Steve Teshara will serve as the president of the CALCOG Board of Directors for the upcoming year, where he represents the Tahoe Transportation District. Mr. Teshara has been an active board member for the last five years, where he has helped guide the organization as a board officer and fiscal committee chair.
“Steve’s thirty years of experience collaborating on transportation initiatives in the Lake Tahoe Region complements CALCOG’s work,” said Bill Higgins, executive director, CALCOG. “He was a natural choice to lead our organization.”
Teshara is taking on this leadership role in a year when Proposition 6 threatens to eliminate or shelve more than 6,000 local transportation projects already underway and tens of thousands more in the coming years.
“CALCOG will be working to develop resources to educate the public on the value of a safe transportation network to local communities like South Lake Tahoe,” said Teshara.
CALCOG also focuses on sharing information between its members on a diverse set of policies ranging from housing, climate change, and economic development.
“There is no reason for our regional members to each invent their own wheel,” said Teshara. “When one comes up with a good idea, CALCOG works to share that information to the benefit of all.”
TTD has delivered numerous infrastructure projects, such as multi-use bicycle paths, roadway improvements, and water quality projects under Teshara’s leadership, including $160 million in funding through capital projects, transit operations, legislative work, and brokering efforts.
“Steve’s success and leadership in the environmentally sensitive Lake Tahoe Region is especially valuable on statewide policy issues, as projects have to account for more and more environmental impacts,” said Higgins.
Teshara said he looks forward to bringing the best ideas back to the Tahoe Region, where he also serves as CEO of the Tahoe Chamber of Commerce.
“There are regions doing very innovative things with ride-sharing, pedestrian safety, and self-help funding,” said Carl Hasty, district manager, TTD. “We look at other regions for practices that will work to serve the traveling public in Tahoe. Recreation travel has a significant impact on our region, which state and federal transportation policy doesn’t always address. Steve’s leadership and participation in CALCOG help TTD learn from regions with similar issues and expands our network of partners and contacts.”