SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – The City of South Lake Tahoe City Council met on Tuesday, Sept. 10 with four members present, Mayor Cody Bass, and Councilmembers Cristi Creegan, Tamara Wallace and Scott Robbins.

One chair was left vacant after former Mayor Pro Tem John Friedrich’s resignation on Sept. 3. The city is accepting applications to fill the vacancy.

Lake Link funding

The gathered council approved another year of funding to South Shore Transportation Management Association (SS/TMA) for Lake Link, a micro-transit service in South Lake Tahoe. The city is one of many funding sources for the service. El Dorado County, the South Lake Tahoe Tourism Business Improvement District, Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority, Tahoe Douglas Visitors Authority, Douglas County, the Tahoe Blue Event Center and private businesses, including Heavenly Resort have contributed in the past.

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Council originally approved an agreement with SS/TMA for the service in May 2022 and has since provided funding, including an increase in the 23/24 fiscal year up to $650,000 to facilitate expansion of service area and hours. That funding agreement expires on Sept. 30, 2024.

The city’s adopted 24/25 fiscal year budget already appropriates $150,000 towards SS/TMA. Council appropriated another $500,000 from General Fund Undesignated Excess Reserves at the meeting for a total $650,000 contribution.

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The microtransit service has shown growth within the last year with an 80% increase in rides this July compared to July 2023. Lake Link provided 18,347 rides in July 2024 with 89% of those being shared rides.

SS/TMA Chair Chris Proctor reported during comment that 10% of rides are to and from healthcare and 40% are to and from work. “So what’s interesting is something that was originally intended to be serving the event center and decreased vehicle miles traveled is now being used in our community for basic services.”

Mayor Cody Bass inquired whether councilmembers would again support committing an additional $200,000 if California Transportation Development Act (TDA) funds are moved to be used for Lake Link. Councilmember Wallace and Cristi Creegan both verbally supported the commitment.

Annual homelessness report

According to the City of South Lake Tahoe’s annual homelessness report provided at council, the city has made strides in reducing the number of those unhoused.

The number of those homeless and unsheltered in El Dorado County’s 2024 report is 135, hundreds less than the count in 2022 at 438. The count is required every two years by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and includes anyone living in cars or places not meant for human habitation.

The number of those unhoused and in a shelter are recorded every year in El Dorado County. Those numbers have increased to 149 from 53 in 2023 and 73 in 2022.

These numbers encompass all of El Dorado County. Numbers specific to the Tahoe region is becoming available in the next couple of weeks, according to city staff.

Jessica Wackenhut-Lomeli, city housing manager, informed council that a majority of those experiencing homelessness in the county have their permanent residence within the county, dispelling talks that people were moving into the county for the services.

The presented report revealed the main barriers to permanent housing for those unhoused include an inability to afford rent, and lack of money for a security deposit. Another factor is limited available housing.

“While this is not great news,” the housing manager said, “it’s also mutually reinforcing the fact that the city’s housing division and development services have been focused on developing and preserving deed-restricted affordable housing units and the new rental assistance program that’s assisting individuals with security deposit assistance.”

Wackenhut-Lomeli touched on the collaboration of multiple programs and organizations that coordinate around the city on homelessness.

El Dorado Opportunity Knocks Continuum of Care is a regional planning body of representative stakeholders in the county that coordinate policies, strategies, and activities for preventing and ending homelessness.

The Tahoe Coalition for Homelessness has worked with the city through a memorandum of understanding since 2020. They are a coordinated entry service provider receiving referrals from SLTPD, Barton Health and others. TCH operates a 16 bed shelter and owns 72 units of permanent housing for those at 0-30% area median income.

Live Violence Free is an organization within the city addressing multiple forms of abuse. LVF is also under an MOU, providing coordinated entry service and operating a 12 bed shelter and other units.

The South Tahoe Police Department’s South Tahoe Area Collaborative Services (STACS) is a joint response by assigned officers and the county’s behavioral health department. The effort provides drug and alcohol rehabilitation, family reunification, and referrals to Live Violence Free and Tahoe Coalition for the Homeless. STACS also works on illegal camping.

The Development Services Department within the city provides a rental assistance program, housing hotlines, and funding for the Bear’s Den affordable housing rehabilitation project. The department also drives the Sugar Pine Village and 3900 Lake Tahoe Blvd. affordable housing projects.

The Bear’s Den reaches populations within 0-30% area median income while the Sugar Pine Village and 3900 Lake Tahoe Blvd. projects will reach those within 30-80% of the area median income.

El Dorado County Sheriff has its Homeless Outreach Team (HOT) which provides a temporary 60-bed shelter that they are looking to make permanent.

Barton Health provides referrals to the Tahoe Coalition for the Homeless and Nevada Cares Campus from inpatient and emergency departments. The hospital also has an emerging addiction treatment program.

Wackenhut-Lomeli explained that there are financial concerns for their critical partners, LVF and TCH, amid a shift in state and federal funding, creating challenges in maintaining these programs. LVF was previously 40% funded by the Federal Victim of Crimes Act. “This funding source has dropped drastically.”

For TCH, capped funding for capital projects leaves no funds for operating costs and the reimbursement basis of many grants can create issues.

Towards the end of the meeting, Councilmember Cristi Creegan requested an future item addressing these financial concerns, looking into paying LVF and TCH for the services they do on behalf of the city.

New Flight Deck

A new Flight Deck is in the works of replacing the old one at the Airport’s restaurant facility. In January 2024, owner Sheila Benson announced Flight Deck Sports Bar & Grill’s closure due to risings costs and dropping revenue.

However, Thomas McMurray may be taking the controls for a new Flight Deck in the space. Council passed a motion allowing the Mayor to execute a lease and concession agreement with Flight Deck Grill & Golf Club, LLC. The company filed with the California Secretary of State in June.

The new tenant has new visions for the space, including renovations over $800,000. A virtual tour of the renovations is provided in the city’s staff report.

McMurray’s proposal includes indoor golf simulators as well as new fixtures, furnishings and a bar extension.

Initially Flight Deck was the city’s second pick out of two bidders who responded to the city’s request for proposal for the space. The city had initially selected Southern Hospitality to go into the space, but the staff report says the company withdrew its application.

Other business

Council passed a motion to open a business to business account with Patagonia for city staff apparel. At the Aug. 13 meeting, Mayor Cody Bass requested the possibility be considered due to Patagonia’s dedication to environmental sustainability. The business to business account allows for departments to voluntarily make bulk orders for discount. Council decided on the voluntary based option rather than creating a specific policy requiring purchases through the company in order to allow for flexibility when there is not a Patagonia product that meets department operational or safety needs.

City Council heard an update on the city’s website improvement efforts. A website revamp is a goal of the 2023-2028 Strategic Plan. The last effort occurred six years ago in 2018. The update will fix broken links, update keywords for search engine optimization, remove outdated information, and ensure ADA accessibility and redesign the website. Staff is also working to solve mobile friendliness issues, something that has been a challenge when it comes iframe use to share content. This is exemplified when looking at the meeting agenda page on a mobile device. The update also includes changing the domain name to include either .gov or .ca.gov as required by Governor Gavin Newsom’s Assembly Bill 1637. The website redesign is projected to cost $14,600 and the annual website cost is estimated at $35,200.

Council approved a five year extension with the company that supplies South Lake Tahoe Police Department’s body worn cameras and car video systems. The department has utilized Axon body cameras and fleet cameras since 2020. According the Police Lieutenant Jeff Roberson, they’ve helped resolved officer misconduct complaints faster. The staff report on the matter, reveals a vast majority of those were ruled unfounded. The systems have also been a great supplement to criminal prosecution the staff report says. The current contract expires in August 2025, however, the department has requested the renewal now in order to take advantage of pricing before an 8-10% increase. The contract upgrades the department to an unlimited storage system, as well as replaces body warn cameras to Axon’s newest model. The five year contract costs $980,976.45 and is available for interest free annual payments divided up over the course of the contract.

Within the consent agenda, council selected Councilmember Robbins as Voting Delegate and Heather Stroud, City Attorney, as Alternate Voting Delegate for the League of California Cities Annual Conference in Long Beach, Calif., Oct. 16-18.

They also passed a resolution allowing the Permanent Local Housing Allocation (PLHA) Grant Amendment be used for pre-approved accessory dwelling unit plans.

Another approved consent item included a resolution authorizing City staff to negotiate and execute the required Restricted Grant Agreements with the California Department of Transportation and move on to acceptance of the grant funding and issuance of a request for proposals (RFP) for consultant services to assist with the development of the South Lake Tahoe Multimodal Mainstreet Corridor Plan.

Council also agreed on Mid-Town Area Plan priorities. The Tribune broke these down further in a separate article titled: Redevelopment and art district among Mid-Town Area Plan priorities.

Gathered council and staff also received a presentation from CalTrans on road pavement options in the region. Details of the presentation and discussion are outlined in a Tribune article titled: Is there a solution to pothole ridden roads in Tahoe?

Mayor Cody Bass declared September 2024 as Suicide Prevention and Recovery Month to the organization, Access Tahoe. He declared Sept. 17-23 as Constitution Week to the Daughters of the American Revolution.

The full agenda and meeting is available on the City of South Lake Tahoe’s website, cityofslt.us.