The Tahoe Council is set to tackle a packed agenda at its 9 a.m. meeting on Tuesday, September 9 in South Lake Tahoe. The meeting will begin with proclamations for Suicide Prevention Month, Recovery Month, and Constitution Week, but the heart of the session involves major policy updates affecting residents, visitors, and local businesses alike.
One of the headline items is an update on the city’s Vacation Home Rental (VHR) ordinance. After an El Dorado County judge invalidated Measure T in March 2025 for discriminatory provisions, the city reopened VHR applications on June 25. Since then, 1,029 applications have been received, 639 during the preferred period for former permit holders, and 111 permits have already been issued. The Tahoe Council will review whether to amend the VHR ordinance to treat all non-residential areas like the Tourist Core Area Plan, which currently has fewer restrictions such as no buffer, no local property manager requirement, and higher occupancy limits.
Many VHR operators and homeowners have complained about the existing 150-foot buffer between permitted homes. The Tahoe Council will compare that to much larger buffers in other jurisdictions El Dorado County (500 feet), Santa Rosa (1,000 feet), Humboldt County (600 feet) — and smaller ones like Alpine County (100 feet) and Paso Robles (100 feet). Council members may also consider adopting a minimum rental age of 25, as practiced elsewhere.
The Tahoe Council will also weigh cannabis tax allocations. Voters approved Measure G in 2022, replacing the Community Benefit Fee with a cannabis business and professions tax of 6 percent of gross receipts and $20 per square foot of canopy for cultivation. The city now collects about $900,000 annually from four licensed businesses. Up to half is granted to nonprofits mitigating cannabis industry impacts. The Tahoe Council will decide which projects receive this funding and discuss the economic effects of any potential tax rate reductions.
Other items on the Tahoe Council agenda include the Mid-Town Area Plan Policy Review, which could increase residential density, raise height limits to 56 feet, and adjust parking requirements. Strategic plan updates on growing and diversifying the economy, policies on TRPA development commodities, and discussions about emergency shelter and the Warm Room will round out the session.
With so many pivotal issues before it, the Tahoe Council meeting promises to shape South Lake Tahoe’s policies for years to come, underscoring the Council’s central role in balancing community needs, economic growth, and quality of life.
