Photo courtesy of County of Placer


TRUCKEE, CA (MPG) - Placer County is moving forward with trailhead improvements this spring at the Lower Sawtooth parking lot at the popular entrance to U.S. Forest Service Road 06 in the Truckee area.

On Tuesday, the Placer County Board of Supervisors approved the county’s director of Public Works to initiate a construction contract with Baldoni Construction Service Inc. for up to $283,400 to pave the existing dirt parking areas at the Lower Sawtooth trailhead, add drainage and erosion control structures, install parking barriers and an informational kiosk, and add roadside signs to mitigate traffic concerns. The project is a collaborative effort between the county and the U.S. Forest Service – Tahoe National Forest.

The project uses $250,000 of transient occupancy tax funding through the TOT-TBID Dollars at Work program in partnership with the North Tahoe Community Alliance. Additional matching funds of $60,000 from air and water quality mitigation funds were granted by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.

The Lower Sawtooth Trailhead Improvements Project is the first project to move forward following the creation of the North Tahoe Recreation Access Plan. In 2020, Placer County obtained a California State Parks off-highway motor vehicle recreation grant to fund the creation of the plan, which was developed to respond to overcrowding, maintenance and public safety concerns and to improve the recreational experience for all users in the region.

The plan provides public agencies with a valuable tool for planning, maintaining and developing existing and future year-round public recreational access areas for a wide range of groups in the North Lake Tahoe and Truckee regions.

The project is located just south of the Placer-Nevada county line between state Routes 89 and 267 off U.S. Forest Service Road 06, adjacent to Thelin Drive in the Sierra Meadows area of unincorporated Placer.

Construction is slated to begin May 7 and be wrapped up before the end of the month.

Throughout the project, the county is requesting visitors to be courteous and respectful while parking on public roads and within nearby neighborhoods to access the trails impacted by construction.  

To learn more about this project and the North Tahoe Recreation Access Plan, click hereTrailhead improvements coming to Lower Sawtooth Recreation Area starting next month.

About TOT-TBID Dollars At Work

Since 2022, the TOT-TBID Dollars At Work program has reinvested $33.5 million in funds generated by tourism in support of initiatives that benefit North Lake Tahoe residents, businesses and visitors. Funding is allocated to investments that align with community priorities including workforce housing, economic development, transportation, stewardship, tourism mitigation, trails, community enhancement and events. Committees convened by the NTCA that represent a diverse collection of local voices and the NTCA Board of Directors evaluate and determine which investment opportunities to fund with TBID dollars, or to recommend to the Placer County Board of Supervisors for funding with TOT dollars. Learn more about the TOT-TBID Dollars At Work program and the initiatives it has supported hereTrailhead improvements coming to Lower Sawtooth Recreation Area starting next month. Or view the projects and programs funding by TOT here.