IFC approves start of work on Van Sickle property at Tahoe

Bond money will go to develop a plan for the Van Sickle property near Stateline.

The state Interim Finance Committee voted Thursday to use $80,000 to begin work on the Van Sickle property from the Sand Harbor Erosion Control fund.

State Lands Director Pam Wilcox said that money won't be needed until after completion of a Sand Harbor visitor's center and can be replaced during the next budget.

Steve Weaver of the State Parks Division said the money will be used to begin a master plan for the property near the Stateline Casino core. The property was donated to the state in the 1980s by Jack Van Sickle for use as a park.

Weaver said much of the land is too steep for most park activities but that the land has great potential for hiking trails and other such recreational activities.

He said a master plan will determine how to develop the park including where to move the old Van Sickle Ranch barn which is now just 300 feet inside the California state line and needs to be moved to the Nevada side of the property.

The money comes from the $3.2 million in bonds authorized for Lake Tahoe projects. Those bonds were sold in September. The largest projects on the list are forest restoration at $1.5 million and the Sand Harbor visitors center at $1 million.