If you are unable to join the Zoom meeting by computer or cell phone, you may still submit issues to be discussed to Denise Davis (ivcbcommunityforum@gmail.com).
Denise Davis – Moderator, Citizen Advisory Board Member, IVGID Ordinance 7 Committee Member, Citizen Emergency Response Team (CERT) Member
John Crockett and Amanda McPhaill – Washoe County Library Zoom-masters
Ronda Tycer – Recap Editor
Denise Davis – Forum Moderator
Good morning, Forum. How’s everybody doing? I’m Denise Davis your moderator. Ronda Tycer is our Forum recap editor. And John Crockett is our tech guru. As a reminder, our meeting is being recorded. Before you begin speaking, please state your name. While speaking, please be respectful. Personal attacks will not be tolerated. For those online, if you’d like to share URLs, post them in the Chat Box and they’ll be included at the end of the meeting recap. We partner with IVCB Community 1s.t.org and IVCBA.org to get information out. So, be sure to visit their websites and sign up for their newsletters. To sign up for our Forum meeting notices and recaps, send an email to us at ivcbcommunityforum@gmail.com.
Ryan Sommers – North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District Chief
Good morning. Not much is happening at the Fire Department. We’re between seasons. We just laid off our first hand crew yesterday and we have a hand crew whose last day is Saturday. So we’ll have a skeleton fuels crew through winter. We are pursuing burning more piles, so that will continue. November 30th, December 1st, and 2nd we’ll all be in training all day long at the Hyatt, so I’m not sure anybody will be on the Forum. Tia may be able to jump on Friday the 2nd, but I’ll be in training all day. You will see a bunch of our rigs down at the Hyatt for the annual Paramedic Refresher course. We also open it up to other firefighters and paramedics, so there are usually about 200 people who attend. So, it’s a pretty good training session for all of us.
Tia Rancourt – North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District Public Information Officer
Good morning. I don’t have anything more but I just want to thank the community for being patient when we burn our piles. If anyone wants to be on the Prescribed Fire Notification List, send me an email. I’ll put my email in the Chat Box.
Denise Davis
Chief, we were talking the other night about the fact that we are in the time frame when we’ve had big fires in Reno. The Collin Fires both happened in November. Do you have any words of advice to share so we don’t see a repeat?
Ryan Sommers
With First Responders, every time you say it’s quiet, it immediately turns in the opposite direction. So, I don’t want to talk about the fires in Reno because we don’t want them to come back. It’s just still dry out there. There’s some snow on the ground for us, but there’s not much in Reno. We need to continue with fire safety as we do throughout the summer. We need to do that through the winter. If you’re going to burn wood in your fireplace, obviously make sure your fireplace has been serviced. And if you don’t have snow on your roof—it’s a little late now—but make sure those pine needles are cleared from that chimney area in case any sparks come out from up there. Unfortunately, we need to continue on with wildfire safety because it’s an all-year thing now.
Denise Davis
Speaking of pine needles on roofs, do you have a list of contractors or any referral to help people take pine needles off their roofs?
Ryan Sommers
Yes, we do. I can’t recommend someone, but I can supply a list of all the licensed contractors who are certified to do that.
Denise Davis
Okay, because I’m thinking some of us should not be on our roofs anymore. Or you might be getting a different call.
Ryan Sommers
I get it. We don’t want to put anyone in harm’s way. So let me work on that list and email it out.
John Crockett – Washoe County Head Librarian, Incline Mobility Hub Committee Member
Today at the library we have the Spellbinders Magic Show. Larry Wilson is nationally renowned and based in Reno. They do a great show at the Pioneer Auditorium every year. But they do smaller shows at the libraries. So he’s here today at 3:30 pm. We also have free tickets to give away to the show in Reno tomorrow. There are two shows: 2 pm and 7 pm. So if you have any kiddos or you just like magic, come get some of those tickets.
The shiny new thing at the library is our Zoom Room. It’s a pod for 2-4 people that is a soundproof booth where you can take a Zoom call, or do an interview, or just have some quiet time to study, read, or work. You can reserve the room for 2-hour sessions. Check it out. It’s in the back corner of our library here.
Denise Davis
And while you’re up, do you want to give us a report on the Incline Mobility Hub Committee?
John Crockett
Helen Neff, you asked what the outreach plan is. And that should be coming soon. So our next meeting is Wednesday November 30th. HDR Engineering is going to present their outreach plan.
At the October meeting, they asked us for input on how to go about that. We wanted to make sure they were doing some outreach in Spanish, connecting with the churches, the local nonprofits, and getting input from Diamond Peak pass holders, and also renters who may not be owners. They were gathering ideas from us for how they would go about the outreach. They plan to do a kickoff event similar to the transportation event held last Wednesday. They are supposed to present us with their outreach plan in November. So that’s coming soon.
Kathie Julian – Incline Village Resident, Washoe Board of Adjustment Member
Is there any effort to establish some baseline data that people have been asking for? Is this committee pushing for data collection, and what’s happening on that front?
John Crockett
Yes, extremely, on the data collection. Carole Black has pushed for that at each meeting. I think a lot of the data they’re using is from 2017. They paid to get cell phone data, which tracks people coming into the basin. But Carole has repeatedly stated that we need more comprehensive and updated data. I recall Carl Hasty saying yes, they would make an effort to do that. So, I don’t know the details of what exactly they would collect. But yes, Carole continues to speak up requesting that.
Kathie Julian
Just to follow up on that, I think one of the data pieces missing was a survey of community needs for transportation, and specifically commuter needs. We always hear that commuters in that area need this type of service. But no proper survey has been done of the workers in that area and what their specific transportation needs might be.
John Crockett
Also, I’m curious if anybody who attended the Transportation Summit on Wednesday has any thoughts. I didn’t get there until the end.
Denise Davis
There were representatives from many different entities. There were people from Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT), TART, Washoe County, Reno Transportation Commission, and our Commissioner.
There was a presentation about specific intersections that had been identified as problematic.
Their heat map showed that somebody has commented about nearly every street in town. They showed us the heat map. They reported on what comments and suggestions they had collected. They had discussions about State Route 28. They were just taking comments and putting forth some ideas and solutions to issues that had been brought up.
Linda Offerdahl – Incline Village Resident, IVCB Community and Business Association
Executive Director
Under IVCBA is the Main Street program. The County has asked us to be the interface with the community to work on the action plan. They have a meeting set up November 28 at which we’ll find out more [inaudible] workshop at that time. I can also announce that the Board of County Commissioners has given a $25,000 grant to IVCBA to work on Incline Main Street. The Main Street program is the national program that helps small towns with revitalization and redevelopment as well as promotion, which is a lot of what IVCBA already does.
Denise Davis
Is there a stated goal on what has to be done with the money from the County?
Linda Offerdahl
The intention is that we hire staff.
John Crockett
Is there any news about Northern Lights?
Linda Offerdahl
All kinds of it. [inaudible] Northern Lights lets everyone know every activity that’s happening in the village all of November and December. The website is northernlightstahoe.com. There are calendars that show every activity in that timeframe. You can get all the details from ivcba.org. [inaudible]
Many of us wanted to have a tree we could decorate here in town.[inaudible] We found a tree on the University of Reno Tahoe campus. And UNR Tahoe would very much like to be part of our community. They are hosting Candy Cane Village Dec 3rd – 26th. [inaudible] Big family fun. They have Nevada Santa arriving in Lake Tahoe on a fire engine. [inaudible] The Incline Elementary School has a [inaudible] some activities [inaudible]. It’s just going to be a lot of fun—cookies and [inaudible].
In the IVCBA Live, Work, Play magazine, if you saw the Snapshot Newsletter, [inaudible]
due to arrive in town today. So that means that next week you should be able to see your very own copy in your mailbox [inaudible], community updates, [inaudible]. And we rolled out a new website at ivcba.org. We have a brand new look.
Denise Davis
I see Jeff Church is on today. Is there anything you want to tell us about? It seems things are really quiet at the School Board.
Jeff Church – Washoe County School District Trustee District 2
No, things are not quiet at all. On November 22nd we will be narrowing down the list, and December 6th appointing a new trustee to fill in for Angie Taylor who got elected to the State Assembly. That will be for northwest central Reno, basically north of I-80 in Reno, not North Valley. The map is available online. The application process is now closed. There were seven applicants. The newspapers made hay on one of them being Joey Gilbert who ran for governor. We have to look at all seven objectively, so I can’t form any kind of opinion at this point. Then we have another new trustee, Colie Wesley. She’ll be sworn in on January 10th. So that’s exciting. We welcome her. All other incumbents were reelected: Smith, Rodriguez, and Mayberry. So we will have two new trustees on the board, which is very exciting. That’s the main news. But I’m planning ahead. My goals are quality of education, fiscal responsibility, and transparency.
There were some issues with an event held at Reno High School for Bernie Sanders. It looks like some rules were violated and mistakes were made. I’m not saying it was political in nature, but we didn’t do what we were supposed to do for processing that. I feel let down as a trustee that it was allowed to happen. I’ll be happy to answer any other questions. But things are not quiet nor are they ever at the Washoe County School District.
Denise Davis
Apparently my satire didn’t translate over Zoom. Sergeant Colacurcio is here, but we’re holding him in reserve. We have Captain Cory Solferino coming in later. Sergeant Cola says he has no news, which is good news. I’ll just remind everybody that it is winter so we do have red day/green day parking rules to deal with. The phone number for learning if it is a red day or a green day is 775 833-5555.
Joseph Colacurcio – Washoe County Sheriff Office Sergeant
With red and green days, if you guys are having issues with folks parking in snow storage areas or things like that, and you know snow is coming and the days are going to change, it would be helpful if you put in a call for service on the nonemergency number: 775 785-WCSO … This way we can get ahead of it. So the road department is not finding cars with their snowblowers, which is a lot of paperwork. And it will also give us a head start to get out and give them a warning before we start writing citations.
Margaret Martini – Incline Village Resident, Ordinance 7 Committee Member
I have a question on the red and green snow days. On the big dumpsters, the big, big trash receptacles—what’s the ruling? Do they get to stay on the road all winter?
Joseph Colacurcio
No. There should be nothing in the roadway like that. There’s a law for 72-hour storage if you store your motor vehicle or a trailer for more than 72 hours. First we would issue a citation for storage, and then it can be towed. Something like that is pretty easy for us. We just call Waste Management and they come pick up the dumpster.
Margaret Martini
Right, because they aren’t parking off to the side as much as they could.
Joseph Colacurcio
So if you guys are having issues, call the nonemergency number and put in a call for service. We will come out and evaluate and see what it is. Construction has to happen. But they should make due effort to place the trash can or roll it off to an appropriate place so that it does not affect or impede traffic. If you have questions, call. That’s the easiest way to deal with it. Either another deputy or myself will call you back, and we’ll go from there.
Denise Davis
I have further announcements. The next CAB meeting is scheduled for Monday, December 5. That will be our last Zoom-only CAB meeting. Starting in January we’ll have hybrid meetings here in the library and on Zoom. The Board of Washoe County Commissioners has a meeting today at 10am for the vote canvas, which is to go over our recent election. They will not have a meeting on November 22nd. They’ll hold only 2 meetings in December. So, we’re quickly wrapping up the year as far as our county commissioners are concerned.
The Board of Adjustment has a meeting scheduled for December 1st. It was listed on the website under Projects. But it’s not on their agenda yet. IVGID bike park Phase 2 was listed as possibly being discussed at that meeting. So keep checking the website if you’re interested.
The good news is that the highway work has ended for the winter. Enjoy it while it lasts, because there’s a lot of road construction going on next year.
The Tahoe Transportation District (TTD) Program Implementation Committee has a meeting scheduled November 28 10:30 am. I don’t believe the agenda is available yet so we don’t know what’s happening at that meeting.
John already announced that the Incline Mobility Hub Committee is scheduled to meet on November 30 at 5:30. This committee is the one discussing the mobility hub. One possible location for the hub is the Old Incline Elementary School (OES).
We have a lot of things called “mobility” in our community right now. Amy Cummings, who held a meeting this past Wednesday, is the county contractor studying mobility issues in our community. The Mobility Hub Committee through the TTD is studying a location for a bus hub.
John Crockett
And I want to emphasize that they’ll be determining the scope of the project before assessing the location. The purpose of the committee is to advise them on the public outreach process.
Denise Davis
That’s the difference between these two mobility groups. Amy Cummins is the county contractor and the IV Mobility Hub Committee is the group that will be looking at the mobility hub process.
That’s all the meeting announcements. Just as an incentive for all you on line, we have donuts here for those in person today. So if you need an incentive to join us in person—there could be donuts.
Carolyn Usinger – Incline Village Resident
In September two people referred me to this group for two different issues. You know about the first issue. That’s when Judge Tiras referred me here to iron out how to work together so I don’t get arrested for dumping trash from Tahoe roads into NDOT trash bins. I’m working with IVGID on that and going to an NDOT meeting today. So that’s moving forward.
Alexis Hill also asked me to come here back in September to share a community collaboration tool I developed. It’s called Yes to Connect. This project is actually why I came back to Incline in 2019. I didn’t actually return to clean streets. That was just a side thing. Basically the Yes to Connect takes community collaboration to the next level with four interconnected apps that connect businesses, residents, officials, organizations, and visitors so they can support one another in good times and bad. It is designed to save officials time, and to focus people on collaboration and community improvement. It is very positive. I’ll read this little poster I’m passing around showing some of the things that it can do.
Yes to Connect is different from NextDoor, My Neighbor, Facebook, Twitter, or any of that kind of stuff. It has over 60 tools that can help people collaborate. It’s completely controlled by community leaders, which includes officials and organization leaders.
The app can help solve problems like the short-term rental problem. In a disaster the app can connect people out of town and reduce the need for firefighters to go door-to-door when there are so many people who are not here. It can help identify which homes they need to visit for evacuation purposes.
I’m just finishing a collaboration tool that can help with things like I’ve gone through with the trash issues, and to avoid debacles like the IVGID Recreation Center Expansion.
Yes to Connect has tools for disaster preparation and recovery, business support, and community development. The visitor section can provide expectations for sustainable tourism, as well as support local businesses, and support for visitors in the event of a disaster.
Although I didn’t show the whole system to Alexis, she was very positive about the possibilities and suggested I talk to this group about how to get a pilot going here. I’d be willing to do all the legwork for that, but I need an entity or a group to house the program. Incline has actually done the hard work by setting up this group that meets every 2 weeks. So all this will do is allow you all to have a system to expand your collaboration, and especially to work together in bad times. It is an app so you wouldn’t actually have to be at a meeting on an ongoing basis to work together.
So I’m here basically to say I’d really like to try to implement this in Incline Village. I’m interested in finding a place to house it under, but it would actually work with all of you. Because the idea is it collaborates with all the officials, all the organizations in the community, as well as businesses and residents and visitors.
So I’m looking for its home.
Denise Davis
Does anyone have a question for Carolyn?
Joseph Colacurcio
I asked if you have talked with the Washoe EOC Evacuation Manager who handles all the evacuations and everything to see if they would have interest in using that application. Instead of having a third party, because that’s where all the work flows. Based upon an incident command –we work with the fire department and sheriff office—through the EOC. So have you contacted them?
Carolyn Usinger
I have been in contact with them. They did not get back to me. But this app goes beyond emergency and disaster management. It does things in good times as well, to connect with businesses. So it’s a whole-community approach. So they can’t host it per se, but they can participate in it. Everybody I’ve shown this to really likes it. The question is where does it live?
And the actual work involved, once it’s set up, it operates itself. It’s no extra work for people. And it’s less work for all of the different agencies. I’m happy to be the person to set it all up. So it’s a win-win for everybody.
IVGID was interested in it, but it goes beyond their scope. So they’re a bit worried about it being beyond their scope. Alexis Hill was wondering whether IVCBA would be interested in it. But again, for everybody the whole project is beyond their scope.
Having it housed doesn’t mean you’re in charge of it. It just means it gives me the authority to go and talk to the different agencies and tie you all in. And then it’s just like this type of meeting where everybody collaborates. Nobody is particularly in charge. They just talk about what they’re doing. You’re just interested in the tools for your organization. You’re not responsible for anyone else. It’s a collaboration.
Kathie Julian
Where are these things usually… this must have been done elsewhere. Where is it typically housed in the community?
Carolyn Usinger
Typically it would be in a Public Information Office because they are used to dealing with the community. It could be in a mayor’s office. It could be in the Chamber of Commerce. It could be really anywhere.
FEMA has recommended a whole community approach to disaster preparation and recovery, which is where I started with this app. But I realized that people don’t get engaged in that unless there are incentives. And that’s what I’ve added… these extra community incentives so that people want to sign up for it. It truly is a whole community app, which makes it very exciting. You can do anything you want. It’s all customized. You can turn off or turn on these tools. You don’t have to use them. But they are a way to improve community efforts and make it positive, so that people are working towards a better future.
Denise Davis
How do people get in contact with you?
Carolyn Usinger
To get in contact with me, call my phone number: 925 360-9076. I’d like to work with all of the different agencies here, but I need authority to do that. I need some organization that gives me authority to talk to you and to tweak the tools you set up for your kind of needs. There are lots of tools for fire prevention because it’s so important especially in this area. I could go on about the other tools. But I’m just looking for someone who says, “Hi I’ll work with you.”
Denise Davis
Well, the word will get out. If you are interested, give Carolyn a call. Speaking of fire safety, I just want to remind everybody that the Washoe County Community Services Department has a flyer about generator safety for both portable and permanent generators. They also remind you about carbon monoxide poisoning.
And just a quick comment about the Reno Transportation Commission (RTC). There was a mention at the meeting with Amy Cummings the other night about the RTC vanpool. RTC is basically providing a vehicle for groups to get to work. We have a lot of people who commute in and out of the basin everyday. There is information at the RTC Van Pool Program. So if you can figure out how to create a group, RTC will provide you a vehicle. That’s not all of the conditions of the program. But I urge everybody to look into it if you’re commuting.
Linda Offerdahl
Last summer there was a committee with the Washoe-Tahoe Housing Partnership which is very slowly moving along. It was the Employers Committee under the leadership of Michael Murphy at the Hyatt. A survey was given out to the community about workforce transportation needs. The outcome of that was that he has arranged for van pools to the Hyatt. I think two or three will start in December. When I talked to the RTC folks, I said IVCBA will be holding a meeting with our members. We’re asking anyone who’s interested in forming such a van pool. But it requires a certain number of people. That’s why it works well with something like the Hyatt or Raley’s. Any group of people who find a common location can do it. So we’ll do some follow-up on it.
Denise Davis
Van pools are groups of 5-14 employees who travel to work together. I think we could “expand” the “work together” because our businesses are relatively close enough together. I just want people to be aware that RTC is willing to help you with your transportation. So, look into and take advantage of that. Let others fund your transportation.
Cory Solferino – Washoe County Sheriff Office Captain
We are doing very well getting into the holiday season. Our intern program continues to make strides. You’ll recall a few months ago I gave an update. We had a number of deputies earmarked for Incline Village that haven’t successfully completed the Field Officer Training Program. So while we were on line to be fully staffed about 6 months ago, we had some bumps in the road, and some people didn’t make the program. We have two more scheduled to finish in December and January. Our last two will be coming out to the program starting in January so by summer we’ll be fully staffed for all allocated positions in Incline Village.
We recently held a motor school. You may have seen one of our new motor officers up and around in the area. We recently got rid of all the antiquated unsafe Harleys (sorry that’s my bias) and got our officers on much safer BMW bikes. So you might see those in the spring after we thaw out up here. We do have two new motor officers on new much-needed equipment.
Our next piece in trying to change some transitional norms as far as uniforms are concerned and get them the protective riding equipment that motor officers truly need. Like their riding pants. They don’t look professional. They look more like street racers. If they were to take a digger that protects them much better. The pants are very expensive. [inaudible] I’m working with our administrators to make sure our officers are protected and get them the tools they need to succeed.
I’m here for another reason. I can go ahead and lead off into that one and let Sergeant Colacurcio fill in any pieces I miss.
Denise Davis
So when there are needs for equipment or whatever, is there a way for the community to help?
Cory Solferino
There is. We have a program through the WCSO and the sheriff’s Foundation that Sergeant Colacurcio and I have been talking about with a lot of people. It’s called the Honorary Deputies Association. What honorary deputies do is get together and sponsor events. They are the ones who sponsor our “Christmas in July” at the Boys and Girls Club at 9th and Wells. We buy 1000 backpacks for kids for the school year and have a carnival day. Our upcoming event—it’s kind of our banner event — is the Shop With a Sheriff event. We’re moving it over to the Walmart in Spanish Springs. We adopt over 500 families and take them Christmas shopping for gifts for them, winter clothes for the winter months, and school supplies.
They donate money to the Foundation and the Foundation uses it for charitable and worthy goods. I was a recipient of benefits twice. When I was a canine officer, my first canine was purchased by the Honorary Deputies Association. And secondly, in 2019, I had the privilege of going to the University of Louisville Southern Police Institute. That was 4 months on campus at the University of Louisville. The Honorary Deputies paid for that. They look at things— training, equipment, and things the WCSO needs that the budget doesn’t allow for. So it’s a great foundation. If you guys are interested in joining, Sergeant Colacurcio and I would love to get you in contact with the people. Those are the types of projects where they can go in and talk about in the [ ] of the meetings and see what needs funding.
Denise Davis
I also talked to Captain Cory about the county seemingly moving forward with the cannabis consumption lounges. There’s been concern expressed about more incidents of impaired driving. So I just ask Captain Cory if he’d like to talk to us about impaired driving.
Cory Solferino
I’ll just give a quick overview of how the State of Nevada has been going about enforcement the last couple of years. This is not a shock to us. We’ve seen the makeup in the legislation since voters approved the use of recreational marijuana. In 2015, we approved medical marijuana, in 2017 we approved recreational use of marijuana, and in the last couple of years we’ve been working with the State legislators about consumption lounges. Myself and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police and lobbyists have been working with legislators over the course of the last 4 years to see what that would look like. The Washoe County Commissioners about 4-6 weeks ago had a meeting talking about the ability to adopt local codes and ordinances that would regulate consumption lounges if they were approved in Washoe County.
Impairment is impairment is impairment. It doesn’t matter whether it’s marijuana or alcohol, cocaine, or prescription drug use and abuse, or poly-drug use. We’ve been seeing poly-drug use for years. There’s a reason why doctors say don’t use prescription drugs in conjunction with other types of impairment.
So there is not a specific test that exists or battery out there other than a blood test that can test for marijuana. Nor is there any science that says at this level—10 nanograms in your blood—you are impaired. What our officers are trained to detect is impairment. So if they pull you out of a vehicle, if they suspect—based upon a driving pattern—that you are unable to safely operate a motor vehicle, they will pull you out and do a battery of tests. Most of those are congruent with .080 impairment for alcohol. Our officers also do is what we call A-RIDE. It’s Advanced Roadside Impairment Evaluation. So what they’re able to do is look at that complete battery of tests, and then take it to another level without being a drug-recognition expert to look and see what are some of the signs and symptoms going on. So we’re looking at that impairment piece.
Some people say, “Well there’s a preliminary breath test.” But that preliminary breath test is not an evidentiary test. It just gives the officer an idea of what’s going on with that person after they have completed their field sobriety test. Officers are allowed to arrest based on probable cause absent any finding on a preliminary breath test. That’s just the final checkbox.
A lot of people are worried about being able to detect people consuming marijuana and what that impairment looks like. From the WCSO standpoint, we’re worried about public safety. A lot of the marijuana industry has been talking about “using responsibly.” And I guess that’s the messaging we want to echo. We’ve provided a venue for people to purchase marijuana both legally and medicinally. And then haven’t provided them an ability to use it anywhere other than in the confines of their own homes. So we get a lot of complaints from apartment buildings, a lot of complaints from hotels. It’s legal to use within a hotel but now they’re forced to clean up the after effects. If you’re smoking it, some of that smoke lingers, and the cleanup fees can be in excess of $500. So there’s a whole battery of things we need to consider.
Also, a lot of these boutique THC cannabis dispensaries concentrations are… This isn’t your father’s or grandfather’s THC. These concentrations are off the scale—some of them in excess of 25% THC. Also, a lot of the edibles with their serving sizes… you get a single cookie that’s supposed to be 4 servings. So you get an inexperienced user who eats the entire cookie. You get the whole spakolee and they’re baked all day because they don’t know how to use responsibly.
Obviously we’re worried from a public safety standpoint. We want our roadways safe. Reno, Incline Village, Carson City, Lake Tahoe—it’s not really a desirable area for a robust metropolitan transit system. We’re on the outskirts. So a lot of people, unfortunately, if they use—we worry about them driving. We encourage ride-share programs. We would encourage not using and driving, obviously to the highest degree. But just like we do with alcohol enforcement and bar checks, we would be doing the same thing if the lounges were to come to fruition.
I’m happy to entertain any questions. I know that was kind of a quick-and-dirty overview. But I wanted to give you guys some insight into the fact our officers are trained to detect impairment regardless of what may be causing it.
Joseph Colacurcio
I don’t have much to add. The Captain covered it all pretty much. The only two things I might elaborate on are the field sobriety tests. A normal test is to walk and turn and do a one-leg stand. Other tests are designed to… with your eyes —it’s uncontrolled—“horizontal gaze nystagmus” (HGN) [an involuntary jerking of the eyes as you gaze to the side]. It’s something you may have occurring naturally, but that is rare. But it is induced as you drink alcohol. The more you drink, the more we see it in your eyes. And there’s a standardized test that goes with that. So it’s the totality of the circumstances, as the Captain was saying. We use the blood-alcohol (BAC) breath test to confirm what we’ve already seen. The added tests with A-RIDE are lack of eye convergence, the Romberg balance test, and finger to nose. These tests are all available on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTA) website. You can look up standardize field sobriety tests and also Advanced Roadside Impairment Driving Enforcement (A-RIDE). They will all be on there. It’s very open. It’s easy to see what tests are done. That gives you a good idea.
[Note: Romberg balance test: stand with feet together, head tilted slightly back and eyes closed, estimate when 30 seconds has passed, then say stop.]
Kathie Julian
Are these tests able to pick up the impairment due to marijuana consumption?
Joseph Colacurcio
So with the Romberg and lack of balance, your physiomotor skills are affected when you use marijuana. So you lose control of some things in your eyes, and the lack of convergence test shows that. Same with the Romberg balance test. You end up with fluttering in your eyes and the inability to maintain your balance when you tip your head back. When you close your eyes, you’ll get swaying.
Kathie Julian
Is there any threshold for impairment?
Joseph Colacurcio
You’ll get way more with marijuana than you do with normal alcohol. So it’s the addition of that advanced roadside impairment driving enforcement (A-RIDE).
Kathie Julian
Just to follow up. Can it be said that any amount of marijuana consumption would impair your driving? Is there any sort of threshold that you see or that has been established for that?
Joseph Colacurcio
So the Nevada Revised Statutes (NRS) has established a certain amount of nanograms in your blood, by which they consider your impairment level. The hard part is like alcohol for anyone. What one drink may do to you, one drink may do differently to me. So that’s what the standardized tests are for to determine your impairment for the amount you’ve had. And then we go from there. NRS has standardized the content in your blood of .08 for alcohol, and there is a standard for marijuana and other prescription and nonprescription medications in your blood.
Aaron Vanderpool
I have some comments for everybody but also in large part for the Sheriff Department. About 3 weeks ago I was part of the large group of Incline residents who appealed the Tahoe Transportation District’s (TTD) East Shore Express (ESE) use at the OES. As part of that, I went down at the end of their season I did some observations in nighttime. And what I saw was worse than I had a feeling about as far as safety concerns and a lot of the problems down there. So, I brought this during our appeal to the TRPA meeting. The TRPA and TTD stance is to leave it up to citizens to enforce the laws by calling the Sheriff Office. Obviously, there’s a huge problem with resources. It’s not like the WCSO has resources to have somebody down there all the time. And just during the short time I was down there, the service was highly variable. Sometimes it’s really busy, and sometimes it can be really slow. It’s hard to know when to be down there. But some of the traffic violations are pretty bad – tourists speeding, illegal U-turns in the middle of the street. So, it would be nice if the Sheriff Office could be part of these conversations. So the TRPA can’t just say, oh, put up some signs and that’s going to solve everything. So, I wanted to leave those comments. And also for everybody, the broader Incline community should be concerned about this. It has potential for some real serious injuries down there when it comes to these traffic problems that are being created.
Helen Neff
I think most people know I’m very concerned with impaired driving on our roads. But in regard to the marijuana consumption lounges, yesterday, I received an email from the Washoe County Health District announcing a smoke-free for the Great American Smoke Out. Quit smoking or vaping by using “free” help in Washoe County. I just want to point out that nothing is free. This is our taxpayer money that pays for this type of service, which is needed in some places. And then I also got a link to an article in USA Today about studies being done on people who smoke marijuana. And their incidence of lung cancer and emphysema is even worse than for tobacco because there’s more inhaling going on. So, besides the whole impairment issue, if our County is encouraging people by giving them more opportunities for more consumption of marijuana, in the end we’re all going to pay more for health-care costs for people who are suffering from the side effects of being a smoker and getting emphysema and other serious diseases.
Margaret Martini
I have one other question on the TTD. I’ve been to a lot of meetings and read a lot of things on it, and not really seen anyone from the Sheriff’s Department support not having the ESE at the OES.
I’ve been a resident up here in Incline forever. Our kids went to school there. And we know from picking up the kids how steep that is and how treacherous it is. And to have this ESE permanently located there, I would think that the WCSO should have some kind of report and safety information from that location. I know I go back and forth to the Post Office, and there are always people in the crosswalk coming from the shopping center to the apartments across the street. And 90% of the time, they are families— kids and moms. And I just think that as a safety issue, the Sheriff should be involved in saying that a hub is not appropriate for the traffic that’s on that street. And I’m not seeing any WCSO involvement in any of the meetings or any of the discussions on this as far as safety goes. Is the WCSO taking a stand on this or are they just letting it go the way it’s going to go? Without input from WCSO, I think TTD has been given the green light to go ahead and push it through. We’re not getting the safety concerns from the Sheriff Department.
Corey Solferino
Regarding that, we have been asked to provide data on crashes and traffic safety, which we’ve provided. An official stance on that is outside of our range. That’s more of a County Engineering piece—looking at the amount of traffic flows through those areas. The meeting we had Wednesday night at the Parasol Building talking about regional transit connecting the entire basin. Those are the conversations that we’ve had. So we’re very involved behind the scenes. As far as the politics of what they are going to do with the school, who’s going to move there… There are rumors about “land swapping” because our building situated on 431 and 28 is a much more desirable location for a hub rather than in the middle of a residential area. But that’s for the politicians to decide. In those instances where we’re asked to provide data, hardcore statistical data with reference to—this is how many accidents we’ve responded to, calls for service in these locations, and can the current location withstand the increase of greater vehicle traffic? But from a political standpoint there’s not a whole lot I can say about it. I have my own personal opinion. But as a Sheriff Office representative, we’re about traffic safety. So we provide data and let the officials make those decisions based on the data we provide. I’d absolutely talk to County Engineering. They are the ones who are going to navigate that flow at that location if we’re going to come to fruition for a regional transit hub.
Margaret Martini
Do you patrol that area often?
Corey Solferino
Yes. It’s education, first and foremost. And then its citations, and ultimately… We’re just a few weeks away from all our traffic citations moving to civil infractions. So we’ll have even less administrative control over traffic violations in our State once they become civil infractions. Currently, they are misdemeanors and have a criminal compliant component. If people don’t comply with the traffic citation, if they don’t pay, it goes to warrant. If they go to court and it’s dismissed, it’s dismissed, but if they want to go to Traffic School their fees are reduced. But with this whole new civil piece, it will be interesting to see what enforcement people have as civil infractions unfold.
Kathie Julian
To the representatives from the WCSO, in the interest of transparency, this information that you provided to the TTD on accidents and other incidents in the area of the OES is that public information? Can you make that public information? I don’t want to be too cynical, but just giving it to TTD…
Corey Solferino
That’s not who I gave it to. Let me cut you off right there and I apologize. That’s not who I gave it to. Our County officials asked us for data regarding accidents in Incline Village. We supplied that to the County engineers. They’re the ones that do the bidding on our behalf. They’re the ones that determine the traffic speeds, put up speed signs. We’ve been trying to get some speed control devices, like speed bumps on Lakeshore in an effort to keep speeds down for vehicles while it’s a high traffic area or high recreational area, or high walking area. So we work with County Engineering. What they do with that data is completely and entirely up to them.
If you want more data, Sergeant Colacurcio and I are working on it. You guys have heard me talk about it for the last 18 months. We have an antiquated records management system. We have to do hand searches for a lot of this stuff. I’ve asked our Research Analyst Ryan Spizman to devise a monthly report I can bring to you guys that talks about arrests, calls for service, accidents in that area, because I know you’ve been asking about that. I produce the data from the Washoe County standpoint, not just an Incline standpoint. We’re trying to bifurcate that so we’ll be able to report back to you guys in these Forum meetings and in the CAB meetings.
Kathie Juilan
Great. Thank you very much for clarifying that. And perhaps you can put the name of the manager or supervisor in the area where you provided the information in the Chat Box so we can follow up with the County. I appreciate the information and heartily support a public presentation on some of this information.
Shirley Appel – Incline Village Resident, HOA President
I live across the street from the OES. Through the years and I know walking from my place to the Post Office there is a crosswalk right in front of the OES. Cars do not stop. You can be in the middle of that crosswalk and a car will come right up on you. Boy, you better get across that street! This is something I think is an issue and it will continue to be an issue the more they use this. And the other thing, I’ve noticed that the signs for the ESE are still up. There’s a sign as you come in. Then there’s the bus entrance. And there’s another sign further down. They are all still up saying East Shore Express. Tourists will come and think they can still take the ESE. So I think that’s something that should be cleaned up. But like I said, the traffic coming down Southwood and Oriole is horrendous as far as speed is concerned. I really feel this will become an issue. Somebody’s going to get hit or killed. They need to get some speed bumps in that area.
Denise Davis
Captain, you have reports on incidents that have actually happened. There’s a lot of concern about what people see that doesn’t necessarily get reported. Is there any way to incorporate what residents see into your reporting?
Corey Solferino
I guess I’m confused as to what you are seeing. What are you seeing there—something that would be a crime, or a complaint and calling the …?
Denise Davis
Things like Shirley was saying: people not stopping for pedestrians in the crosswalk.
Corey Solferino
We get service requests all the time. We get daily— if not hourly—different areas in the community whether it’s Incline Village or outside– requesting traffic support. So, we prioritize those based upon what I have going on and how many people we have on, and we do our traffic enforcement based upon what we call a service request. When you guys put in a call for service, or via email, that’s when we put it into action.
Denise Davis
In this instance concerning the neighborhood around the OES, Shirley is saying she’s seeing people speeding and not stopping for pedestrians in the crosswalk. And Aaron’s probably got a lot of other anecdotal information. You’re giving a report to the County about things where you’ve got actual calls for service and reports filed. So what I’m asking is, “Is there a way for citizens to provide what they’re seeing even if you don’t necessarily have a report?”
Joseph Colacurcio
Our reports go to the Traffic Engineer. If you’re looking for further information or for furthering your complaint, provide us with a service request, and we’ll go out and do enforcement. Citations may be issued. What you’re looking for when someone isn’t stopping and things along those lines—that would be through the Traffic Engineer’s office. They will do their traffic study based on your complaints. [inaudible] so that’s how to get more stop signs—more speed bumps—and things of that sort. That’s the Traffic Engineers. We may make a recommendation that we need a traffic study. The traffic engineer has to approve the study and any changes. We don’t get to make changes [inaudible].
Shirley Appel
Unfortunately, we can call and tell you guys about it, but if we don’t have any proof of it, that’s the issue.
Joseph Colacurcio
[inaudible]
Denise Davis
So what is the fine line between trying to be a citizen reporting things that you see, and becoming a pest? Shirley’s home all day, and she’s going to see more.
Sergeant Colacurcio
Call and file a complaint or file for service. As I said, call the nonemergency number and file a call-for-service request. It will come to one of us. We’ll either generate it or not. Or you can go through the WCSO washoesheriff.com to file a service request there. And you have the ability to proceed to do that, and then that will funnel through our system, and we’ll respond to that service request. You also have the choice of going through 311 to contact the traffic engineers.
[inaudible] But yes, you then file a complaint with them, and they will rally.
Aaron Vanderpool
What you are all saying is absolutely right. It’s one thing to make observations, but politicians—nobody listens—unless you have physical evidence and pictures. And that takes time out of your life. And it’s a real challenge there sometimes. I want to say that data and traffic analysis is one thing, but also, when I’ve talked to the Sheriff, a lot of the issues are with resources. And I think that should be part of the data you need to communicate to TRPA and TTD. You might not have the resources to deal with simple things like parking in neighborhoods. I have some comments on a different topic but we’re already running late so I’ll save those for next time.
Helen Neff
I just want to answer the Sergeant about 311. I have found the email—the online 311—is fabulous. They get back to you right away that they’ve received your complaint and will forward it to the department and you have somebody to communicate with online. So if you’re exasperated with the phone tree, try the online. I had very good success.
Carolyn Usinger
I have a question about marijuana. There’s a new big sign at the corner of Northwood and 28 for vaping. I don’t think they’re supposed to have signs on public areas. [inaudible] I understand that. But it’s also bad for kids. So the idea that they’re putting up signs in public areas to encourage smoking doesn’t sit right with me. Is it right that you’re not supposed to have signs on public lands? [Who put the sign up?] Whoever owns the vaping business.
Shirley Appel
That company is down in the village off of Southwood.
Joseph Colacurcio
That’s an issue for 311. [inaudible] business license [inaudible].
[speaker?]
I’d just say I’m not aware of anything that would prohibit that. And most of those ads are vetted before they are allowed to go up. I’m not saying that’s wrong or that’s right.
Carolyn Usinger
[inaudible] public land. [Inaudible] They just put it up. It’s not a billboard. It’s a long banner. There are banners all over town but usually they are on private property promoting the business, which is fine. But this seems to be on public property, and because it’s vaping, it’s annoying, and it’s bad for kids. And it’s a huge sign. And it’s like… What’s it doing there? Anyway, I’ll call 311.
Denise Davis
Or go on line. Helen said going online is the way to go. Well it’s already a quarter after 10. We thank Captain Corey and Sergeant Cola for being here to answer our questions. We look forward to more interesting conversations in the future. Our next meeting is December 2. So, Happy Thanksgiving.
CHAT BOX
09:01:23 From Jon & Beth Davidson : Hi
09:10:32 From kathie julian : Was the transportation summit recorded?
09:12:53 From Tia Rancourt : To be added to the Prescribed Fire Notification email list, please email trancourt@nltfpd.net.
09:16:11 From Washoe County Libraries : Thanks Tia!
09:17:44 From Washoe County Libraries : Kathie, I don’t think they recorded it. But they have posted the presentation to https://tahoe-transportation-plan-washoe.hub.arcgis.com/
09:18:41 From Washoe County Libraries : 775-833-5555 – red/green day number
09:19:05 From ronda tycer : John, it was difficult to hear Linda. Please ensure they sit close to the mike. Thanks.
09:20:33 From Washoe County Libraries : WCSO non-emergency – 775-785-WCSO (9276)
09:35:15 From Washoe County Libraries : 925-360-9076 Carolyn’s phone
our email is:
Washoe County Sheriff Office (WCSO)
Non-emergency dispatch 775-785-9276
Incline substation Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/Washoe-County-Sheriffs-Office-Incline-Village-Substation-143827955640457/
RED Day / GREEN Day parking info 775-833-5555
https://www.washoecounty.gov/csd/operations/roads/Snow%20and%20Ice/Winter%20Parking.php
North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District website
Nov 28 – TTD Program Implementation meeting
Nov 30 – TTD Incline Village Mobility Committee (the bus hub)
Dec 1 – Washoe County Board of Adjustment
Dec 5 – IV/CB Citizens Advisory Board (CAB) meeting
https://www.washoecounty.gov/CABS/IVCB_CAB/index.php
Washoe County Planning – applications in Commission District 1
https://www.washoecounty.gov/csd/planning_and_development/applications/apps_commish_district_one.php
Washoe County generator flyer
https://www.washoecounty.gov/CABS/IVCB_CAB/2022/files/generator-handout1.pdf
Village League “City of Incline Village” website
https://www.cityofinclinevillage.com/
IV/CB Community 1st meetings and community info
IVCBA (Incline Village Crystal Bay Community and Business Association)
Participants
Aaron Vanderpoool
Carolyn Usinger
Corey Solferino
Denise Davis
Doug Flaherty
Helen Neff
Jack Dalton
Jeff Church
John Crockett
Jon & Beth Davidson
Joseph Colacurcio
Kathie Julian
Linda Offerdahl
Margaret Martini
Pam Straley
Ronda Tycer
Ryan Sommers
Shirley Appel
Steve Dolan
Svata Trossen
Tia Rancourt
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