By Matt Weiser, Sacramento Bee

Comprehensive maps of California’s earthquake faults and geology are now available on the Internet for the first time.

Among other things, the new maps reflect the latest research on earthquake faults.

For example, the Midland Fault crossing the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta has been updated to show that it was active up until 700,000 years ago, whereas previously it was not thought to have been active that recently. Faults beneath Lake Tahoe also have been revised to reflect evidence of more-recent activity.

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Powerful. Kind-hearted. Loving. Hard-working.

These words are how the daughters of Donald Lee Reed described their father following his death April 28, 2010. Yet, Don was so much more than these simple words.

He began life Dec. 12, 1934, in Sioux City, Iowa, as the eldest son of Ray and Isabell Reed. The family lived in Beresford, S.D. Don’s boyhood was filled with adventures with his siblings Kleo and Howard, and later, with his much younger brother, Tom. The family moved to a variety of places in the Midwest before landing in Rapid City, S.D.

Don Reed

It was in Rapid City that Don met his wife, Cleo. They were high school sweethearts. He was the town boy, she the country girl. They married Aug. 14, 1955.

Don graduated from the South Dakota School of Mines in 1958 with a degree in mining engineering. Don’s high regard for his alma mater was evident for the rest of his life as he encouraged every family member to attend the School of Mines. By the time Don graduated college he and Cleo were expecting their second daughter, Tami. She joined big sister, Jann, right before graduation. A third daughter, Pam, arrived before the family moved from Rapid City.

Don’s work in the construction industry took him and his family all over the country. His career started as an engineer on Minuteman missile sites in North Dakota, which lead to work on the Cape Canaveral Operations Building in Florida, and project manager on metro systems in Boston and Washington, D.C. Youngest daughter, Kae, was born while the family was in Florida. Don’s last career move was to open Donald L. Reed Construction Consultants, using the skills he had obtained to assist others with their construction challenges. He retired in 2007.

Don had a work opportunity to return to California in 1973. Don and Cleo resided in Concord for 34 years and watched as each of their children graduated college and moved away to start their lives. Nurturing his girls as they gained their independence was a source of great pride to Don.

Don and Cleo were introduced to boating and water skiing when the girls were young, which quickly became the favorite family activity. Don loved cars since he was a young man, and although he thought a Cadillac was going to be his ultimate driving machine, once he test drove a BMW, he was hooked. He and Cleo crisscrossed the country multiple times in their BMW visiting their wide circle of family and friends along the way.

Don was involved with the First Presbyterian Church in Concord where he volunteered in the Stephen Ministry – something he continued to do in Paradise at Paradise United Methodist Church.

Don and Cleo moved to Paradise, Calif., in 2007 to be closer to their children in Chico, Redding and South Lake Tahoe. Special trips to Minnesota were made to visit his long-distance daughter. He found ways to make a contribution to his new community by being a volunteer at Feather River Hospital and Butte County Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA). Don believed strongly in helping others.

Don is survived by his wife, Cleo Reed; daughter Jann Reed and husband Lester Wong; daughter Tami Jordan and husband Mike Jordan; daughter Pam Valentine; daughter Kae Reed and partner Sue Wood; grandchildren Joseph Jordan, Chris Jordan, Veronica Wong, Oliver Wong and Jacqueline Wong; great-grandson Michael Jordan; sister Kleo Karst; brothers Howard Reed and Tom Reed; several nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Services will be May 6 at 2pm at Paradise United Methodist Church. His ashes will be buried at a later date at Pine Lawn Memorial Cemetery in Rapid City near the Black Hills.

Contributions to honor Don may be made to Butte County CASA, 10 Independence Circle, Chico, CA 95973; or Malawi Africa Mission New Horizon Church International, 1770 Ellis Ave., Ste. 100, Jackson, MS 39204; or to your favorite charity.

Using public transportation to get around on the North and West shores of Lake Tahoe will become easier when the soon-to-be built Tahoe City Transit Center is finished. The Placer County Board of Supervisors moved that closer to reality when it awarded the construction contract for the center this week.

The center will serve as an intermodal transportation hub for both residents and visitors.

The center, which will cover about 2.5 acres on a tract of land west of Highway 89, will serve as a hub for Placer County’s Tahoe Area Regional Transit (TART) buses. The center will be situated adjacent to hiking and bike paths and provide parking for commuters and visitors to utilize buses to get around on the North and West Shores of Lake Tahoe.

The Transit Center is part of the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency’s Environmental Improvement Project program for improving air quality, which in turn will benefit lake clarity. The project is also consistent with numerous agency transportation plans, community plans, and studies.

The $4.2 million contract was awarded to Aspen Developers Corporation. Construction of the project should begin this summer. Completion of the Transit Center will likely stretch into an additional building season.

“The Tahoe City Transit Center represents a critical public transportation component in North Lake Tahoe,” Public Works Deputy Director Peter Kraatz said in a statement. “It will significantly enhance our existing public bus system at a key bus transfer and multi-modal transit location, providing needed amenities such as a sheltered waiting area, public parking, bike lockers, better access to existing walking and bicycle trails, and elimination of the unprotected highway crossing for bus transfer patrons in Tahoe City. The project fulfills the County’s and TRPA’s vision of encouraging more opportunities for using alternative modes of transportation and becoming less reliant on the personal automobile that will ultimately result in less traffic congestion and cleaner air.”

Placer County previously put the project out for bid in 2009. The county decided to reject all bids at the time and re-advertise the project. The bid that was awarded to Aspen is $44,000 less than the 2009 lowest responsive bid.

The total project cost is estimated to be $7.4 million, which includes construction costs, environmental documentation and design. The project is fully funded through grants from Federal Infrastructure Stimulus funds, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), Proposition 1, FTA Alternative Transportation in Public Parks and Lands, Placer County Redevelopment Agency, Placer County Traffic Mitigation Fees, a Placer County Air Pollution control District Clean Air Grant, California Tahoe Conservancy, the North Lake Tahoe Resort Association, and the State Local Partnership Program. Funding for the construction of this project is included in both the 2009-10 and 2010-11 fiscal year budgets.

By Matt Weiser, Sacramento Bee

Late-season storms did wonders for California’s snowpack, fluffing those white drifts in the Sierra Nevada to 143 percent of average as of Friday. A month ago, the total stood at 106 percent of normal.

The readings came in the season’s final snow survey on Friday by the California Department of Water Resources. This last survey is often used to firm up water delivery projections for cities and farms, for whom snowmelt is the most important supply. State and federal agencies both expect to do so, perhaps as soon as early next week, and the

Lake Oroville is 71 percent of normal on April 30. Photo/Kathryn Reed

allocations will likely be increased.

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By Laurel Rosenhall, Sacramento Bee

Sacramento State officials are considering whether to declare the campus “impacted,” an action that would make it harder for students outside the region to get in.

An impacted California State University campus is one where more qualified students want to enroll than the university has funding to accommodate. The designation allows campus officials to control enrollment more tightly than is normally allowed. They do that by giving priority to local students and asking students from other regions to meet higher admissions criteria.

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By Carlos Alcalá, Sacramento Bee

The El Dorado Irrigation District and the U.S. government corrected a long-standing ownership oddity with a swap of land parcels this week.

The exchange comprised 14 parcels amounting to 755 acres.

Two parcels were at Silver Lake off Highway 88, where the ownership of land had long been the opposite of what logic would seem to dictate.

For years, the Forest Service has operated Silver Lake East campground, partly atop land owned by the irrigation district.

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By Austin Fay

When Karen Frates, assistant general manager of Tahoe Seasons Resort, was asked why she was at the Tahoe Tourism Town Forum, she replied jokingly, “I’m here for encouragement.”

She insinuated the 160-suite resort near Stateline is struggling, as is everyone in this recession.

The Tahoe Tourism Town Forum provided about 150 business owners primarily from the South Shore, students from Lake Tahoe Community College, and marketing and public relations professionals, a chance to collaborate with the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority, and to see the new marketing campaigns.

LTSS chamber leader B Gorman speaks at Thursday's tourism conference. Photo/Austin Fay

“Get your vacation on” is the slogan for the South Shore campaign that begins in May. Fingers are crossed it will bring people to the area.

Gordon Horsley, the Nevada sales manager at Amador Stage Lines, remarked on the presence of social media at Thursday’ two-hour forum at LTCC.

“I think it’s great that we are getting that word out to local citizens about what Tahoe has to offer,” Horsley said.

A new twist on Tahoe’s image

This year’s South Tahoe television and webspots keep the emphasis on gaming elements, but lend themselves a little more toward the active lifestyle Tahoe supports, like mountain biking, hiking, cycling, skiing and water sports.

Fishing definitely has a large draw to the area, but seemed to be left out of the LTVA marketing campaign.

Victor Babbitt, from Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters, said, “I didn’t see one comment or view of fishing (on the advertisements). Correct me if I’m wrong, fishing is the nation’s No. 1 outdoor recreational activity, especially for families.”

The $3 per night lodging tax collected in South Lake Tahoe through the Tourism Improvement District is a major source for LTVA’s advertising campaign.

This will be the first ad campaign by Duncan/Channon of San Francisco for the South Shore. They were brought in a year ago to replace Mering and Associates, the Sacramento firm that created the Blue World campaign.

Geotourism

Collaboration with National Geographic brought Bob Kingman from the Sierra Nevada Conservancy and Nicole DeJonghe from the Sierra Business Council to the Tahoe Tourism Forum to showcase a geotourism. The idea of geotourism is to sustain or enhance the geographical character of a place – its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage, and the wellbeing of its residents.

Involvement on the local level is crucial to the website’s content. The website involves people living in the communities and parks. Visitors to the website can nominate areas, historic destinations, park — everything from vineyards to artists to drive tourism to other less well-known parts of the state.

Nominations may be made at here, but will be subject to the decisions of a “Geo-council” designed to create the most original and authentic experience to tourists of the Tahoe and the Sierra Nevada Range.

Lake Tahoe Restaurant Week

Lake Tahoe Community College business student and chef Donnie Thompson was enthusiastic about the plan to make Tahoe a culinary destination for a week.

“We used to do it down in San Diego where I went to culinary school and it’s phenomenal,” he said. The idea is serving lunches and dinner at $20, $30 and $40 per person (menu and price up to restaurant), while attracting people to the culinary scene in Tahoe. The event is planned for Sept. 5-12 — Labor Day Week.

Restaurant owners will update menus and prices in the coming months here.

Other Events Planned in Tahoe:

More than 1,000 women are expected to show up for Iron Girl, the sister event to the Iron Man, it is planned for Sept. 19.

Hot August Nights, a three-day event of classic cars, automotive exhibits and vendors, has branched out into Lake Tahoe. The Reno-based Hot August Nights attracts more than 800,000 people.

South Lake Tahoe police are issuing a warning to local businesses concerning a company called National Fire & Safety Inspection Co. which may be performing fire inspections they are not licensed to perform in South Lake Tahoe.

In February, two males arrived at a local business in the Y area and advised employees they were there to conduct a mandatory fire inspection. They had uniform shirts with a logo and looked official. They completed an “inspection” and sent the business a bill for several hundred dollars.

The business did not pay the bill and instead contacted the South Lake Tahoe Fire Department for more information.

While this case is still under investigation, it appears this company is attempting to scam local businesses by arriving unannounced, performing unauthorized inspections, and billing the company hoping to get paid.

Local fire inspections are conducted by Fire Marshall Ray Zachau from the South Lake Tahoe Fire Department. There are legitimate companies that service fire alarms in businesses, but business owners should already know their legitimate alarm service providers and be expecting service/inspections.

If any business has “Fire Inspectors” show up to conduct an inspection, business owners and/or employees are encouraged to confirm the service has been requested and when in doubt, contact Fire Marshall Ray Zachau at (530) 542.6160.

Publisher’s note: The police activity resulted in Tahoe Valley Elementary School in South Lake Tahoe being locked down for 40 minutes.

By Kerry Benefield, Santa Rosa Press Democrat

A third arrest was made Wednesday in connection with the deadly stabbing that erupted during a birthday party in west Santa Rosa on Saturday night.

Edward Scuitto, 24, of Santa Rosa was arrested by South Lake Tahoe Police and the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Department in South Lake Tahoe. He was charged with two counts of attempted murder, two gang-related enhancements and a parole violation.

He was booked into El Dorado county jail and is being held without bail, according to police.

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By Kathryn Reed

Lake Tahoe Unified School District was able to secure $2 million more in bond sales Tuesday than financial advisers anticipated because of a good bond rating and favorable yield.

The district will have $17.7 million in its coffers in the next week. The money is part of the $64.5 million bond approved by voters in November 2008. This is the second round of bond sales. Another is not anticipated for two to three years.

Students work in the new small engine lab at South Tahoe High School. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Patrick Martin, vice chairman of the community bond committee that oversees how the money is being spent, gave a report to the board Tuesday night. He said the district has been cooperative in explaining the process and being able to simplify financial documents for the group to understand.

As someone who admittedly was a skeptic about what the district intended to do, Martin said he is thrilled with the accomplishments to date – which include a new building open at South Tahoe High School less than 18 months after the bond was passed.

Also at Tuesday’s meeting, the board authorized LPA Inc. to begin design work on the wing at Bijou Community School that will house nine classrooms. This is all part of the bond.

The board also amended the agreement with LPA for its work on the joint use facility at the high school. It is now going to be a single-story facility with 10,000 square feet. South Lake Tahoe is a partner in this building.

The building will house the student union. The goal is to serve lunch to 750 of the 1,100 students. Right now 450 buy lunch on campus.

The reconfiguration is necessary to accomplish other goals – like building the sports medicine facility. That was a late addition by qualifying for matching funds from the state.