly 2,300 pounds of debris. RSVP online.

Cleanups are planned at the following Tahoe beaches:
Commons Beach in Tahoe City
Kings Beach
Kiva Beach/Tallac Historic Site
Nevada Beach
Regan Beach.

Barton Memorial Hospital Auxiliary awarded $13,500 in scholarships to 11 local students.

Eight students received $1,500 each to pursue a college education in the health care field. Recipients included Ariah Barth and Taylor Fruth from Douglas High School, Trinity Marino-LaTella and Angelica Rodriguez from South Tahoe High School, Lauren George and Max Primo from Whittell High School, and Brooke Noel and Wen Tiong from Lake Tahoe Community College.

The Auxiliary also gave $500 opportunity scholarships to students graduating from Mount Tallac High School and continuing their education at Lake Tahoe Community College. Recipients included Adriana Aguilar, Morgan Kuykendall and Adrian Ortega.

Each year, the Barton Auxiliary gives time and money back the community. Auxiliary volunteers donated nearly 28,000 hours in 2014. They raise funds from The Attic and gift shop sales, holiday fundraisers, and personal donations.

Douglas County Public Library in Minden is having Children’s Movie Day on select Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays through July 29.

The library will show movies with a hero theme between 11am and 5pm. “WALL-E,” “Superman,” “Frozen,” and the “Lego Movie” are a few of the titles that will be presented.

Check the event calendar or Facebook for scheduled movie times and titles for each day. Free fresh popcorn will be available during the screenings.

Ages 4 and up are welcome. All movies are rated G or PG.

For more info, call 775.782.9841.

·       The Lake Tahoe Unified School board of education gave Superintendent Jim Tarwater a positive review this month. The board extended his contract by a year to June 30, 2018. There is no change in compensation.

·       Country singer-songwriter Tanya Tucker will appear July 3 at 8pm in TJ’s Corral Outdoor Concert & Events Center at the Carson Valley Inn in Minden.

·       A recycling campaign has been launched by Tahoe Recreation, a division of California Land Management and the operator of U.S. Forest Service campgrounds and beaches around Lake Tahoe.

·       Fire restrictions will go into effect July 1 within the Tahoe National Forest.

·       The Bicycle Advisory Committee of the South Lake Tahoe Recreation Facilities Joint Powers Authority will meet July 10 from 9-11am at Lake Tahoe Airport.