District advances amended TOT grant application for 2.35-mile West Shore Trail reconstruction

District staff told the board they amended and submitted an updated TOT (transient occupancy tax) grant application for the 2025 West Shore Reconstruction Project, which staff described as "2.35 miles from Sunnyside to Idlewild." Sean, the presenter, said the district consolidated two segments into one construction request and emphasized that much of the district's trail system is aging and will need reconstruction over the next 5–10 years.

"We're calling our 2025 West Shore Reconstruction Project. It's 2.35 miles from Sunnyside to Idlewild," Sean said. He said the updated application counts previously committed multi-year sponsorship funds as leveraged funds and that the application was submitted on the committee's deadline. Sean also reported that the annual funding pool available for the cycle is about $9,300,000, and he outlined competing regional requests: roughly $1,700,000 for a Martus Valley segment, approximately $500,000 requested by North Tahoe for a trailhead project, and a Placer County North Shore segment several million dollars short of construction funding.

Board members discussed match ratios and competitiveness. One member noted the district shifted from a prior 50/50, multiyear approach to a 75/25 construction-year match for this application, which raises the current ask even as it relies on previously committed funds as leverage. Members asked for clearer exhibit maps and legend items distinguishing newly constructed segments from those needing reconstruction; Sean said Matt will present the project to the TOT committee and that Sean and Kim will prepare presentation materials and make exhibit tweaks.

The item was treated as informational; Sean said the only board action that could be needed would be if the board did not support the submitted application, and the board indicated support. District staff will report back after the TOT committee presentation.