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My children have strictly forbidden me from mentioning them in the paper, so I can’t really say what went down. But, big shout out to John at the bike park. You know who you are and you are so much more than just a Tahoe resident, you are a true community member! Thank you! Speaking of community members, 13 (!) people have stepped up to run for the South Lake Tahoe City Council. The large number of people throwing their hat in the ring speaks to some dissatisfaction with the direction of our town, but also to a high level of engagement and willingness to work toward improving things. With that many candidates, the Mountain News doesn’t have space to run full interviews, so we give the reader a flavor of what they are all about and have posted the extended interviews with each of them on our website —www. tahoemountainnews.net. In reading the responses myself, I was struck by the thought and care each candidate put into answering our questions and their commitment to South Lake Tahoe. With only three seats open, ten people won’t make the cut, but I hope their disappoint-
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ment does not lead them to withdraw from local affairs and that they stay involved. Again, we need community members and not just residents. In her column this month, Peggy takes a look back at previous council elections over the past 60 years since the city’s incorporation in 1965. This undertaking involved a lot of legwork and Peggy finds some interesting tidbits to share, so check it out. Choosing the right local leaders continues to be vitally important as community trust keeps taking hits with those we should have the most faith in seemingly taking advantage of their position. I’m talking specifically about embezzlement. Just as we were going to press, Douglas County law enforcement announced the arrest of Erinn Miller, the Tahoe representative on the Douglas County School Board, for allegedly embezzling a combined $125,000 from the Whittell Booster Club and the Zephyr Cove Elementary Parents Club when she served as treasurer of each. This comes on top of an El Dorado County investigation into potential financial shenanigans at the Tahoe Paradise Recreation and Park District and,
The Tahoe Mountain News is a community newspaper serving Lake Tahoe’s South Shore. Distributed FREE everywhere in the community. One copy per person. No article may be reprinted without the permission of the publisher. Send all submissions to: P.O. Box 8974, South Lake Tahoe, CA 96158. (530) 208-7671 • mountainnews2@gmail.com www.tahoemountainnews.net Copyright © 2025 Tahoe Mountain News CONTRIBUTORS PUBLISHER/PAPERGIRL Heather Gould Gary Bell
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COPY EDITOR Mike Filce
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Joann Eisenbrandt
Peggy Bourland David Hamilton Trish Tomer
of course, there’s former South Lake Tahoe Mayor Tamara Wallace. We provide updates on both of those latter stories this month. All I can think is what is going on?! On a much brighter note, I truly enjoyed reporting our cover story on Darin Talbot and his Jimmy Buffett tribute act. A talented musician in his own right, Talbot is just genuinely a super nice guy who wants to make life better through music and pay it forward for the next generation. The use of the herbicide glyphosate is the hot-button issue in Tahoe right now, drawing attention and opposition on a number of fronts. For our second Q&A this month, we went directly to the local office of the US Forest Service and asked the questions on when, why and how this chemical is used. The environmental coordinator shared a lot of info that will hopefully provide some clarity on their policies and practices and help guide informed decisions going forward. ‘til next month! -Heather
FROM HEATHER.............................................................. 5 POLITICS WITH PEGGY.................................................... 6 SINCE YOU ASKED.......................................................... 7 MOUNTAIN NEWS ELECTION ..............................8,10,11 NEWS BRIEFS................................................................. 8 A new sheriff in town?
MOUNTAIN NEWS STORIES..........................................12 MOUNTAIN NEWS HEALTH ..........................................13 HEARD AROUND TOWN................................................14 MIKE'S MUTTERINGS....................................................16 COVER STORY ...............................................................18 MOUNTAIN NEWS REPORTS .......................................21 COOKING WITH K .........................................................23 MOUNTAIN NEWS UPDATE...........................................24 MOUNTAIN NEWS Q&A.................................................28 TRISH ............................................................................26 MOUNTAIN NEWS LETTERS & VIEWS..........................29 SPOKE JUNKIE..............................................................30 It's all downhill from here
DAVE AT THE MOVIES...................................................32 PARTING SHOT..............................................................35
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We Built This City In 1964, folks living on South Shore (population 12,000) were plotting to break away from the mothership (Placerville/ El Dorado County) in favor of self-rule. It wasn’t a secret that locals were fed up with being the cash cow for the entire county while receiving very little of the revenue and services. A group calling themselves Citizens for Local Government went to work gathering signatures to qualify an initiative that would ask the voters if they wanted to incorporate as a city. The initiative was on the November 1965 ballot, and 19 council candidates (the record number) were on the ballot, along with the question of what to call the new city. The final count for incorporation was 2,011 (yes) and 613 (no) with the name City of South Lake Tahoe chosen over Lake Tahoe. Five men were elected to the council, and each was also assigned to run a different department (police, fire, building, etc.). They were paid $150 per month. Currently, council member compensation is $1,394 per month plus medical insurance. In 1974, Pat Lowe became the first woman elected to council and since then, only 12 other women have been elected in our 60-year history. In 1976, Del Laine was the second woman elected and 22 years later her daughter Brooke joined this
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exclusive female club. The closest race was in 2014 when Austin Sass beat incumbent Angela Swanson by 29 votes. Incumbents are considered to have an advantage in elections but in 2018, that premise was debunked when all three incumbents running for re-election (Tom Davis, Wendy David and Austin Sass) were rejected after four years of VHR mismanagement and chaos that led to the passage of Measure T. The voters instead took a new, younger direction with Devin Middlebrook 29, Cody Bass 37, and Tamara Wallace 48. This group started asking questions and challenging the status quo. Under their watch, the controversial Snowglobe was discontinued and later, with John Friedrich’s “no” vote, the Loop Road Project was stopped from destroying a working-class neighborhood. Hal Cole has the distinction of serving the longest on city council at 20 years (19942006 and 2008-2016). This year’s 13 candidates for council are the fourth highest in our city’s history that has averaged eight candidates over the 30 election cycles since 1965. As individuals,
most of our elected representatives have done a reasonable job, but there have been some major blunders like the hole-in-the-ground that stands as a testament to what can happen when leadership is replaced by expedience. Over the years, we have also seen what can happen when the five elected members cannot get along. The bickering, grandstanding and adolescent behavior is embarrassing and has diverted attention from the important work of the council. Some of our elected council members have turned out to be bad actors — a cocaine money-laundering felon, an embezzlement thief, a shoplifter, and those with alcohol issues. Council members sometimes forget whom they work for. The current council (knowing that the voters removed VHRs in residential neighborhoods and knowing that a judicial appeal is in the courts) approved the permitting of 900 VHRs in neighborhoods with no buffer. These people (David Jinkens, Keith Roberts and current candidate Heather Horgan) have acted in bad faith against the will of the voters.
It is certain that we will continue to elect people who seek to exploit Tahoe with more tourism, more businesses and overdevelopment, but thankfully, we will also continue to elect those who work to preserve Tahoe’s environment, the local community, and our neighborhoods. Right now, we need a fresh start with three new representatives on the council. GLI-FUH-SAYT A few months ago, most of us were not aware of glyphosate and some people are still having trouble pronouncing it. Its proposed use for post-Caldor Fire forest management has become a flash point. We are told to trust the science, but when the “science” is underwritten by chemical companies like Monsanto, it is no longer science. I’m from a generation that was told cigarettes pose no health risks and daily use of alcohol is beneficial. And what was the science behind Agent Orange? The TRPA has been put on notice by basin residents who want this poison banned, but the TRPA, known for disregarding the public, will likely keep playing their version of dodge ball. Spare us the deception TRPA. We see you. To be continued….
“July’s TMN article ‘STPUD increasing its water supply’ begs so many questions about the PCE plume.” — Need a refresher
In 1989, PCE or perchloroethylene was found in drinking water wells near the intersection of highways 50 and 89 in South Lake Tahoe. Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board is the state agency authorized to oversee cleanup, yet after nearly three decades, the plume remains and continues to inch closer to Lake Tahoe. According to a 2022 report prepared by AECOM for Lahontan using data from 2019-20, so more than seven years ago, the PCE plume was about 2,000 feet from Lake Tahoe. It extended north about 8,000 feet from the Y toward Tahoe Keys, reaching depths of more than 300 feet. PCE has reached the lagoons in the Keys that feed into the lake, but the chemical has not been detected in the lake itself. “The PCE groundwater plume is at least as far as Tahoe Keys well No. 1. Newly installed Tahoe Keys well No. 4, located to north/northeast of Tahoe Keys No. 1 and closer to Lake Tahoe, did not report detectable PCE concentrations during initial startup activities,” said Nick Cahill, spokesperson for California Water Boards, of which Lahontan is one of the regional offices. PCE is a man-made chemical used from the early 1960s through the mid1980s as a dry-cleaning solvent and metal degreaser. PCE has been responsible for the decommissioning of wells in the South Tahoe Public Utility District, Lukins Brothers Water Company (LBWC) and Tahoe Keys Water Company (TKWC). Years ago, Lahontan said someone would have to be regularly drinking PCE contaminated water for 70 years for there to be a health risk. The Lahontan board has issued cleanup and abatement orders (CAO) through the years, with another one expected to be on the November agenda because the state agency claims confidential settlement talks have reached a stalemate. Seven Springs Limited Partnership, Fox Capital Management Corporation, Bobby Page Inc. and Connolly Development Inc. are who Lahontan is holding responsible for their involvement with Lake Tahoe Laundry Works (LTLW) at the Raley’s shopping center at the Y. They are known as the dischargers because the PCE came from LTLW. A 23-page letter to Lahontan
dated August 3 from Denver-based law firm Hogan Lovells Cadwalader, which represents Fox Capital, states:
establish an offsite remedial action plan. Tahoe Keys Property Owners Association, which owns TKWC, also does not support Lahontan’s latest proposal. “While Item 34 states that a stalemate in negotiations occurred, the narrative does not accurately describe the progress that has been made and the current status of the settlement process,” TKPOA General Manager Hallie Kirkingburg wrote to Lahontan. “Specifically, both water suppliers, TKWC and LBWC, have agreed to terms of a settlement with LTLW that would involve the payment of significant funds to both water suppliers to address lost capacity and/or future PCE treatment costs. “Furthermore, it is our understanding Graphic AECOM that LTLW has recently Testing done in 2019-20, the latest data available, shows taken steps, including the toxic PCE plume near the Y, with blue representing the retaining a new technical least concentrated areas, red the most, and green and consultant, to prepare orange in between. documents such as an offsite remedial action plan (RAP) that meets Lahontan Water “Collectively, Fox’s efforts have brought this matter closer to resolution than it ever Board requirements. In addition, it is our has over the course of the last 23 years. understanding that an onsite RAP has The implication that Fox has been sitting already been submitted by LTLW and on its hands or merely assigning blame accepted by Lahontan Water Board staff.” Paul Hughes, general manager of to others during the settlement process is South Tahoe PUD, wrote to Lahontan inaccurate and unfair.” saying its new plan was sound and should The lawyers want Lahontan to withdraw the proposed CAO or remove be adopted by its board. Fox from it. Attorneys for Seven Springs in their 11-page letter to Lahontan echoed the belief a resolution was on the horizon. Seven Springs contends the latest Lahontan proposal: • Violates a court order by requiring Seven Springs to clean up PCE that did not originate from the laundry site. • Fails to establish that remediation to background levels is technologically and economically feasible. • Mischaracterizes Seven Springs’ work to address onsite conditions, and good faith efforts with Lahontan to
“Wellhead treatment is not an adequate substitute for restoration of the aquifer, Hughes wrote. “While treatment can address water quality concerns, treatment facilities require significant capital investment, ongoing operation and maintenance, long-term monitoring, and eventual replacement. … Continued reliance on treatment or alternative supplies does not restore the lost beneficial use of the groundwater source.” Lahontan’s proposed CAO would require the above-named dischargers to: • Develop and submit a conceptual site model. • Prepare and submit a sampling and analysis plan, and quality assurance project plan. • Develop, submit and implement site investigation work plan. • Develop, submit and implement a monitoring well installation work plan. • Develop, submit and implement a vapor intrusion investigation work plan. • Prepare and submit a Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessment. • Conduct remedial action. • Prepare and submit a public participation plan. • Conduct monitoring. “These actions are needed to protect human health and the environment, and existing and potential beneficial uses, including the restoration of the drinking water aquifer for human consumption,” Lahontan says on its website.
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Email: mountainnews2@gmail.com Mail: P.O. Box 8974, South Lake Tahoe, CA 95618.
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Wallace facing possible federal charges
A baker’s dozen for city council
Aimi Xistra
Gantt Miller
Douglas Williams
Grant McCracken
A whopping 13 candidates are running for three seats on the South Lake Tahoe City Council in the November election. Many have more than one designation and the field includes two incumbents (Heather Horgan and Scott Robbins), two attorneys (Erika Gonzalez and Kelly O’Haire), a former councilmember (John Friedrich), a nurse (Horgan), a non-profit development officer (Aimi Xistra), a mixed martial arts coach (Nick Piliae), an architectural windows professional (Gantt Miller), a mortgage broker (Douglas Williams), a former police officer (O’Haire), a social
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Scott Robbins
Heather Horgan
worker/business owner (Dina Ramaha), a cybersecurity founder/executive(Grant McCracken), a development executive for an electric vehicle charging company (Friedrich) and a market research and data analytics executive (Dyna Boen). Most wear many other hats as well. The candidates’ reasons for running are varied and include: making sure residents are not an afterthought and pushing back against real estate and casino/resort lobbyists (Scott Robbins); prioritizing roads, wildfire preparedness, local business and practical housing opportunities (Douglas Williams);
Dina Ramaha
Erika Gonzalez
Nick Piliae
John Friedrich
providing a perspective as a mother and consumer of city services and continuing work on the council and provide a return on my investment of time (Heather Horgan); providing better streets, housing and prioritizing locals over tourists (Gantt Miller); providing the benefits of living in Tahoe to people who came here for work, not just to play (Erika Gonzalez); serving the city as a representative of those who live and work here full time (Nick Piliae); asking the right questions, and staying guided by the goal of creating a better city for my daughter, my family, and my neighbors (Grant McCracken); building on my previous accomplishments and bringing to life the great ideas and potential of the community (John Friedrich); bringing leadership that reflects the diverse, hard working and passionate nature of people who live here (Dina Ramaha); knowing how important good government can be and how frustrating government can become when it stops working well for the people it is supposed to serve (Kelly O’Haire); being a voice for local businesses, workforce and youth while respecting our environment and prioritizing community services (Aimi Xistra); restoring trust, which is the foundation for every challenge we face
Kelly O'Haire
Dyna Boen
from housing and infrastructure to public safety and economic vitality (Dyna Boen). Veronica Morales did not respond to the Mountain News by deadline. The statements above are only snippets of each response. With the large number of candidates, the Mountain News does not have the space to reprint each answer in full. Readers can, however, read the full candidate statements on our website --- www.tahoemountainnews. net – and read all the very thorough and thoughtful answers to questions about affordable housing, wildfire, working constructively with others and who each candidate believes should play them on Saturday Night Live! Each candidate was also asked about potential skeletons in their closet from criminal history to fraud and their online footprint. Only Williams answered in the affirmative, disclosing a DUI in the 80s, a video on mortgage lending that could be misconstrued and a confrontation on the street that was filmed several years ago, adding the following comment. “I believe in being honest and accountable. If questions arise about (these) incidents, I am prepared to explain what happened, acknowledge what I could have done better, and answer them directly.”
A federal investigation into former South Lake Tahoe Mayor Tamara Wallace has concluded and the case has been forwarded to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Sacramento for consideration, according to the Sacramento FBI office. As of Sept. 14, the U.S. Attorney’s Office had yet to file charges against Wallace. The original investigation was opened by the El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office, with the FBI joining the investigation a few months later. A year ago, Wallace admitted to embezzling from Lake Tahoe Community Presbyterian Church where she worked as an administrator/bookkeeper. Now, with the feds the presumptive lead investigatory body, Wallace is facing potential federal charges. According to a source, Wallace is in plea negotiations
Photo Courtesy city of South Lake Tahoe
Tamara Wallace
with the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Wallace, her attorney and church officials could not be reached for comment A longtime congregant told the Mountain News the church is “doing well” and membership is growing. He said the pastor led the congregation through a course on forgiveness and said the “congregation has pretty much dealt with it.” Church finances are reportedly in the black after a fundraising campaign, a partial insurance settlement and the departure of Wallace, which stemmed the illegitimate outflow of funds. The amount of money stolen by Wallace has not been disclosed, though estimates are well north of $300,000. “I don’t have any animosity and I hope God can redeem her and use her for his good,” the church member said.
Nevertheless, he said, it is important the “justice system does its job and she’s held accountable.” Wallace was previously held liable for stealing from another South Lake Tahoe employer, a fact that did not come to light until after her confession in this case. If that business had sought to hold her criminally responsible rather than just settling civilly, Wallace would not have been in a position to steal from the church, according to this member. The church has also put into place safeguards to prevent any future financial malfeasance. Said this member, “we were a little too trusting. But she was the mayor! We have to make sure this will never happen again.”
Former sheriff turns on protégé Former El Dorado County Sheriff John D’Agostini announced he will run in 2028 against his handpicked successor, current Sheriff Jeff Leikauf, after losing confidence in Leikauf’s leadership. In an August 15 post on the Facebook page Debating El Dorado County Local Politics, D’Agostini , who served from 2010 to 2022, apologized to the public for supporting Leikauf and lending his name to Leikauf’s campaign, going on to state, “ . . . after many conversations with employees of the Sheriff’s Office and community members . . . I can no longer stand by and watch the Office of Sheriff be degraded by a despotic leader, who only cares if you are contributing to him and his campaign, and is confrontational with staff while demanding loyalty. Loyalty is earned.” D’Agostini also wrote, “Public safety is not personal nor political. It is a basic human right. Our county is not safer today as you pay while our current Sheriff plays.” Reached by phone and asked for specific examples of despotism and payto-play committed by Leikauf, D’Agostini declined to elaborate. “There’s too many things under investigation and that will all come out.” D’Agostini would not say who was under investigation for what and who is doing the investigating. Leikauf did not return Mountain
Jeff Leikauf News phone calls requesting comment. In a column in Placerville’s Mountain Democrat, Leikauf said D’Agostini wanted special treatment and was upset he would have to undergo a standard background check after leaving office and later wanting to return to the sheriff’s office as a reserve deputy. “The standards we require of every person seeking the authority and responsibility of a peace officer must be applied consistently . . . . No individual is exempt from these requirements, and no one is entitled to wear the badge without meeting the same standards expected of everyone else. The people of El Dorado County deserve nothing less,” Leikauf wrote. He also cited what he said were lower
John D'Agostini
county crime statistics during his tenure than during D’Agostini’s time and noted D’Agostini installed his brother-in-law as undersheriff. D’Agostini declined to respond to Leikauf’s statement when asked, but said rank-and-file employees are unhappy. Deputy Brandon Ordelheide who heads up the Deputy Sheriff’s Association of El Dorado County, did not respond to a Mountain News email requesting comment. In the alternative, D’Agostini suggested Leikauf retire and he, himself, would seek appointment to the post by the Board of Supervisors.
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Longtime locals vie for Douglas County Commissioner Two 65-year-olds with ties to Lake Tahoe for 30-plus years are running for Douglas County Commission District 4, which covers Tahoe and part of the Carson Valley. Either Democrat Diane Imbach or Republican Scott Morgan will replace Wes Rice. Imbach is a numbers person, having spent 45 years in community banking. She went from loan secretary to chief operating officer. She chaired the Tahoe Douglas Sewer District and the Zephyr Heights General Improvement District boards and was Tahoe-Douglas Chamber of Commerce president. Morgan is a Douglas County insider, having been parks and rec director for two years starting in 1994, director of community services until 2023 and assistant county manager before retiring in 2025. Today he is executive director of Ron Wood Family Resource Center and owns a consulting business. Both believe Tahoe issues like potentially building a hospital in Stateline should be heard in Tahoe. Imbach is satisfied with the number of county employees working in the basin. Morgan believes the county should install a dedicated planner at the lake. Both have vacation home rentals in their neighborhoods and believe VHRs are here to stay. Imbach: “I believe our regulations should focus on the behavior causing the problem and hold those responsible accountable, rather than placing unnecessary restrictions on owners who follow the rules. Vacation rentals are part of Tahoe's economy, but our neighborhoods are also where people live, raise families and build community. Good policy and enforcement need to recognize and respect both.” Morgan: “(The) program should do a better job of covering the costs associated with permitting and compliance, while also helping mitigate the impacts
Diane Imbach VHRs can have on our community. That includes contributing appropriately to infrastructure and services such as roads, water, sewer, and public safety. I also believe the distribution and density of VHRs within individual neighborhoods needs to be examined more closely.” They would consider allowing VHRs in the valley but want residents’ input and more details. The basin generates the bulk of county revenues via tourism, while the valley has greater expenses because of the larger population. Both candidates want dollars allocated equitably, not necessarily equally. The two believe creating the Stateline event center was a good decision but aren’t in lockstep. “Douglas County made a substantial long-term public investment in this project, and when taxpayers are being asked to assume that level of financial commitment, I believe the private sector should also have meaningful financial participation and risk,” Imbach said. “If the financing structure could legally be changed, I would want to explore whether the businesses that benefit most directly from the event center could assume a greater share of that responsibility. “My focus now would be on
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Scott Morgan transparency, accountability and making sure we are getting a return on the taxpayers' investment. Going forward, when Douglas County considers major public-private projects, I would want the financial structure to fairly balance the benefits and the risks between taxpayers and the private entities that stand to benefit.” Morgan said, “I believe the Tahoe Blue Event Center has been a positive investment for Douglas County and the South Shore, particularly because its financing structure limited the county’s direct financial exposure. The Tahoe Douglas Visitors Authority issued the debt and is responsible for repayment. The financing is supported by visitor-generated revenues and tax increment from the redevelopment area. If legally permissible, I would look for opportunities to remove unnecessary restrictions and conditions that may limit the event center’s ability to succeed financially.” TRPA mandated the center provide public transit because there is no parking. Transportation is also an issue with residents living in the valley and working at the lake. “Within the basin, I support transportation alternatives that can reduce vehicle trips and congestion. Lake Link is one example. I support the concept behind it, but with Douglas County contributing significant taxpayer dollars, we need to know that it is working. I would want to see measurable results including ridership, cost per trip, reliability, and how well the service is meeting the needs of Douglas County residents as well as visitors,” Imbach said. She added, “… transportation needs to match the hours and realities of our workforce. We shouldn't measure success by how many transportation programs we fund. We should measure it by whether people are actually using them and whether they are reducing trips and congestion.”
Morgan says he has 30-plus years of experience in public transportation, including developing Carson Valley’s first public transit system. However, twice he referenced BlueGo, which dissolved in 2016. “I would build on the transit system we have today rather than start over. The Lake Link system is also an important part of the South Shore transportation network, with nearly half of its rides serving employees traveling to and from work. These services demonstrate that public transit is not simply a tourist benefit—it is an essential transportation resource for residents and the workforce,” Morgan said. “South Shore residents, employees, businesses, and visitors move between Douglas County, South Lake Tahoe and El Dorado County every day. My goal is straightforward: preserve and improve the transit services that are working, address the gaps that remain, and build a coordinated regional transportation system that serves residents, workers, businesses and visitors.” Stormwater is another concern. “We can't ask individual homeowners to solve problems that belong to the public system,” Imbach said. “At Tahoe, properly managing stormwater is critical to protecting the clarity and water quality of the lake. In the valley, it's about preventing flooding that can damage homes and businesses, close roads and interfere with emergency services. These are different problems, but both are county responsibilities. Before asking taxpayers for more, we need to be able to clearly show them what the money is for and what they are getting for it. If the long-term solution includes a new stormwater fee, I believe that decision should ultimately be made by the residents who will be paying it through a public vote.” Morgan said, “I am particularly cautious about asking Tahoe residents to pay another stormwater tax or fee when they already contribute significantly through GIDs, local associations, and substantial stormwater and environmental requirements imposed through TRPA and other regulatory agencies. Residents should not be charged twice for the same service. The county’s proposed stormwater utility has also raised legitimate concerns about cost, fairness, and how the program would benefit residents. Before imposing a new charge on Tahoe, the county should clearly demonstrate what problem the revenue will solve, who will benefit, how much residents will pay and what existing costs or programs would be offset.”
Douglas County ballot question would split the difference In July, the Board of Commissioners voted 4-0, with Commissioner Wesley Rice absent, to put the advisory question on the Nov. 3 ballot. It’s an advisory question because it is “advising” the commissioners what to do. If the nay vote prevails, the question could come back on a future ballot. If voters say yes to the split, commissioners could do nothing or they could create an ordinance that makes these two distinct offices. Amy Burgans, Douglas County clerk-treasurer, said talk of dividing the position has been in the works before she was first appointed to the job in December 2020. She worked with county staff with the support of commissioners to pursue the idea. The reason to do so in large part has Photo Provided to do with the nature of the work for both Amy Burgans is clerk-treasurer in Douglas positions becoming more complex and County. professional, which then makes it diffiDouglas County voters this fall will be asked if they want to separate the clerk-treasurer position into two elected offices.
cult to find one person who can do both jobs. Nevada statutes don’t allow counties with populations of more than 52,000 to split the clerk-treasurer positions. With Douglas County’s population at 49,488 in the 2020 Census, it’s believed the 2030 Census will put it over the threshold. The goal is to accomplish the split while the population numbers allow for it. Plus, the clerk-treasurer position is on the ballot this year, with Burgans running unopposed. Burgans said this gives the county four years to get the ordinance together, gather public input and take the time to thoughtfully split the offices without potentially incurring unnecessary costs if this were rushed. If the split takes place, it won’t cost taxpayers any more money. “Right now, I have the clerk, treasurer and elections offices under me,” Bur-
gans said. “I have an assistant treasurer right now who basically is the treasurer without the title. I do have the final say on everything. That position is not necessary if there is an elected treasurer. “Between myself, the county manager and CFO, we have done the numbers to make it budget neutral. It’s a reorganization and reallocation of existing resources within the department.” In election documents, voters will see pro and con arguments that were drafted by committees made up of county residents and no staff. To pass, the measure will need 50 percent of the voters, plus one vote. If it passes and commissioners choose to proceed the clerk and treasurer positions would appear on the 2030 ballot as separate elected jobs.
Mountain News 11
Respecting the different and other Publisher’s note: This is one in a series of stories written about immigrants living on the South Shore. Names are being withheld to protect the individual who wrote the story and their family. “From a long line of immigrants” sounds adventurous and fascinating. You hear the stories of your forefathers, full of excitement and descriptions of faraway places. Little do they share of their hardships, trials and tribulations, culture shocks, unknown foods and challenging weather. I am a direct descendant of Germans born in Mexico. I grew up with two younger siblings in the rain forest of southern Mexico. Long rainy seasons, humid bed sheets, snakes and scorpions were part of everyday life. It was not always an ideal place for young parents and their little girls. Storms that endangered
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crops and harvests were a recurring challenge. You wanted to visit neighbors, with mule rides through the thick greenery the answer. Yet a lot was done to keep up the German culture. We spoke the language at home so as not to forget where our roots were from. We spoke Spanish with neighbors and friends.
For me it was an exciting, exotic and adventurous lifestyle. Highlights were the German recipes: cakes, sauces and other specialties that we all learned to cook. Music and art were important to share. We were also always trying to prevent the jungle from taking over our whole existence. When the time came to go to a public school, a German school, we moved to the city. What a change! A lot of traffic, city noises, new people, new arrangements and making new friends at school. Now I felt like an outsider. A country girl with different clothing, slightly different Spanish, and many new acquaintances that weren't always easy to make. Somehow we started to appreciate the hustle and bustle of our new environment. It had been acquired in part through tears and patience. This time we learned to appreciate the fantastic Mexican cuisine that we all so loved. Mariachis, movie theaters, concert halls and obviously all the weddings and fiestas. Next, the English school: a new playground, and now English had to be learned. Also, kids from Scotland, Ireland and England
became the new friends. Another change. By now I had gotten a bit accustomed to the newness of my lifestyle. We even learned to translate from the old English to the modern one, which was truly difficult in the assignments our headmaster so enjoyed. Three years later I decided to go live in Switzerland, Zurich that is. Grandfather had proud memories, so I thought I had to find out for myself. Ay dios mio! Now another change of country, lifestyle, language. Here I was again, the newcomer, far away from home, living with a family I hardly knew, leaving behind sisters and parents. Yet the adventure called, and only later did I cry bitter tears, not wanting to admit this difficult adjustment. Food was so different, even coming from a German household; schedules were strictly adhered to; no fiesta, open stores, loud laughter. It was frowned on if I wanted to wash the car on Sundays or shower after 8 p.m. The Swiss dialect was so guttural and unpleasant to my ears, and people did not appreciate my German language. So, I decided to learn the dialect. Many months later, I felt a bit more integrated, but it was astonishing how being the same skin color and speaking a language that could be understood, I was still the outsider. On one hand, you are proud to be different and keep up with your heritage; on the other hand, you want to be part of the new place you intended to call home or be part of it for some time. In my vacations from working in the hotel, I traveled through Europe and the Middle East and enjoyed immensely the rich sights, cultures that were exotic, beautiful people and fantastic foods — always eager to learn, stay open-minded, and be tolerant of other religions, customs and traditions. My family always tried to inculcate that “different and other” should be respected as much as your own ideals and customs. I still have a shirt that a Greek girl and I exchanged on Corfu. Mine was a Mexican colorful embroidered one. We both liked the one the other one was wearing. Many years later I moved to
the USA with family and sisters to find a safer and more positive lifestyle. This change was good yet brought more adjustments. Snow that I still do not like that much; thinking of my jungle days, new friends again, other jobs, different climates. A new place. You speak the language, you have been around and abroad, yet again you are not from here and probably never really will be. Then again, being a gypsy of the world has its highlights; you enjoy the differences of people, other impressions, the diversity that enriches your life. I can say that in my different jobs in hotels/restaurants in the different countries, I was able to share, support and exchange a whole world of interesting ideas with the people I worked with. Teamwork, discussions about our differences, and appreciation for our own take on life. For a while I also lived in South America — Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Montevideo, Uruguay. Spanish was spoken, although differently, and even there, some words were used in different contexts that in part were amusing and at times frustrating. The open-air markets, vegetables and flowers, tango in the streets and fantastic Italian food were highlights of the day. Yet again, visiting, with no intentions to stay. It is very different to travel and stay of your own free will, having the means to live, versus being hunted, prosecuted, and insulted in an inhumane way for being from different places, cultures and religions. My experiences pale in comparison to what other people had and have to suffer and endure nowadays. We should not forget that people do not hate each other. It is governments that in their self-interest promote misunderstandings and distrust. Let us hope, though, that these circumstances might change in the long run, as the pendulum always swings both ways. I am deeply grateful for other humans who selflessly support and fight for the rights of others. My experiences are just the positive sides of being an immigrant. May it become like that for others as well.
Sounding the hearing alarm What sounds do you treasure that you wouldn’t want to lose? That is a question Marina Mulvey, audiologist with Barton Health, put forward recently during a talk about how to protect one’s hearing. “There are so many sounds that are so subtle and beautiful that we don't want to be disconnected from. I know some patients have told me they can’t hear the
Hearing protection is important for adults and children. Earplugs are her first choice of defense besides not getting into a situation where noise is an issue. Mulvey said plugs have an average noise reduction rating that will help determine how good they might be in preventing future problems. She suggests wearing high fidelity musician grade earplugs.
Photo Barton Health
Audiologist Marina Muvley stresses prevention to keep one’s hearing intact.
• Ringing, buzzing, roaring or muffled hearing that doesn't improve. • Difficulty understanding speech, especially in background noise. • Ear pain, drainage, itching, dizziness, or ongoing fullness from water/loud noise. • Hearing changes that do not improve after leaving a loud place. • Any sudden hearing change.
Mulvey stressed that noise-canceling headphones are not hearing protection. “They are just helping to filter out
bothersome noise to make it quieter to you,” she said. When it comes to using headphones set the volume so you can hear a conversation and so no one can hear what you are listening to, the doctor advised. And take a 10-minute break from the earbuds every hour to give your body a rest. People are showing up at Mulvey’s clinic with surfer’s ear or exostosis. This happens when the ear canal is repeatedly exposed to cold water—like Lake Tahoe, the ocean or any of the water bodies in this area. Bad cases involve growths closing off the ear canal, thus causing hearing loss. Protecting ears in water is the way to avoid this. “You just can’t get back what nature has given you when it gets damaged,” Mulvey said. “Hearing aids help, but they don’t return your hearing back to normal, natural hearing.”
Source: Marina Mulvey, audiologist cheeseburger birds anymore. Well, they’ve got a high frequency hearing loss and they can’t hear those little guys,” Mulvey said. “The soft lapping of water on the shore, a child whispering, rain falling on the leaves. These are the subtle, beautiful sounds we just don't want to be losing. We want to continue to enjoy them for our entire lives.” Awareness and preparation are keys to keeping one’s hearing intact. Controlling the decibel level and length of time one is exposed to the noise are critical. Concerts, fireworks, travel, water activities, yard work, snow blowing—they all can negatively affect hearing health. Mulvey pointed out how sounds above 85 decibels for an eight-hour period are detrimental. Fireworks peak at between 120 and 175 decibels. Concerts, she said, often range between 90 and 120 decibels. It’s sustained loud music at the beach, a restaurant—anywhere—not just large venues, that can be problematic.
“You can still get good sound quality and hear the people you are at the concert with,” Mulvey said. “Hearing protection is part of a safety plan just like sunscreen, helmets and seat belts.” Mulvey said it’s imperative people wear earplugs when using power tools, mowers, snowblowers, chain saws or riding motorcycles, ATVs and snowmobiles. Tinnitus or ringing in the ears can be exacerbated by combining cold temps with the noise of a snowblower, which is why taking a break during snow removal is a good idea. Foam earplugs are most common. The one-time-use plugs are also fairly cheap. A step up would be remolded or universal fit earplugs made of medical grade silicon that are reusable. Ear muffs surround the whole outer ear; something she suggests for power tools and other short-term exposure to loud sounds. Custom molded hearing protection is another option.
Mountain News 13
M OUNTAIN N EWS B USINESS
The Tahoe Fund sponsored a new mural at Cascade Kitchens.
A poll of 291 visitors taken at Heavenly Village over Labor Day weekend revealed 78 percent were from out of the area, 71 percent were overnight visitors with an average stay of 2.7 nights, 88 percent said events increased their likelihood of visiting Tahoe, 69 percent were between the ages of 25 and 54, 47 percent expected to spend $500 or more during their visit, excluding lodging, and 84 percent rated their visit to Heavenly Village as excellent. The Lake Tahoe Unified School District Measure U Bond newsletter can be accessed online at https://www.ltusd.org/ fmp-rfqs-bond-2024/community-newsletters/ltusd-measure-u-community-newsletter-august-2026. The South Tahoe High Homecoming parade will wend its way from Al Tahoe to the high school on September 25 starting at 4:30pm. This year’s theme is Under the Sea. El Dorado Beach, Lakeview Commons, El Dorado Beach boat ramp and Lakeview Commons/boat ramp parking lot will be closed at least through Oct. 15 as part of the El Dorado Beach Revetment and Improvement Project. Sept. 29 is the deadline to comment on proposed USFS recreation fee changes — including fees at some Tahoe beaches for the first time. More details here: https:// tinyurl.com/3kwhhupn. Twelve people are being sought by Eldorado National Forest and El Dorado County for the 15-member Resource Advisory Committee. The committee reviews and recommends land management projects, directing federal money to local projects on or near federal land. Members may also vote on recreation fee proposals affecting National Forest System lands. For more info, email michelle.wolfgang@usda.gov.
14 Mountain News
South Lake Tahoe Moose Lodge’s 22nd annual Kids Fishing Day is Sept. 19, 8 a.m.-2 p.m. at Tahoe Paradise Park. Must be younger than 16 to participate. Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Joseph Cannata of San Francisco as California’s rep on the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Governing Board, and reappointed Vince Hoenigman, who is the VP of the board. The 13th annual Dancing with the Tahoe Stars is Oct. 10 at Bally's Lake Tahoe. CASA El Dorado County’s third annual Family Fun Day is Sept. 26, noon–4 p.m. at The Hangar in SLT. Bijou Community Park is where Sample the Sierra takes place Sept. 19, 1-4 p.m. Paul Hughes turned in his keys at South Tahoe Public Utility District on Sept. 1. For the last three years he was the GM, having been CFO the prior 15 years. Former South Lake Tahoe resident Thomas Emil Eide, who owned CB Surety, pleaded guilty to bank fraud conspiracy. He used fake companies to defraud banks and harm consumers. The feds are seeking additional victims. For more info, go online: https://shorturl.at/6Fdkq. Camp Rich is the site of the annual family-friendly free Oktoberfest on Oct. 3-4, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Alpine County Undersheriff Taylor Green takes over as sheriff-coroner on Nov. 1 with the retirement of Sheriff Tom Minder coming that same day. The position will be on the 2028 ballot. During the annual Keep Sierra Clean Day on Oct. 11 from 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m. the Sugar Pine Foundation will be planting 1,000 native conifer seedlings. The American Century Champi-
Photo Provided
onship in July set an attendance record of 86,038 spectators. Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority will be awarding $82,000 in grants to area nonprofits as a result of the event. Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber of Commerce is hosting a meet and greet for voters to mingle with South Lake Tahoe City Council candidates on Sept. 30, 5:307 p.m. at Margaritaville. Free parking for attendees. The South Lake Tahoe Parks and Recreation Commission has a vacancy for a term that expires in February 2028. The council plans to appoint someone Sept. 22. For info, contact Michelle Davis at Medavis@cityofslt.gov or (530) 542-6004. The Nevada Division of State Parks is limiting access to parts of the Nevada side of Van Sickle Bi-State Park during construction of park improvement projects. The California side will remain open throughout the closure, which will likely continue through fall 2027. Gaialicious will be celebrating its 20th anniversary September 25 and September 26. DJ, refreshments, ribbon cutting and more. Lake Tahoe Community College’s CONNECTEd will be offering two 10-week acting classes for elementary and middle school students this fall. For more info or to register, visit ltccconnect.com. Four restaurants from around Lake Tahoe, including the South Shore’s Riva Grill, raised over $400,000 for the Tahoe Fund, through voluntary donations added to diners’ bills. The Tahoe Community Emergency Response Team will be holding a free training for volunteers October 20, October 22 and October 24. Must attend all three days. To apply & get more information, Contact
CERT at tahoecertinfo@gmail.com On Saturday, October 10, the Lake Tahoe Historical Society will host a celebration of the newly-restored 167-year-old Osgood Toll House, the oldest commercial building in the basin, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Tahoe Fund financed artist Anne-Sophie Gaudet’s mural “A Tahoe Day” on the wall of Cascade Kitchens. Gaudet said she tried to capture Tahoe’s outdoor identity and the important conservation work needed to keep it special. A year-long campaign to donate $1 from every garlic chips order sold by Base Camp Pizza netted $13,000 for the Boys and Girls Club of Lake Tahoe. South Tahoe High School and South Tahoe Middle School students who trained with the non-profit Hands4Hope over the summer will be leading school-based clubs and charitable efforts in the coming school year. In light of a study concluding teens wish they could connect in person more, the Boys and Girls Club of Lake Tahoe is offering several hands-on clubs this fall, including cooking, BMX, soccer and much more. View the catalog at https://bgclt.org/ wp-content/uploads/2026/07/2026-After-School-Catalog-1.pdf. Two weeks after winning his class at the NGA Tahoe International/Pro-Am tournament, local competitive bodybuilder William Aragon won the Novice Men’s Physique Class A at the Bally’s 2026 Tahoe Show. The California Tahoe Conservancy awarded $2.2 million to the city of South Lake Tahoe to improve forest health and reduce wildfire hazards over more than 200 acres.
Mountain News 15
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USFS pay to play scheme ruins Tahoe vibe I don’t know if it slipped under your radar, and I’m going to credit Paula Peterson (SouthTahoeNow) for tipping us off to this on Aug. 1, but it’s worth talking about the shenanigans the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit is up to with some new fees on the horizon. Somehow, all the money from the massive logging operations over the past several years has not been enough; the LTBMU seemingly needs to squeeze more out of locals and tourists alike by charging for parking at places historically accessed for free. Slated for later this fall, these fee changes are mostly for parking areas but will also involve increases for Desolation Wilderness permits and — quite inexplicably — the
16 Mountain News
Taylor Creek Visitor Center. This one baffles me on a few levels. First off, what says “Welcome to Tahoe” better than charging a fee just to stop in for information? The TC Visitor Center is there to provide exactly the kind of education and information we want visitors to have so they don’t wreck the ecosystem they’re visiting. Deterring people from using the Visitor Center (with a fee) is a smart move? Isn’t this just going to cut down on visits to the Visitor Center? Think about it: when you’re the tourist, you sometimes pop into these places to see if they have a map, ask some questions, whatever. But if you’re met with a $10 fee just to do that, you’re gonna do what Anne and I would do (be honest), and
you’re gonna say, “Naw, we got it,” and go about your explorations. Maybe the point of this one is to cut down on the bear-selfie quests at Taylor Creek, which . . . ok — I get that, but the Visitor Center? I’m so confused. Admittedly, that one doesn’t affect me personally, but I still find it incomprehensible (I’m trying not to use words like “stupid”). Let’s turn to the ones that bother me personally, starting with the Echo Lake parking up above the chalet — you know, the free lot. They want to institute a $10 day fee. It’s not yet clear if that’s per day if you’re going backcountry or if your backcountry permit would give you a parking waiver, or maybe just a flat $10 for the duration. Then there’s Big Meadow Trailhead — same fee but jumping to $15 in a few years. Then the one I consider fighting words: Kiva Beach. This is a special place for locals —one that folks use because they can take their dogs and because they don’t have to spend $120 to go there. Some of us use it just to go down for a quick swim after work or whatever. Sometimes we’re in and out under 15 minutes after a refreshing mental health session with Dr. Lake. Nope — can’t have freeloaders around here no more: $10, jumping to $15 in short order as well. It’s also not clear who will operate the fee stations at these various locations. Currently, fees at many local beaches are collected by a concessionaire, California Land Management — a private, for-profit corporation. I can’t imagine them operating the Visitor Center, but I can see it happening at Kiva and elsewhere. So, the plan seems to be to monetize any and all access to the good stuff — and in the process to even further change the spirit of the Tahoe community. It occurs to me — aren’t all these fees just going to encourage folks to park on the roads in the dirt instead — you know, the places TRPA tells us not to park? Some other sites to be monetized: Luther Pass campground and Eagle Falls picnic area and trailhead. Check out the LTBMU press release of July 31 for the whole list. The USFS claims the revenue would help them “improve infrastructure and public services” at these sites and “help provide quality recreation opportunities that meet the modern expectations of visitors and
create sustainable recreation program for future generations.” I get it: everyone is required to use the word “sustainable” these days. It’s like a religion. But does this sound authentic and credible to you? If anything, these fees are going to restrict “opportunities,” which is kind of the opposite of “providing” them. Oh, and did I say — Christmas tree per-
The South Lake Tahoe Optimist Club would like to thank everyone who participated in another successful DAY IN PARADISE DUCK RACE that was held Saturday July18th. We had 13 Business Duck heats this year and would like to thank the following businesses: Alberto Chavez Plumbing, AleWorx, Aligned Chiropractic, Alpine Carpet One. Alpine Metals. Angora Realty - Kim Williams, Azul Electric Supply, Azul-Latin Kitchen, Bare Roots Coffee, Barton Health, Base Camp Pizza, Bert’s Care, BFD/KEY Architecture, Bluebird Plumbing, Boys & Girls Club, Bruschetta’s, California Burger, Caro Construction, CCC, CHP Rith Loehr, Cul de Sac Holdings, Diamond Woodcraft, Dalton, David / Johnson / Larson, David Borges Chiropractic, Divided Sky, DL Masonry, DMF Properties, Earth & Stone, Eliot Building Company, Emerald Bay Grill, Fire and Ice, GB Drywall, Grocery Outlet, Haen Constructors, HandySmith, Hatch Electric, Herback General Engineering, Hetherton Insurance, High Octane Training, Jim Bagan Toyota, KD Builders, Kemper Masonry, Ken’s Tires, Kunibe / Braun, Lake Tahoe Architect, Lakeside Beach Patio, Lakeside Park Assoc, Langenfeld Hardware, LP Insurance, Lukins Water, Mark Klover CPA, MB Construction, McLean Accountancy, Meyers Family Dentist, Monarch Architecture, Mountain Valley Floors, Noel Coffee, Off the Hook, O’Reilly Auto, Pacific Built, Paradise Woodwork, Port O’ Sub, Pro Leisure, Radach Construction, Relia Pro Painting, Remax Gold, Reno Paint Mart, Ron Fuller Construction, SD Stone, Shane Brown Electric, Sierra-at-Tahoe, Sierra Ready Mix, Sierra Smiles, Sierra Valley Electric, Ski Bum, Sonney BBQ, South Shore Boats, South Side Auto, South Tahoe Refuse, Struve Automotive, Tahoe Blueprinting, Tahoe Carson Valley Medical, Tahoe Dentist, Tahoe Fence, Tahoe Gear Exchange, Tahoe Pool, Tahoe Tastings, The Woods, Trans Sierra Investments, TW Construction, V&C Construction, Warren Reed Insurance, Wendy & Ernie Perez, Western NV Supply, White Rock Construction, Whiting Turner, Zen Builders, Z-Tec.
In addition to the Duck Race, we also had an extremely popular and hugely successful silent action. We would like to thank the following businesses / people who made that possible: Alpine Smith, Anderson Bike Rentals, Art’s Transmission, Bare Root Coffee, Bejac Corp, Bliss Salon, Blue Wave Cruises, Brushetta Italian Restaurant, Camp Richardson Corral, Casey’s Restaurant, Clearly Tahoe, Club 100, Cool Beans Creamery, Earthwise Pet, Elements, Eloise Automotive, Fire and Ice, Five Star Automotive, Freel Perk, Frescana, GaiaLicious, Getaway Café, Goodfella’s Pizza, Heavenly Lake Tahoe, Holiday Market, Jim Bagan Toyota, Ken’s Tires, Lake Tahoe Golf Course, Lakeshore Lodge, Lakeside Beach Patio and Grill, Lakeside Termite & Pest, MacDuff ’s , Magic Carpet, Marcus Ashley Gallery, Margaritas Mexican Restaurant, McP’s Taphouse Grill, Meeks - In Town, Meeks - Meyers, Napa Auto, Noel’s Coffee & Apothecary, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Pet Station, Premium Disc Golf Supply, Primo’s Italian Bistro, Riva Grill, Sierra Alternators & Starters, Sierra Nevada Backflow, Ski Bum, Ski Run Boat Company, South Lake E-Bikes, South Lake Brewing, South of North Brewing, South Side Auto Body, South Tahoe Refuse, SUP Tahoe Cycle Café, Tahoe Basin Container, Tahoe Blue Vodka, Tahoe Bros Burgers, Tahoe Paradise Golf Course, Tahoe Sports Fishing, Tahoe Tasting, Trader Joes, Trapped in Tahoe, Wyland Gallery, Yugen Sushi Cuisine.
HUGE shout out to Luca Genasci, and Lake Tahoe AleworXs for donating the adult beverages this year. mits would double . . . so . . . Merry Christmas? The LTBMU invites you to comment on the proposed fee changes by Sep. 29, 2026. Send comments to LTBMU, Attention: Recreation Program Manager, 35 College Drive, South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150 or by email at SM.FS.R5.LTBMU.FeeProposal@usda.gov. Comments can also be provided online at https://arcg.is/iXXmz.
We would also like to give a shout out to the following businesses who made this year’s event a great success. CA Conservation Corp, South Tahoe refuse, Tahoe Paradise Park, Junior Optimist Club, Frank Jones Mobil Repair and Tahoe Computer Solutions. And of course, all the members of the SOUTH LAKE TAHOE OPTIMIST CLUB and all the non-member volunteers! Thank you everyone for making this another successful fundraising event and hope to see you next year.
Finally . . . game time: Email your guess for the trail featured in the picture above to mikesmutterings@gmail.com. BTW -- last month’s pic of the stone staircase was from the PCT section between Echo and Meiss Meadow.
Mountain News 17
M OUNTAIN N EWS C OVER S TORY
M OUNTAIN N EWS C OVER S TORY
Tahoe musician Darin Talbot is Jimmy Buffett “I’m not an impersonator. That cheapens it. I’m the premier performative embodiment of Jimmy Buffett. I tell
Talbot as Buffett circa 1977, with shaggy hair and a mustache, wearing Buffett’s signature white blazer, wielding a custom
Belafonte and Jim Croce. Durning the second half of the show, Talbot embodies an older, clean-
18 Mountain News
guitar emblazoned with tropical fish and sipping from a gigantic margarita. He is barefoot, as Buffett often performed without shoes. He starts with the story of his dream, then slips into the Buffett persona. The show is more than just a musical performance of Buffett hits. Each song is preceded by a story of how it came to be and its significance in Buffett’s evolution as a performer and cultural phenomenon. “It’s almost like a Chataqua thing,” said Talbot, who grew up listening to renowned storyteller Paul Harvey on the radio. “It’s very special storytelling.” There’s “Tin Cup Chalice,” written in the early 1960s shortly after Buffett arrived in Key West, a location that will define his music and his life. There’s “He Went to Paris” about a Spanish Civil War veteran Buffett met and “Jamaica Mistaica” about the time Jamaican authorities mistook Buffett and Bono for drug smugglers. Talbot sings a few songs by artists whose music influenced or intersected with Buffett, such as Harry
shaven Buffett. He tells the story of Buffett’s biggest hit, “Margaritaville,”
Continued from page 18
including its lost verse and performs the iconic piece with his own special phrasing. Talbot concludes the show
with an original song he wrote following Buffett’s death, “Lullaby, Jimmy.” After the show, fans crowd around Talbot to offer compliments and share their own particular Jimmy Buffett anecdotes. Becoming Buffett starts off mellow and relaxed and the momentum and energy build until the audience is fully involved. Al Tahoe second-homeowner Mark Santos, sporting a Bob Marley t-shirt, sits in the front row and enthusiastically interacts with the music and stories. “I’m a big Jimmy Buffett fan for sure. I love the fact that (Talbot) is storytelling along with the songs. It was a great show. Well worth it,” Santos said. Lower Kingsbury resident Michael Sloane who found out about the show through an online group for Jimmy Buffett fans, said “I learned a little bit” about Buffett. “He’s playing some songs not a lot of people know. It’s fun listening to fun music.” At one point, Buffett invites a random audience member, Robin Hawkey, up onstage and after gathering pieces of information about her — gluten free, liberally uses her bike horn, possible jail time at one point — composes an on-
the-spot ditty in Jimmy Buffett style. “He is so talented. The stuff he came up with on the spur of the moment was crazy
good,” said Hawkey afterward. Talbot performs his Becoming Buffett act around 12 to 15 times per
Photo Heaather Gould
year, at Margaritaville properties, aboard a Margaritaville cruise and at other venues, including private shows. Talbot also continues to perform his own original music at shows both in Tahoe and Costa Rica, where he now lives half the year. Talbot is also expanding his horizons beyond music, becoming more than just Buffett. He has written a book titled Cool Box, designed to help children strengthen and develop their unique personality, and plans to offer private coaching to guide kids in becoming their best selves and connecting with others to achieve success. “It’s my passion project. There’s what you know, but then there’s who you are. I don’t have the big degree from the fancy school. Most of my success is through my personality.” Joaquin Fioresi, who books the Becoming Buffett act, said Talbot doesn’t do a lot of preparation before shows. “He can just turn it on. Ten minutes before the show, he’s still just Darin, then he comes out and crushes it,” as Buffett. Said Talbot, “Becoming Buffett is like putting on an old shoe. It’s extraordinarily comfortable. Sometimes I feel like Jimmy just leapt into me.”
Fans greet Darin Talbot after his recent Becoming Buffett show.
Photo Povided
Darin Talbot performs as Jimmy Buffett at venues around the country and a few international locales, too.
the story of how Jimmy Buffett became Jimmy Buffett as Jimmy Buffett.” Tahoe-based musician Darin Talbot is describing his Jimmy Buffett tribute act, which he brought to Margaritaville this past September 4, Jimmy Buffett Day. A quarter-century ago, the Mountain News dubbed Talbot “Tahoe’s Jimmy Buffet” (yes, we forget the extra “t” in Buffett’s name,) following the release of Talbot’s album, Tahoe Backcountry, due to his carefree, laid-back style. But it wasn’t until Buffett died in 2023 and Talbot had a vivid dream in which Buffett handed him a margarita, saying, “now it’s your turn,” that an off-the-cuff headline became a reality. Following his dream, literally, Talbot set about learning everything he could about Buffett. “I read all of his books. I went online and studied and looked at his inflection, how he talks, how he sings.” At the end of 2023, he launched the act Becoming Buffett. The intimate show in the Margaritaville ballroom opened with
BUFFETT
BUFFETT
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Darin Talbot and fans pose with a Jimmy Buffett cutout.
Photo Provided
Mountain News 19
WILL WE BE READY
FOR THE NEXT WILDFIRE? 2021 — CALDOR FIRE
2007 — ANGORA FIRE
CROSSED ECHO SUMMIT
3,100 ACRES BURNED
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE EVACUATED
254 HOMES DESTROYED
The Caldor Fire crossed Echo Summit into the Lake Tahoe Basin and resulted in mandatory evacuation orders across our region.
The Angora Fire demonstrated how quickly wildfire can threaten neighborhoods and force residents to evacuate.
The question isn’t whether the Tahoe Basin will face another major wildfire. It’s whether we’ll be prepared when it happens.
Vote Yes on S. Prepare Before the Next Disaster Strikes REDUCE WILDFIRE RISK Voting Yes on S supports hazardous vegetation removal, fuels reduction, and other efforts to reduce wildfire risk before fires start.
STRENGTHEN EMERGENCY ALERTS & COMMUNICATIONS Voting Yes on S supports reliable warning and emergency communications when residents need timely information.
PROTECT EVACUATION ROUTES Voting Yes on S strengthens preparedness so residents can evacuate more safely when wildfire threatens communities.
KEEP FIREFIGHTERS READY Voting Yes on S provides firefighters and emergency responders with resources needed to respond rapidly when wildfire or disaster strikes.
“We’ve seen how quickly wildfire can threaten the Tahoe Basin. The time to reduce risk and prepare is before the next fire starts.” John Pang — Retired Fire Chief, Meeks Bay Fire Protection District; Founding Chair, Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team
ElDoradoReady.org
/ElDoradoReady
911
YES on
S
SAFE, STRONG EL DORADO
@ElDoradoReady
Ad paid for by Yes on S: El Dorado Ready, sponsored by Marshall Medical Center. Ad Committee’s Top Funder: Marshall Medical Center
GROUND ZERO
Continued on page 19
20 Mountain News
Judge rules in favor of Goldberg At a hearing on August 21, El Dorado County Superior Court Judge Michael J. McLaughlin granted pre-trial diversion to Karen Eve Goldberg, the defendant in the June 2025 death of 13-year-old Giada Lancellotti. Goldberg was charged with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter after the car she was driving struck Giada at the corner of Lake Tahoe Blvd. and Sawmill
alcohol or otherwise impaired, she was not on her phone and was not engaged in any other potentially distracting activity. In his motion requesting pre-trial diversion, Dale Gomes, Goldberg’s attorney, presented potential mitigating factors and also argued for a lack of guilt under the law. Gomes cited obstructed sightlines at the intersection, broken pedestrian crossing lights, which could have warned Goldberg as she approached the intersection, the lack of a crossing guard even though numerous children were attending the Optimist fishing derby being held at Sawmill Pond that day, and the swift acceleration of the e-bike Giada was riding into the path of Goldberg’s car. In his motion, Gomes stated, “(I)t is estimated that about 3 seconds elapsed from when the E-bike first entered the crosswalk until Photo Heather Gould the point of impact. Kelly Lancellotti and supporters after a court hearing in her It is established that daughter's death. the average human Road as the youngster was crossing on perception-reaction time is 1.5 to 2 seconds. her e-bike in the crosswalk there. Pre-trial Thus, even if Mrs. Goldberg had perceived diversion is available at the discretion of the E-Bike’s movement exactly when it a judge for some low-level offenses and entered the crosswalk, Mrs. Goldberg would is focused on rehabilitation rather than only have had less than three seconds to punishment. perceive and react in time to avoid a collision An overflow crowd of approximately . . . It was virtually impossible for her to 80 people attended the hearing. Supporters react in time to avoid this collision.” Gomes of the Lancellotti family wore pink Live Like also argued that Goldberg, not Giada, had Giada sweatshirts and t-shirts. Supporters of the right of way under the law and said his Karen Goldberg pinned white ribbons to client had a good chance of prevailing if the their clothing. case went to trial. To avoid the prospect of In making his decision, McLaughlin a painful and anguishing court fight for all said the pre-trial diversion conditions he parties, Goldberg was willing to accede to imposed were the equivalent of the sentence pre-trial diversion, he wrote. he would have meted out had Goldberg In the motion opposing pre-trial gone to trial and been convicted. Goldberg diversion, prosecutor Yvan Flores wrote, has one year to complete 150 hours of “this case involved the death of a minor child community service, attend a traffic safety as a direct result of Defendant’s negligence. course designed to address aggressive and The severity of that outcome strongly distracted driving behaviors, pay restitution weighs against diversion.” According to to the Lancellotti family — the exact amount Flores’s filing, an analysis of Goldberg’s to be determined at a hearing in November engine revealed no braking or slowing in — and continue the counseling and therapy the last five seconds before the incident and Goldberg has been attending since two days determined that she pressed the accelerator after the incident. She must also obey all to the floor in the last half-second before laws. If Goldberg successfully meets these impact. Flores also noted that a CHP officer conditions in the specified time frame, the later determined that Goldberg was likely charge against her will be dropped and she not blinded by the sun. will not face trial and possible conviction. Flores wrote that the obstructed According to the evidence presented sightline argument made by Gomes was in court, Goldberg was driving 53 mph in belied by the fact that another motorist a 45-mph zone when the incident occurred. traveling in the same direction seconds ahead She was not under the influence of drugs or of Goldberg saw Giada waiting to cross and
stopped, but Giada waved that motorist where the incident happened, even if she has through. “This evidence demonstrates to go miles out of her way, Kelly said, while that Victim was visible and present at the she, herself, goes to the intersection and crosswalk before the defendant arrived and tries to imagine what Giada saw in her last that (victim) did not come out of nowhere. moments. “Giada completed our family . . . Had Defendant exercised reasonable care It’s hard to be together as a family with one and maintained proper vigilance, she would person missing.” She said Goldberg’s “grief have had the opportunity to observe Victim and therapy” are not adequate consequences and react accordingly,” Flores wrote. and asked McLaughlin not to grant pre-trial Gomes argued this piece of evidence diversion. proves the opposite. “According to the (prior In rendering his ruling, McLaughlin motorist) it was just a few seconds later . . . said while he was highly sympathetic to the (she) heard the impact.’ Thus, according to Lancellotti family, the law states he cannot the (prior motorist’s) account, Ms. Lancellotti deny pre-trial diversion based solely on must have accelerated rapidly from the . . . roadway edge into the oncoming path of the wishes of the victim’s family but must Mrs. Goldberg’s vehicle. This must be the consider the “totality of the circumstances.” case as the electric bicycle had to travel from He said he was persuaded by Goldberg’s a stopped position, across the opposing lane of traffic and into Mrs. Goldberg’s lane in just seconds after the (prior motorist) passed the crosswalk.” At the hearing, a tearful Goldberg, steadied by her attorney’s hand on her back, spoke about the incident and addressed the Lancellotti family, saying in part, “I feel a deep and allencompassing grief for the loss of your beloved daughter . . . I feel a yearning to undo the accident every waking minute. Photo Heather Gould . . I don’t eat, sleep, Supporters of defendant Karen Goldberg embrace following dress, work or leave judge's ruling. the house without incredible sadness. . . . I want to express long-standing service to the community, a profound respect for (the Lancellottis’) her lack of criminal history and her concern immense pain.” Gomes said Goldberg had for Giada’s family. Referring to the incident been “waiting to make this statement for a itself, McLaughlin said of Goldberg, “she did long time,” but as her attorney, he advised not act intentionally, she was not impaired, her to hold off. Goldberg then turned to face she did not drive with gross negligence.” Giada’s parents, Charles and Kelly, as they The motion for pre-trial diversion spoke to the court. included 44 letters from community Charles said, in part, “our family fabric members attesting to Goldberg’s character, has been torn apart and we miss Giada every integrity and compassion, including one minute of every day.” He said he is haunted letter signed by the superintendent and the by visions of “Giada being struck, Giada entire Board of Trustees of the Lake Tahoe on the ground, Giada in a hospital bed.” Unified School District, where Goldberg Meanwhile, he said, “we have an empty bedroom in our house, skis that hang in the administers both the English Learner’s garage and won’t be used and a guitar” that Program and heads the Family Resource Center. sits silent. McLaughlin said, “I have no idea Kelly made a lengthy statement that where liability lies in this case or how a jury was at times unintelligible as she was crying would shake out . . . If it proceeds to trial, it so hard. She said each of the remaining family members are coping — or not — in their would only cause more trauma. At the end own way. Charles goes on long runs while of the day, there really is no good result.” she cries in the shower. An older daughter refuses to drive through the intersection
Mountain News 21
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Earlier this year when Alexander Valley Vineyards in Sonoma County reached out to wine club members to enter a recipe contest using one of their wines, I went for it. In August I learned I received an honorable mention. That made me pretty proud. No winnings to claim; just bragging rights. This is what I wrote on my entry: “Big, bold wines deserve big, bold main dishes to complement them. For the vegetarian, portabella mushrooms are often the answer. One does not have to be a vegetarian to appreciate this dish. One merely needs to have a craving for an entrée that will enhance the flavors of the Alexander Valley Vineyards 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Single Vineyard Selection. What makes this dish different from some others
is that no tomatoes are involved. The red pepper sauce gives this depth. The wine, well, you know what the wine does.” I chose one of my pricier bottles of AVV in hopes this would help with the judging. Not sure it mattered. What I do know is any decent red wine will work in this recipe. I would not use a light red, though. So, no Pinot Noirs. The winner was an egg dish with a tomato sauce using a Cab Franc, second was London broil with grilled peppers and onions and AVV’s Cyrus, while third was savory pinwheels with a dry Rosé of Sangiovese. For something different I am leaning toward a white varietal for next year’s contest. I think I need to open a bottle now for inspiration.
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Preparation Add jarred peppers, garlic cloves and wine to a blender, blending until combined. Then place in a saucepan to slowly warm over low heat. Cook quinoa according to package directions. When done, leave in pot and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove stems from the portabellas, but don’t discard; dice them to be used later. Place mushrooms gill down in pan or on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with oil. Cook for 10 minutes, then turn off oven, leaving the mushrooms in oven to keep warm. While mushrooms are cooking, sauté onion, zucchini and mushroom stems in the wine over medium heat, until onions are translucent. Add salt and pepper. Stir
in spinach until wilted. Add cooked quinoa to vegetable mixture, thoroughly combining. Remove mushrooms from oven and place them on a plate, but don’t get rid of that baking pan. Reheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover bottom of mushroom pan with 2-3 ladles of sauce, evenly distributed. Return mushrooms to cooking sheet/pan with the gills facing up. Scoop vegetable mixture onto mushrooms and sprinkle cheese evenly on top of each mushroom. Return pan to oven until cheese is melted, about 10 minutes. To serve, place mushrooms in individual shallow bowls and cover each with sauce.
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ERIKA GONZALEZ Ingredients Ann Truscott CA 02136075 NV S.0194874
Brandie Griffith Connie Lopez Diego Uribe Ortiz Hailey Fuller Jarred Uppendahl Jim Mathews CA 01961472 NV BS.0145628
CA 00964008
CA 02377629
CA 02162964 NV S.0198544
CA 01958463
CA 01225636 NV S.0053818
Joel Dameral CA 01851946 NV BS.0145648
Michael Phillips CA 01369810 NV B.0145615
Mika Dailey
CA 02246759 NV S.0205555
Molly Jordan CA 02142804 NV S.0195715
Trish Hall
CA 00995140 NVBS.0025568
Sauce 16 oz jar roasted red bell peppers 5 cloves garlic, peeled ½ C red wine Stuffed mushrooms ½ C quinoa
22 Mountain News
6 portabella mushrooms Olive oil or avocado oil ¼ C red wine 4 oz fresh spinach 1 small zucchini, diced ½ medium yellow onion, diced 8 oz smoked gouda, shredded Salt and pepper
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Mountain News 23
Tahoe Paradise Park in turmoil Tahoe Paradise Recreation and Park District is holding on by a thread with only two active board members while facing an investigation by the El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office. Board treasurer Judy Brozo-Clot is out on medical leave and board member Marcia Mendlick resigned Aug. 11, according to park business manager Chelsy Munson. The board had a vacancy before that all transpired. This leaves board members John Dayberry and Zane Graham, which is one short of a quorum. Brozo-Clot, Mendlick and Graham could not be reached. The park’s attorney also chose not to respond to a Mountain News inquiry. The DA is investigating forgery allegations and whether Government Code 1090 was violated. Both could be felonies. Section 1090 “prohibits an officer, employee, or agency from participating in making government contracts in which the official or employee within the agency has
a financial interest. Section 1090 applies to virtually all state and local officers, employees, and multimember bodies, whether elected or appointed, at both the state and local level.” Brozo-Clot first brought potential wrong-doing allegations to county officials this summer. El Dorado County Auditor Joe Harn has paid all invoices except for bills for SCAR Inc., which is owned by Munson’s husband, Jason Munson. In an email obtained by the Mountain News sent from Harn to Chelsy Munson, it says in part, “If your lawyer sends me a legal analysis concerning the validity of these invoices in light of the apparent Government Code Section 1090 issue, I will review the analysis with the county counsel and may reconsider making payments to SCAR Inc.” The Brown Act, the state’s opening meeting law, allows board members twice a year to be at a board meeting remotely for medical reasons. If Brozo-Clot were to do so,
Shorter days, shorter sprinkler times. Water needs of plants dramatically decrease in the fall.
Photo Tahoe Paradise Park
The future of Tahoe Paradise Park is threatened by a non-functioning board.
then it’s possible the three board members could appoint one or two people. It’s also possible that same scenario could take place after the Nov. 3 election when Marley Reel and Mason Bindel become board members the next day because they are running unopposed for their inaugural four-year term. Mendlick, Dayberry and Graham’s seats expire Nov. 4. All failed to turn in election paperwork by the deadline, with Dayberry saying they had all intended to. Dayberry said he’d like to launch a write-in campaign or get the next board to reappoint him. Brozo-Clot’s term expires in 2028.
El Dorado County Supervisor Brooke Laine has attended recent park board meetings and has spoken with county counsel about the district’s turmoil. Her biggest concern is the need to have a functioning, competent board in place by 2030 when Measure G dollars start flowing to Tahoe Paradise Park. Currently, part of the district’s revenues come from Measure S. The 2000 voterapproved tax initiative guarantees the park $50,000 year, with most years $60,000 being allocated. Measure G, which voters approved in June, will distribute $150,000 to the park annually from 2030-60.
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GLYPHOSATE
Forest Service explains glyphosate use
bicides were used across all those acres. In many locations we use spot treatments. All other acres were treated using manual methods.
Glyphosate might be the word of the year in the Lake Tahoe Basin. As the key ingredient in Roundup, this controversial herbicide approved by the Environmental Protection Agency has already been sprayed at Sierra-at-Tahoe and other parts of the Eldorado National Forest and could be used in the basin in 2028. Roundup was trademarked by Monsanto in 1974. Bayer bought the company
Continued from page 26
Committee meeting of the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency. She was one of more than 100 people opposing the use of glyphosate in the basin and surrounding forests. “I’m just hoping the TRPA will be on our team on this one and ban herbicides in the basin. This is only 3,500 acres we are talking about. Why would we use a toxic product on 3,500 acres? We have many
Tahoe in 2010 as a landscape architect for the LTBMU. “My job is to make sure the unit is complying with the National Environmental Policy Act and to coordinate the unit’s project planning,” Sibr said. The following Q&A between the Mountain News and Sibr has been edited for clarity and space. Which agencies approve LTBMU’s
phases of NEPA. There were two public comment periods on the Caldor Fire Restoration Project: one 30-day scoping period started April 4, 2025, and one 30-day comment period on the draft environmental assessment started Dec. 5, 2025. Besides the fire rehab projects, how often does LTBMU use chemicals? The Caldor Fire Restoration Project
Photo HealthyTahoe.org
This is the Facebook cover photo for HealthyTahoe.org, a grassroots organization bringing awareness about local herbicide spraying.
in 2018. This July, Bayer created the Ruveon company, whose website says: “Ruveon was launched to advance, adapt, and elevate U.S. glyphosate-based agricultural solutions that our industry relies on most.” While the company and EPA say glyphosate does not cause cancer, the World Health Organization says it is a potential cancer risk. Monsanto and Bayer have been sued by hundreds of thousands of people who believe Roundup gave them cancer, adding the weed killer did not come with warnings. As of August, Monsanto had paid about $11 billion in settlements. A settlement agreement reached this summer that covers most of the remaining plaintiffs would have Bayer paying out about $7.25 billion. Some countries have banned Roundup, as have cities in the U.S. An Aug. 21 segment on the PBS News Hour (https://shorturl.at/pbhCX ) reveals how the use of Roundup is about the feds wanting to open more land to timber harvest, a pursuit that will be aided by opening of national forests to roads. In that story, Olympian Hannah Teter, who lives in Meyers and skied for Sierra, was interviewed. She also spoke five days later during an Environmental Improvement
26 Mountain News
other options to use on this. And I ask that we deploy those options,” Teter said to the committee. Ashley Sibr, environmental coordina-
Photo U.S. Forest Service
Ashley Sibr is the environmental coordinator for the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit.
tor with the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, is the point person for herbicide usage. The Midwest native moved to Lake
use of herbicides and pesticides? The Forest Service gains approvals for federal actions through the National Environmental Policy Act. NEPA decisions at the unit level are signed by the forest supervisor. As part of NEPA analysis, the project is analyzed for its compliance to relevant law, regulation and policy. In the case of the Caldor Restoration Project herbicide proposed use, the Clean Water Act and TRPA Code of Ordinances are relevant laws. The Forest Service will seek a timber waiver permit from the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board for compliance with the Clean Water Act. The Forest Service has a memorandum of understanding with the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency in which the Forest Service agrees to adhere to the TRPA Code of Ordinances and seeks a permit for activities not covered under the MOU. Vegetation management activities are exempted from TRPA permit review and are covered under the MOU. In addition, pesticide and herbicide use requires reporting to the state. How can the public weigh in on their use? The public has an opportunity to weigh in on projects during the public involvement
is the first project on the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit where herbicides are being proposed to aid in reforestation efforts. All other use of herbicides within the unit are to treat invasive weed infestations. Herbicide use is designed to be as minimal as possible and with the least amount of pesticide necessary. When used, application of herbicides is targeted, applied with calibrated backpack sprayers as a direct foliar spray, or by other low-volume methods such as cut stump, basal bark spray, and thin-line application. The LTBMU is not currently authorized for aerial application of herbicides. Areas where invasive plants are present need to be treated prior to work taking place to avoid spread. In some cases, herbicides are used as the treatment type when other methods will not be effective. Since 2010, approximately 3,700 acres of invasive weeds have been treated on the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, and only 132 of those acres were treated using herbicides—about 3.5 percent. To clarify, when the Forest Service reports “acres treated,” it refers to the area of management activity, it does not mean her-
GLYPHOSATE
Continued on page 27
What chemicals does LTBMU regularly use? Why? Where? The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit has taken a thoughtful approach to where herbicides should be deployed. When manual methods can be used and are effective, it is the preferred approach. Herbicide use is proposed where other reforestation site preparation methods or invasive plant removals methods will not work. The type of herbicides used in those situations depends on the target plant species and site conditions. The following chemicals are approved for use on some invasive weeds: aminopyralid, chlorsulfuron, glyphosate and triclopyr premix. No herbicide application for the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit’s Caldor Fire Restoration Project is planned for 2026 or 2027. Those approved for potential use in future years of project implementation are glyphosate, aminopyralid, hexazinone and triclopyr. All herbicides proposed are approved for use by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Department of Pesticide Regulation, which is the state agency responsible for regulating pesticides. Before herbicides are applied, the Forest Service goes through a rigorous and multidisciplinary assessment of each chemical and its potential project-specific impacts to meet state and federal laws.
lished as part of this process will be considered in future project planning. The project is considering five herbicide formulations to support reforestation objectives when manual treatments are ineffective or expected to be insufficient. Herbicide is one tool in the toolbox that we have available to help restore healthy forests and reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire in the Lake Tahoe Basin. With the advent of more extreme fire events in the
The term non-toxic is a misnomer in this circumstance. Applying any substance—including vinegar, salt, or hydrogen peroxide—at inappropriate levels can negatively impact plants, animals, soils, fungi, or insects in the landscape. When we use herbicide, we use it sparingly, precisely, and transparently. We regularly consult tools such as the UC Davis WeedCUT tool for the best available science for herbicide use and follow application rates as allowed by individual product labels, approved by the EPA.
We're focusing on protecting the health of the forest, maintaining recreation sites, and increasing wildfire resilience. Our teams conduct trail and facility maintenance, hazardous tree and fuels reduction work, permit and resource management, and environmental monitoring across the basin. We also coordinate closely with part-
ners and local agencies to ensure high-quality public service and stewardship of Lake Tahoe’s natural resources. Explain your belief that designing landscapes is like quilting. My training is originally as a landscape architect. In that role, my job was to take pieces of information about a site like topography, the drainage patterns, sun exposure, etc. and integrate the information into a cohesive design, similar to taking different fabrics and sewing them into a quilt. I see my current job in National Environmental Policy Act project planning in a similar way. I weave together figurative strands and fabrics of the landscape—the habitat, the water, the human element—into a cohesive project design in which all parts are contributing to a balanced and equal whole. What future trails are you most excited about and why? I am excited about the overall expansion of the trails network in Lake Tahoe and the new loop opportunities that have been authorized. I am also excited about the expansion of the Pope Baldwin Bike Path because of the high use it receives. Taking family and friends to the Camp Richardson area of Lake Tahoe on the bike path will be a much nicer experience once those trail improvements are completed.
Photo TMN
Roundup is available for purchase for personal use.
The National Institute of Health says: “(Glyphosate) can persist in the environment for days or months, and its intensive and large-scale use can constitute a major environmental and health problem.” So, why use it? The U.S. Department of Agriculture supports the Environmental Protection Agency’s use of gold-standard science to assess pesticide safety, including glyphosate. Pesticides are among the most highly regulated and controlled substances in the U.S. Additionally, the department supports the use of glyphosate when used according to the product label as part of integrated weed management programs, including by the Forest Service. For more information from the EPA: https://shorturl.at/oD4su. EPA is currently re-evaluating glyphosate through the registration review process to ensure that it continues to meet the statutory standard for registration as scientific data evolves, and new information pub-
The anticipated effects are outlined in the Human Health and Risk Assessment for the Caldor Restoration Project Environmental Assessment. Because of the extensive number of protections included in the project resource protection measures—including buffers around waterways and native plants—no herbicide is anticipated to enter any waterways, including Lake Tahoe. Resource protection measures include public notification and signage around application areas. Signage identifies the herbicide(s) used, date of application, date of expiration of the cautionary notice—at least 48 hours after application, name and phone
Within the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, herbicides were not proposed for use or used in any other fire scar outside of the Caldor Fire Restoration project footprint.
Has LTBMU considered using non-toxic chemicals?
When you aren’t answering media questions, what are you doing at LTBMU?
West, the availability of seedlings for replanting is extremely low. Herbicides are a tool to help us protect this precious and high value resource. For invasive weeds, manual methods cannot effectively treat some species and can even lead to increased spread. Plants that can readily rejuvenate with only a fraction of root pieces left in the soil are extremely difficult to eradicate by manual methods and can very easily grow back. Without use of herbicide in those cases, invasive plants threaten to displace native species, alter nutrient and fire cycles, decrease the availability of forage for wildlife, and degrade soil structure.
Are the same chemicals used after each fire? If not, what was used after the Angora, Tamarack, Gondola, Washoe and Emerald fires?
number of Forest Service contact, phone number for the county health department, and a warning that plant products should not be gathered for food or medicine for 30 days. More information about the USDA-Forest Service Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessment process can be found here: https://shorturl.at/EzLTs.
What effects do the various chemicals have on people, animals, other plants and waterways?
Mountain News 27
Checking all the boxes If you’re like me, when you travel, you bring boxes with you. Not the cardboard kind, stuffed with items never to be used again, like miniskirts or a marriage license. I’m talking about mental boxes. The boxes I diligently check when traveling as I confront the good, the bad, the ugly and the “Oh, hell no!” Deny it if you want, but I’m betting you have boxes, too. And, upon returning from your travels, you’ve dumped their contents on friends, family, or that special someone you know who actually listens — your dog or favorite potted plant. This isn’t a new thing. Even as a kid, I was checking boxes. My first family trip to Disneyland checked all the boxes for spectacular greasy fried food, foreign lands within 85 runnable acres and the opportunity to dabble in cross-dressing as Davy Crockett. On return visits, I had to switch some items over to the bad boxes. Like the huge, artificial tree in Adventureland wafting the alarming odor of melting plastic under the midday sun. You couldn’t actually climb it; you had to remain on the designated pathway up the tree. Worse yet, if you were under seven, you had to be accompanied by an adult. So I put it in the “Horrific” box. The entire reason children go to Disne-
28 Mountain News
yland is to get away from adults. The last time I visited Disneyland, I was officially an adult in body — but not mind, which is an essential component of the entry fee. However, during a midday caffeine withdrawal, I checked the naughty box for Disney’s failure to offer coffee. Clearly, Disney frowns on this addictive substance because I couldn’t find it anywhere — not even in the seven dwarves’ lair. And you know those dudes hoovered that stuff. Later, as I was posing for a picture, Mickey Mouse came from behind and pinched me. Yes, in the behind-me region. This definitely checked my “Unexpected Experience” box. Years ago, Hubby and I took numerous vacations in the Pacific Northwest — mostly because it offered good coffee. During those halcyon, pre-pandemic days,
people were inking their bodies instead of their buildings. Check the good citizen box. The needle- and tent-free sidewalks gave everyone a clear pathway to great bakeries and breweries. Lob three cheers into the box for creative souls offering delicious artisan bread and tasty home-brews. Never underestimate the lure of fresh donuts and day drinking for the traveler. In Bend, Oregon, we stopped to visit a hilltop construction site to ask the foreman why he was building so many gigantasaurus mansions. “All the Californians are coming here to retire!” he gloated. It appeared they would be arriving on the newly constructed, jillion-lane freeways, gift-wrapping the town with a big, tar-black asphalt bow. If the foreman actually lived in Bend, he should have checked his “Be Careful What You Wish For” box. More recently, we forged further north, past the cyclone-fenced parking lot tent city of Grants Pass, Oregon (checking my “Is This Really Okay for Anybody?” box), then onto the mass hysteria of Seattle roadways — an experience that checked my memory box of Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, but with noxious fumes and impaired drivers. Not bragging, but on my last Mr. Toad’s
ride, I’m pretty sure we kids were sober and managed to stay in our lane. However, nothing dimmed our enthusiasm to forge onward to Whidbey Island, one of the casually tossed miniature island discs floating in the Puget Sound. We turned west, crossing a bridge leading to the islands, a pristine gateway to . . . wait. What? A behemoth belching oil refinery that guards the entry to this renowned area, a fire-breathing dragon, spewing toxic clouds of forever chemicals. Check the “Memories I’d Rather Forget” box. However, if you choose to avoid the dragon and travel by ferry, you can see the Naval Air Station, which is currently at war with its own fuel sludge waste disposal. Check the “Get Me Outta Here” box. Now, you can’t say I wasn’t warned. After all, I did read Murderland, the classic Pacific Northwest story of the unhappy marriage between industrial toxins and uninformed humans who end up giving birth to a preponderance of serial killers. And normally I would toss this book in my “Wingnut Conspiracy Theory” box. But, then again, I’ve driven the Washington state freeway system. So, travel on. Just don’t forget to bring your boxes — and your “Oh, hell no!”
Review should have revealed bias To the editor, In regard to the article, “Local Chiropractor Comes Clean” by Kathryn Reed, (August 2026) I was happy to see a book review of my friend's book, Deep Snow by Glenn Miller. It is a remarkable story of human failure, struggle, and
redemption, something we should all be glad about and encourage. What I discovered however was an article that seemed intent on diminishing a man's character and motives. I've known Glenn for over a decade and what was being portrayed didn't fit the character of the person I know. My friendship naturally
colors my perception and I admit to some bias. It would have been informative and more professional for Ms. Reed to have declared her bias in the article. In the end, she did confess to a personal conflict she had with Glenn and suddenly the whole tone in her article made sense. This wasn't journalism. It was
personal animus disguised as journalism. If a judicial officer had prior contact or a conflict of interest with someone who appeared before him, integrity would require him to recuse himself. Where's the journalistic integrity here? Gregory Davies
Who appointed the integrity police? To the editor, In July, six people announced they had come together as a committee and were calling themselves “Citizens for Integrity in Government.” They have since set up a minimal website, put out a press release explaining their intentions to interview and vet city council candidates, and written letters to the editor extolling themselves as civic-minded citizens. Public records raise questions about
whether the leaders (Steve Teshara and Cristi Creegan) are in a position to judge the integrity of other candidates. Teshara has helped raise large sums of money to fund campaigns in favor of the Loop Road and against Measure T and Measure N. They say they do not have the power to choose the next council members because, “that authority belongs solely to the voters.” If they believe that, why the million-dollar campaigns to influence voters and attempt to buy elections? As for
Creegan, when she represented the city as mayor, she single-handedly shut down a council meeting leaving the city manager, attorney and clerk, department heads, city staff and a room full of people stunned after she got into a huff, abruptly closed the meeting and then walked out of the room. Hardly a demonstration of maturity, decorum or integrity the committee says it is looking for in potential candidates. This so-called citizen’s committee that also includes Nicole Ramirez Thomas,
Lauren Parmenter, Sharon Kerrigan and Joshua Mitchell believes they can help guide residents to make better choices for council members. By whose standards? And what makes these six people qualified to be the arbiters of ethics and integrity on behalf of the community? Andrea Olsen
Lifting up Gary Burch to the editor, There was a bumper sticker going around ski towns awhile back. White on black it said, “Lift Maintenance— Because ski patrollers need heroes too.” In this town, there was no bigger hero than Gary Burch. Burch was the director of lift maintenance for Heavenly Mountain Resort for decades and if that wasn’t enough, he also had a lift construction business which built many of the ski lifts around Tahoe. I had run lift maintenance at two ski areas in Southern California and my only technical recourse was Lift Engineering & Mfg. Co or YAN Lifts up in Carson City named after the founder Yanek Kunczynski. I moved to Tahoe in 1993 to work for Homewood Mountain Resort as the director of lifts and facilities. The state tram inspector, Rob McGirr, was worried about several major issues at Homewood and introduced me to Burch. Burch was a husky Swiss man. He instantly took me under his wing. He told me how he had started building lifts for SLI (Ski Lift International) at Mt. Rose in the 1960s and built the first four-person ski lift in the West at Homewood. Burch helped me pull and rebuild a small double chair my first season, but the next year the bull gear in The Quad chair had cracked. This was catastrophic, but a possible chance for another major upgrade. I called Burch and the next week I was having beers with Yan and Burch
at the Fire Sign Café near Sunnyside. We came up with a plan to demo the bottom drive of The Quad and put in a top drive system. This project made the lift 30 percent more efficient electrically, better loading, added a new gearbox, and brought electricity to the top of the mountain and the top ski patrol shack. Of course, this was all drawn by Yan on a cocktail napkin. Classic Yan. Burch had a dream to install a gondola at Heavenly and I had a dream to do the same at Homewood. I would joke that my gondola is going to have better views than yours. I later left to build a gondola at Kirkwood, but Telluride pulled out so I left the ski industry to become a teacher at South Tahoe High School. I wrote my own curriculum and took over the old welding shop. I created a proto-STEAM course called Sustainable Resort Management, Design & Maintenance. It was a CTE course designed to give students skills to work at local resorts. Field trips were tours behind the scenes of the operations at resorts. Burch’s new gondola at Heavenly was the best. He was a hero to my students and me. Last month when I got the news that Burch had passed, I cut my work short in SoCal and drove back to Tahoe for his celebration of life. It was the who’s who of the lift industry and some of my former students. Gary Burch was a lift legend. John Dayberry, Meyers
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Well, we won't be riding up this one.
Photo Gary Bell
It’s all downhill Do you ever do that thing, riding up a trail where there’s this rocky section you have been up at least a dozen times: sometimes you make it through, yeah sick, hero moves! It often helps to have someone else there for that little ego push — and then the very next time, it just isn’t happening, and you are off the bike, walking. Then there are those days
when you don’t even try but just get off and walk through. But on lots of occasions, I will do “go backs” — you know, it feels like it should work out today, maybe the second or even the third try, but I am going to ride through! Well, that was the
case on this day. Riding solo, I’m nearing the top of my climb, a climb I have done a million times, and I’ve been thinking about this one section. Sometimes I get it and sometimes I throw in the towel or greasy bike rag and just walk on through — dang! But not today. I fire it first try, yeah, perfection. Breathing hard and super excited to have hit that one. Then it happens. This guy comes at me going downhill, fast — on an ebike, wearing a full-face helmet. Yes, I just wrote about wearing a helmet, so I guess that is good. But he makes no attempt to slow or give me room to pass. Even worse, he yells at me, “What are you doing?! This is a downhill trail — get the f%$k out of the way!” For a moment I just think, what a clueless tool. Oh well. No, it’s not oh well. I am close enough to the end of my climb anyway. I flip around, drop my seat and chase the tool.
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He has a minute or two on me while I digested what happened. Of course, he’s nowhere in sight but I keep going; it is fun, after all. Then I start to see dust ahead of me — oh, I am catching this kook. I get into one of the fun, really rocky sections, so excellent! A couple more turns and what do you know, I see him just ahead. Hmm, for all that gear, he isn’t that fast; yeah, he’s probably new. Well, if he’s yelling at me for climbing this trail, he is new. Closer and closer. Now it’s getting exciting. He’s right in front of me and doesn’t know I am there. You know the sound if you rub someone’s tire with your own tire while moving? Yep, I buzz his rear tire. This totally startles him because I suppose he thinks he’s the only one in his world. He actually moves over to let me by, which is a surprise for both of us, I think. So I stop in front of him. Adrenaline firing, okay, be nice, be nice. “Hey, did you know that the rider going uphill has the right of way and the rider going down has to slow down and move over?” “Not on a downhill trail!” he yells angrily. “Really?” I say, “because this isn’t a downhill trail; it’s just
a mountain trail. And just because you don’t have the skills or fitness to ride up this doesn’t make it a downhill trail! There are no downhill-only trails in the whole of the south and east shores of the lake.” He murmurs something and starts to move around me. The OG asshole in me kicks in just a little more — okay, don’t get in trouble here, but it is important to stand up for what’s true and important to us. I block his exit just a little more. “You do know or maybe you don’t know because you are new, but there are a lot of us who have been climbing up this trail since before you even knew how to ride a bike!” Beee niice, I keep hearing in my head — oh, but I’m kinda angry. “Okay, sorry to have harassed you like that, but it’s just common courtesy on our trails and maybe a little respect to someone actually workin’ it. If you want to ride a downhill trail, go to Northstar and ride the park; you won’t see anybody going uphill there. Hey, tell your bros what’s up, too.” Friendly fist bump and off rides slow poke. I’m going to sit by the creek for a bit to let him go away. Let’s play
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Don't Say Good Luck depicts a family in crisis.
Photo Netflix
Darker films as the days get shorter This month I have three very different films that you might check out. First up, in the past I have mentioned I enjoy films that break out of the usual formulas and offer something unique. One such film is a satirical comedy, Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die, now out on Hulu. The film starts as a man, dressed like a post-apocalyptic homeless person, appears in Norm’s Diner in Los Angeles one evening, claiming to be from the future. He needs people to help save the human race from an apocalyptic future controlled by AI. With a bomb strapped to his middle, he eventually convinces/ forces people to help. As things progress, we find out he thinks he has already tried this exact scenario over 100 times. They may or may not believe him, but his knowledge of who and what is happening or going to happen, tends to ring true. As the police close in, the man gathers his rag tag bunch of diner patrons and looks to escape. The goal is to get to a house in the suburbs where a nine-year-old boy is inventing the AI that will eventually destroy half the human race. The goal is to download a series of protocols that will stop the destruction. If this all sounds weird,
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don’t worry, it stays weird and gets weirder. Each person who accompanies the man has a backstory about technology run amuck. They are contemporary issues but taken to extremes: teachers whose students literally never look up from their cell phones; a girl whose boyfriend leaves her for a virtual reality; parents who have their kids instantly cloned (more than once) after those kids keep getting killed in school shootings. The whole thing gets a little overdone, but that is part of the satire, which is sharp, and the humor is dark and delicious. What holds it all together is Sam Rockwell, who plays the man. He is wild and chaotic though still grounded and relatable. Overall Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die is a spot-on satire, rather dark, and doesn’t have a very happy ending, but the ride is fun if you just roll with the absurdity. Along more normal lines, you can catch Adam Sandler’s kid, Sunny Sandler, starring in a new dramedy out on Netflix called Don’t Say Good Luck. Sunny plays Sophie Birenbaum, a high school sophomore who is very excited to audition for her high school’s musical, Waitress. She is not very
experienced and doesn’t expect to get a big role, but when she gets some disturbing news just before her call-back, she ends up pouring her heart into the song and ends up getting cast as the lead. This leads her to having to work doubly hard in the play, as well as dealing with finding out that her mother’s cancer has come back. The film follows all the usual plot devices you expect, but the good thing is that it doesn’t drop into the melodrama or Hollywood clichés that usually accompany films like this. Not only is there some nice, breezy comedy laced throughout, but the serious parts are grounded in reality. Even though there are scenes with Sophie rehearsing the play, there are no stereotypes. The kids all act like real high school kids and the teachers like real teachers. Even Mallory, the senior who expected to get the lead, is not just a diva and supports Sophie as she struggles to do her best. Likewise, the other adults are all real people. Sophie’s mom, played perfectly by Melanie Lynskey, deals with her cancer pragmatically as it affects her family. Overall, Don’t Say Good Luck hits all the moments you expect but does so in a way that makes it real, and in doing so,
brings you into the lives of a normal family dealing with an abnormal situation. The humor is natural and the highpoints have real emotional power, creating an enjoyable film. Last up is a new documentary out on Netflix called Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing, a follow-up to the 2022 film, Downfall: The Case Against Boeing. That film outlined how the aircraft giant had gone from one of the most highly respected companies in the world to a company that put profit ahead of everything, including quality and safety of the aircraft. Since that time, through a federal non-prosecution agreement, Boeing was supposed to be fixing the issues with new programs and oversight that would bring its aircraft back up to the high standards on which the company was built. But the suicide death in 2024 of Boeing quality inspector and whistleblower John Barnett opened a floodgate for other whistleblowers to come forward with allegations that nothing had changed with the need to quickly produce aircraft, overruling safety and quality, with management aggressively penalizing anyone who raised issues. The film opens with the recording of Barnett’s deposition,
given the day before he killed himself. He was a 32-year employee of Boeing who worked in quality control. His issues were primarily with the quality of Boeing’s latest aircraft, the 787 Dreamliner, which he said had problems that would affect the aircraft’s safety. The film tracks the issues through interviews with other Boeing whistleblowers as well as Boeing’s CEOs who supported the company and its procedures in public interviews. The scariest part of the film is one of the Boeing engineers saying how these problems in construction were not going to really show up until 10 to 15 years down the road as the aircraft aged, so the fact there are no problems now could just be creating a false sense of security for what might be ticking time bombs. Overall, Freefall is a testament to how corporate greed to satisfy shareholders can be more important than building a quality product and keeping the public safe, and how the government can be complicit in these failures. Teresa didn’t catch the first two films and was properly disturbed by Freefall.
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Photo Provided
Local restaurant Fire + Ice was the winner of the Optimist Day in Paradise duck race this year and donated the $1000 in prize money to the Boys and Girls Club of Lake Tahoe. Pictured (l to r), Danny McLaughlin, Zachary Pesapane, Adriana Read and John Dalton.
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