Building demolition would add beach access in S. Tahoe

By Kathryn Reed

Providing more public access to Lake Tahoe as well as increasing the views for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists would be achieved if the Alta Mira building changed hands and then was leveled.

This nondescript building at 3339 Lake Tahoe Blvd. in South Lake Tahoe is on the March 15 California Tahoe Conservancy agenda. Staff is asking the board to enter an 18-month option at a cost of $10,000. This is essentially a down payment so the owner – called the Alta Mira Partnership – won’t sell to someone else in that time frame.

The Alta Mira building in South Lake Tahoe that sits above the lake may be torn down. Photo/Kathryn Reed

“In our 27-year history we have tried to enhance opportunities to lake access,” CTC Deputy Director Ray Lacey told Lake Tahoe News.

This building would be the end point of Lakeview Commons when it is totally developed. Getting rid of the building would visually improve the area as well as provide another 190 feet of beach access for the public. A little more than 2,000 linear feet of sand exists from El Dorado Beach to the Alta Mira building.

“This would provide a proverbial anchor to the edge of El Dorado Beach,” Lacey said.

It was a grant of more than $6 million from the Conservancy to South Lake Tahoe that made Lakeview Commons a reality. This project overhauled the land at El Dorado Beach at the corner of Highway 50 and Lakeview Avenue.

Another $4 million to $5 million is needed to complete the project that would end at the Alta Mira building. That money, though, is not in anyone’s budget.

Also unknown is where the $2.5 million would come from to buy the 0.55-acre Alta Mira parcel.

Bruce Eisner, CTC program manager, said his agency has about $1.5 million that could go toward buying the Alta Mira building, but the rest would have to come from other sources.

The Tahoe Fund is one group that may be able to help.

While the board of this nonprofit has not voted on this particular topic, some members have expressed an interest in exploring acquiring the land.

“This is a key piece of property. We don’t have any definite commitments to it,” Cindy Gustafson, chairwoman of the Tahoe Fund board of directors, told Lake Tahoe News. “We are not in a position where we could singularly acquire it, but we would work with partner agencies.”

Eisner said if the Conservancy in the next 1½ years decides to buy the property, the agency would stipulate the current owners demolish the existing building before title would be transferred.

ngg_shortcode_0_placeholder (Click on images to enlarge.)

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Meeting info: California Tahoe Conservancy board meets March 15, 9:30am at Lake Tahoe Community College in South Lake Tahoe.