Hat Island Community Newsletter, June 2010 (TPD1006014)

To eliminate much of the confusion with the large number of changes we presented a ballot in January to make all the administrative and language changes necessary to simply bring the language of the by-laws in line with that of the Articles of Incorporation. That ballot passed easily so that portion is done.

So we will now present you a set of proposed changes to the by-laws making the substantive changes that the Governance Committee and Board are recommending. These changes will soon be posted to the web site for your review. The ballot to make the changes will be presented in conjunction with Board elections in September.

This time you will be given the option to vote yes or no on each of the proposed individual changes. The result of lawsuit concerning rentals makes the issue of rentals simple; there need to be no references to rentals in the by-laws. Thus, the only real point of contention remaining for most of you is the issue of what limits should there be on the Board’s ability to react to unforeseen expenditures. On this point we believe that we have a way to present this issue to you that will allow a consensus to be reached setting appropriate limits on the board’s authority.

Now back to the subject of Board Elections in September. There will be three board seats up for reelection this fall. Susan Dahl, Bill Townsend and Becki Snellenburg have each reached the end of their initial terms on the board and are all up for reelection. Susan has decided not to run again so there is one vacancy to be filled. If you have a desire to serve on the Board please let the office know or speak to a current member of the board.

Ginger Harmon, A-35

President, Hat Island Board of Trustees

FROM THE ISLAND MANAGER:

NO FIREWORKS ON HAT ISLAND AT ANY TIME – ANYWHERE!

In July this island is tinder dry and there is a near constant north wind. One stray spark could ignite a fire that could quickly spread, fanned by the north wind and fueled by tons of dry fuel. Additionally, at publication the Snohomish County Commissioners were considering a county wide ban on non professional fireworks use in all unincorporated areas of the county – that’s us. If that passes it will not only be a violation of island rules, but county ordnance to use fireworks on Hat Island.

DURASOIL: It’s been over two years since we brought over Durasoil® and applied it to areas of our roads. Most people who purchased it were generally satisfied with the performance of the product and we have had a few queries about getting some more. Here are some thoughts.

One, it’s not cheap. A 275 gallon tote currently retails for $2,103.75 ($7.65/gallon). When applied at the recommended rate of 0.03 gallons per square foot that tote will cover 9166 square feet of road. On average our roads are about 15 feet wide, so one tote will generally cover about 600 linear feet of our average roads. Properties on the island are normally 60 to 75 feet along the road so a tote should cover between 8-10 lots. (Application is far from an exact science and experience showed that 7-8 lots is a better planning figure and you will want to measure the road in front of your lots to be more accurate).

Two, we have to get it here. The shipping on one tote from Arizona is cost prohibitive. The most economical number would be 20 totes as that would fill one flat bed tractor trailer and would make the per tote shipping cost $150.00. Transfer to the island on Elsie M II and delivery to your lot will run about $85.00 per tote for fork lift rental in Everett and staff time getting it on and off Elsie, on to our truck and offloaded at your lot. (Fewer totes = higher shipping and handling costs)

Three, it has to be applied. The Island staff will not take the responsibility of applying the product, we will provide the sprayer system and staff to operate it, but a home owner must do the application. It takes about 3 hours to apply a full tote of the product so you need to add three hours of staff and equipment time at $50 per hour. So the total cost of buying, shipping, delivering and applying a tote is around $2,490. Split between 8 lot owners that’s $311.25 per lot.

Four, it’s absolutely worthless to apply the product to the roads in front of individual lots. Watch when a car goes by your lot and notice that the dust travels with the car and the wind.  At a minimum to protect your lot, the lots on either side must be treated as well. So to be effective contiguous groups of at least 8 neighbors must get together and purchase a tote. 8-10 totes would be the beginning of an economical order and 20 would be the most economical.

Finally, while the product literature says that the product can be reworked (graded) after it is applied our experience shows that you really don’t want to do much grading after the product is applied so you need to be pretty satisfied with the condition of the road before you apply the product. We will do detailed grading of the roads prior to application so there needs to be a bit of coordination between owners and the office.

The Island Office will be happy to place the order and arrange the delivery but it is up to owners to find and organize the sharing of totes, the collection of money, and the scheduling of application (weekend application goes at time and a half and then onlyif staff volunteer to work on the weekend). The office will require payment up front before we will place the order. If we are going to do this we must set a cutoff date for the order: Friday, 4th gives you two weekends to talk to your neighbors one of which is a holiday weekend.

PROPERTY TO BE SOLD AT AUCTION: An order of sale for lack of payment of Island Assessments has been issued by the Snohomish County Court on lot M-15. The Sherriff’s office will now set an auction date and the property will be sold at public auction to pay these debts on a yet to be announced Friday. This is the first full foreclosure that we have fully processed in the last five years. While other properties have started down the road towards this final step, last minute payment arrangements or private sales have always averted this final step from occurring. The Island office has no information on the process of foreclosure sales, nor any information on the condition of the property. If you have an interest in this property you should seek professional legal advice.