Tahoe OKs tax for added fire safety

TAHOE CITY, Calif. -- Four months after Lake Tahoe’s largest recorded wild-land fire, Tahoe City-area property owners have overwhelmingly voted to pay an annual assessment to improve fire safety on the north shore.

A total of 3,873 voters approved the assessment while 1,589 rejected it. The mail-in election ended Wednesday, when ballots were counted.

The tax is expected to generate $625,000 a year for expansion of the North Tahoe Fire Protection District’s brush-chipping and fuels reduction programs, and defensible space inspections.

The revenue also will be used to modernize communications systems, contract for water-dropping helicopters, plan neighborhood evacuation routes and increase engine staffing during periods of high fire danger.

Single-family homeowners in the upscale community will be assessed an annual fee starting at $48; commercial property owners will pay a higher rate.

“I think the community is aware of how important fire prevention is, especially in light of what’s happening in Southern California,” board President Russ Potts told Truckee’s Sierra Sun newspaper. “It gives us an opportunity to continue forward and actually improve to a higher level of fire protection.”

Approval of the tax follows the 3,072-acre Angora wildfire in June that destroyed 254 homes on Lake Tahoe’s south shore. It was caused by an untended campfire.

In August, a 20-acre wildfire on Lake Tahoe’s west shore destroyed five homes.

“Nobody likes paying more taxes, but the bottom line is, let’s protect things now,” resident Tom Pandola said. “I understand the whole challenge they face with the fire situation up here.”

Fires pose a unique threat to Lake Tahoe because they can increase soil erosion and affect the lake’s famed clarity. The Tahoe Basin is especially fire prone because of its dense forests.

“Our risk of fire can’t be overstated, and to that extent, we have a lot ahead of us,” said North Tahoe Fire Chief Duane Whitelaw.