ZEPHYR COVE, Nev. – There was standing room only at George Whittell High School as participants loudly expressed comments about potential developments at Zephyr Cove and Zephyr Shoals, causing the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office captain to step in. Before the presentation began, community members had quickly filled the rows of about 75 chairs provided and the rest stood in the school’s gymnasium. The abundance of participants had just as much to say.

Aramak, which is the concessionaire at Zephyr Cove and Zephyr Shoals, along with U.S. Forest Service, which owns the properties, hosted an open house on Wednesday April 10 to discuss possibilities for the future of those sites.

The U.S. Forest Service and Aramark originally formatted the development open house with post-it notes and comment sheets where individuals could provide feedback, as well as eight poster board stations where they could ask questions. However, participants began asking questions during the introductory presentation. One question turned into multiple and grew louder.

“Why don’t you put in Disneyland?” one gentleman shouted. A women raised her voice, pointing at U.S. Forest Service’s Erik Walker, “You sold us out!” She went on to express distress over alcohol use, drugs and other concerns at Zephyr Cove and Zephyr Shoals.

Walker said, “We can be constructive and civil or we can call it a night,” and when the shouting continued, “It doesn’t work to sit and shout at each other.” Other staff tried to intervene, but it did little to calm the crowd.

Order wasn’t restored until Captain Ron Michitarian, with the Sheriff’s office, stepped in on the microphone. He reminded the crowd that the forest service did admit that there has been a problem and acknowledged they are looking for a solution. The peace restorer reiterated that Zephyr Shoals was not in Aramark’s control in the past and that the forest service has limited resources.

Prior to the disorder, Walker and U.S. Forest Service’s Daniel Cressy, Public Services Staff Officer, as well as Kevin Schiesz, District Manager with Aramark, gave introductory presentations regarding development concepts and ideas for Zephyr Cove and Zephyr Shoals. Aramark is the special use permitted concessionaire chosen to run operations on the U.S. Forest Service resort.

Cressy prefaced his piece, explaining they don’t have plans to present tonight, “We have goals,” and are seeking feedback before they formulate actual plans and proposals. Much of the discussion and presentation focused on Zephyr Shoals, the three-quarter mile stretch of sandy beach, rocky shoreline, forest and stream habitat north of the resort, formerly known as the Dreyfus Estate.

“The status quo has room for improvement in this area,” Cressy said, acknowledging the elephant in the room of peak summer pressures and Fourth of July havoc there in 2023. Last summer, the amount of trash left behind after the Fourth of July made headlines. “The future,” he said, “needs to be better than it has.”

It is the service’s hope that including the shoals area in Aramark’s permit will now allow more resources for managing the area during these peak summer pressures. The area was previously not within Aramark’s permit or control. The forest service added this area to the permit last year when they again chose Aramark through a bidding process to continue to be the concessionaire there for another 20 years.

Aramark and the forest service presented concepts on easel supported poster boards. Copies are provided on their website.

Concepts for the shoals area include:

• 24-34 walk-in campsites
• 20 glamping tents
• Event pavilion picnic area
• Zephyr Shoals restroom
• Camp store
• Catering kitchen
• Bridal suite
• 150 parking stalls
• Interpretive trails

Concepts for the Zephyr Cove area include:

• New restroom
• Renovated Sunset Bar and Grill
• Children’s play area
• Improved accessibility to the beach

Organizers provided participants with color coded post-it notes for comments to be placed on the posters, pink for concerns and blue for support.

By the end of the night, the posters held over 140 post-it notes, most were pink.

Some simply provided “no!” or “LEAVE SHOALS ALONE,” while other went into more detail, raising concerns about code enforcement, traffic, trash, wildlife and environmental concerns, staffing, and fire safety.

Blue notes provided support for the creek buffer zone and trails. Another said the concepts fit with access and enjoyment goals for all without increasing current wear and tear.

The Tribune spoke with one longtime local who went to high school everyone was standing in. “We have enough for tourists,” she said, and expressed doubts about management of the expanded area, claiming facilitators there haven’t take care of what they have.

Another resident shared similar concerns, and as a Skyland resident, feared how the development might impact her community, which lies directly north of the shoals with fire, security and capacity concerns.

Aramark declined to speak to the Tribune at the event, but provided comment the next day. Schiesz told the Tribune, “We are committed to meeting the expectation of our neighbors and it’s a shared expectation that we have on ourselves.” 

Other concerns questioned how the concepts align with U.S. Forest Service requirements. The only service requirement listed on one of their posters for Zephyr Shoals is public restrooms, yet the concept provides upwards of 20 campsites and 20 glamping sites. Certain sticky notes accused plans being all about money.

Schiesz explained although public restrooms was the forest service’s requirement in that area, the prospectus asked to include additional options. Aramark wanted to present a thorough response to USFS’s request. They felt camping could be of interest for visitors intending on staying overnight.

Lisa Cesaro, Senior Director of Marketing at Aramark said Zephyr Cove’s current campsites across Highway 50 are popular with families and providing “family oriented” recreation activities is a part of USFS’s objectives.

Schiesz said they are listening to feedback and look forward to further refining concepts and forming proposals based on what they heard.

“What I took away from that workshop was that the people of this community care deeply for this land that we are entrusted by the forest service to manage and,” Schiesz, also a Tahoe resident, said “I do want to convey that I personally share that passion and concern.”

He intends on focusing attention on areas of concern from the feedback, including access, and property maintenance, which he says has always been a focus for them. “What this new permit does is allows us to extend our reach into this very precious part of Tahoe’s property,” discussing the shoals. Currently under discussion are additional trash receptacles and security.

“It’s a big responsibility,” he says, “that I take very seriously.”

After the meeting was over, Cressy with USFS told the Tribune, “Passion is great. I think our job is to try and encourage folks to leverage that passion into constructive action.” Cressy wants the public to help them find a solution for the future, which he said, is informed by past problems.

Cressy sees that interest as a signal that folks care, and have a role to play as stewards and added, “Our job is to listen.”

Anyone unable to attend the meeting can provide feedback through a form posted to their website and emailed by April 19. Instructions are on the form.

Aramark and the forest service’s next steps comprise using this feedback to prepare formal proposals.