DLPOA Board Meeting Nov 9 2006We had probably one of the biggest turnouts for an executive board meeting that I have ever seen. Must have been close to 20 people. Thank you all for coming. Board members attending were: Larry Nokes, Mike Phillips,Ivy Shaw, Gerry Block, Jim Santora,Ken Rozelle, Darrell Rung, George Renner, Mauri Paul, and John Agar. Guests were Gerald Paffile, Kevin Schroeder, Larry Block, Mark Sterk, Larry Twitchell, Dennis and Bonnie DeMattia, Sarii Wessman, and Ken and Cheryl Ring. Routine business: September minutes read and approved. Oct minutes did not count because there was no quorum. Treasurer report: $45K in CDs, currently earning 5% . $6K in checking Most of the meeting was taken up with two items from Kevin Schroeder. Mr Schroeder is a Mandscape Maintenance Contractor in Spokane, and his family has had property on Deer Lake for several generations. Mr Schroeder's first item dealt with the lake level. We have all seen that the lake level appears to be historically low, except for this last year, and even then, when it got as high in the spring as we have seen in years, it drew down very quickly, like inches a week (vertically). He proposes that a gate be put on the overflow culverts to trap the high water for a longer period of time, rather than allow this water to flow into the gravel beds behind the culverts and disappear. He would like to see the lake start out a couple of feet higher in the spring than the culverts would normally allow. When the culvert was cleaned out a few years back, that all the work was done behind the culverts. Over time soil had glopped up the natural gravel of the bottomland, and the ditch that has been there since the 1920's was cleaned out to allow a place for overflow water to flow. No work was done in front of the culvert, which is basically a swampland. A long discussion on all this ensued,. DLPOA pointed out that anybody that tries to fiddle with Mother Nature, or at least with the water level in the lake, will have to deal with about five different county and state agencies (like DOE, Fish&Wildlife, PUD, Planning) and who knows how many environmental committees, bureaus and tree huggers. The point was made that the lake very rarely gets high enough such that these gates would be touched. A few years back, a hydrologist did some studies of just where the water comes from, and where it goes. We should be able to find these studies somewhere, which may shed some additional light on this discussion. Anyway, DLPOA proposed that Mr Schroeder contact the various agencies to start the process and see what it will take to get all the permissions to put such a gate in. Eventually this issue would probably have to be discussed at a DLPOA annual meeting, with maybe a homeowner vote to see who wants to buy in, and who believes it might be detrimental to their property to do this. He agreed to start knocking on those doors, and report back. His second item dealt with an article that appeared in our most recent newsletter. Specifically, our water quality article talked about the phosphorus levels in the lake, how phosphorus accelerates the growth of algae and other bad things, and, the issue at hand, the suggestion that most of this phosphorus came from people dumping fertilizer on their lawns and tulips, and having this stuff run into the lake and causing the problem. Mr Schroeder does not believe this, for several reasons. First, that most lawn fertilizer does not contain much in the way of phosphorus, and second, that what phosphorus is in the soil moves within the soil very slowly, like maybe an inch a year. He had citations from WaZoo and other academic sources to show this. He believes that the main sources are duck and geese poop, weed decomposition, and other natural additions. Mike Phillips, who wrote the article in question, also quoted chapter and verse from his sources, and said that it was not movement through the soil, but movement OF the soil into the lake, and washing of the fertilizer into the lake before it got into the soil that caused all these problems. Mr Schroeder was asked to submit an article for the newsletter to present his point of view. Other business. Larry Nokes, our chairman, is getting overwhelmed with the work that needs to be done, especially since we do not have a full board of directors to fob some of this work off on. He would like some help to deal with the new property questions, and the entrance signage on the north side of lake. He would like better, and more permanent signs, with water, lighting, landscaping. And maybe Stones. He would like to move it closer to the Y on the North side where water and power are available. There is an open committee slot for being the sign guy. Newsletter stuff - we are trying to get a valid database for sending the newsletter out. We just finished merging the PUD list with our old database. There are a number of names on our list that are not on the PUD list, and we don't know why. We sent the latest newsletter out to everybody on both lists, and hope to get some bouncebacks to figure out who the dead addresses are. The question was asked about Mailboxes - is it OK to have your own box at your property, or do you have to use the apartment style ones. We think personal mailboxes are OK, but this will have to be investigated. Comprehensive plans Land Use meetings are occurring NOW. Unplatted areas (that's us) already are approved to have accessary homes (ie: grannie units). Emergency dwellings are also OK. Your land must be more than one acre to do this. Loon Lake is doing a Sub Area Plan under the Comprehensive Plan -- essentially zoning. Deer Lake / Loon Lake drainage phrase is used in the plan some places in the plan, which suggests that at least some parts of the plan tie us together. Stevens County comprehensive land use plan will be done by the end of the month. We need to be involved so we don't get surprised later. We will know by end of month if there are new fishing regulations - new season duration, different catch limits. Meeting finished at 8:30 PM. |
DEER LAKE PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATION BOARD MEETINGOctober 12 2006We did not have a quorum. So, essentially nothing said here counts for real. Attending were Dennis and Bonnie Demattia, Larry Twitchell, Bill Bajadali, Gerry Block, Mike Phillips, Jim Santora and Larry Nokes. Clean up day - We did not pick up as much trash as usual. Part of the reason is that some neighbors are doing it a lot on their own, so there is not a lot left to do in some areas.. Cleanup was finished by 930. Fish report -- Mr Santora will get more fish Monday. There will be no more summer batches anywhere in the area, except for us. No more triploids, except for the Columbia river. It is apparently expensive to produce them. We will get Regular rainbows. Narrows Logging. - There are six trucks a day taking logs out of the logging area near the narrows. We understand that after the logging is done, the owners will sell 4 20 acre view lots. Logging will go on for 4 more months. We will be notified about every logging operation on the lake in the future. Board --We have lost several board members recently. So we had some discussions about who we can rope in to be new board members. Several names were presented. Unfortunately, most of those named were not there. Realtor signs -- There are realtor signs everywhere, and not just at the house being sold. Some houses have several signs all over the place to point you to where the house is. Some on the board feel it looks kind of trashy. It would really help if several realtors would get together and come to some consistent look for a group of signs at intersections. We had a discussion of housing prices on the lake. Screaming. Many houses on our tiny blue collar lake are selling for $400K plus in this last year. Somebody asked the web guy (me) to provide a list of houses that have sold. Mr Nokes said he would see if he could get that information for us. Now that we have a comprehensive plan for the county, they will start on zoning ordinances for the Deer Lake area. There will be hearings on all this, and a DLPOA will have a representative. Finished at 8pm |
DEER LAKE PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATION BOARD MEETINGSeptember 14, 2006President Larry Nokes called the meeting to order at 7:05pm. Members present were Mike Phillips, Ivy Shaw, Jim Santora, Mauri Paul, Bill Bajadali, Jason Johnson, Dennis DeMattia, Jack Low and Larry Nokes. Absent were George Renner, Darrell Rung, Gerry Block, John Gregerson and Ken Rozelle. Guests present were Commissioner Tony Delgado, Bonnie DeMattia, Lee Bayley and Mike Egan.Commissioner Delgado had a number of things to report on concerning Stevens County and affecting Deer Lake residents. He contacted Bernie Jones of the DNR and discussed the logging operation above the Narrows. Bernie assured him that everything being done there is legal. Bernie suggested that DLPOA contact him about being put on a roster to be notified in advance of other logging operations, etc., which may take place in the future. The next phase of the GMA calls for the establishment of rules and regulations. Among the subjects to be addressed are junk cars, a dog ordinance, ATV use on county roads. At this time there are no plans for a noise ordinance, due to the nature of livelihood activities (logging, farming) prevalent in Stevens County. Something that will impact us locally is the planned recreation expansion in the Chewelah area, including a $35 million hotel/gambling complex to be opened in 2007. Recreation packages will link the hotel with the golf course and 49 North. Plans for the building of a sports complex are also in the works to be financed at least in part by .08 money from the county. Hotel and motel tax money is available for community projects. Tony said that DLPOA’s annual fireworks would be eligible for some of this money. Larry Nokes will look into this. The Farm Bureau’s Initiative 933 has enough signatures to be put on the November ballot. Watch for further information on this measure and its possible effects on the Comprehensive Plan. Jason Johnson asked Tony if a code enforcement officer had been hired yet. The answer was no: the money is just not in the budget. Turning to regular business, the secretary’s report on the May 11 meeting was read and approved. There was no treasurer’s report as George Renner was absent. COMMITTEE REPORTS FOURTH OF JULY — Larry Nokes reported lots of positive comments about the fireworks and the parade. There were some complaints about certain areas being unable to view the fireworks, but most people were able to see them well. The pyrotechnics crew expressed concern about boats causing wakes which disturbed the loading process. Next year we will need to set up no-wake buoys around the dock area and also to address the problem in our spring newsletter. Lee Bayley said that the turnout for the pancake feed was low (about 300) and netted only about $1100. This was due mainly because of timing (the 4th falling in mid-week), but also the advertising was not strong enough. We need better signs. Next year the 4th again falls in mid-week, and plans are to hold the pancake feed on the Sunday before (July 1). In The board has lost some members. Jerry Paffile and Jack Low have resigned. Jason Johnson may soon be forced to resign if his Deer Lake property is sold. Board members are encouraged to recruit replacements. Mike Egan (guest and friend of Larry Nokes) expressed an interest in joining. Dennis DeMattia will replace Jack Low as secretary. Bill Bajadali — after observing some A final business item was the mention of the candidates’ forum to be held in Loon Lake on October 19. Of special interest are the races for prosecuting attorney and county sheriff. The meeting was adjourned at 9:35pm. |
President Larry Nokes called the meeting to order at 7:05pm. All members were present with the exception of Ivy Shaw, recovering from surgery. Guests present were Clay White, Stevens County Land Services Director, Bonnie DeMattia, and Dean and Sharon Krump.
Mr.White spoke to us about the progress of the County Comprehensive Plan. He explained that the plan is basically a guidance document setting forth policies affecting growth and development in Stevens County for the next twenty years or so. The plan is being carefully written so as to do the most good for the most people in our diverse county. Clay called for groups such as DLPOA to be information sources for the general citizenry and to help defend the plan. Public comment has necessitated a lot of rewriting and "fine-tuning" of the document, but Clay expects the plan will be adopted by the end of June, allowing the next phase of the process--zoning--to begin. Zoning regulates what property owners can do on their property, and it must be consistent with the guidelines of the comprehensive plan.
When asked if money was available to hire a code enforcement officer, Clay felt that it was, but the county commissioners have not yet made the decision to hire one. Recent expansion in the planning department has allowed five-day-a-week inspections and more emphasis on shoreline issues.
COMMITTEE REPORTS-----NEWSLETTER-----Dennis DeMattia commented on the good quality of the pictures in the most recent newsletter and suggested that we include more pictures in the future. He said that we could save some money by making partial advance payments (for at least the cost of the postage, approx. $150). Also, our printer (Walt's) would like to simplify the newsletter process by using their envelopes. Upon viewing samples of these envelopes, our group felt that we would need a bigger flap on the envelope for privacy purposes. Dennis will check into this.
ROAD CLEAN-UP------John Gregerson reported that all is ready for the spring clean-up on May 20. The usual chili feed will follow.
MEMBERSHIP-----To avoid the expense of return postage, Jason Johnson proposed mailing newsletters to known members only and postcards to questionable addresses. George Renner suggested we could avoid the problem simply by addressing each newsletter to "Occupant." Jason wondered how far into the watershed we should promote membership. Larry Nokes addressed this, noting that the bylaws restrict membership to the immediate neighborhood of Deer Lake's shores.
DLPOA PROPERTY-----Larry Nokes had nothing new on the property but did talk about a meeting with Dick Price about relocating our sign at Grouse Creek Road to an area adjacent to the PUD pump station on North Deer Lake Road. This would also require the relocating of the utility road to the pump station. Dick had no problem with this relocation and furthermore said the PUD would supply the water and power necessary for the proposed landscaping around the sign.
ROAD SAFETY-----Darrell Rung reported that he has noticed many drivers exceeding the 20mph speed limit on North Deer Lake Road. This was followed by a discussion of the current attrition in the County Sheriff's Department. Despite this, arrests have been made in connection with local burglaries. The question was raised whether it was better to leave yard lights on or off at night to thwart burglary. That depends upon how isolated your property is. "Dialers" (available at Radio Shack) are effective security devices.
DOCK DEMOLITION-----Bill Bajadali said that everything was a go for the June 3 demolition. He will arrange for trucks. Darrell Rung will contact Doyle Knight for a truck also. Three chain saws will be needed. Volunteers should meet the morning of the 3rd at Sunrise Point.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:45pm.
Prior to the regular board meeting, there was a meeting with about 25 people attending. Tim Rasmussen gave us an overview of his experience, as he is about to run in the upcoming election for Prosecuting Attorney in Stevens County. He will be opposing Jerry Wettle the present person in office. Mr. Rasmussen is from the Suncrest area and is presently a Prosecuting Attorney in Spokane Co.
Jason McLellan, a fish biologist with the Wa. Dept. of Fish and Wildlife, gave us a presentation covering the fish study done in the fall of 2005. He told us about the condition of the fish population and the estimated numbers of each species. Curt Vail answered questions and gave us some possible cures for the poor balance of the fish population now existing. There will be a completed paper version of the study coming out soon. Dennis DeMattia will post info from the presentation on the DLPOA web site.
The meeting was moved to the basement for the regular board meeting. Jack Low and Jerry Paffile were absent. Because we were running late, the meeting was shortened as much as possible.
Mark Kirkendall mentioned that broadband internet is in the process of being installed in our area.
Tony Delgado, our county commissioner was present. He says the GMA is still in debate. There are also some septic problems in the county that the different regulatory agencies are at odds over what is allowed and not allowed. We are going to tour the lake shoreline sometime before the next meeting. Clay White, Tony Delgado and others from agencies controlling shorelines activities will be touring.
New Business: Mike Phillips was elected temporary Vice President replacing Larry Twitchell. The vote was unanimous. He will be confirmed unless someone else wants to oppose him at the annual meeting in June.
George Renner was elected temporary Treasurer, replacing Pete Clark. The vote was unanimous. Confirmation will be at the annual meeting.
Pete Clark says the signature card for the bank needs to be updated. Larry N. will take care of this.
The mailing list is being worked on by Jason, Dennis and Gerry B. They will be trying to figure out how to maintain a membership and mailing list with assorted information on a database.
Dock demolition is being taken over by Bill Bajadali. June 3rd has been tentatively set to do the demo work. We have to contact Pete Smith and Clyde Ennis to confirm.
Pancake Feed: The date has been changed to July 9th from the 2nd . Volunteers are needed. Gerry Block is coordinating volunteers and needs. Lee Bayley is the head of this effort. Ken R. will look into signage for the pancake feed.
Spring Road cleanup: Gerry B. is the contact person for the chili feed arrangements. Ken, John, Larry N. and Ivy S. will bring chili. George R. will pick up the rest of the needed items. John and Mike are the contacts for new road cleanup volunteers.
Annual meeting: June 10th. Set up help is needed. Several people indicated they would be there.
Fireworks: There is a need to move the date to the 3rd instead of the 4th. The people putting on the show are short of trained help. Larry N. is looking for a way to shoot them off close to shore as setting up in the middle of the lake is a time consuming process and is more dangerous for the crew setting them off. He will look into other options. The parade and boat parade will still be held on the 4th.
Dennis would like to add e-mail addresses of our membership so we can remind folks of upcoming events in a timely manner. All thought that was a good idea. We will be asking for those in the next newsletter and the again next year with the dues envelope.
A letter to the editor section was suggested so people can voice their opinions on matters that DLPOA cannot, due to the type of organization we are.
A letter from Caudia Otis was read, thanking us for the plaque we gave her in appreciation for all the work she did on the newsletter for several years.
A card from Larry Twitchell was read. He thanked those that sent him condolences on his wife's passing.
May 11th. Clay White, the head of Stevens Co. Planning will be here to answer questions re: GMA and other pertinent issues.
The lake water has started to flow out. It is going into the ground in front of the culvert at the present time. So take note of where the water level is now, as that is the normal full level. It could go higher depending on conditions.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:05 p.m.
In absence of a quorum, the meeting had no official opening. Members present were Larry Nokes, Jack Low, Mike Phillips, Jim Santora, Ivy Shaw, John Gregerson, George Renner, and Darrell Rung. One guest was Tony Delgado.
Tony discussed the Growth Management Act and its impact on agriculture. That, and the new world economy will soon change agriculture as we know it in this country. Clay White will be here fore the May 11 meeting. Hopefully, he will have had a tour of our lake by then. In connection with this, Larry Nokes made a request for a list of current building permits on our lake.
The fish survey report will be the main topic at our April meeting.
President Larry Nokes opened the meeting at 7:05PM. All members were present but Jason Johnson, George Renner and Darrell Rung. Guests were Ivy Shaw, Sally Clark, Bonnie DeMattia, Maury Paul, and Bill Bajadali. Ivy, Maury and Bill are our newest board members, along with Jerry Paffile, who was not in attendance. Dennis DeMattia, our newsletter chairman, has also agreed to be a board member. This brings our board to a healthy total of 16 members:
We still need to fill the vice president vacancy and appoint a chairman for the Zoning Committee. Hopefully, this will be done at our next meeting.
The January minutes were approved as presented. There was no formal treasurer's report. The next order of business was committee reports. Larry Nokes had nothing new concerning July 4th; Newsletter chairman Dennis DeMattia suggested putting a short bio on a board member in each issue of the newsletter. This was generally agreed to be a good idea. He also suggested putting pictures in the newsletter, but attempts to do this in the past were not successful. The next best thing is to put the pictures on the web and reference them in the newsletter. There was another suggestion that we need to make a better effort to mail newsletters to all we can.
NEW PROPERTY-----Larry Nokes presented some preliminary drawings showing floor plans and elevations for a proposed meeting place/senior center on our new property. The building would have approx. 1100 sq. ft. of floor space and would cost an estimated $100,000 to build. He will present these plans to the general membership at the annual meeting.
WATER QUALITY-----Mike Phillips reported that the latest WQ test results will soon be on our website. It is 17 pages long. Also, Lorinda Travis will publish it in the next issue of the Loon Lake Times.
FISHERIES-----Jim Santora said that state fish biologists Jason McClellan and Curt Vail will present a slide show on our August fish survey at our April meeting. He also said that our penned fish are doing great.
In old business, Larry Nokes learned from Clay White that plans are in the works to put about 50 condo-type buildings on Deer Lake Resort, replacing the current trailer lots. At present, the plans and paperwork are far from being completed, so construction, if it happens, is a long way off.
In new business, in the spring, Mike Phillips will take Clay White and a Dept. of Ecology enforcement officer on a pontoon boat tour of the lake, to give them a lakeside view of the construction that is taking place all around the lake. Ivy Shaw said that she would like to see more law enforcement on the lake. This has been a common topic of discussion in the past. The sheriff tells us that his department doesn't have the manpower to be present at all the county lakes, especially Deer Lake, which has relatively few problems. It was suggested that our informational cards: "For Fun and Safety on Deer Lake" be made available at our annual meeting.
With nothing further, the meeting adjourned at 9:20PM.
President Larry Nokes called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. All members were present but George Renner and Virgil Standerfer. Guests in attendance were Dennis and Bonnie DeMattia and Gerald and Maria Paffile.
The secretary's report was approved without amendment. Pete Clark presented the year-end financial report, which included the sale of our boat as part of our income. There was some discussion concerning the need to dispose of some of our liquid assets. The report was approved as presented. Although Pete no longer lives on the lake, he will remain as treasurer and will help with the newsletter.
Larry Nokes discussed the apathy and general lack of support among Deer Lake residents. DLPOA membership is dwindling; it is very difficult to recruit new board members; the same few repeatedly do all the work; and people seem to take the board's efforts for granted. Larry suggested that we might have to cut back on our activities--such as July 4th fireworks, parades, etc.--as a sort of "wake-up call" to area residents. A discussion followed on ways to advertise and increase membership. First, we need a new membership chairman. Jason Johnson offered to do this. Gerald Paffile offered to help him.
Dennis DeMattia would like committee reports for the newsletter by our February meeting. He would prefer to receive them by E-Mail. Jason Johnson said that he has a contact who prints newsletters and who might be willing to give us a discounted price.
Gerry Block reported that the fire district has weatherproofed our fire station.
Larry Nokes said that he will have some plans for a building on our new property at our next meeting. He asked Mike Phillips if the Salvation Army Camp would allow us some parking space. Mike said he would first need to see some specific plans.
Road Safety chairman Darrell Rung thought we should have some road signs similar to those on Loon Lake which threaten prosecution to prospective thieves. Larry Nokes said that he has a brand new sign which we could use.
Mike Phillips discussed the recent water quality tests. The results were good. A slight rise in phosphorus was noted--this will continue to be monitored. He mentioned that Spokane Community College will be holding a Regional Lakes Conference on February 11 from 9:30AM to 2:30PM.
In new business, Gerry Block asked if we could set a precedent and send memorial flowers to DLPOA members. In the past, there was a suggestion that we establish a location for some kind of DLPOA memorial. A committee needs to be established to address these ideas.
Jason Johnson suggested that we dissolve the Sub Area Plan part of the Zoning Committee, since the County Comprehensive Plan has now been completed. It was generally agreed to do this.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:30PM.