INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. — Members of the Incline Village Crystal Bay Business Association came together for their inaugural member meeting Wednesday, Feb. 8, at the Chateau, to discuss goals as an organization for the upcoming year. 

The meeting began with a presentation from Washoe County Commissioner Alexis Hill, who outlined initiatives currently happening in Washoe Tahoe, including workforce housing, a potential short term rental moratorium in Incline Village, transportation, and traffic and pedestrian safety.

IVCBA Executive Director Linda Offerdahl has been a champion of connecting Incline Village with Washoe County representatives in order to bring positive change to the district. 

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“Commissioner Hill has done amazing things for our community,” said Offerdahl. “She sits on many boards and sometimes people say she’s distracted, she doesn’t have enough time to do a good job. That is her job; representing us throughout the region down in Reno.”

With the help of Hill, funding for multiple initiatives in the district have been funded, including a $25k grant for the Main Street Project. 

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Hill was able to present data from multiple surveys done in the area that show there is a need for around 1,200 new housing units needed by 2026 to meet the need in the district, with around 260 unfilled jobs currently in the area. 

“Obviously we’re not going to be able to build 1,200 units in Incline Village,” said Hill. “There’s just no way we can do that. So we need to be creative on how we can make that happen, and we’ve got a lot of strategies moving forward and what that will look like.” 

Solutions include a potential moratorium for short-term rentals in Incline Village. Hill specified that wouldn’t take away the ability for current short-term rentals to operate. 

“It just means future ones,” said Hill. “Let’s put a pause and steady this use while we try to get some workforce units online.” 

Overall, Washoe County surveys found that 53% of people who work in Incline Village commute to work, and there has been a reduction in services as a result. 

Currently, the Washoe Tahoe Housing Partnership is working to solve the issues presented by Hill, but Offerdahl brought the topic to the forefront of the IVCBA’s goals with the plan to strengthen the business community through collaboration and programs in the district. 

Throughout the meeting, there were different areas to sign up for committees that the IVCBA will be running this year. The topics ranged from workforce transportation to the parade and fair held for the Fourth of July. 

Other goals that were outlined during the meeting included building the amount of subscribers and members of the IVCBA through growing their own news source and building a base of support for residents. 

Ways that can be done is through building relationships with other agencies, partnerships like the Washoe Tahoe Housing Partnership, and the Tap into Tahoe program.

“We all like to make fun of the person who doesn’t know where to park, that doesn’t know how to do something,” said Offerdahl. “Those new residents, they want to be locals just as soon as they can. So we’re trying to bring back that old fashioned welcome wagon and we call it the Tap into Tahoe Program.”

In just two years, the IVCBA has gained 270 members, and Offerdahl’s goal is to get to 300 in 2023. There are still many ways to get involved and become a member of the IVCBA. To learn how, visit ivcba.org.

Miranda Jacobson is a reporter for the Tahoe Daily Tribune, a sister publication of the Sun. She may be reached at mjacobson@tahoedailytribune.com.