By Tim Hauserman.
In the mid 1970’s a nine-hole golf course was constructed at the back of The Highlands development, three miles outside of Tahoe City. When the golf course failed a few years later, the club house and surrounding trails became home to Tahoe Nordic Ski Area, followed by Lakeview Cross Country Ski Area, before settling in for the long haul as the non-profit Tahoe Cross Country Ski Area. Tahoe Cross Country has 65 kilometers of trails which loop up and around the rolling countryside and climb to views of Lake Tahoe on Tahoe City Public Utility District and Burton Creek State Park lands.
While the lodge located on TCPUD land has served well for decades, the Board of Directors of the Tahoe Cross Country Ski Education (TCCSEA), which runs the ski area, as well as the TCPUD, have for a number of years entertained the idea of a major upgrade of the facility, non-profit cross country ski areas, however, especially given the vagaries of our winters, are not flush with cash.
Then along came John Mozart. He purchased a lakefront estate along the Gold Coast in the Rubicon area of Tahoe’s West Shore in 2012. His plan was to construct a new home on the property, but he also wanted to preserve the existing two story home which was built in 1936 by the Schilling Family. It had wood trusses, high ceilings and was a classic Old Tahoe style home. TCCSEA accepted the building as a donation, and it was dissembled and stored in a warehouse, awaiting reconstruction on a new site.
Now the TCCSEA and the TCPUD are evaluating five possible sites to construct the building. In addition to the new lodge, the TCCSEA would also like to alleviate two problems with the current site: Provide more parking, and move the trailhead so it doesn’t sit at the bottom of a hill, a challenge for beginning skaters.
Information gathered at a number of public workshops, and through the conducting of a survey is about to be provided to the TCPUD who will then choose a site after public hearings. Once the site is chosen, environmental review will begin as well as a major fundraising effort to reconstruct the buildings as well as additional lodge space. Hopefully within a few years the lodge will become a great new addition to the community.
To learn more about the project go to theschillinglodge.com
Note: I have worked at Tahoe Cross Country for about 15 years and direct the Strider Gliders program. I first started skiing the trails at what was then known as Tahoe Nordic in 1985.
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