Nason resigns as ED from League to Save Lake Tahoe

By Kathryn Reed

Rochelle Nason was adamant Wednesday morning when she spoke with Lake Tahoe News – saying she is not resigning as executive director of the League to Save Lake Tahoe. However, a press release arrived at 2:34pm saying otherwise.

Nason did not answer the phone when called this afternoon.

The press release says, “League to Save Lake Tahoe Executive Director Rochelle Nason has resigned today, effective October 2011, after nearly 20 years of working to protect and restore Lake Tahoe. League Program Director Carl Young will serve as interim executive director, with Nason serving as a senior advisor, until a new executive director has been selected.”

Rochelle Nason

Nason has had the top position since 1993, having been the League’s attorney for one year before becoming executive director.

The League has been chastised more than usual in the past year for continually suing entities in the Lake Tahoe Basin. Many call the environmental group obstructionists who only file lawsuits, provide no real leadership and offer no solutions to the problems in the basin.

While the League is based in South Lake Tahoe, Nason spends the bulk of her time in Berkeley. She said in the press release that traveling between the Bay Area and Tahoe is not something she wants to continue.

The last lawsuit the League lost was the decision last month regarding the Sierra Colina project in Stateline.

Dissension in the ranks surfaced this summer when Nason said the League’s annual fundraiser on the West Shore at a house that involved an illegal extension of a pier was essentially no big deal. The League’s board president, Robert Damaschino, said otherwise. At the time, in a statement, Damaschino said, “The League to Save Lake Tahoe views the environmental violations that took place at the site of our fundraiser as a very serious matter. We support the efforts of TRPA and the landowner to correct them and assure they are not repeated.”

Most board members never issue statements, instead deferring to staff to speak for the League.

In the Sept. 14 release, Damaschino praised Nason’s leadership – “The entire Lake Tahoe Basin will continue to benefit for years to come from what she has accomplished over the past two decades.”