Sign on the dotted street

It sounds like an impossible dream, but the Town of Mammoth Lakes has initiated a process to update its Sign Code.
“Good luck with that,” said Kittredge Sports owner Tom Cage at Wednesday’s Planning Commission meeting.
Cage said he’s sat on Sign Code meetings since the early ’80s, then not-so-gently reminded the commission of the myriad of snags that lie ahead.
Still, the code has not been updated since 1993 and the Town Council has directed the town’s staff to fix it up ahead of the rest of the Zoning Code Update.
Flossie Coulter, who rose to speak at the meeting, suggested to the commission and the staff to maybe look at the sign code in Aspen, Colo. – GS

Nobody likes a budget

We have them, we need them, but we don’t have to like budgets, especially in the preparation.
Even so, three Mammothites have taken on the horrid task of helping the Town of Mammoth Lakes streamline its budget process. Ideally, when the town council gets to work on the preparation, there will be less myopia among the members.
“I can’t stand inefficiency,” said Sandy Hogan, a retired Forest Service administrator who has seen plenty of budgets in her day.
Hogan, along with hotelier Deb Pierrel and civil engineer Joyce Turner, volunteered their services six weeks ago, promising a finished product by the end of the year and say they’re seeking lots and lots of input. – GS

Melton Celebration of Life

A Celebration of Life for William “Bill” Melton who called Mammoth home from 1978 to 1986 will be held at Rainbow Tarns Bed and Breakfast, Crowley Lake August 28, 2010 at 11:30 am. Hosted by Lois Melton, Mammoth residents Tom and Judy Farnetti (Bill’s daughter), and the rest of the Melton clan.  Bill was an active member of the Mammoth Lakes community serving on commissions, the Chamber of Commerce and was a charter member of ML Rotary Club.  Join us in a very special celebration of a wonderful man, husband, father, grandpa and great grandpa.

Measure R Priorities

“Finishing parks, trails and recreation projects that remain incomplete” emerged as the first priority for Measure R Funding during Tuesday’s meeting of the Town’s Tourism and Recreation Commission. 
Bill Sauser, Chair, urged the Commission to “Re-state the highest possible priority,  that we want to complete parks and the trail system loop.  We have got to build something that the people who voted for this expected.”
Priority number two, “Plan for the future,” was also established.  Discussion indicated that priority two includes: trails and signage, track, and Nordic/grooming projects. 
End of priorities.  Despite the Mammoth Times’s urging the public to participate in establishing priorities, only four attendees sat in the audience, each of whom was a potential applicant for Measure R funding. – LW

Local man dies near Horseshoe Lake

     A local Mammoth man, Real Joseph Balthazar, 68, was found dead Saturday morning on a trail near Horseshoe Lake. According to Mono County Sheriff’s Coroner Lt. Weber, the 911 call came in about 7 a.m. Saturday. The caller, another local Mammoth man who was out walking his dogs, said he had found Balthazar collapsed on a trail near the Old Chimney site, apparently deceased. Balthazar was pronounced dead by emergency responders when they arrived. There was no evidence of foul play. An autopsy will be preformed today and the final results will be available Tuesday morning. — WG

The jazzsters weren’t loud

Last month’s Jazz Jubilee might have gotten a bit raucous in the Big Tent at the Village, but the Planning Commission on Wednesday brushed aside concerns that the music might have violated the town’s noise ordinance.
After examining noise readings collected by the Mammoth Lakes Police Department, the commission noted that the decibel level at times exceeded the limit, but just barely, and only briefly.
The MLPD, meanwhile, confirmed with the Mono County dispatcher that the only noise complaints that night were regarding barking dogs.
On Aug. 10, the Planning Commission received a letter from the Mammoth Knolls Homeowners’ Association expressing concern about how music events are handled in the Village and elsewhere in town, and seeking “some kind of uniform standards ... with respect to the issue of noise impacts on neighbors.” – GS

 By George Shirk
Mammoth Times Senior Writer

It’s getting mighty huggy-feely up on the ridge where the Swiss Chalet and Twin Pines Resort sit.

That parcel, owned by a subsidiary of Acorn Asset Management Co. in Sacramento, is on the north side of Main Street near Minaret Road. It has been the subject of hot redevelopment debate since 2003, when then-owner Dave Harvey proposed a luxury hotel to replace his Swiss Chalet hotel. The debate grew ho tter in 2007, when another project came forward, this time a condo hotel.

But the new project, called Mammoth View, didn’t get much debate from the Mammoth Lakes Planning Commission on Wednesday when a Portland, Ore., developer unveiled plans for a 54-room boutique hotel, along with 24 townhouse condominiums and 28 freestanding cabin  units, all spread up the slope on 5.51 acres of hillside.

“It’s a distinctive, differentiated product that you don’t see today,” said developer Tom Cody, managing partner of a firm named Project^Ecological Development. “We’ve stripped the site back to its basic features, which is a very different approach from the 2003 proposal and the 2007 proposal.”

The development, which Cody said seeks to fall into context with the existing topography and forest, drew few critical comments from the commission, but even more surprising, it drew actual compliments from Andy Ott, on the board of directors of the adjacent Viewpoint Condominiums and a fierce critic of the two earlier proposals.
“This is a win-win situation,” said Ott, a 30-year condo owner at Viewpoint and leader of the Alliance of Project Owner Associations, a consortium representing condo owners in Mammoth. “We have very few concerns.”

Not that the commission or audience members exactly rolled over and asked for a belly rub. Commission chair Tony Barrett expressed concern that the development might create “a major void” for pedestrians strolling up Main Street from downtown to the Village. A vibrant walkway featuring entertainment and retail is a key component in the town’s Main Street vision.

Mark Wardlaw, the town staff’s community development director, said there remains a snow storage issue, which he called “significant.” Commissioner Elizabeth Tenney said she was a bit curious about reflective glare from the sun, given that all the buildings will feature a lot of high, glass windows and the project will face south.
And John Vereuck, a member of an ad hoc committee called “The Future of Mammoth,” rose from the audience to say he just didn’t like it at all.

“It looks like a 1960s-1970s condo design,” he said. “Is that what we’ve morphed down to?”

But for the most part, commission members stared rather lovingly at a 3-D model that sat before them on an elevated table, and listened politely as the project was explained by Thomas Robinson, the architect from LEVER | Studio, also in Portland.

“We seek to treat the land lightly,” Robinson said during a PowerPoint presentation. “We’re not interested in digging out the mountain.”

The upper portion of the 5.1-acre site is about 40 feet above Main Street and is currently developed with the Swiss Chalet and Royal Pines, both of them still operating. The site drops significantly to Main Street, where an existing retaining wall makes accessing the site from Main Street practically impossible.
The site also slopes steeply to the east, where the portion of the property at the intersection of Main St. and Mountain Boulevard is flat, due to a former development. Longtime Mammoth residents will remember that the flat portion used to have several commercial and residential buildings, all of which have been demolished in the past two years.

Long way to shovels in ground
The Mammoth View project is a long way from a shovel in the ground.
The project is still at the conceptual level, and Wednesday’s presentation was part of a so-called “Concept Review,” not a public hearing, and required no official action by the planning commission.

Even so, an initial review by the town staff indicates that Mammoth View conforms to the town’s General Plan and zoning standards.

“The proposed project is much lower in intensity than the previous project and fits in well with the neighboring properties,” said a report by the town staff. Leading the report was Pam Kobylarz, an associate planner. The report also said that Cody’s team of developers is exploring the possibility of LEED certification and geothermal heating.

Though the project faces south, there currently is no plan to tap solar energy.

Mammoth View, as proposed, has three major components. The first, called “Base Camp” is the hotel, which would be built at the lowest elevation of the property and include underground parking. The second level, where the current hotels currently sit, is called “The Ridge” had would feature free-standing cabins, a row of townhouses and a semi-circular road. The third section, called “The Summit,” would feature another block of townhouses.

Throughout the site, according to the architect Robinson, would be a series of “meadows” to which guests, residents and the public would have access for lounging, picnicking and so on. He also said the developer plans a new aspen grove in the meadows.

In all, it was pretty much a dazzling performance by the Portlanders, reflected by the town staff’s comments in the review.

“The Town is supportive of the proposed landscape concepts and the proposed utilization of the site,” the report stated.

It was as close to a belly rub that an developer is likely to get.

Mono Lake near Rush Creek. Mammoth Times Photo/Wendilyn Grasseschi

By Wendilyn Grasseschi
Mammoth Times Staff Writer

The Eastern Sierra is not known for its swimming holes. The steep eastern escarpment means all snow melt descends quickly, leaving little room for meandering creeks to establish swimming holes. The quick descent also means the water picks up little heat during the day, and the short summers and high elevation add up to the same thing:  cold water.

So it takes some creativity and a sense of adventure to find a true swimming hole, especially one that you don’t shoot out of in split-second, screaming from the cold, or one with a warm beach or rock to lie on.

But they are here and because of the same late  summer heat that has kept the Eastside in full flower bloom up to this moment, they couldn’t be better than they are right now.

But don’t wait. Time is running out. In another two weeks, the shortening days and cooler temperatures will not be able to offset the stored heat in the water.

Go on. Get out there.

Mono Lake

Mono Lake might seem like a strange place to swim and it is.

That’s part of the charm.

The deep blue-green color, the soft silky sand under your feet, the warm-enough-to-hang-out-for-half-an-hour water is unmatched in the Eastern Sierra. The beaches, gulls, hot sun and sound of the waves slapping the white shoreline – who needs to drive 300 miles to the ocean? You’ve got it all right here in your own backyard.

Sure the lake is salty, sure you have to share the water with a few harmless, brine shrimp, but hey, it’s an adventure. 

 The high salt content means the water almost cradles you, holding you up, making paddling, floating or swimming an unusual pleasure, and the views are matchless.

Getting there

Mono Lake is a big lake and almost every place along its shore can be used for swimming, as long as you avoid the tourist-heavy sections like South Tufa. There are dirt roads too numerous to mention, but easy enough to find, and they all head out toward the lake. Try starting with Test Station Road, just four miles south of Lee Vining. There are infinite options, but I’m partial to picking one of the creeks – Rush Creek, Lee Vining Creek – that empty into the lake. I have my absolute favorite spot along one of these creeks, but I just can’t let the cat out of the bag. You’ll have to do your own sleuthing.

Suffice it to say the spot has it all: warm white beach, turquoise lake water, an eight-foot deep hole in the creek to finish off the day, a short drive back into Lee Vining for a pastrami burger and strawberry buttermilk milkshake from the Mono Cone.

The beaches near the creeks have the added advantage of a place to rinse off after your dip in the lake. Part of the fun of swimming in the lake is the salty film it leaves on everything you touch, but a quick dip in clear running water feels good too.

If you have a 4WD, pick a creek and follow it as best you can on the roads that parallel the creek. Take a shovel and be sure to watch out for deep sand, but don’t let this warning deter you completely. I only found a few roads with a few places that a decent 4WD couldn’t handle.

If you do not have a 4WD, pick one of the beaches accessible by a parking lot and just walk down the beach until you leave the crowds behind. Navy Beach is a good one for this if you head east along the lake shore. Then drop the clothes, drop your worries and get in. Watch for the afternoon winds that can hit the lake hard. Stay out of the water when it is not calm.

Thousand Island Lake

While most people heading to Thousand Island Lake (off the Agnew Meadows trail head in Reds Meadow)  crowd around the first half-mile of the outlet of the big lake, those in the know go farther, circling the lake on its west side until they get far away from the crowds. That’s where the magic begins. At the back of the lake (south side), three smaller lakes are tucked away between Thousand Island Lake and the foot of Banner Peak and Mt. Ritter. They are shallow, clear, and clean; warm enough to spend a good chunk of time in. I recall one blessed summer day some years ago when I forced my hiking partner to carry my daypack as I padded barefoot across the soft, green turf from lake to lake, swimming the length of one lake before padding to the next, then repeating the process.

Getting there

Take the Reds Meadow Shuttle to Agnew Meadows trailhead. Hike to Thousand Island Lake via either the River Trail or the High Trail. Both are between seven and eight miles to the lake, with the River Trail the shorter (but less scenic), route. Hike from the outlet of the lake on a use trail around the west side of the lake, until it begins its ascent toward Catherine Pass. Leave the use trail where the creek from Catherine Pass enters the lake and curve around the back side of Thousand. Use your map to locate the three small lakes noted above and head over to them on an easy, cross-country route toward the first lake. You are now about two miles from the outlet of Thousand. Swim, then get out, walk to the next one, and repeat it. This is a good day hike if you are camped at Thousand and an even better overnight destination.  

Convict Lake

Convict Lake has some of the most beautiful beaches and water in any of the Eastern Sierra’s easy-to-get-to frontcountry lakes. A short, one mile walk to the west side of the lake (back near the boardwalk) takes you to the best beaches; tiny, smooth, marble rock pebbles; shallow, turquoise water; huge, old-growth Jeffrey pines and aspen groves.

The beach is not private and you might have to dodge a few fishermen, but it’s worth an hour or two, a picnic and a long soak in the sun. The water usually stays warm enough for a quick dip until early September and the scenery and quiet make it worth the walk, even if you don’t get in.

Getting there

Take the Convict Lake exit six miles south of Mammoth, off of US 395. Drive to either of the parking lots on both sides of the lake and head to the west side of the lake, near the boardwalk. Find a beach.

John Wentworth demonstrates some of the finer aspects of the new Lakes Basin Path signs at the ribbon cutting Tuesday afternoon. Photo by Diane Eagle

By George Shirk
Mammoth Times Senior Writer

John Wentworth promised magic, then delivered it on Tuesday at the official opening of the Lakes Basin Path – the 5.3-mile asphalt strip connecting the Town of Mammoth to the Lakes Basin.

The “magic” was in the joining of the natural world to the digital world, through the use of a smartphone, a large sign and about $80,000.

Wentworth, the president and CEO of Mammoth Lakes Trails-Public Access (MLTPA), introduced a smallish and predictable gathering to the spiffy new sign at the foot of the trail (Canyon Boulevard and Lake Mary Road). He then pointed to a mystifying symbol near the lower right.

Using his smartphone as a kind of wand, Wentworth swooshed it past the symbol – actually it’s a modern barcode – and connected to the Internet. Voila! The screen on Wentworth’s phone generated an interactive image. The forest and the digital world had just teamed up.

“Right now the information page is blank,” he said, “but soon we’ll have maps, places of interest and information about the natural settings around you.

“Each sign is unique,” he said, “so as you move along the path you can use your phone to scan the barcodes and get new sets of information.”

By the time the entire trail system is complete and connected, there will be 20 such signs containing the barcodes, according to John Milne, project manager of the Town of Mammoth Lakes. In total there will be 120 signs, most of them so-called assurance markers noting things such as distance.

But it is in the big signs that technology is brought to bear.

To access the information on the barcodes, smartphone users need any of several downloadable scanning applications, or apps. In Wentworth’s demonstration, he used a $1.99 iPhone app called Optiscan.

The barcode itself is an optical machine-readable representation of data. Originally, barcodes represented data in the widths (lines) and spacings of parallel lines, but now they also come in patterns of squares, dots, hexagons and other geometric patterns.

The technology aspect of the trail system is part of the  result of leveraging an $80,000 award from the Measure R Fall 2009 grant cycle. An additional $17,500 from the 2010 spring cycle along with matching funds by private individuals through the MLTPA, is being used to develop consistent messaging across multiple jurisdictions for messaging and mapping programs throughout the Mammoth Lakes Trail System.

Meanwhile, the ribbon-cutting ceremony went off without a hitch, with opening remarks by Mayor Skip Harvey, followed by representatives of all the agencies involved with the project.