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172
nd
C ali forn ia’s Olde st Ne w spaper
Volume 172 • Issue 99 | $1.00
mtdemocrat.com
Monday, August 28, 2023
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Cameron Park CSD budget $500K in the red Isaac Streeter Staff writer The Cameron Park Community Services District Board of Directors approved the 2023-24 budget though its tough decisions are far from over. The final approved budget totaling $8,566,211 and supported by a 3-2 vote Aug. 16 will see the CSD operate with a $503,173 deficit. CPCSD Board President Sidney Bazett, Vice President Monique Scobey and Director Eric Aiston made up the ayes. Directors Dawn Wolfson and Tim
Horse-drawn carriage petition brought to SLT City Council Ashleigh Goodwin Tahoe Daily Tribune
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During the Aug. 8 meeting of the South Lake Tahoe City Council members of the community stepped forward to ask the council to ban horse drawn carriages in Heavenly Village, citing alleged mistreatment of the horses. “We care about bears and puppies in Tahoe, we should give equal concern and care to horses,” Angie Reegan, owner of Peace Love Tahoe said in a statement to the council, asking council members to look further into the carriages. A petition gained support after it was launched, followed by public outcry, but according to Dwight and Dianna Borges, owners of Borges Sleigh and Carriage Rides, the petition is not based in facts. The Borges family has been operating the business for five decades. “(The business) started in 1965 and since that time we have learned a
lot,” Dwight said. As a result, Dwight added, “Our horses are the best cared for around.” The Borges keep their horses at Carson Valley Ranch, home to 12 Belgian draft horses, where they graze on 40 acres of pasture. “It’s insulting and unfortunate the way things have turned out, but the tourism community has come out to support me directly,” Dwight said. Duane Wallace, executive director of the South Tahoe Chamber of Commerce, said the horses are not just part of the Borges family business but part of their family. Dianna shared that the petition has drawn action from passers-by, screaming hate filled messages at the teamsters, horses and patrons, such as, “Your horses would be better off dead.” This recent petition is not the first time the Borges family has come under fire. “We have been dealing with animal rights activists for many years and they have made suggestions for shade and more water and we have made adjustments,” Dwight said. “We have umbrellas for the horses even though they shake and move and spook the horses, but we’ve always had water for them.” Longtime local and animal rights activist Michelle Schultz filed a witness report with El Dorado County Animal Services, in which she included photos of the horses without water and the dash gauge in her vehicle showing 91
Israel voted no. The initial assessment of the budget in June revealed the CSD would be operating at a $862,327 deficit, due to a nearly $1 million increase to the approved Cal Fire contract. The budget presented to board members last week had cut more than $400,000. This included reducing CSD seasonal and parttime wages — the funds used to pay lifeguards and day camp employees — from nearly $213,000 to $128,000. Employees at the entrance to Cameron Park Lake will be replaced with an automatic gate
expected to be installed in the coming months. Rental fees for use of the pool by swim teams like AquaSol and the Sierra Sharks will be increased. These increased fees will be set later this fall and begin in January, according to interim General Manager Jill Ritzman. All members of the board excluding Wolfson were in favor of continuing funding for a recreation coordinator position, which was eliminated in the initial proposal. “The arguments for restoring the recreation n See budget, page A3
Petal palette
Two years after the Caldor Fire, the burn scar continues to show signs of new life as the Sierra Nevada’s palette of colorful flora paints the blackened landscape. This Sierra daisy’s purple petals, above, stand out surrounded by charred forest along Lyons Creek July 30. Wildflowers seem to have gotten a boost from the record precipitation that stacked the high country in snow this past winter. Pictured at right is a thicket of yampah, lupine and Indian paintbrush, as well as Sierra daisies. Mountain Democrat photos by Krysten Kellum
late season snow report received
n See petition, page A6
After a year of historic snowfall, all of the remote “snow-pillow” snow-measuring sensors maintained by the California Cooperative Snow Surveys Program are snow-free as of July 31. While there is still snow left at very high elevations in the Sierra Nevada, this is the latest date when any sensors in the electronic monitoring network recorded snow in the past 25 years. The network has only reported snow remaining in July at sensor locations in nine of the past 25 years. Before this year, the latest date sensors reported snow in the past 25 years was July 23, 1998. Photo courtesy of California Department of Water Resources
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