To the community,

• Extortion, outwresting, and/or exaction is a criminal offense which occurs when a person unlawfully obtains either money, property or services from a person(s), entity, or institution, through coercion.

• Coercion: is the practice of compelling a person or manipulating them to behave in an involuntary way (whether through action or inaction) by use of threats, intimidation, trickery, or some other form of pressure or force. These are used as leverage, to force the victim to act in the desired way.

On 06/19/2010 at 12:42pm a man about 23 years old, with dark hair, wearing a cap, mirrored sunglasses, with tattoos on his right arm came in to my business which has yet to officially open, and demanded my address. I asked how I could help him and he asked again for the address. I responded again, what for, and he said a friend visiting him at this location needed the address, and walked out.

My neighbor has this man on video coming in to the parking lot. Not exiting his vehicle but sitting in his vehicle taking notes. As he made a U-turn in the lot, he stopped, got out of his off white Nissan/Toyota type 4-wheel drive vehicle, looked around the front of the building and then entered to ask for my address. He asked nothing about the business. His only question was about the address missing on the building.

If by chance this has anything to do with the ADA man and his associates going around town extorting money from local business I will pursue you and your employees. I suggest other business owners review their videotapes to see if this same fellow has entered their business to extract information for extortion purposes. Regardless of any ADA issues, extortion is a crime and I will pursue you. I suggest other business owners do so as well to get these individuals off our streets.

Robert Stiles, Tahoe Real Estate Services

To the community,

The inaugural Happy Trails Event on June 5 provided many people an opportunity to “find their happy place” at one of many trail experiences offered throughout the South Shore.

Marianne from Kayak Tahoe offered her expertise in kayaking and identified various shore birds along the way. At Lam Watah Meadows Trail Kim Gorman took participants back in time as she shared the history of the Washoe Indians when they camped in the meadow and pointed

Kayakers on Happy Trails Day. Photos/Provided

to grinding stones that are still evident today.

Other Happy Trails events were led by Kat from Wanna Ride, Meilah from the Tahoe Rim Trail Association, Kirk from Tahoe Institute for Natural Science and Rena from the U.S .Forest Service. The city of South Lake Tahoe Department of Parks and Recreation and Explore Tahoe Visitor Center look forward to hosting Happy Trails 2011 as part of the American Hiking Society National Trails Day Celebration.

Kim Gorman leads a hike on the Lam Watah Trail.

Lauren Thomaselli, Explore Tahoe

To friends of Compost Tahoe,

We finally have our video done on so we are now officially entered in the MYOO Create waste prevention contest. The winning entry will receive $15K in funding so please click on the link and vote for us.

In order to vote, you have to create a user name and password. It’s free and there are some very cool ideas to read about. Be sure to check out the Plastiki … a boat made entirely of plastic bottles which is sailing around the world to bring attention to the problem of plastics in our oceans.

Check it out, please vote for us and be sure to spread the word to your friends.

Thank you,

David Hansen, director of engineering at Embassy Suites Lake Tahoe Hotel & Ski Resort

Dear Friends,

Campaigning across El Dorado County has been an incredibly rewarding experience. Along the way, I have made many new friends and gained an even deeper appreciation for the lifestyle and values we share—from El Dorado Hills to Placerville to South Lake Tahoe.

In Tuesday’s election, we were close in a crowded race. We gave it our all, and I have no regrets or second thoughts. None.

I want to thank my wife, Diane, and my family, my team and the scores of additional volunteers who worked countless hours on the campaign trail with me. I cannot adequately say in words how grateful I am for their support.

Also, I want to congratulate Sheriff candidates John D’Agostini and Craig Therkildsen. I have enjoyed getting to know them better in recent months and wish them well in November’s runoff.

Finally, I want to thank the men and women of the Sheriff’s Department who keep our community safe day and night. They deserve our undivided attention and support, and I pledge to assist our next sheriff in any way possible to ensure their continued success.

Sincerely,

Bob Luca

To supporters,

We did it. The first part’s over and with all your help, support and confidence, we made it to the top. Words can’t express how honored we are right now. We’ve had a long road so far and we are already making plans for the general in November.

With late absentee ballots still out there, we are on top with 25.26 percent.The closest competitor came in at 23.09 percent.

John D'Agostini

We just wanted to take a minute to thank all of you again.

John and Janine D’Agostini

Dear Friend,

A sincere thank you to all the Nevadans who are supporting my campaign and took the time to vote today.

This election presents voters with a clear choice on who will stand up for Nevada’s families.

I am working to create good-paying jobs by investing in clean energy resources. I have been leading the fight to protect consumers by taking on Big Oil and Wall Street. And I am proud of the reform we passed to help make health care more affordable.

Times are still tough, but we are now starting to see things beginning to turn around as the measures we have taken continue to work. I remain convinced that by coming together, the future still is as bright as it has ever been.

Harry Reid, Democratic U.S. senator from Nevada

To veterans,

Can we help you be a member of an organization that helps veterans and the community and provides a place for veterans to spend quality time with one another doing and celebrating their service to their country and one another?

We want you to join us and be a part of our celebration.

Come to the post and be a part of what can be your post and be part of the process of running it.

We want your ideas and your input.

What can we do to make it more to your appeal or liking?

We are offering a one-year membership sign-up reduction of 37 percent of the normal price which is $40. But for now it will be $25 for the first year.

How can you sign up?

We will need your name, address and day time or evening phone number (specify) and a copy of your DD Form 214 showing you were Honorably Discharged from the service, (you may blank out the SSN, we do not need it) and a check or money order for $25 made out to American Legion Post 795.

Mail to:

American Legion Post 795

P.O. Box 14213

South Lake Tahoe, CA 96151

We meet once a month on the third Tuesday of the month at 6pm at the Post across the street from Meeks Lumber on Lake Tahoe Boulevard in South Lake Tahoe.

If you need more information, call the Post Adjutant

George Ramirez at (530) 541.0641.

George Ramirez, American Legion Post 795

To the community,

If you haven’t already heard, the Sugar Pine Foundation has an opportunity to win $50,000 as the grand prize recipient of Redwood Creek Winery’s Greater Outdoors Project Grant.

We need your continued help and support with VOTING for our project.

Please vote here.

You can vote once a day from now until Aug. 31 – so vote as often as you can. Tell all of your friends to get online a vote for the Sugar Pine Foundation too.

For more information, visit our website and become a fan of the Sugar Pine Foundation on Facebook to stay updated with our organization. Also, you can follow and tweet about us (sugarpinefndn) on Twitter.

Again, thanks so much for your support.

Sincerely,

The Sugar Pine Team

By Norma Santiago

You have no doubt heard about redevelopment as tool in a community’s toolbox for revitalizing the community and making needed improvements. This much is true. Properly deployed, redevelopment can spur public and private investment in neglected areas of the City South Lake Tahoe and provide a boost to a struggling economy. For these reasons redevelopment is often an appropriate exercise of local government authority.

City officials have recently launched another redevelopment effort known as “Project Area No.2” which encompasses approximately 1,300 acres from the airport, through the Y and most of Lake Tahoe Boulevard. It is discouraging to think about the commercial core and key residential areas of our city as fraught with physical and economic blight, but continuing to ignore these challenges would only further erode the South Lake Tahoe economy. Designating these properties as redevelopment area will allow the city to keep an additional share of your property tax so it can address these challenges. City officials have extolled the benefits that redevelopment may bring such as local job creation, economic growth and community improvements. We hope this much is true.

Norma Santiago

With any decision there are costs and benefits. While we like to contemplate the benefits of redevelopment and hope for the future, we are wise to also consider the costs. What are the costs of redevelopment? Perhaps more important, who bears the costs of redevelopment?

Unfortunately there is no such thing as a free lunch, or free money for that matter. The “additional share” of your property tax money that the city will use for redevelopment purposes must come from somewhere. That “somewhere” is the county of El Dorado and other local government agencies. Revised estimates indicate that the county of El Dorado will lose between $23 million and $48 million over the life of the 45-year redevelopment effort. These losses could impact the county’s ability to provide services which are also important to the success of the South Lake Tahoe community such as corrections and prosecution, public health and mental health services, social safety net programs and veterans assistance. We can’t know for certain how much the county stands to surrender under redevelopment because the actual dollar amount depends on the success of the city’s efforts. In that regard, we genuinely hope that this new round of redevelopment is a successful endeavor.

Recognizing the potential benefits and costs of redevelopment, the county has taken a cautious approach, requesting more time and discussion from the city. As currently conceived, the city’s plan contains some potential weaknesses which do not strike an appropriate balance between redevelopment efforts and the potential impact on county services provided to the citizens of South Lake Tahoe. Specifically, the inclusion of non-blighted parcels in the redevelopment plan unnecessary burdens the county with unwarranted property tax loss. Additional dialogue, shared analysis and negotiation between the city and county is warranted to ensure a proper balance of public services is maintained.

To be certain, state law provides the city with the legal ability to divert property taxes for redevelopment purposes. Given the amount of time and resources that city officials have invested in the effort so far, I am confident that additional redevelopment in some new form will occur in South Lake Tahoe. However, recognizing that the city’s redevelopment effort is inextricably linked with the county’s ability to fund critical services, we should ensure that redevelopment goals are realistic and sustainable. Although I support the principles of redevelopment, I also support doing everything possible at this early stage to ensure that it is successful in practice. This includes a realistic discussion and balancing of costs and benefits. After all, it is the citizens of South Lake Tahoe who will live with results.

Supervisor Norma Santiago represents District 5 on the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors, including all El Dorado County communities in the Lake Tahoe Basin.

To the community,

The city of South Lake Tahoe has been notified that for the second year in a row, it has been awarded the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award from the Government Finance Officers’ Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA). This national award ranks the proficiency of the city’s budget document in terms of a policy document, a financial plan, an operations guide, and a communications device.

This year’s award rated “Outstanding” the following categories:

1. Financial policies;

2. Major Revenues (descriptions, assumptions, forecast);

3. Changes in Fund Balance/Equity;

4. Organizational Chart; and

5. Summary position Information

I am proud of the work of the Finance Director and her staff, the city’s department managers, and the strong City Council commitment to maintaining fiscal integrity of the City as we move forward in these uncertain economic times. Maintaining our strong commitment to serving our community, working on programs and relationships to diversify and build a stronger local economy, and maintaining the financial integrity of our city government will be a hallmark for future success.

Dave Jinkens, South Lake Tahoe city manager