By Lynne Paulson
The 11-year effort by California’s Department of Parks and Recreation and the Park and Recreation Commission to expand a golf course into Washoe Meadows State Park near South Lake Tahoe was upended in November. The California First District Appellate Court affirmed a 2015 lower court ruling that ordered Parks to vacate its approval of their proposed project.
Sierra Club leaders Grace and the late Bob Anderson founded Washoe Meadows Community in 2006 to oppose State Park’s plan to move up to nine holes of a golf course into a park which had been dedicated to be protected by 1984 legislation that referenced its “unique and irreplaceable” resources.
In 2011 the State Parks Commission voted 5-0 to approve State Parks request to downgrade the status of Washoe Meadows State Park to a State Recreation Area to allow the golf course expansion. This reclassification is unprecedented in California.
The Sierra Club has been involved in this effort since the beginning and this year the Sierra Club worked with the Center for Biological Diversity to file an amicus brief in the Appeals court case. Their brief emphasized that State Parks is “charged with protecting California’s biological diversity and natural resources by designating state parks in perpetuity.”
The recent appeals court ruling indicated that Parks failed to comply with the California Environmental Quality Act on multiple grounds. Parks’ non-compliance included actions which degraded the public’s ability to participate in the review process.
The state purchased Washoe Meadows in 1984, citing the land’s outstanding ecological assets. These include rare fens, meadows, forests, wetlands, and cultural sites. The state park is home to a diversity of wildlife including the elusive pine marten, northern goshawk, and long eared owl, as well as coyote, bears, fish, amphibians, and other birds. A recent wildflower tour displayed the variety of native species flourishing in the park.
Despite the court win, the Sierra Club will stay engaged in order to review and act on any new project proposed by State Parks. It is important to avoid the precedent-setting downgrade of park land for commercial purposes.
For more information, see the Tahoe Area Sierra Club website www.sierraclub.org/mother-lode/tahoe
or the Washoe Meadows Community website washoemeadowscommunity.org/