775 acres between the North Shore of Lake Tahoe and Northstar resort
139 acres above Carnelian Bay, about a mile in on the Fibreboard Freeway (road to Watson Lake), the rest on the mountain heading down to Northstar
At a Glance
- 775 acres of new homes, condos, timeshares, stores, restaurants, and bars
- A gated community of “luxury lodges” inside the Tahoe Basin
- Destruction of more than a mile of forested ridge line
- Zoning will have to be changed to allow a sprawling new complex on current forest lands
- Thousands of trees killed
- Wildlife migratory areas and habitats disrupted or eliminated
- Significant additional demand for a very limited water supply in an area already hard-hit by drought
- Local water and utility companies have already voiced their objections
- 25-year construction zone near Brockway summit
- Further degradation of Tahoe’s natural beauty
- Scenic impacts from Northstar to the North Shore
- Significantly more traffic plus noise, water, air, and light pollution
- Grave concerns about wildfire danger so far from established services
- Directly in contradiction of TRPA’s own most recent Regional Planning Update, which states that scenic value must be protected and new development should be concentrated in “town centers”
- Big profits for a private developer and a logging company at the expense of the lake, the forests, the public, and future generations
The Story So Far
Mountain Area Preservation and Sierra Watch have teamed up with Sierra Pacific Industries (land owner) and East West Partners (developer) to save 6,600 acres in the Martis Valley. But there is a price: allowing an all-new 775-acre complex consisting of retail, single-family homes, and timeshare/condo units on undeveloped forest lands between the North Shore and Northstar. These groups’ good intentions have resulted in a bad outcome: the Martis Valley West proposal, a new development that will permanently and irrevocably scar the face of Lake Tahoe’s North Shore and surrounding areas.
More information can be found at the Placer County Web site: http://www.placer.ca.gov/departments/communitydevelopment/envcoordsvcs/eir/martisvalleywestparcel