·      South Lake Tahoe Earth Day is April 29 from 10am-3pm at Bijou Community Park.

·      Scratchdog Stringband will be at Divided Sky in Meyers on April 22 at 9pm. Cost is $5.

·      The inaugural Carl Howell Memorial Music Festival in Carson City will be Aug. 19. This is a fundraiser for the children of fallen Carson City sheriff’s Deputy Carl Howell. For more info, go online.

·      There is a new app to help people reach their elected officials easier. Go online for info.

·      California Invasive Species Action Week is June 3-11.

California Department of Motor Vehicles’ traffic amnesty program ends April 3.

The program provides relief for many drivers whose licenses were suspended because of failure to appear in court or have outstanding court debts. The fines can be reduced by 80 percent depending on income.

Applicants should contact the Superior Court in the jurisdiction where they received the traffic ticket to determine whether they are eligible to participate in the amnesty program. This program does not apply to parking tickets, reckless driving, or DUI offenses.

Courts, counties, and other authorized collection agencies may charge a $50 amnesty program fee.  Also, if reinstating your driver’s license, the DMV will charge a $55 reinstatement fee.

South Lake Tahoe crews will begin preliminary work on the El Dorado Beach to Ski Run bike trail project this week.

If the weather cooperates, Sierra Nevada Construction will begin removing trees within the proposed bike trail alignment. The work may cause minor travel lane impacts on Highway 50 between Ski Run Boulevard and El Dorado Beach.

Public works employees will also continue temporary pothole patching. With the wet subsurface from high groundwater, the repairs are only temporary and will require a permanent patch when conditions are warm and dry enough.

Potholes can be reported to the department online.

Liberty Utilities will be at several community events between now and the end of April where customers can receive free LED light bulbs if they sign up for a free energy audit.

Energy experts will be at these events providing customers with the most up-to-date information about ways to reduce energy consumption and bills.

Events:

• Business Expo, March 31 from 4:30-8:30pm at Harveys in Stateline.
• Tahoe Truckee Earth Day, April 22 from 11am-5pm at The Village at Squaw Valley.
• South Lake Tahoe Earth Day, April 29 from 10am-3pm at Bijou Community Park.

Customers may also go online, click on the “Smart Energy Use” link at the top to learn more about various energy efficiency and conservation programs offered to residential and commercial customers.

Peter Goin, author, photographer, and UNR professor, will speak on One Hundred Years of Shoreline: Rephotography and Lake Tahoe.

Travel in time through photographs as the 1916 Lake Tahoe shoreline reappears.

One hundred years ago, photographer H.T. Cowling’s 150 photographs showed conditions on the shores of the lake with the water at its maximum level and helped property owners present their complaints about the lake’s elevation. There are places where the beach is different, creeks enter the lake at different locations and the shorelines have been mediated by property owners.

The April 14, 5pm talk is free at the Tahoe Maritime Museum in Tahoe City.

·      Gunbarrel 25 at Heavenly Mountain Resort is April 1 from 10am-5pm. Skiers-boarders will take as many laps on the face as they can on Saturday.

·      The Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest recently launched an email subscription service to make it easier for the public to receive information. Go online to sign up.

·      The pool at the South Lake Tahoe Recreation Center will be open Saturdays from April 15-May 20, 3:30-4:30pm for kayakers to practice rolling. Must bring own kayak; there will be no instruction. Regular day use fees apply. For more info, call 530.542.6056.

·      The Junior Giants program is returning to South Lake Tahoe for a second year. Signups begin April 15 online.

·      The South Tahoe Grizzlies Bantam B hockey team and South Tahoe Amateur Hockey Association Peewee A team will be competing in the California Amateur Hockey Association State Championship in San Jose March 31-April 2.

·      South Tahoe High School’s spring concert is March 29 at 7pm in the student union conference rooms. It features the school’s jazz band, wind band, and orchestra.

·      El Dorado County Supervisor Sue Novasel on April 6 at 6pm is hosting a second meeting about weekend get-away traffic clogging neighborhoods. It will be at the CCC building in Meyers.

·      Lake Valley Fire Protection District’s second annual Community Easter Egg Hunt will be April 16 at 10am at Tahoe Paradise Park.

·      The Douglas County Public Library in Minden is having a Children’s Book Walk in honor of National Library Week. It is a self-paced activity and will be available during regular library hours from April 10-15. Each page of a featured story will be displayed throughout the children’s section of the library. Children will follow the story and explore different objects from each page.

·      There will be a free legal clinic for people with green cards on April 8 from 1-5pm at Lake Tahoe Community College’s board room. To make an appointment, call 530.542.0740.

Windjammers Yacht Club is having its annual chowder feed/membership drive on April 7 at 6pm.

This is a group for people interested in boating on Lake Tahoe and a place to meet like-minded individuals.

WYC is a nonprofit promoting sailing, cruising and boating safety at the lake.

The $15 includes clam chowder, oyster stew, salad, bread and dessert. A cash bar with wine and beer will be available. RSVP to consulting.concepts1@gmail.com.

The Windjammers Yacht Club Clubhouse is located above the harbor master’s office in the Tahoe Keys Marina in South Lake Tahoe.

·      Shannon Laney has been promoted to lieutenant within the South Lake Tahoe Police Department. He earns his stripe in April. He replaces Brian Williams who retired last week.

·      Angela Swanson is no longer on the South Lake Tahoe Planning Commission because of an interpretation of a state regulation saying that appointment and being on the Lake Tahoe Unified School District are a conflict. She chose to resign from the city position.

·      On April 1 sales tax rates go up in a couple nearby areas: Truckee from 8.125 percent to 8.25 percent and Placerville from 7.75 percent to 8.25 percent

·      Northstar is having a canned beer festival April 8 from 1-3pm at the Lodge at Big Springs Guests can try 10 select IPAs, lagers and more for $30 (plus tax and fees), including a souvenir cup and surprise gift.

·      The Minden Library is showing movies every Saturday at 10:30am in the meeting room. They  are geared toward adults and teens (rated PG to PG-13). Free coffee and treats will be available. April’s theme is classics. April 1: “Gaslight” (not rated), April 8: “Singin’ in the Rain” (rated G), April 15: “Splendor in the Grass” (not rated), April 22: “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” (not rated), and April 29: “Cool Hand Luke” (rated PG).

The El Dorado County Grand Jury is looking for people to serve on the panel for 2017-18, with the start date being July 1.

Applicants must be U.S. citizens, 18 or older, be an El Dorado County resident for at least one year  and cannot be an elected official.

A required training session will be on  July 6-7 in Placerville.

The grand jury typically examines systems and processes, and is not a criminal jury involved in trials.

Members receive $15 per meeting and are reimbursed for mileage.

Applications are due May 5; and are available by emailing sthurman@eldoradocourt.org or calling 530-621-7414.