The meeting was brought to order at 10:37 a.m. The minutes were accepted as offered. The Treasurers report was read, discussed and accepted. The report is in the records.
Tony Delgado, our county commissioner was introduced. He gave a synopsis of the county activities. East Deer Lake Rd. will be rebuilt in 2005-2006. The state will pay 90% and the county will pay the rest of the cost to rebuild. It will be 2 ft. wider. The total cost will be $1,800,000.
Lake Roosevelt is going to be studied by a coalition of business, counties and the Colville Tribe to determine the extent of minerals in the water and in the steam bed. The clean up of the river will probably be spread out among the above- mentioned groups. They do not want the federal government involved.
A fish and wildlife advisory committee has been formed to deal with the cougar problem . There have been no fatalities yet but many incidents of stalking and close encounters have occurred. The committee can declare an emergency, which will result in special hunts to reduce the numbers of cougars.
A jail advisory committee has been formed to address the overcrowding in our jails. The study is looking at how many beds are needed. Martin Hall, which handles the juveniles, is costing the county too much money. They are looking at this problem too.
A dog ordinance is being studied and is expected to be presented this fall.
Dean Westerman from the Sheriffs dept., gave a talk on policing our waters. He has been an officer for 25 yrs. They are encouraging personal watercraft to use the middle of the lake to reduce congestion. Only officers and reserves will be allowed to patrol the lakes.(no volunteers). There have been no drownings in our area for many years. Life jackets must be wearable. Cushions are not legal. It was generally agreed the pwc situation has improved over the years.
Russ Armstrong from the fire dept . told us of changes in the dept.. Chief Martin has resigned. Keith Reilly is the interim chief. Paid staff work Monday thru Fri. The addressing sign program is going well. Cost to individuals is $15. The fire dept. will install the signs for free. There are 110 volunteers to cover 375 sq. miles. Does the DLPOA board want permit- based campfires? We need to discuss this in the fall. A letter from us to the fire dept. is needed if we do.
4th of July : 10:30 am.- parade, 7:30 pm.- boat parade, 10:00 pm.- fireworks.
Signage: repairs have been made to most signs around the lake.
Water Quality : A report from the DOE shows the lake to be in good shape. A survey of the weed population will be done in late summer.
Fisheries: It was suggested that the fish be planted at night so the birds would not be able to feast on the fry as they come out of the truck. Most of the silvers are being eaten before they can grow up. There are too many predator fish in the lake.
EMS: Jerry is on top of it.
Newsletter: Doing well.
Woodcutting: We will have a permit to cut this fall.
Dock removal : George Renner headed up a group for our 2nd annual dock destruction derby. They succeeded in demolishing 18 docks, one more than the first year.
New business : The property on the west side, for a fire station, is still in the works but problems exist. The proposed motorcycle track is in question right now, as nothing seems to be happening. The group needs a State review.
To improve our water pressure and flow we need to provide the P.U.D . with an easement across our 20 acres. This would allow them to connect the water line that ends on each side of the narrows.
DLPOA Property in the Narrows: After a motion and a motion to rescind a motion and a motion that didn't quite get formulated etc. etc. etc., it was voted not to sell the property to the Federal Fish And Wildlife Dept.. My best guess is that it will come up for a vote next year and again the year after that, unless something unusual happens to resolve the situation.
There was a motion to not ice fish until an infrastructure is in place to control the activities. It passed.
Election: Larry Hersom and Jack Low were elected to the DLPOA board of directors. The rest of the board was re-elcted.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:00pm. With a potluck following. There were approx. 65 people present at the meeting.