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Courtesy photo
The South Lake Tahoe City Council approved a recommended Airport Master Plan on Tuesday, Aug. 13.
Photo courtesy of EDH Fire
South Lake Tahoe Airport’s Blaze puts a next 20 years discussed damper on party
Fire hoses fill the parking spaces outside El Dorado Hills Party Rentals after the building caught fire Wednesday evening.
Katelyn Welsh
square feet of pavement. “You have more pavement than you need,” Fletcher explained to the council, “and that goes back to the days when SOUTH LAKE TAHOE — After differing this was a commercial service airport.” remarks at City Council on Tuesday, Aug. 13, She explained the wingspan of the critical design South Lake Tahoe councilmembers approved a aircraft there, the type of aircraft the airport recommended Airport Master regularly sees (Challenger Plan, sending the plan to 300), doesn’t need the “I think that there is a lot of environmental review. amount of pavement the The plan, presented by airport currently has. The real things that the airport consultant Jviation, adds an reduction in pavement will provide in the future.” aircraft wash rack, electrical better positions the airport vault, designates a future for funding. — Mayor Cody Bass box hanger area, relocates “The FAA is more and and upgrades the Automated more constrained on Surface Observing System, incorporates a funds,” Fletcher told council, “and less likely to pay bike path and reconstructs the ground service for pavement maintenance for pavement that is equipment facility. not required.” Some of the proposed master plan projects However, nothing is assured. “We’re putting actually remove infrastructure, including the air you in a position to be eligible for FAA funding,” traffic control tower. “There is not a demand for Fletcher said. “It doesn’t guarantee funding.” that,” Jviation’s Hilary Fletcher said, explaining The plan and its improvements to the airport airports typically require more than 100,000 is based on the airport’s demand forecast over operations to warrant a tower. The operations the next 20 years and its critical design aircraft. Tahoe’s airport saw in 2023 totaled 2,259. ■ See AIRPORT, page A5 The plan also includes the removal of 377,944 Tahoe Daily Tribune
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rental business Noel Stack Editor
Oil-soaked rags that spontaneously combusted are said to be the cause of a commercial building fire in El Dorado Hills on Aug. 28. At approximately 6:22 p.m. Wednesday firefighters from the El Dorado Hills Fire Department, Cal Fire and the El Dorado County Fire Protection District responded to a commercial building fire on Golden Foothill Parkway in the El Dorado Hills Business Park. Upon reaching the scene, they found heavy smoke coming from one building used by El Dorado Hills Party Rentals. “Witnesses reported an explosion prior to the fire department arrival,” EDH Fire Deputy Chief Michael Lilienthal told the Mountain Democrat. “Firefighters attacked the fire and contained the spread of the fire to only one business. The fire sprinkler system had activated and had largely ■ See FIRE, page A8
Permit process frustrations prompt review, changes Eric Jaramishian Senior staff writer
El Dorado County Planning and Building Department staff are making efforts to improve the development review and permitting process through a number of initiatives to increase the department’s efficiency. Permit backlogs and communication lapses between permit applicants and county staff are acknowledged issues, as noted during the Aug. 20 El Dorado County Board of Supervisors meeting. Efforts to improve efficiency include
upgrading the TRAKiT system — the county’s software tool to automate management of project development, permitting and code compliance — increasing transparency between project applicants and county staff and working on internal efficiency. Deputy Director of Economic Development and Administration Kyle Zimbleman told the board staff will start by reviewing application forms and requirements to erase out-of-date and inconsistent information, with the goal of creating a “master application” with specific information to each individual
project to help streamline the process. Staff ’s intent is to have the application available online and to amend any county codes and regulations where necessary. “We are scouring through all of those, trying to get a consistent format and feel and up-to-date information, and (analyzing) the appropriateness of the information requested for different development stages, trying to find out what is necessary on these applications, what has changed over time that we still have that may not be necessary and ■ See PERMITS, page A8
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