Pair fined $20,000 for removing trees to improve Tahoe view
Two men have been fined $20,000 for illegally cutting down five trees to improve a Lake Tahoe view.
Regulators approved a settlement agreement Wednesday with Tanner Tingey of Fresno, Calif., who owns a second home near Tahoe City, Calif., on the lake's north shore, and Trent Udlock, a Tahoe City landscaper.
The North Lake Tahoe Bonanza reported the two men worked together to remove five trees larger than 14 inches in diameter last summer on Carnelian Bay property just below Tingey's Tahoe home.
TRPA officials said the neighborhood's property owners gave Tingey permission to remove the trees after he voiced concern about possible fire danger.
But officials determined the tree removal wasn't necessary for defensible space, and that the unauthorized cutting improved the Tahoe view from Tingey's property.
