The State - News from May 8, 1989

Local homeowners and the Sierra Club have joined forces to fight a Squaw Valley Ski Corp. expansion project. They say the cutting of more than 1,800 trees in Shirley Canyon and Tram Bowl to make way for new ski lifts would destroy the valley’s last remaining pristine area and damage its watershed. The Sierra Club has filed suit to block the tree-cutting and the Squaw Valley Homeowners Assn. supports the action. A Superior Court ruling, expected in about 60 days, could require a second environmental impact statement or could give the go-ahead for the cutting. “We’re trying to protect Squaw Valley from adverse development,” said Janice Flannigan, association vice president. The suit contends Placer County supervisors erred by allowing the cutting since their decision was based on an incomplete environmental impact study. Ski corporation owner Alex Cushing defended the supervisors, saying the study was done by qualified experts and adequately addressed environmental concerns.