According to an article in todays Sierra Sun this new coalition, The Coalition To Save Lake Tahoe, includes the Sierra Club, Friends of the West Shore, Friends of Tahoe Vista, North Tahoe Citizen Action Alliance, Washoe Meadows Community and Earthjustice. Laurel Ames, conservation co-chair of the Tahoe Area Sierra Club said, “the members of the Coalition to Protect Lake Tahoe have for decades worked to preserve and protect water clarity, scenic beauty and recreational experiences of the national treasure that is Lake Tahoe,” adding that “the group was formally known as the Conservation Community.”
The article goes on to say that the Coalition is opposed to the recently adopted Regional Plan Update (RPU) and it has a link to the Coalition’s website; savelaketahoe.net where the lead off sentence is, “In December of 2012, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) approved a new ‘Regional Plan Update’ that upended over three decades of carefully-restrained growth rates and strong environmental protections for Lake Tahoe.”
This article is about the latest development in a continuing heated political debate that has been going on for years. The new plan would exempt some planning actions from review by TRPA, while allowing more local control. The plan allows additional height and density while encouraging property owners to develop in more populated areas. Supporters of the RPU believe it will benefit the local economy and contribute to the preservation of Lake Tahoe. When the plan was adopted by the TRPA local business groups and governments were pleased and felt that years of political gridlock that has paralyzed the local economy would be over.
The coalition believes the RPU will promote urban style development. “The new regional development plan adopted by TRPA will bring radical change to Tahoe’s look and feel, with new tall buildings, intense urban development and increased traffic and congestion around the lake,” said Jennifer Quashnick, with Friends of the West Shore. In February 2013 the Sierra Club and the Friends of The West Shore filed a lawsuit in federal challenging parts of the plan. The argument that TRPA’s transfer of some decisions to local agencies was in violation of the TRPA Compact was dismissed in June by Judge John Mendez. Other parts of the lawsuit have yet to be ruled on.
Ann Nichols describes the coalition as the “last watchdogs for the lake.” David von Seggern of the Sierra Club said, “we’re not against development entirely. We feel development has to be done carefully and always with environmental protection in mind.” This debate is far from over.
To read the complete article, go to the Sierra Sun website.
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