STATELINE, Nev. – The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) governing board met to discuss the State Route 28 mobility hub and aquatic invasive species station, a permit and appeal for a property in Washoe and heard the State of the Lake update from Dr. Stephanie Hampton of the Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC).

The State Route 28 Spooner Mobility Hub and Aquatic Invasive Species station is part of a larger effort for improving transit around the basin. The proposed project would have safe off-highway parking, a transit hub with restrooms and amenities and a permanent watercraft inspection station. It’s long been known that State Route 28 has been unsafe because of the shoulder parking and in 2013, the SR-28 Corridor Management Plan was created.

Now, over a decade later, the mobility hub project would begin in 2026 and open in 2027. The parking lot would have 250 paid spots including six charging stations for electric vehicles and potentially planned infrastructure for an on-site water source. The watercraft station would be the first approved there and would serve as a model for future stations.

Board member Alexis Hill asked them to consider charging for the transit, which would have spots at Spooner Lake, Skunk Harbor, Chimney Beach and Sand Harbor. Belinda Faustinos added that she felt there should be a parking pass for low-income users as well as Spanish translation to get the word out about the project.

The Tahoe Transportation District specified they were not considering a locals discount for parking, and may be considering reservations for parking similar to Sand Harbor’s parking lot.

Brooke Laine advised them to think about electrification infrastructure expansion and to possibly consider water transit through the private sector, something she has been invested in with regards to the Emerald Bay Pilot Transit Program.

The motion to grant the project a permit passed.

425 Pahute Road

A case for tearing down a property and rebuilding it was heard at the meeting, regarding applicant Kurt Caillier’s home which is currently under construction. Since 2022, neighbor Victor Elgohary has filed lawsuits about the building and came to appeal the TRPA permit to Caillier.

Elgohary primarily was concerned with the safety of the neighborhood and the need to provide an easement, which some in Washoe County did request. Caillier previously mentioned he would add boulders on this property, which Elgohary felt would block the road.

Shelly Aldean said the appeal raised questions of if a private citizen should be asked to provide an easement, which would open him to liability.

The governing board granted Caillier the permit.

State of the Lake 2025

Governing board members listened to TERC director Dr. Stephanie Hampton about the state of the lake. She presented several factors and her approaches to researching them.

Hampton stated that the increasing minimum air temperature in Tahoe is causing more rainfall rather than snowfall and that the average annual rate of warming in the lake is 0.21 degrees Fahrenheit. She also said phosphorus levels are increasing, which is a focus of TERC research this year.

The water clarity continues to hold steady in the winter, but is worsening in the summer. Hampton referenced a study in 2006 that attributed particles in the lake to inorganic sources such as road sediment. However, she said that their measuring methods for clarity in the lake do not indicate what the particles are. She was interested in investigating the kinds of particles and drivers that reduce lake clarity, including wildfires.

Hampton also spoke about the algae in nearshore research and monitoring and said that with the addition of a graduate student and partner that they will be experimenting with satellite remote sensing of periphyton and metaphyton, which could be more accurate than current tracking methods.

Another graduate student will also be testing the use of environmental DNA in monitoring invasive species in Tahoe.

Education is a major part of the TERC’s mission, but Hampton said their educational programs were hit particularly hard by changes in federal funding. Four Americorps members were affected when the program was terminated in the middle of their tenure, though the TERC found alternate funding sources for them. The Institute for Museum and Library Services funding was also frozen, which was a major part of the TERC’s funding for educational outreach.

However, Hampton said they were “weathering the changes” and pursuing new partnerships. The TERC had over 10,000 residents and visitors engaging in 2024, new exhibits and curriculum as well as a presence all around the lake.

TRPA Updates

Executive director Julie Regan provided updates on the Tahoe Summit, which was well attended this year and included a tribute to Sen. Dianne Feinstein. She also stated that the TRPA facility has finished its rock wall, BMP maintenance and making their front entry ADA compliant. Their next steps are to do more defensible space improvements.

Cultivating Community, Conserving the Basin is entering its next steps and moving into a new stage. Regan indicated that vice chair Hoenigman said that, “Now is the time to raise objections,” as they work on the long-term project.

In September, Regan anticipated that they would hear about the Roundhill Campground project, the North Tahoe Trail project permit and that the TRPA would be presenting an overview on the new reporting and accountability department.

The next governing board meeting will take place on September 24.

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.