On Friday’s Lunch and Learn hosted by the Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation (TTCF), mountain town representatives from Colorado, Idaho and Wyoming spoke about their successes and lessons in housing. The three speakers were Jason Dietz, director of housing for the town of Vail, Colorado; April Norton, director of Jackson and Teton County’s affordable housing department in Wyoming; and Carissa Connelly, housing director for city of Ketchum and Blain County Housing Authority in Idaho. Each of the speakers acknowledged how mountain town living and housing differs from most places, and the unique challenges faced by tourism impacts, weather and construction.

Stacy Caldwell is CEO of the Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation (TTCF), a place-rooted organization working to strengthen communities in California’s North Tahoe-Truckee region. Focusing on housing, mental health, and regional resilience, TTCF brings together public, private, and philanthropic partners to take on big, long-term challenges. As part of the Aspen Institute Community Strategies Group (Aspen CSG)’s Rural Development Hubs peer learning cohort, Stacy has been helping to shape and define what it means to be a Hub — and what it takes to build a more equitable and prosperous rural future.We sat down with Stacy to talk about her journey, what makes the Hub model work, and what keeps her motivated in this challenging and rewarding work.

TRUCKEE-TAHOE, Calif. — Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation (TTCF) and Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) have launched a new regional housing survey as part of an updated assessment of housing needs in the greater Lake Tahoe Region This region encapsulates the Lake Tahoe Basin, plus the Tahoe-Truckee Unified School District boundary, which includes parts of Eastern Placer and Nevada Counties, including the Town of Truckee. Partners request survey responses from those who live and work in the region, including local residents, seasonal workers, in-commuters, and individuals experiencing homelessness. The data results will highlight regional demands for housing that may include units that are more affordable, of better quality, closer to work, or less crowded. “The analysis also breaks down housing needs by factors such as location, unit size, and income level, giving a clearer picture of the specific needs within different areas of the region,” said Kristina Kind, Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation Program Director. “By comparing these results to those from the 2016, 2021, and 2023 assessments, our organizations can better understand how housing needs have changed over time and which groups are most affected.” Previous regional housing assessments have led to the establishment of the Mountain Housing Council, informed the development of white papers and policy recommendations on local and State levels, and informed the launch of fifteen regional housing programs. The survey only takes a few minutes. The deadline has been extended through June 30, 2025.  The survey is open now in both English and Spanish for anyone who lives and/or works in the region through the link below: This is the first time the Regional Housing Needs Assessment will include all of Truckee, North Tahoe, and the entire Lake Tahoe Basin. TTCF will provide the analysis for the area within the Tahoe Truckee Unified School District (TTUSD) boundaries to inform the work of regional achievable housing collaborative partners. TRPA will update housing need information for all communities of the Lake Tahoe Region and help inform the Cultivating Community, Conserving the Basin project. Responses will remain anonymous and general results will be shared with housing partners and made available on TTCF’s website at ttcf.net and the TRPA website at trpa.gov/housing.

In the Tahoe Truckee region, it’s not always easy for young people to build a life and career close to home. An effort, now in its third year, is aiming to make it easier.

TRUCKEE, Calif. -Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation (TTCF) will accept applications for Workforce Scholarships. Applications are open to young adults pursuing in-demand careers that benefit our region. Scholarships support advanced education or certification in fields such as education, vocational career paths, aviation, and science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). All scholarships are awarded via a single online common application provided and facilitated by TTCF.

In their latest Lunch and Learn, the Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation (TTCF) invited three speakers to talk about wildfire risk mitigation for homes in the region. They touched on what homeowners could do to protect their homes, how cross-laminated timber could potentially help new builds resist fire, and communicating with insurance companies that keep raising prices in fire-prone areas.

What exactly is "affordable housing"?

TRUCKEE, Calif. – The Truckee Chamber of Commerce announced the 2025 Core Values Fund Grant Recipients. This community event fund, established in collaboration with the Town of Truckee and administered by the Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation, is designed to support local nonprofits in the region or events that partner with non-profit organizations by providing essential marketing resources.

TRUCKEE, Calif. – The Community Collaborative of Tahoe Truckee (CCTT), a program of the Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation (TTCF), recently honored three exceptional individuals with their annual awards:

• The Chris Ballin Award honors contributions to cultural competency, equality, and social justice in our community
• The Public Service Award of Excellence recognizes an individual who goes above and beyond in serving the community
• The Partner of the Year Award recognizes an advocate of underserved communities and a champion of collaboration and equity

“This year’s awardees are individuals who have been making a significant impact in the community for a long time, often flying under the radar. It’s an honor to acknowledge their contributions in front of their peers and celebrate their hard work and achievements,” said CCTT Program Director Kristina Kind.

TRUCKEE, Calif – On Friday, Nov. 8, the Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation hosted a community discussion titled “Achievable Housing for All: For Now and the Future,” focusing on the housing needs of older adults in the Truckee area. The discussion, part of the Foundation’s ongoing speaker series, shed light on the challenges seniors face as they look to age in place and continue living independently in the region. The discussion was particularly timely, as recent community conversations have reinforced the growing concerns about the availability of housing options and services for aging residents. As a community foundation, the Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation prioritizes initiatives that address the needs and well-being of local residents, and this month’s focus on aging in place aligns with those values. The Foundation regularly hosts these monthly forums to hear from specialists and experts on pressing issues affecting the region.

KINGS BEACH, Calif. – The Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation (TTCF) brought back their Housing Lunch and Learns earlier this month and kicked it off with experts Erin Casey and Thomas J. Powell as guest speakers. The session, called “Unlocking Potential: Recent ADU Research and Its Impact on Policy and Development” addressed accessory dwelling units (ADUs) as a potential solution for the housing shortages in North Shore and Truckee.

TRUCKEE, Calif. – Last week, the Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation (TTCF) awarded a $1 million grant to the Sierra Institute for Community and Environment—the biggest grant that TTCF has directed in its history. The money will go towards the Sierra Institute’s Mosaic Timber operation to help thin the area’s overcrowded forests, create a forest economy, and offer a new building material called Cross-Laminated Timber.

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. – The Wá∙šiw (Washoe) are a sovereign tribal nation who are the original inhabitants of DáɁaw Ɂága (Lake Tahoe) and its surrounding areas. Lake Tahoe is the Tribe’s most sacred place, and they consider it a living entity that needs to be honored and protected. Now, The Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California, a formally recognized tribal government, has secured the funding it needs to establish a full-time Community Liaison. This liaison will represent its voice at community meetings and decision-making tables for the next three years.

TRUCKEE, Calif.  – [Correction: The informational workshop is on June 27 at 3:00pm, register here.]  Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation is working again with the Truckee Tahoe Airport District on their 2024 Agency Partnership Program. The Agency Partnership Program proudly supports larger, regional projects and programs between local nonprofits and partnering regional public agencies with awards of $5,000 or more. Projects must align with TTAD’s public purpose and their mission to provide safe, high-quality services and facilities, reduce impact on airport neighbors and the environment, and invest in opportunities that increase community safety and provide sustained benefit to the entire Truckee Tahoe region.

TRUCKEE, Calif. – The Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation announced a groundbreaking $10 million commitment from Braddock Philanthropies in support of TTCF’s strategic initiatives over the next five years. This substantial gift is accompanied by a community challenge to match Braddock Philanthropies’ $10 million contribution, aiming to rally additional support from both local residents and part-time homeowners.

“I came for the winter and stayed for the summer” is a common mountain-town refrain. That sentiment, combined with a pandemic-fueled real estate boom, has resulted in a dearth of affordable housing, both seasonal and permanent, in mountain towns across America. In many small western communities like Steamboat Springs, Durango, and Snowmass, Colorado; Sun Valley, Idaho; and Mammoth Lakes, California, it used to be that employees and locals lived in houses, and tourists stayed in hotels. The reverse is now true: houses are monopolized by Airbnb and VRBO rentals and second homeowners, and some hotels are being purchased by ski resorts and converted to affordable employee housing.

TRUCKEE, Calif. – `While the Truckee-Tahoe region might not have the same struggles as a big city like San Francisco or Los Angeles in terms of the unhoused population (ours is in the hundreds rather than the thousands), it doesn’t make our population any less important to address and help. A group of community leaders and organizations in Truckee and North Tahoe have joined together to form a coalition to tackle the unhoused issue. The Tahoe Truckee Homeless Advisory Committee of the Homeless Resource Council of the Sierras, supported by the Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation (TTCF), is chaired by Nevada County Supervisor Hardy Bullock, Placer County Supervisor Cindy Gustafson, and Truckee Vice Mayor Jan Zabriski.

From May 15 - June 30, 2024, individuals pursuing in-demand careers are invited to apply to Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation's Workforce Scholarships. Eligibility and requirements are available at www.ttcf.net/scholarships/.  Since 2022, TTCF has brought together generous donors to help address workforce development in key careers such as education, STEM (science, technology, education, and mathematics), aviation, and vocational pathways. These are the stories behind the donors investing in our shared future.