LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. – As construction season comes to a close in Tahoe, plenty of projects have made progress this summer. From historic Cal Neva to the demolition of Motel 6, and smaller roadway projects, here’s a roundup of what’s been done.

Demolition

Hyatt Lakeside’s south parcel has been undergoing renovation to update the cottages, restaurants and ballroom since March of this year, as part of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison’s plan for the property. That means the restaurants and amenities have been closed since that time, including the closure of Lone Eagle Grille, which is slated to be replaced by a Nobu sushi restaurant. Hyatt’s demolition of old structures is complete, and construction on their new buildings is expected next year.

Motel 6’s demolition marked a major win for the California Tahoe Conservancy, which acquired the parcel and will be restoring the sensitive wetlands and meadows that were previously at the Upper Truckee Marsh. Although demolition was delayed due to late summer thunderstorms, they are now on track and will begin restoration efforts.

Fanny Bridge, a historical and well-beloved site in North Tahoe, has fallen down. Placer County and partner agencies identified the site as one that needed transportation improvements all the way back in the 1990s. The bridge, which stood for over 90 years, will be replaced with a new single-span bridge that matches the old one’s appearance and includes sidewalks and bike lanes.

Homewood and Cal Neva

While Homewood was closed for 2024-2025, it will be opening this year, though without the new gondola. During the summer, trees were removed to prepare for its construction, but the deadline to confirm this year’s installation passed, pushing it off to next year. Andy Buckley, vice president and general manager of Homewood said that tree removal was completed this summer and they expected to break ground on gondola construction in spring.

Cal Neva is moving along on construction, topping off its new wellness building and working on getting it enclosed for the winter. They completed a major part of the site work to get grading and foundations done for the new cabins and villas they will build next summer.

“We had Tahoe’s biggest boulder pile,” said Jason Newcomer, a McWhinney senior vice president of hospitality development and head of the project. But they’re sailing through now and have completed the structural repair and reinforcement for the historical building as well.

Work on framing rooms in the tower, designs for the theatre, and talks with the county and other agencies on what to do with the historic tunnel they’ve preserved are all underway. “There was a lot of wood rot and as you can imagine, a 100-year-old tunnel is not compliant on a whole lot of things, but we’re making good progress and will continue to do that this winter,” said Newcomer.

Sugar Pine Village and Pacific Crest Commons

Construction on Sugar Pine Village continued this summer to open the next phases of the affordable housing project. Applications for Sugar Pine remain open as well.

Pacific Crest Commons, the affordable housing project in Truckee that is utilizing the same excess sites program that Sugar Pine Village does, is finally underway. The project utilizes modular housing and went vertical in September, and will continue construction throughout the winter.

Recreation center

The El Dorado County board of supervisors took a tour of the new South Lake Tahoe recreation center, which is well underway and slated to open in spring 2026. The building will feature heated walkways, pools, a rock-climbing wall, commercial kitchen, event rooms and a gymnasium.

Ricky Riddle, capital and facilities program manager at the city, said, “It’s a work of art to get this structure here.” The building’s design features several different construction techniques and significant work to make the roof safe for snow loads, while also maintaining the high ceiling that people associate with rec centers.

Road rehabilitation

As with every summer, plenty of road work was done while the grading season was on. Work on the Pioneer Trail roundabout has made significant progress this summer, along with the improvements from Stateline to Kings Canyon Road from the Nevada Department of Transportation. Lighting and safety improvements from the Y to Pioneer Trail are nearing completion.

Apache Avenue in Meyers and the Tahoe Greenbelt project are both improving public access to the trails on south shore. While the Tahoe Greenbelt is still in progress, Apache Avenue opened its shared use path and sidewalk, which made it safer to get to the elementary school.

Halted projects

A few projects didn’t come to fruition this year. The restoration of the Biltmore was halted yet again after EKN Development defaulted on its loan earlier this year, marking another year of its blighted property sitting empty.

Aster Station in South Lake Tahoe completed its demolition early in the construction season, but was unfortunately called off due to challenges with the costs and permitting. The site, which was previously the Old Runnels station, intersects with both Caltrans and city property, making it more difficult to develop on. High construction costs, permitting challenges and many fees continue to make development in the basin more challenging.

Beach Resort and Lodge was bought by BLDG Management, which was applying for permits to renovate. There have been some claims that the building has asbestos in it, which may require more demolition in future grading seasons than was initially anticipated.

Eli Ramos is a reporter for Tahoe Daily Tribune. They are part of the 2024–26 cohort of California Local News Fellows through UC Berkeley.