News, Views & Culture of the Eastern Sierra
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the PHOTO:REA Joyce Turner, Katy Grans Drake, Crystal Medhust and Liz Grans check News,sheet Views & Culture of the Eastern Sierra out Mammoth Mountain’s new TechReation space in the Sierra Center Mall on Saturday, March 11. More photos, p. 15. Saturday, March 18, 2017 FREE Vol. 15, No. 11 WE’LL HAVE A GOGO CELEBRATES HER 5TH GAY OLD TIME! Elevation founder Tom Whitman is Top Shelf By Rea hen Tom Whitman California didn’t really have a first decided to hold gay ski week like some other Wa gay ski week in resorts. So we modeled the Mammoth Lakes, he sent out vibe of Elevation after [the a single email through his Whistler event]. Friendly, events company, Tom Whit- gregarious guys and girls com- man Presents, thinking he ing around from all over the might get a few dozen attend- country and the world.” ees. He got 250. Flash-forward “Unlike some other LGBT fifteen years, and 2,500 revel- events, its not just about go- ers identifying as LGBTQ (Les- ing to a party,” says Whitman. bian, Gay, Bi, Transgender and “There’s an activity involved. Queer), and even some who It’s a destination.” identify as plain old straight, He says that attendees range will descend on Mammoth from double-black-diamond Mountain this year for the an- skiers to bunny slope cruisers, nual Elevation Gay Ski. It’s the and some come just for the PHOTO: BELLE third largest gay ski event in apres-ski events and skip the Gogo Lunch turned 5 last Saturday. From left: Partygoers Tulie Saenz, J.P. Farber, Rilynn the country, surpassed only by slopes. However, “I’d say about Schneider, Frankie Farber, Gogo and Cora Johnson. events at Whistler and Aspen 90-95 percent of people who “We’ve built such huge us from the beginning…over than anyone else, and you will (with Aspen being the largest). attend go out on the hill.” event despite the fact that the years we have had some run out of vodka!’” says Whit- “We pretty much grown ev- Whitman has now expanded there are challenges getting really great advocates.” man. ery year, with the one drought Elevation to events in Lake to Mammoth,” said Whitman. He said that during one of Whitman also emphasized year [2014-15] being the Tahoe and Park City, Utah, but At Wednesday’s welcome the first years of the event, that all of Mammoth is wel- exception,” said Whitman on the Mammoth event remains party at Lakanuki, “I met a “when we were kind of getting come to attend the fabulous Thursday, March 16 over a cup the big party. couple from Sydney, Austra- big, there were two cops in parties that Elevation puts of coffee at Black Velvet. “I love it, so it doesn’t feel lia, someone who came from front of me, and they were on. “We definitely [welcome] He became enamored with like that much work, but Miami, some people spend talking about Elevation. And locals who are not LGBT. It’s a Mammoth in college, when it is a ton of work,” he says 10-14 hours traveling just to they said, ‘That group is amaz- welcoming event. We get big he was a ski racer for UCLA. “I with a smile. “We start plan- get here.” ing, not one person got into a groups of guys and girls and just loved it. And a year later, ning 7-8 months before the And Whitman said that fight!’” couples coming up just be- three of us—a gay guy who event, booking talent and DJs. Mammoth has had a welcom- Service industry staff in cause we have great music.” worked at Intrawest, myself, Between everybody, the tech ing attitude toward the group Mammoth also love Elevation. Visit www.mammothgayski. and a guy who worked at Out crew, dancers, and perform- from the event’s inception. “I “I tell the businesses where we com for a list of this weekend’s Magazine were talking about ers, about 30 people” for five have to commend the town have our parties, ‘be prepared, events and info on Elevation’s our love of skiing and how days of events. and everybody for welcoming we will drink more premium “zero attitude” core mission. CountiesWATER, and LADWP WATER try to figure EVERYWHERE out what to do with all the runoff By Bodine arly spring runoff is Power customers’ need about onto fields and meadows in already filling canals and 500,000-acre feet to get them the Owens Valley, an early Eopen fields in Inyo Coun- through the year. start on letting go of some ex- ty following of one of the wet- The Los Angeles Depart- cess water and It has released, test winters on record as the ment of Water and Power or spread, 17,000-acre feet snow is just beginning to melt. provided the water numbers between Pleasant Valley and And, there could be more and explained to Inyo County Tinnemaha Reservoir, another runoff coming with spring Supervisors at its meeting 5,000 between Tinnemaha rains. As of March 14, Sierra Tuesday, March 14 what it, and Haiwee Reservoir and snowpack was at 217-percent and they, can do about all the another 4,000-acre feet south of normal and predictions are water. to slightly within Kern County for approximately 750,000- LADWP has been letting and Indian Wells Valley. PHOTO COURTESY TOM WHITMAN acre feet of runoff. Los Angeles water spill out on the ground, The water will recharge the Tom Whitman (right) with Mammoth Resorts minority owner Shaun White. Department of Water and literally. Water is running out see WATER, page 21 EIFDead Hose job Int’l embargo 5th down and F.A.R. Kids and cupcakes /p. 2/ /p. 7/ /p. 12/ /p. 5/ /p. 22/ 2 I www.thesheetnews.com THE SHEET I Saturday, March 18, 2017 57 MILLION PENNIES FOR YOUR THOUGHTS? the Ted Carleton ....... Jack of all Lunches It was with a palpable sense of deja vu that I took in Wednesday’s 760.937.4613 / [email protected] “Walk, Bike, Ride” workshop which preceded the Mammoth Town June Simpkins...Jack of everything else Council meeting. 760.937.3967 / [email protected] There was a very bright consultant with his PowerPoint presentation sheet Mike Bodine ..................Writer and his archetypal starched casual look. There was the rapt attention of News, Views & Culture of the Eastern Sierra Council which pretended it had never seen a PowerPoint presentation [email protected] before. There were the big dreams we’ve dreamed before but which, “Ritatem brunneis illud, quod ea melius Sarah Rea .....................Writer perhaps, Mr. Consultant was hoping we hadn’t dreamed, so he put ‘em agere.” [email protected] in his report to help justify his exorbitant fee. -Danny DeVito as Frank Reynolds Charles James .............Contributor But what really stirred the deja vu was when Mr. Consultant talked 760.614.0546 about how we would pay for his THREE proposed 150-300 space park- JACK LUNCH Clouds McCloud ......... ing garages, or the proposed $24 million town-wide gondola system PUBLISHER Ass-trologer with its $4 million annual operating budget. P.O. Box 8088 Abagael Giles .................Writer He said we would simply have to create an EIFD (Enhanced Infra- Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546 [email protected] structure Financing District). 760.924.0048/[email protected] An EIFD is the latest craze among consultants and politicians who are An adjudicated paper of general circula- For a subscription to The Sheet contact always struggling how to mask their appetite for taking and spending tion. ©2016 The Sheet, all rights reserved. money. Lunch at his above e-mail address, or call the office. Issues are mailed out bi-weekly. Cost www.thesheetnews.com Here’s how it generally works. The politicos set a tax baseline for a Check out for is $65/year. particular area. That’s the cap. If property values rise in that area, the more content, daily updates and free online difference between the old valuation (and tax collection) in that area classifieds. and the new valuation (and projected tax collection) is siphoned off The County and MCWD, when they finally weighed in, said no way, into an EIFD slush fund which can be used for neighborhood improve- we’re not interested in sacrificing tax revenue to such a district. ments. Two years later, a consultant again comes in and makes a splashy The EIFD would have its own board, just like MLH and MLR and proposal without doing his homework and consulting affected agen- MLT and all the other non-governmental organizations we’ve created cies. It’s as if consultants are afraid to do research which involves around here. speaking to actual people. The whole thing is D.O.A. EIFDead. The Here’s the catch. All sorts of different governmental agencies have a consultant could’ve known that just by a cursory look at The Sheet claim on property tax. The Water District, School District, County, Fire, archives. etc. Schools are automatically exempt. Other agencies can choose to Councilman Bill Sauser observed voluntarily participate, or not. at the meeting that Alta’s report Here’s where the deja vu comes in. Two years, Mrs. Consultant (Jamie “ amounted to what would be yet Licko of Centro, Inc.) came to town to talk about how to fix parking. Her another “dust-collecting folder” on idea: Finance parking via an EIFD. She didn’t consult any of the affected It’s not about keeping Town Manager Dan Holler’s shelf.