By Joanne S. Marchetta
Column Spanning the Divides of a National Treasure
More than 40 years ago, two states with very different philosophies forged a visionary compromise in a small but significant corner of their regions. That compromise was a hard-fought battle that formed the unique Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA). Being born of compromise, the TRPA has since spanned the divide between the strongly-held positions of the two states about the Tahoe Basin. That compromise became a bridge between the human and natural environments at the lake and began a constant search for equilibrium between orderly growth and environmental protection.