Q&A
We’d like to introduce you to one of our amazing clients – John Groom, Director of Land Management for the Tahoe Donner Association. Tahoe Donner Association is one of America’s largest homeowner’s associations, with nearly 6,500 properties and 25,000 members enjoying over 7,300 acres in the Sierra Nevada mountains. Here's what he had to say about the work Tahoe Donner Association is doing and his experience working with Design Workshop.
Tell us about your role as the Director of Land Management for Tahoe Donner Association?
My role is to oversee the area’s forestry defensible space – this is the area between a house and a potential wildfire where the vegetation has been modified to reduce the wildfire threat– as well as recreation on our more than 5,000-acres of open spaces. This includes a wide variety of recreation opportunities from a 60-mile trail system and two ski areas to recreational facilities and an equestrian area.
What challenges were you trying to solve on the project you worked on with Design Workshop?
In 2021, Tahoe Donner turned 50 years old and we wanted to ensure we had a plan in place to keep our trails and open space vibrant and sustainable for the next 50 years. Since the last iteration of our Master Plan in 2013, we have grown both in the number of properties and members. Recreation trends have also evolved over the last 10 years so we needed to adjust to accommodate increased usage by mountain bikers, hikers, and our equestrian visitors. We drew on community and stakeholder input to increase the quality of user experiences while also providing project recommendations that offer a return on investment for homeowners. Design Workshop kept us organized and moving forward even when the project seemed ambiguous.
What makes the trails and open space at Tahoe Donner different from other public lands?
Tahoe Donner’s 5,000 acres and all amenities are open to the public with about 4,000 people a month using our trails. The equestrian center located at the main trailhead in Tahoe Donner boards up to 40 horses. The mountain bike program is also located at the same place. It takes lots of management to figure out how to move people around on the trails so they can enjoy their experience. We don’t want bikes scaring horses or hikers holding up bikers. That is what Design Workshop helped us do – keep the trails moving along so people can enjoy their time on them. This project helped us take all 60 miles of our trails and create a management plan that offers zones for each type of user. The team helped us create compelling, easy-to-read visuals to outline each zone. One of the things that really sets the Design Workshop team apart is their ability to visually communicate information. This project wouldn’t have been successful without that.
What has been one of your favorite pieces of the project that you’ve worked on with Design Workshop that has made you most proud? Why?
The process of how we got to where we are today is what makes me most proud. We started with a high-level overview of our trail master plan that was approved through the Board of Directors. Now we get to dive into the smaller projects outlined in the Master Plan. Currently, Design Workshop is helping design the equestrian center and they just helped us complete visuals for a 1.5 mile interpretive nature loop. The best thing about working with the Design Workshop team is that I know I have a resource who can take my ideas and get them ready for communicating with our membership. They’re collaborative approach ensures we get our goals accomplished in the most efficient way possible