Loop road specifics begin to emerge
By Kathryn Reed
STATELINE — “This project is not going to cure everything,” Carl Hasty said of the proposed loop road on the South Shore.
Hasty, the district manager for the Tahoe Transportation District, gave an update on the project April 13 to the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency’s Advisory Planning Commission.
His response was in regards to a question about parking. He added that the only parking associated with the loop road will involve any development that goes on – such as affordable housing.
Part of the presentation included a high-speed video of vehicle and pedestrian interaction near Heavenly Village during Presidents Day weekend. The purpose was to visually show the conflicts. The goal is to do it again on a busy summer day. There was no mention of documenting the area during normal flows to see what, if any, conflicts exist during the bulk of the year.
One of the visuals had a Heavenly gondola tower becoming a feature of the median.
There will be an overpass built to get people from the Harrah’s parking lot to Van Sickle Bi-State Park. Even though this state park has had funding issues since the get-go, it will be the park’s responsibility to keep the overpass clear of snow. The actual structure will be Caltrans’ liability
The loop road plan calls for making the current Highway 50 from about Pioneer Trail to Lake Parkway a city-county street, and turning the street behind Harrah’s-MontBleu into the five-lane highway. To make this happen commercial and residential buildings in South Lake Tahoe would be razed, and streets realigned.
One APC board member asked for a future rendering to identify the right-of-way that will need to be acquired to make the project a reality.
Hasty said the district has talked to properties involved, but no rights-of-way have yet to be secured, but added such a slide could be developed.
Another member asked if the bypass would speed up the flow of traffic.
“You don’t want it to go faster,” Hasty said. The expectation is for traffic to flow more easily and be more fluid.
To get bicyclists through the area more safely a cycle track is being proposed for city-county road.
The draft environmental documents are now slated to be released in June. The final could be done in September. In between those time there will be more public hearings. One alternative is doing nothing – which has to be included. It will address current standards in terms of public safety and traffic issues.
Not many specifics.
More questions about FUNDING also.
Has Bruce Greco, Bill Crawford, John Cefalu and Laurel Ames made any progress with their petetion to have the loop road question put on the ballot?
The petition is being circulated now, Robin. I signed it yesterday.
The loop road will bring more welfare housing, no parking, no expeditiousness of traffic. It will enrich NV with CA taxpayers footing the bill (pun unintended).
Gee wiz, the loop road is such a great idea, at least Hasty has a job and the west end of town continues to deteriorate (good-by Staples).
Bruce Grego…mispelling due to sleep typing
TY BobF
VOTE VOTE VOTE
Why is the loop road going to be a 5 lane hwy ? Do it right and the existing roads, 2 lanes, will work fine. This means making it a huge round-a-bout, running one-way, counter clockwise.
An overpass to get people to Van Sickle ? Does it come with a resident law enforcement person to keep people from throwing objects onto the street and traffic below ?
Why the big concern about parking ? No one seems to care about it now ?
Steven, please get your facts straight. The existing road has five total lanes, same as the loop road. The proposed and existing roads are technically 2 lane highways as there will be two lanes of travel in each direction. Where has it been proposed that there will be a “huge” roundabout? The proposed roundabout appears to be normal sized and as far as I’m aware, all roundabouts in the US are one way and run counterclockwise. What do you suggest to do to the existing road to accomplish your statement “Do it right and the existing roads, 2 lanes, will work fine.” We all want to know what your secret fix to just 2/5ths of the road is…
Ridiculousness:
You may as well give up. There are some people in this community that want nothing to change…..EVER. They want everything to remain just as it was and has been for the last 30-40 years. They think that’s “good enough”.
It is my hope that the young voting populace in this town who have their own expectations of what will be best for their future and for their children will wrestle power away from the old guard with the 1970s mindset much sooner rather than later. The old guard had their time; the future belongs to the young and they need to take control of their destiny.
Totally agree with you 4-mer.
“This project isn’t going to cure EVERYTHING” says Carl Hasty.
These projects never cure anything except the current HOLE in any of their collective pockets, therein lies the problem, all of the unfunded and unforseen contingecies and complications.
These public are still driving by the HOLE everyday wondering why they were sheepherded by name calling theives into a bankrupt mess with no recourse to the perpetuators of the HOLE.
People that continue point fingers and demand more $MILLIONS$ from hard working taxpayers
Mr. 4 mer, “Some people” , as you say are more than 50% of the vote. You don’t like the way people vote do you.
Mr. Pierini:
While you may believe that more than 50% of the people who vote want everything to remain just as it’s been for the past 30-40 years, I beg to differ. I think the number of people who want better for themselves and for their children is growing. Not everyone is satisfied with a community of failing infrastructures, minimal opportunities to earn a decent living and raise their families here, and doing nothing to establish opportunities for their children’s future in this community. And yes, I don’t like how some people vote and that they want to hamstring opportunities for anyone else because, after all, they’ve got theirs and who cares about anyone else.
I believe it’s up to the young to wrestle power away from the old guard with the 1970s mindset who think they know what’s best for everybody else. The young need to take control and responsibility of the future they envision for themselves and for their children. While the old are old and won’t be around to even feel the impacts, it certainly does appear like there are a lot of people who want to continue controlling this community even after death from their graves.
Mr. 4 mer, More than 50% don’t want what you want. It’s called democracy, sorry.
Mr. Pierini:
Like I said, I disagree with your declaration that more than 50% of the public want what you want. That’s called freedom of choice.
4-mer You don’t like the way people vote (paid parking) do you.
Mr. Pierini:
I’ve made my disagreement on the results of paid parking well known. I support individuals paying for their use of a publicly owned asset that has the ability to generate revenue for the City government which I help support thus enabling that government to provide public services. Theoretically, individuals not wanting to pay for the use of publicly owned assets wouldn’t have to use them, but since paid parking was eliminated your reference to that topic is puzzling. You got your way and I did not get my way. As your friend JoAnn Conner has been known to say in City Council meetings when historical issues were brought up about her, “that’s water under the bridge”.
Also, it isn’t that I don’t like how people vote it’s that I disagree with some people because I think differently than they do on some issues. If you want to know what I don’t like its nuisancy pests such as flies, mosquitos, or cockroaches for example.
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