PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE
Spring is in the air!!!
Whether we want it to or not it looks like spring is just around the corner. I am a total SpringSummer-Fall guy but the lack of water in the lake this year concerns me. With the lake low from last year and with the minimal amount of potential run off we could experience record low water levels. Since our wells share lake water it might be advisable to be planning on conserving as much water as possible. Such things as timed lawn and landscape watering, landscaping and household usage conservation will help.
Something that keeps coming up whenever low water is discussed is what DLPOA did to the lake outflow several years ago. Nothing was done to the shelf in the wetland area near the boat launch that controls the lake level. The only thing DLPOA did, with the blessing of County Planning and Fish & Wildlife, was to clean out the overflow trench to allow the excess water in the lake, when there is any, to escape and percolate into the ground. This precluded the lake backing up to flood levels causing damage to residential property and wildlife habitat. The reason the lake is low is that we are in a drought time and the lake has not been able to refill.
On a brighter note, DLPOA is working on several exciting things to protect and improve our quality of life at the lake. Things like our sub-area plan, water quality testing, and a community center will be discussed in detail in following articles. Please read these articles and if you have any suggestions, input favorable or negative, or would like to help on any of these things please contact a DLPOA board member. It appears there may be some board positions opening up so if any DLPOA member is interested in becoming a board member please contact any current board member to discuss the possibilities. New blood is always a good thing.
We at DLPOA want to wish all members a safe and enjoyable season at the lake.
FOURTH OF JULY
Bigger and better things are afoot for the Fourth of July 2005. A different and hopefully better plan is in the works for the fireworks. Minimal changes to the parade and boat parade will make them more enjoyable to viewers and participants. Please feel free to contact me with any suggestions. Remember these events are for you and your enjoyment, so lets make them what you want. All the changes will be finalized and information provided in the next newsletter.
EMERGENCY SERVICES
It is official, Washington State is in emergency drought conditions. We may be facing the worst year for forest fires in decades. This thought brings up an issue that we all may need to plan for. Take a look around Deer Lake, how many roads are exiting our area? This is truly critical and we need to have an evacuation plan.
When a forest fire is raging, it moves fast! We won't have time to leisurely pack a bag and attempt to drive out. This year our water level is so low most boats and pontoons won't even get launched. The lack of water craft increased the level of an emergency evacuation plan for residents. We may not be using larger boats nor pontoons, but we do have several aluminum boats available around the lake. Check them over now for needed repairs.
Station #5's fire alarm will be silent this year even during the pancake breakfast. We are in an emergency state and the alarm will only be used when really needed. I know that several neighbors have scanners and listen to the fire and sheriff channels. The more eyes and ears the better. Remember to give accurate information to the #911 dispatcher.
In the homeowner associations around the lake, please discuss an evacuation plan. Perhaps we need to develop a buddy system for our neighbors that are handicapped. And, don't forget the pets.
Unless we receive plenty of rain, don't be surprised if fireworks are banned. This may put a crimp in some July 4th celebrations, but may save lives. When the fire marshal mandates "no open burning", please honor this order. There is a stiff fine for noncompliance.
Pray for rain! Our spring weather may supply some moisture, but certainly not enough for the entire summer. Be safe and please discuss an evacuation plan with your family and neighbors.
OUR EVER SHRINKING WORLD:
How low will it go? Good question. There are many variables that impact our lake level and most of them are weather related. Some of them are; precipitation, wind, temperature and humidity. These all impact the rate of evaporation. People using water from the lake to irrigate also draw down our lake. At this time it is unknown how much water lake residents are removing. The other unknown is water draining into the earth below the lake.
If the drought continues in the Northwest, we could be seeing some drastic situations. Many lakes have seen it before; docks sitting high and dry and lake access limited, if non existent. There is no way of knowing when these conditions will improve. History has shown us a roughly 20 year cycle from wet to dry. This cycle has been broken as we should be into the wet part of the cycle, but that is not the case.
Our lake is dependent on snow pack and the resulting runoff. If the ground is frozen and we have a quick warm up, much of the snowmelt goes into the lake. If the ground isn't frozen and the meltdown is slow, the water goes into the ground. Some comes back into the lake through springs, but we have no way of measuring that inflow accurately. Since we have no way of controlling the inflow or outflow, we get whatever Mother Nature gives us.
Some of us might get the idea of dredging a channel to get our boats closer to our beach. DON'T DO IT!!! The soil that seals our lake bottom is very thin. It is illegal to change those areas below the normal high water mark. Any dredging or digging below that mark could be expensive in more ways than one. If you break that seal on the lake bottom you have to seal it back up quickly. Then there are the fines the authorities will pile on. Your neighbors around the lake could get a. little angry when their already low lake gets even lower.
DLPOA PROPERTY
We finally own it!! The property we have been negotiating over the past few years is finally ours. Margaret Matthews very graciously gifted this property to DLPOA. Now we need to decide on a specific use, time table for development and funding. As stated in earlier newsletters. we would like to create a community center and archive and display area for Deer Lake History and memorabilia. A place to acknowledge Deer Lake residents who have had an impact on the lake and area is also a consideration. It is now time for all DLPOA members to put on their thinking caps to develop a plan for this property. Please take a few minutes to think about what you would like us to do and let me know. Either telephone, mail or e-mail your suggestions so whatever we do will be a reflection of all DLPOA'S wishes.
ROADSIDE Cleanup
Well, it's that time of year. Our roadsides need some cleaning If you are an old timer at this little chore, it's the usual. If you haven't helped before, please do, as it will make all of our jobs a little bit easier. You will get some exercise and fresh air. Our roads will look much nicer without all that litter.
The day for cleanup is May 14, 2005. If you have cleaned roads before and would like to, please clean the same area as before. If you are new please call Mike Phillips on the west side at 233-2510. Call John Gregerson for the east side at 233-8419. We will direct you to the area needing the most help. You can start as early as you want. We are usually done by noon. Leave litter bags by the roadside or bring them to the chili feed; do not take them to the dup, as only designated vehicles are allowed to dump the bags for free.
It has been noticed by several people around the lake that contractor vehicles have been throwing items out their windows as they leave their job sites. Sometimes litter blows out of their trucks as they pick up speed. They use their truck beds as garbage cans and our roadsides as the dump. Please remind them, if they are working at your site, we would appreciate their cooperation.
This year with the low water, it would be a good opportunity to clean the shorelines too. As the water warms we could pull some of that junk that has been a little too deep to get at before.
There will be a chili feed after the cleanup. It is held at the Fire Station on the east side of the lake. It is located at the end of Southwood Shore Road going east. It will be ready whenever you get done.
Thanks to all that give up their time to keep Deer Lake the beautiful place we can all be proud of.
DEER LAKE SUBAREA PLAN
Stevens County is developing a comprehensive plan describing how the county will comply with the state mandated requirements of the Growth Management Act (GMA). The principal writer of the plan is Faith Lumsden of Lumsden International, Inc. with Clay White, the newly hired Director of Planning, and Jenni Anderson providing local direction. The Preliminary Draft of the plan will be available this spring. Public review is scheduled for November 2005 and submission of the Final Plan to the state in December 2005.
Since the county plan will have a significant and direct impact on the Deer Lake area, DLPOA has established a committee to monitor the county efforts and represent the unique interests of our lake and surrounding watershed. The end product of the committee will be the generation of a Deer Lake Subarea Plan that is compatible with the county plan but specifically addressed to our unique area. This new plan will replace the current Deer Lake Subarea Plan approved in 1990. As many of you know, there have been a lot of regulations and bureaucratic red tape imposed on us by the GMA since 1990 and, like it or not, we must comply. Rather than sit back and take a passive role in this effort we decided to be pro-active in not only generating our own document but working closely with our county officials - the County Commissioners, the Planning Department in Colville - Loon Lake, and others to ensure the two plans were compatible.
One of the biggest concerns to us on the lake is future growth. While there is no further room available around the shoreline and many of the secondary lot areas, future growth will take place in the hills surrounding the lake. Those hills comprise the Deer Lake watershed and have a direct and long lasting effect on the quantity and quality of water in the lake. Development of these areas has already begun. We must put some teeth in our zoning laws to ensure developers are required to build adequate infrastructure to support their project before being approved to proceed. This means building adequate roads to ensure proper drainage of the water which dumps into the lake, connecting water and sewer systems to the PUD, burying power lines, etc.
Loon Lake has been working on their plan for over a year and, while their issues are somewhat different from ours, the two plans will be similar in format Jim Davies has spent over 1000 hours working on their plan and has been very helpful to us in getting ours started. Larry Hersom of DLPOA is our primary coordinating agent with Jim and is also developing the technical data for our plan.
Here is our general plan to develop the Deer Lake Subarea Plan:
Please direct any comments to the Committee Chairman, Larry Twitchell, at 233-2485.
HOME LAKE SECURITY
It seems every year we hear of someone missing an outboard motor or tools missing from their truck or worse their home has been burglarized. As neighbors, possible we could have helped prevent all of the above. Call it "neighborhood watch", "block watch", or whatever fits the issue but basically it is neighbors being good neighbors. Know your neighbors and exchange phone numbers.
We all need to remember some of these common sense neighborly rules. For instance, if a neighbor is gone and new tracks appear in the snow in the driveway or a van or vehicle that looks suspicious is parked there React. You have several options as to how to react. You can write the license number down from a safe distance, ask if there is a problem, and if the situation looks really weird DIAL 911. We have all seen people driving around our streets just looking, but here again if it looks a bit suspicious...React.
Here are some ideas that may help discourage a potential thief:
What a lot of this amounts to is just being good neighbors and watching out for one another. In many rural communities people wave at their neighbors and a car full of total strangers receive a smile and wave as a welcome gesture. That gesture tells a stranger these neighbors are friendly and are probably looking out for each other.
From now on if I see your car approaching me on the streets of Deer Lake, I am going to smile and wave like hell.. .who knows I may need your help someday!
ROAD DUST CONTROL
As you will recall, in the fall DLPOA newsletter, we outlined for you the potential costs involved to treat all of the 10.32 miles of gravel road around the lake. At 75 cents a foot the approximate cost per member would have been $102.17. Before moving forward, your DLPOA board wanted to hear from you. We established a survey mailbox on the web and asked that you let us know if you would or would not be willing to assume this yearly cost. For those without internet ability, we requested that you send your thoughts to us via the US mail. We promised to tally the results and report them to you in this newsletter.
As of the day I am writing this, we have received a total of 9 e-mail responses and 2 letters. Of the responses, 5 indicated they would be willing to pay, and 6 stated they would not be in favor. Given this scant response, we have decided that until there is more interest in this issue, we will direct our energies to other areas.
ANNUAL PANCAKE FEED
This year, as in the past, DLPOA will hold the annual pancake feed on July 3, 2005 at the Deer Lake Fire Station. This is DLPOA's largest fund producer and if you wish to continue this tradition we need your help.
Each year we ask for help-get some response-get only the regulars and each year the same people work the full four hours serving and flipping and another hour cleaning up. This is after hours of shopping and setup. This year I am asking for your help. We need at least 30 people to volunteer for a two hour shift either on Saturday for setup, or Sunday for the feed. If you have enjoyed the great food and friendly Deer Lakers for the past years, PLEASE call and help this tradition continue for another year. It is great fun!!!!
Call Sallye Clark 233-8000 or 993-9084 and be a part of this Fourth of July celebration.
MEMBERSHIP
This is your last chance to pay your dues or join DLPOA for the year 2005. We want to thank the many members who have already paid the annual $15.00 dues as well as the extra donations and contributions to the fireworks display. Thank you so much!
If you know of anyone who would like to become a member or someone who should be a member, please encourage them to join.
By renewing or becoming a new member, you are contributing toward the preservation and improvement of Deer Lake. We hope you will join us in working toward the goals we have set forth for the future. One final word-did I say than you to all who have provided continuing support to DLPOA? Thank you!!
DOCK DEMOLITION
Dock demolition will be held again in June, 2005. We are hoping to operate very similar to what we did last year. There will be a $4.00 per linear foot fee for homeowners who wish to dispose of their docks through our program. Abandoned docks will be removed free of charge if towed to the demolition area by helpful property owners. For information call 233-2817.
DLPOA FIRE WOOD CUTTERS
At this time we have no word on where, when or if we will be able to cut wood this year. With the lack of snow fire damage could be bad. We probable will have limited cutting times to take advantage of. If we have cutting, you must have your DLPOA dues paid and an additional $10.00 will be collected to allow you to cut as much wood as you want. To get on the list call me at 233-9178 and I will tell you what other things you need to have with you when cutting.