Hat Island Community Survey 2009 (TPD0900011)

4. Please select the following statement(s) which best indicates your current building plans within the next five years and indicate the Division

5. Please select the statements that best describe the golf course usage for members of your household.

6. The recent ferry rate increase combined with last year’s golf rate increase has once again raised the philosophical question of how we fund the island and the services provided. Historically funding decisions have favored the application of user fees as a means to keep assessments low. Which of the following two statements come closest to describing your view on how we should fund the basic operations and services of the island?

7. Owners of multiple adjoining lots currently pay full assessments on each of those lots. Should owners of those lots be offered an incentive through a discounted assessment rate (i.e. somewhat less than the combined rate that they currently pay for each lot individually) if they choose to legally combine those lots into a single property? The advantage to the community is the ability to decrease future density and the potential number of homes built on the island.

8. The community recently approved an assessment increase which was long overdue because the assessments had not kept pace with inflationary costs. In the future should the Board be given the authority to increase/decrease assessments in an amount not to exceed the CPI (Consumer Price Index) for the Puget Sound area without soliciting a community vote? This would allow the island to be able to pay for operations in the future without requiring a vote for an assessment increase. No assessment change could occur without prior Board approval. (Changes in assessment which would exceed the CPI would still require 2/3 affirmative community vote as is currently required).

9. We are considering major upgrades to the picnic pavilion. We need to replace the posts which hold up the roof as they have failed and the entire structure is in jeopardy. We envision also repairing the floor, installing a stainless steel gas grill, under the counter refrigerator, new counter surface and quality speaker system into which you could plug your own CD or PA system. This would open opportunities for rentals to Hat Island owners which we believe will pay for the improvements. If these improvements were made, would you be willing to use this facility for family and group functions (i.e. picnics, family reunions, companies parties, etc.) at a rental price of $100 per day? (Current price is $25 per day for up to 25 people plus $1 per person for each additional guest)

10. Combined with our new ferry and the greatly improved quality of our golf course, we believe we could bring in a fair amount of money with Wednesday Golf tournaments which would have little impact on the island. This would be done on Wednesdays only with groups of no more than 40. This additional income will benefit the general fund and help keep our future cost increases down. Would you favor HIC offering this opportunity to outside groups?

11. Should we actively pursue options for outside charters of our new ferry when not in service to the Island to help reduce overhead and keep operating costs as low as possible?

12. We have guest rates for golf and moorage. Should there be a higher guest rate for the ferry?

13. Which of the following methods for enforcing guest rates would you favor?

14. How much should be added to the standard ferry rate to establish the guest rate?

15. Outside of Architectural Control issues, (set backs, design approval, etc) should Island Management (Board, committees, staff) have a role in enforcing the provisions of your CC&R’s (restrictive covenants?). As an example, the CC&Rs say that no one shall do anything on their property that is a nuisance. Should Island Management have a role in determining what is or is not a nuisance or should this be treated as an issue between neighbors?

16. Should Island Management (Board, committees, staff) have a role in enforcing State and/or County rules and regulations? For instance, should it be the role of Island management to call the county or state and report owners for violating state or county rules and regulations?

17. Should the Island have a system of peer governance? That would be a committee of Island owners (separate from the Board) to hear and make decisions on violations of community rules and/or neighbor disputes.

18. Volunteerism has always been a foundation of our island’s success and ability to sustain our quality of life while managing costs. An important addition to volunteer opportunities on the island in recent years has been the establishment of standing committees which research, review and make recommendations to the board on a variety of concerns. These committees typically meet 3-4 times a year and are a vital factor in effective governance of the island. Would you be willing to make a 1-2 year committment to serve on one or more of our standing committees sometime in the next five years?

19. Please indicate which commitee(s) you would be willing to participate in. (Contact Becki Snellenberg @beckisn@hotmail.com or the Hat Island office to sign up or for more information on committee participation)

20. There has been discussion about adding additional runs to the ferry schedule all year long. We are examining adding a Friday evening run from October to Memorial Day. We could pay for extra crew time and fuel by delaying the Sunday morning Everett to Hat run to 3pm (October through Memorial Day only). That would mean if you wanted to come up on the ferry on Sunday during the winter, you would not be able to get the ferry until 3pm, rather than the current 9am. However, you would have the option to come to the island by ferry on Friday evening during the winter which is an option not currently offered. Please select the following statement which best reflects your opinion on this proposal.

21. Managing marina parking has consistently been a challenge on the island. With the completion of the new marina, we will lose 20% of the current marina parking spaces. To accommodate owners and decrease the reliance on long term marina parking, should HIC provide reliable on-island transportation to and from the marina which could be used by both owners and guests?

22. The initial cost of adding Durasoil (dust control agent) to the Marina parking area was about $4,000 with an annual cost of about $1500 to maintain and has resulted in significant improvement in both appearance and dust control. Should the Island continue to apply Durasoil in other high traffic common areas?

23. Should the Island provide a recycling station for Glass, Cans, Plastics and Ferrous Metals in a central location on the island?

24. Do you favor some sort of active program to control rabbit, squirrel and other rodent populations on the island?

25. If there were no additional cost to you (i.e. no increase in property taxes) which of the following County services/benefits would you like to see available to the island?

26. Would you be willing to have the community donate a small parcel of common land for Snohomish County to plan a large native growth area (trees, shrubs, grasses) for the purpose of improving water quality and salmon support?

27. Have you requested services from Snohomish County in the last five years?

28. If you have requested services from Snohomish County in the last five years, please describe the services you requested and results you received.