Opinion: Transit officials not acting in public’s best interest
By Kathryn Reed
On the same day the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Governing Board is scheduled to discuss the Regional Plan update there will be a community presentation on the loop road project.
But they will be separate, likely overlapping meetings. That means people have to decide which meeting to attend. How stupid is this? What are people thinking? Are they trying to cram the loop road through without scrutiny and due diligence? Oh wait, the diligence is met even if no one is there.
And it’s an afternoon meeting. How many people affected by it — positively or negatively — could make it?
The transportation meeting was announced Friday. Yes, yesterday.
When the dual meeting was pointed out to Tahoe Transportation District officials by Lake Tahoe News, their flak Phil Weidinger responded, “TRPA will also be holding the RPU discussion at South Shore the following day.
“TTD has several meetings and various project deadlines approaching, including a presentation to the City Council on May 1, a board meeting on May 11 [to include the results from Wednesday’s public meeting], plus other public forums and outreach to keep assignments moving, on track and to ensure deadlines are met.”
Really?
The loop road has been talked about since the 1980s and now there is a rush? When has the South Shore ever cared about deadlines? After all the Regional Plan was supposed to be updated in 2007.
LTN pointed out via email to Weidinger, TTD staff, South Lake Tahoe Mayor Claire Fortier (who is also on the TRPA Governing Board), Councilwoman Angela Swanson (who is also on the TTD board) and the TRPA flak, that the meetings on April 25 and April 26 do not have the same agenda items even though both pertain to the Regional Plan update. At least that is what TPRA has told LTN.
On top of that, the Wednesday TRPA meeting is in Incline Village and the transportation meeting is in Stateline. It’s not possible to jump between the two meetings. TRPA officials have said to expect both of their meetings to be all-day events.
Considering the TTD and TRPA offices are in the same Stateline building on Market Street, better communication would be expected – unless of course, the transportation folks don’t really want anyone to comment on taxpayer dollars being used to reroute traffic on Highway 50, or the uprooting of California residents to the benefit of mostly Nevada businesses.
Here is information about TRPA’s meeting schedules.
As for the TTD meeting regarding the displacement of renters to the benefit of Stateline area businesses, the meeting is April 25 from 2-3:30pm at Embassy Suites in South Lake Tahoe.
The agenda says the meeting will include:
• Accurate updates, facts, information
• Impacts on neighborhood residents
• Impacts on businesses in the Village Shopping Center, Heavenly Village and along the Highway 50 corridor
• Current status of project
• Other issues like safety, economy, environment.
South Shore residents deserve better from transportation officials. Don’t make residents and power brokers decide which meeting to attend. Both are important. We deserve better.
Good piece, Kae. Thanks.
Will TTD post all info on their website so that we can review and submit comments?
I can’t attend either meeting but am interested in getting the information.
The loop road project is wrong! I am a affected property owner (naked fish/ powderhouse), have asked at last board meeting to be informed – and Tahoe News is my source for a meeting scheduled on Wednesday! Time for South Lake Tahoe residents to say NO to a project backed by the former “NV Gaming Alliance” that will take more business away from to SLT to the new Horizon Village and Edgewood Resort.
Yeah, gotta wonder exactly who DOES benefit from re-routing the INTERSTATE HIGHWAY? Why all of a sudden is there such a push for this now?
Me thinks the push is coming from Edgewood. They want their plans for their resort as well as the other properties they own to be approved with heavy traffic routed away from theirs.
They would like to redevolp the Horizon, build a year around concert theater where Harvey’s holds the Summer series now, as well as a redesign of the Casino corridor to be more pedestrian friendly.
Can’t do all that with semi trucks roaring through the middle of it.
This is months old ,I wrote a letter long time ago from the paper work that was sent to the PO boxes,all you had to do was write back.
Was dated Nov 1-11 last year,here’s the address…….aknotts@tahoetransportation.org
We are very concerned with the Montreal Road proposed cul-de-sac leading to the loop road. We don’t want that to happen, so many us and other town locals use this to get around the traffic backups from tourist.
More than a few use this to access the clubs, which is the biggest year round employer in the area for many years.
Please take this into serious concern for us who have lived here for decades, we all thought that the Rocky Point Erosion Control was done too soon, the old plans would worked fine if you go back take a look, they went ahead built holding ponds which we think could be moved and the old plan renewed. They had the right idea when they proposed it years ago, but we live under some very ignorant agencies, T.R.P.A being one the biggest to waste so much money.
REMEMBER THE LOOP ROAD ORGANAL PLAN PASSED BY lost SHEEP ROAD,(TOP SHEPHERDS RD.ROCKY POINT)THE OLD PLAN WAS SUPPOSED TO START JUST ABOUT WHERE WILDWOOD IS CUT THROUGH COME OUT WHERE THAT YELLOW HOUSE IS THAT ALWAYS FOR RENT ON Montreal. SINCE THEN,They HAVE ALREADY BUILT HOLDING PONDS THERE.
WHERE YOU PEOPLE BEEN?NOW THAT IT’S GOING TO COST YOU YOUR BUSINESS LOCATION YOU FINALLY RELIZE YOU WERE ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL.
Having a great transit system throughout the basin, is probably the single biggest thing that can be done for lake clarity.
It needs to be consistent, connected, run frequently, and be committed to at least a 3 year plan.
We need to have friendly, qualified drivers, and no one with their hand in the pot, it’s tough enough to make transit work as it is, let alone someone pilfering some of the funds.
It needs to work for locals as well as tourists.
Re: your “Opinion” piece today, some clarification, please:
The U.S. 50/South Shore Community Revitalization Project: In an effort to inform the South Shore community, the Tahoe Transportation District (TTD) has already held meetings with 11 different community organizations and groups to provide updates, answer questions and distribute information – TTD plans more presentations and welcomes the opportunity to speak with your group. (For organizations that would like to arrange a presentation by TTD, please contact Tiara Wasner, Community Outreach Specialist, at 775-588-5013; 530-721-7500 cell; or suggestions@us50revitalization.org.
To alleviate a possible conflict for anyone who plans to attend the TRPA meeting, TTD will be holding other project information meetings in the future.
The Wednesday meeting welcomes the public, but is specifically designed to meet the requests of small businesses in the affected area: Crescent V Shopping Center, Heavenly Village and along Highway 50.
Granted, less than a week’s lead-time to schedule a meeting is challenging, nonetheless an immediate response by TTD to meet with an important constituency that’s asked numerous questions is critical to the project process. To that end, for folks who cannot attend due to work considerations or family obligations, a video of the meeting will be uploaded to the website by next weekend. Also, project questions can be emailed to Alfred Knotts, Principal Planner/Project Manager, at suggestions@us50revitalization.org; or call 775-589-5500.
TTD welcomes participation at the meeting to discuss the issues involved. We hope as many people as possible can attend all of our meetings so the facts will be known for informed decisions.
Carl Hasty
District Manager
Tahoe Transportation District
Mr. Hasty, Who funds your agency? What kind of agency is it, federal, state, bi-state or other? Where is the long term funding from and how long will it last? These are some foundation questions that will help get us started for more specific questions. thanks.
way back, an early idea was the loop rd. would run on both sides of Hy 50, lake tahoe blvd, if you want to get u.s. mail delivered. The north side was blocked by Tahoe Meadows becoming an historical landmark so it could not be taken by the city of SLT, so all of it has to be on the south side. We are 25 years after redevelopment and loop road ideas started in
1987, and the special interest folks still prevail $$$.
Carl,
Your outreach specialist works for the PR company that thinks the regional plan meetings are the same. She is no authority to talk to. Give the people better than some rookie flak.
And you say the meetings has to be scheduled in a week. Explain why?
Oh wait, your flak said because there is a tight deadline.
But then you say there will be plenty more meetings?
Which is it?
Remember, trust is earned. You haven’t earned it.
These are many of the same people who so bungled and bankrupted the bus system. Unfortunately, investigations and lawsuits were the result of their poor management. Why are they allowed to continue with their mischief?