Letter: Tahoe Chamber vs. Sierra Club
To the community,
B Gorman, president of the Tahoe Chamber, has discovered evil. And it’s the Sierra Club. Why the Sierra Club? Well, in Ms. Gorman’s view the Sierra Club has filed a “frivolous” lawsuit that Gorman thinks is designed to prevent collaboration among stakeholders in the Tahoe basin.
Translated, the Sierra Club is opposed to the Regional Pan update, thus the lawsuit. In her newspaper statement Gorman raves that the Sierra Club is composed of elite nimbies, a select few that filed the lawsuit. Gorman suggest that they live in glass houses. She contends the lawsuit selfishly intends to halt progress in the Tahoe basin. Her rallying cry is people must “stand up to the elitist who wish to derail our community area plans that guide redevelopment.”
Bill Crawford
It appears Ms. Gorman thinks she has the revealed word on the creation of the new Eden. However, the devil in the details is the Sierra Club. But the question for her is, how does one get collaboration with such as the Sierra Club when you call the group selfish, etc.? That the Sierra Club’s agenda is to destroy your dream. We have to wait for a resolution on the lawsuit. If it goes to trial, the court may find some validity to the Sierra Club’s position. If so, it won’t be a frivolous lawsuit. But who knows? As Thomas Gore, the first elected senator from Oklahoma said, “Even a pancake has two sides.
Bill Crawford, South Lake Tahoe
It appears there is a certain element concerned with the approximately 4K new building permits and around 250 new Tourist Accommodation Units(TAU) in the Regional Plan Update(RPU). Looking at all the empty, run down, seemingly under utilized buildings, maybe people who espouse that view, might have a point.
Everytime the Mormons knock on my door to blather on about family values, I send a donation to Planned Parenthood.
Every time I see the Boy Scouts trying to raise funds I order more Girl Scout cookies.
Now, thanks to B. Gorman, I’m going to have to increase my donation to Sierra Club everytime she opens her yap.
These folks are gonna break me.
I agree, and it’s clear that speculators with money and long term planning horizons know that sooner or later the economy will improve and that will drive up demand for Tahoe property regardless of environmental impact. Their buy low strategy makes economic sense for them – why not throw a chip into a possible future payoff. What’s more, in todays economic climate, anyone offering to put money into Tahoe gets treated like a messiah. But what does new construction really do for our community long term? We dont need more second homes, we dont need new tourist accomodations, we need a vibrant resident population with more than minimum wage jobs, we need significant upgrades to our town’s infrastructure and existing commercial and residential neighborhoods, and we certianly need existing building occupied and mantained! Permits for new building does not assure any of these! But it always seems easier in America to interest folks in building something new, rather than fixing something old. Not to beat a dead horse, but if I were the Chamber, I would be way more concerned about the hole in the ground rather than worrying about opposition to new building for speculative demand.
From what I’ve read on the issue so far, it does seem that the Sierra Club has a valid reason for filing their lawsuit. And did I miss something, in that it could have been headed off but wasn’t? And the why it wasn’t, was not accidental. Good luck guys. Seems it is of your own creation.
Ljames,
I’ve made somewhat similar comments here in regards to improving SLT and for the most part they were recieved fairly well.
There will allways be naysayers and people who just like to complain and then they throw in a few personal insults as well. If this happens to you don’t let it bug you. Brush them aside and stay true to yourself.
Take Care, Old Long Skiis
ljames– Some signs of upgrades to existing commercial buildings can be found today near the TAHOLE. The old Block Hotel has been rebuilt and is now called the Basecamp. The old Cedar Lodge is being rebuilt today. Both these properties were shut down by the city for non payment of TOT. The former Val Halla just down the street was sold and is being gutted and expanded with a new restaurant. It will reopen this summer.
I believe people think Tahoe property values will rise and they are investing today.
As to the TAHOLE, the owners have a proposal before the city now to put in some small shops along Hwy 50.
I read how we don’t want more 2nd homes and tourist accomodations, but in the same breath demand higher wages. Sir, where do you think any of the wages in SLT originate from? What industry does SLT have, other than the tourist industry? As a 2nd home owner there, I can tell you very clearly that wages I earn elsewhere come to SLT and are left there. I take none back home with me.
So where else do you propose to originate the town’s vibrant income from? Shall we start up some logging harvesting? Sierra would love that. How about we stock Tahoe with millions of fish that can be harvested? Hmm, not so clear and blue anymore is it? Farming? A bit chilly. The next Silicon Valley? How many rocket scientists have you chatted with lately? How about we mine for something or open up a gravel quarry? Sooo popular, I’m sure.
You see, given the environmental environment there, we tourists are about all you have for income. We feed you, so you’d better be nice. And if you want more income, unless you want some radical and not so environmentally pleasing options as mentioned above, you’ll need more tourists, and more of what’s needed to attract and support them. The only alternative is what the no-growthers would have. Stagnation, population decline, fewer jobs, and lower wages. It’s actually a valid choice, if that’s what you want.
Ljames,
Well that didn’t take long as per my previous post.
Anyone who has ideas about fixing up our community is often, but not always, shot down with negative comments. Comes with the territory I guess.
Oh well. Keep thinking of ideas to make SLT better! I know I will! Take Care, OLS
Doug M:
“… we tourists are about all you have for income. We feed you, so you’d better be nice.”
Your above remarks are right on target yet some “locals” who live here don’t seem to get that. An example: my wife and I sold our Menlo Park home in 2001 and moved to South Lake Tahoe bringing everything we owned with us. We initially rented a home then we bought one here, we live here full time, shop here, and pay taxes here. About 3 ½ years after moving to SLT my wife was having a manicure and pedicure at a local shop and another client asked her if she was a tourist. She replied that she wasn’t and that she’d lived here for about 3 ½ years. This “local” woman then informed my wife that she was not a local and could not consider herself such until she lived here at least 10-years; she then promptly dismissed my wife as an interloper.
And some people wonder why tourists don’t want to flock to a really rundown looking town where some of the “local” people treat them with utter contempt. Good thing we have such an amazing natural environment because without that there wouldn’t be a town.
Now I didn’t get personal, did I, OLS? Peace & Love to all here. Just wanted to point out the contradiction between wanting a vibrant economy, and no growth, at the same time. Tough call. And that tourism is and will be largely the only game in town, for some time. Everything done to clean up the town will serve that industry and all residents alike.
Y’know, I’ve worked hard to establish my credentials as a “semi-local” for the last 7 years, by living here almost 20% of my time. But, maybe a better measure is whether one actually makes their living here. By that measure, I’m a two-bit Haole. I could care less, as long as I’m treated well by the friends I’ve made up here, which is the case, by many.
DougM,
No you didn’t get personal. I’m cool with everyting you said . I’m quite aware how important our guests are. I’ve been working in the tourism business here since I was a little kid. But there is a fine line to walk between becoming over developed and stagnation, plus we’ve GOT TO GET WORKING on fixing up what we already have.
For a small town we sure seem to have some big issues, but then I don’t have much to compare it to. Been here too darn long and I rarely leave the hill. I reckon I’m a small town “Geezer”, stuck in my ways and resistant to change.
Take Care, Old Long Skiis
if it wer’nt for the “extreme” environmental presence that all these Chamber people think are so horrible, Lake Tahoe would look like Lake Arrowhead and we would be just another polluted body of water. I say “Good Job Sierra Club and League To Save Lake Tahoe and West Shore Environmental League, and any other environmental group that has the guts to stand up to the Corporate hacks that want to sell this town down the river for a few pretty buildings and some AAA glory
Our town is doing so great they are practically giving away condos at Marriot Grand Residence. Wake up, we are moribund and stagnant. If people want to put up their money and take a big risk let them. Old towns don’t lose their name just their people, kind of like south shore.
If it costs more to get a study then the permits from all the agencys then it does to do the job our town will continue to be run down and empty.