Dollar Donations from Guests Support Tahoe Fund & Truckee River Watershed Council

OLYMPIC VALLEY, Calif.  – May 10, 2016 – Thanks to the generosity of guests at Squaw ValleyAlpine Meadows, the legendary ski resort recently donated a little over $48,000 in Green Bucks to the Tahoe Fund and the Truckee River Watershed Council.  The donation came from dollar donations added to lift tickets, season passes and food & beverage sales during the 2015 and 2016 seasons.

“This is our third season with the Green Bucks program, and the momentum gained has been astounding,” said Andy Wirth, president and CEO of Squaw Valley Ski Holdings. “Together with our visitors and local residents, we have contributed $81,534 to date to two of our region’s critical environmental organizations, all just a few dollars at a time. Our pristine natural surroundings are an essential part of what makes this region special and we are proud to help preserve that legacy.”

“A huge thank you to all of the guests of Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows for helping to support our efforts to preserve the Tahoe environment,” said Tahoe Fund CEO Amy Berry. “It is simply amazing to see how these dollar donations add up to a huge amount of support.”

“Thanks to the business community and their guests,” said Lisa Wallace, executive director of the Truckee River Watershed Council. “Conservation groups will be able to protect and restore more meadows and forests, and provide more recreation access.”

Green Bucks is a partner program between the Tahoe Fund and the Truckee River Watershed Council that aims to harness the passion of visitors and residents to help care for this extraordinary mountain environment. Through Green Bucks, local businesses allow guests to add donations to lift tickets, hotel rooms, golf rounds and meals.

About the Tahoe Fund
The mission of Tahoe Fund is to restore and enhance the extraordinary natural environment of the Lake Tahoe Basin by building broad support and funding for projects and programs that increase the enjoyment of the region for current and future generations. The Fund focuses grants on the core areas of conservation, recreation and stewardship. www.tahoefund.org

About Truckee River Watershed Council

The Truckee River Watershed Council brings the community Together for the Truckee. It focuses on collaborative solutions for the protection, enhancement and restoration of the Truckee River watershed.  www.truckeeriverwc.org

About Squaw Valley | Alpine Meadows

Voted 2016 ‘Best Ski Resort’ in North America by USA Today and 10Best Readers’ Choice, Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows is an internationally renowned mountain resort in North Lake Tahoe that spans over 6,000 skiable acres. The resort features slopeside lodging at The Village at Squaw Valley®, which bustles year round with nonstop events and nearly 60 bars, restaurants and boutiques. With an annual average of 450 inches of snowfall and 300 sunny days, Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows is known as the spring skiing capital as it provides one of the longest ski and snowboard seasons in Lake Tahoe. Over 65 percent beginner and intermediate terrain and 14 easy-to-navigate mountain zones welcome skiers and riders of all ability levels. Visit squawalpine.com or call 1.800.403.0206 to learn more.

TAHOE FUND NAMES ART CHAPMAN BOARD CHAIR
Longtime Environmentalist Clem Shute Joins the Board

INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. and TAHOE CITY, Calif.  – April 13, 2016 – The Tahoe Fund, an environmental nonprofit dedicated to raising private support for environmental projects at Lake Tahoe, today announced the appointment of Art Chapman as chair of the board of directors. The organization, now entering its sixth year, also announced the appointment of environmental attorney E. Clement (Clem) Shute, Jr. to its board of directors. The bi-state organization is focused on restoring the Lake’s famed clarity, improving outdoor recreation and inspiring greater stewardship of the Tahoe Basin.  Chapman takes over as chair from Tim Cashman, who will remain a board member of the organization.

“Tahoe is an incredibly special place to me and my family,” said Art Chapman. “As a founding member of this organization, I have seen the great work we can do for Tahoe with the help of the private community. I am honored to be named chair and will continue to focus our efforts on growing our impact.”

Chapman is the Founder of JMA Ventures. Headquartered in San Francisco, JMA’s assets include The Fairmont Heritage Place Hotel at Ghirardelli Square, the Epic and Waterbar restaurants in San Francisco, Homewood Mountain Resort at Lake Tahoe, The West Shore Café and Inn, and ownership interests in the Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows ski resorts.  He was a founding member of the Tahoe Fund. He was also appointed to and served, alongside Chute, on the bi-state California/Nevada consultation committee that guided the development of the recently adopted Tahoe Regional Plan that is administered by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency. In 2011, Art was recognized as the Citizen of the Year by the North Lake Tahoe Resort Association.

Clem Shute, the co-founder of Shute Mihaly & Weinberger LLP, is an environmental lawyer with deep roots in California and Lake Tahoe. He was involved in the early battles over the formation of TRPA, including property rights issues and a proposed casino.  During the 1980’s he represented the League to Save Lake Tahoe, particularly in the formulation of TRPA’s 1987 Regional Plan.  Thereafter, he represented TRPA in the 2002 US Supreme Court decision upholding the agency’s restrictions on developing on high hazard lands as well as defending TRPA’s successful prohibition on two stroke engines.

“As a lawyer and policymaker, I have been involved in many controversial issues at Lake Tahoe for decades,” said Clem Shute. “It is an honor to join this growing organization which has the non-controversial purpose of supporting projects and programs that will be of great value in sustaining this unique lake.”

The Tahoe Fund has raised private funds for 15 projects in the Tahoe Basin, including a new bike path from Incline to Sand Harbor that will break ground this year. The organization will launch fundraising campaigns for its 2016 projects in early summer. They will feature the acquisition of 200 acres in South Lake Tahoe on the area’s highest priority watershed, a new overlook at Taylor Creek to help improve the visitor experience during the popular salmon run, a restored section of hiking trail on the famed Rubicon Trail on the West Shore, and a new section of Lake Tahoe Bikeway near Dollar Point.

LAKE TAHOE, Calif. and Nev. – November 17, 2015 – The Tahoe Fund is launching a new project submission process for environmental organizations that would like to partner with the Tahoe Fund to restore lake clarity, improve outdoor recreation and inspire stewardship of the Tahoe Basin.  Organizations are invited to submit project ideas at http://www.tahoefund.org/our-projects/submit-a-project/. The Tahoe Fund Projects Committee will review proposals on a rolling basis, but any projects seeking 2016 support should submit by January 31, 2016.

“We have simplified the process to make it much easier for organizations to share projects with us,” said Tahoe Fund Projects Committee Co-Chair, Jim Lawrence. “We look forward to receiving project ideas that will have a meaningful impact and inspire our private donors.”

Since 2010, the Tahoe Fund has raised funds from private donors for 15 environmental improvement projects including new bike paths, watershed restorations, removal of aquatic invasive species and environmental stewardship programs.  The Tahoe Fund’s biggest project to date is the Incline to Sand Harbor Bike Path that is still open for donations.

Eligible projects must be able to demonstrate that all environmental permits will be obtained, enjoy strong community support, and have other sources of funding identified. Further details can be found at http://www.tahoefund.org/our-projects/submit-a-project/.

Projects should be consistent with the program level priorities established as part of the 2008-2018 Environmental Improvement Update. With the notable exception of education/interpretation projects, the Fund will generally not include funding requests for planning, design, or other pre-construction activities, or for maintenance and monitoring of projects in its portfolios.