LTCC decision on SnowGlobe expected in May

By Kathryn Reed

South Lake Tahoe City Manager Nancy Kerry made a case Tuesday for why Lake Tahoe Community College should allow SnowGlobe to continue on the school’s adjacent ball field.

The two public agencies own the field, with the city responsible for maintaining it.

The college board of trustees at its first May meeting is expected to vote on whether the three-day year-end music festival should return for years four, five and six.

The city last month agreed to a three-year contract with the promoter. But the event won’t happen without the college’s OK.

“As soon as the field is replaced, it won’t come back,” Kerry said of the festival. The field could be replaced at a potential cost of $750,000 in the next 30 to 36 months.

The goal is to find a turf company that has been in existence for a while. The firm the city used for the existing field went out of business before the warranty expired.

“The sample that was shown is not what was installed,” according to Roberta Mason, LTCC board president.

When Measure S was approved the voters thought they would be getting multiple fields. They got one multi-use field instead.

Kerry told the board it’s not the festival that is the field’s major deterioration, but instead it’s snow.

“Snow itself and how it melts creates a wobbly field,” Kerry said.

While the city wants to keep SnowGlobe on the South Shore, a suitable replacement venue has yet to be secured. It is estimated the event brings in $6 million to the region.