Like others around North Lake Tahoe we’ve noted a 5000% increase in the appearance of yoga pants around the area, and that can only mean one thing. Wanderlust is back in town. Personally yoga is not my thing, as I am easily distracted by squirrels. But Wanderlust does represent something that Squaw Valley does right. It fills the village at a time of year where it might otherwise be empty. At the same time, a lot of those visitors also choose to get out and enjoy the real Lake Tahoe. As the yoga and music festival is spread over several days, there is no peak traffic crunch that paralyzes the area. It’s really a win-win for everyone.
We wish everything at Squaw Valley worked that way. We know it doesn’t. Although it’s been a bit quiet over the last couple of months, the proposed Village at Squaw Valley project is still looming. It’s one of several proposals for North lake Tahoe that would have far reaching impacts, forever. The Environmental Impact Report for the project identified more than 20 “significant and unavoidable” impacts from the proposal. Public commentary on the project runs about 200 to 1, with the majority of people looking for major reductions or a complete rejection of the plan. Those that have publicly expressed support for the plan include real estate developers and architects that stand to profit from the proposal.
For those that care about the future of Squaw Valley and the North Lake Tahoe region, there’s a few new updates to note:
• The Placer County Planning Commission will be meeting on August 11 to consider approval of the Village At Squaw Valley Specific Plan. A specific location and time for the meeting has not been determined, but it will be in eastern Placer County. We hope to see the same sort of turnouts that were recently seen for meetings regarding the Martis West project, which was denied at the Commission’s last meeting.
• Chevis Hosea is no longer serving as Squaw Valley’s Vice President of Development. According to HospitalityNet, Hosea has moved on to oversee a Miraval Resort spa project. Miraval Resorts is another subsidiary of KSL Capital. As VP of Development, it was always Hosea that reminded anyone willing to listen that nothing less than the fully proposed development would “pencil out” for Squaw Valley. Who will be saying that now?
• The marketing depart at Squaw Valley has duly noted that there is support for some redevelopment of the current village. The Facebook page for the Village at Squaw Valley has now been changed to the “Village at Squaw Valley Redevelopment”. We’re guessing that we will be seeing a lot more of that term thrown about. While it’s true that a portion of the proposal would redevelop parking lots, don’t be fooled. Unless something radical is presented at the August meeting of the Planning Commission, the project still includes plans for new construction in Shirley Canyon and on the east parcel on Squaw Valley road; they also still include plans for a 90,000 square foot indoor aquatic park and recreation center; and countless other super-sizing that leads to all of those significant and unavoidable impacts.
• A new webpage, SquawTomorrow, appeared this month touting the benefits of the Village project. There’s not much to it other than begging people to support the project. We’re pretty certain that the costs to the North Lake Tahoe community will greater than the benefits they suggest. Besides the jobs the project could create, there is little guarantee that profits from the project will stay in Tahoe. Nor is there any promise that taxes generated from the project will stay in Tahoe to benefit this area. We would love to see Squaw Valley support the restoration of Squaw Creek and other recreational improvements without using it as a bartering chip to gain public support for the project.
We hope to see many people at the Planning Commission meeting on August 11th. We will post an update letting you know the exact time and location for the meeting.
For the 1st Wanderlust in 2009, Nancy gave Valley residents 2 free tickets to all events as compensation for the traffic and noise (yes, you could hear the music throughout the entire valley) created by the event. Since then, KSL has slowly reduced the spiffs from 3 day yoga tickets, to 1 day yoga tickets, to 25% off yoga tickets this year. It’s apparent – SVSH really doesn’t care about their neighbors in the Valley.
Pretty sure none of that ever happened? I thought everyone in the valley rents out their house and gets out of town during wanderlust, anyways. Seems like most locals are staying away, other than maybe checking out the headlining music. Also talked to several people on vacation during the week that were glad to be leaving before the event started. Not my thing, but overall seems like a good event. Also cool that the Keep Squaw True folks were able to chat people up without getting hassled by KSL.
It’s a win win for everyone except those who live in the valley. What’s wrong with a ski resort being quiet in summer? It’s a ski resort with a town attached, it’s not a concert venue, playa, or theme park. It’s not just an empty space, people live here and deserve to be treated respectfully and in a neighborly fashion. But no, money is always the most important factor😒. And it can be argued that property owners can do whatever they want with their property, but that’s just not true, there are ordinances and other laws for good reasons.
Touché Willy. I understand your point about living in the Valley perfectly….not quite a win-win for everyone!
Thanks Mark, I know you get it. My frustration is with SVSH/KSL, not you, I came across as arguing with your post and I’m not. I just don’t buy the year round business model for Squaw, I think it degrades what Squaw is, a beautiful area that needs protection not exploitation. They should fix Squaw creek and other f%#&-ups first, then we will see about their development plans.
If KSL gets their way with development, events such as Wanderlust will no longer exist in the valley. There will be no room to hold them. People would have to deal with 25 years of construction, noise, dust, etc.
Local businesses (that KSL proclaims to care so much about) would suffer. Who wants to attend an event or each lunch, play golf or get married in a virtual war zone.
At least Wirth doesn’t seem to be moderating anything this year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAqStYM3m-E
There’s also this weird voice-over at the end of this video.
http://wanderlust.com/journal/jt-holmes-extreme-mountain-man/
There’s less music at Wanderlust than there used to be. They even had a large stage near High Camp the second year. The cost cutting focus is on 3rd tier DJs and semi-acoustic acts instead of the usual festival bands. Barely known So Cal musician Gene Evaro Jr hit the Tahoe quadfecta by being booked at the High Sierra, Wanderlust, Guitarfish and Commons Beach this year. Yes, it’s who you know. Terminology tip: When they say “Sensual Ecstatic Dance” at Wanderlust, they really mean “Bad Jazz Dance”
I will now meditate on the eventual merger of Miraval Group and Wanderlust.
Hmmm. While I know yoga is about mindfulness, and I’m sure there are lots at wanderlust that are capable of that, it brings up a question I often ask myself: Why does Squaw attract so many narcissists? Now I’m certainly not saying that everyone who comes here (or works here) is one, because that’s definitely not true, but there is a crazy mix of loving, unselfish, fun, friendly people and then there are the self-absorbed, shallow, un-empathic, image-focused people who at times can be total a-holes. Someone needs to do a study, enquiring minds want to know.
Well duh willy, “the beautiful people, the beautiful people…”
HA! You’re right, that was a “well duh” question. I get that Squaw is a world-renowned resort, all those draw narcissists. What I was implying, poorly, was that there seems to be a culture here that tolerates and even glorifies narcissistic behavior, to some degree, among some people. This is where my curiosity lies.
Andie Worthe wears yoga pants as sexy as anyone….
I didn’t know they made denim yoga pants!
KSL keeps talking about “redeveloping” the parking lot into something more environmentally friendly. What they don’t talk about is the new parking lots they will have to build to make up for the lost parking. (Anyone who thinks all those cars are going to park under the new buildings is dreaming.) They do mention one remote lot they will build for phase I. Later phases will certainly come with more remote lots, but KSL has been silent on where those will be. Passholders–be prepared to pay through the nose for parking. If you want a taste of what’s to come, check out the AM lot on a weekend–the close in pay parking far exceeds the demand. What it is is a money grab so that people who arrive after the free parking is full have no choice but to pay. (To be fair, AM was doing that before KSL bought it.)
I suspect that the under-building lots will likely be reserved for people staying in the buildings above. KSL’s destination resort ambitions suggest that eventually, all parking at the Squaw base will likely be paid, directly or indirectly (as a function of real estate), and others will come in on shuttles of some sort. My guess is that parking at Alpine will remain free, at least for longer than at Squaw, as KSL tries to differentiate the guest experience.
This is all my guesswork, but educated guesswork.
“Laundercrust” is another purely capitalistic festival for yippies, yuppie-hippies that believe that spending thousands of dollars on yoga, music performances, workshops and other things somehow makes them better people and the planet better as a whole.
Similar yet not as hedonistic as burning man festival, creates a huge overall carbon footprint and creates nothing that is lasting. All a sham IMO.
If all that energy and purposefulness were directed toward things and issues that really mattered, such as help for the homeless, mentally ill, race relations, global goodwill to end radicalization and terrorism to name a few, the world would actually be a much better place.
Instead psuedo goodwill festivals like wanderlust only line the pockets of the organizers etc.
There was and still is a belief among many, that pure consciousness can be only found individually by one in solitude with nature.
Which is entirely why protecting valuable, natural yet diminishing resources such as the splendor of an under developed Squaw valley and surronding N Tahoe region from increased carbon emissions, noise, light pollution and congestion for the purpose of capital gain is so damn important for the well being of all but for a few greedy ass bastards of the likes of Chevis Hosea who once had been qouted in the Sierra Sun as saying “Our way of life is being injured…” in regards to local anti development sentiment.
Good fkking riddance to him, he can go try and screw up somewhere else.
Thank you again Mark for the excellent and honest journalism and a forum where we can unabashadly state our opinions.
You just haven’t evolved. You’re probably not even vegan. And I’m sure you don’t have a “Spiritual Gangster” shirt like so many of those wandering and lusting.
Lol
too true, too true…and I neither have nepali prayer flags on my home or backstay of my sailboat…so un-enlightened
FYI in regards to the anti-development sentiment ratio of 200-1 against squaw village plans looks like KSL/Svsh is scrambling to garner any support they can
http://squawalpine.com/explore/blog/squaw-valley-ski-holdings-llc-launches-%E2%80%9Csquaw-tomorrow%E2%80%9D-effort-support-village
heard an ad for on ktke in truckee other day as well
a possible sign that things are not so well in worthy’s soon to be divorced world??
Hosea may be gone but “critical mass” remains:
http://www.sierrasun.com/news/opinion/23038088-113/opinion-why-i-support-the-village-redevelopment-at
“The current incomplete village is barely viable because it does not have the critical mass of residences”
“it does not provide sufficient critical mass to ensure future viability of the Village”