The Devils Lake Water Improvement District held its February board meeting in the District offices on Thursday February 3rd at 6:00pm. The meeting was attended by approximately 11 interested parties. The District received an unqualified opinion; total assets are up $30,000, revenues of $193,000 up $3,400 and expenses are up $5,400.
Devils Lake Plan: The board meeting began with a special presentation of the Devils Lake Plan to those in attendance. The Plan had been previously presented and discussed in four public meetings over the past week. The presentation was followed by an open discussion designed to receive public input. Concerns were expressed related to the use of water shut off by the City to enforce their septic ordinance. Some were concerned about what they described as potential bias toward legislating enforcement of the Districts ideas rather than providing incentives toward voluntary participation. Several commenter’s objected to the use of District funds for the CAFE project.
Audit: The District’s Auditor Signe Grimstad presented the results of the District’s annual audit. The District received an unqualified opinion; total assets are up $30,000, revenues of $193,000 up $3,400 and expenses are up $5,400.
Public Input: Several comments were made on the balance of the agenda. A request was made to have the audited fincinals placed online. An objection was made to District useing fund for the Regatta Park SOS project suggesting the City should provide the funding. It was also memtioned that there are coastal engineers who would be willing to help the District develop guidelines for effective shoreline protection that could be used by homeowners.
Lake Level: Due to the interest in lake level and flooding as measured by the number of inquires the District received in the last month a summary of historical lake flood levels was provided. According to the material provided, the watershed is 11 times bigger than the lake, and during large rain events much of that rain moves downhill into the lake. Once the soils are saturated, it generally takes 3 to 6 inches of rain to get a rapid 1-inch rise in lake level. While there have been lapses in the District’s records they do indicate eight events where lake levels exceeded 11 feet; the most recent this January 16th measured at 11.78 feet. Additionally, the District discussed the possibility of petitioning the State for a new water right that would supplement the existing with the intent of removing the late summer flow requirements of the current permit. The process according to the Watermaster takes about $2,000 and 10 months to complete. The board determined it would not pursue a new permit at this time
DEQ 319 Grant: The contractor performing the work has reported on the final stages of the database creation and it appears that all components of the project will be completed on time.
Sewer LID: The sewer LID is scheduled to be on the City Council agenda for the February 14th meeting. The Lake Manager wrote a letter of support that was sent to the City.
Save our Shoreline Campaign: A request for proposal was released for the Regatta Grounds project which will take place on a small portion of the property near the flag pole. The total area is about 2,000 square feet. The current RFP is seeking a qualified applicant to do site preparation before the planting can take place.
Erosion: It was reported that a property owner contacted the District earlier this month regarding permitting for a shoreline property. The property owner stated that he has been losing about 6 inches of shoreline a year over the past five years. The property owner is in favor of doing a natural shoreline, but at the same time is concerned about the costs of bioengineering a solution and is not confident it will in fact reduce the erosion. At this point, he is considering installing pylons and rock sheeting. Although, DSL will not grant a permit to put up a wall on the shoreline, there is nothing preventing a property owner to install the sheeting a couple feet upland as long as they are above the 10.4’ MSL point. It was stated in the meeting that it would be desirable if the District could find a solution for the property owner that will give him confidence and avoid another wall on Devils Lake. This might be possible through talks with DSL, ODFW and the property owner. Through the collaboration they may come up with a suitable design that would include rock rip rap or similar, the Board approved writing a letter of support of a permit that included a compromise solution should it be negotiated.
The Café — Union 50: Joe Barnes reported that the project is in the very early stages and indicated that they are looking for a creative solution. Any opportunity that does surface will be fully vetted with public comment.
Internship: Staff was seeking the Board’s direction on whether or not the District wanted to consider another internship for this summer. Optionally, these funds could be redirected to support the Project Management Specialist position slated for the next fiscal year (June 30, 2011). The Board choose to make final decision in the March meeting.
Elections: Three Board positions (numbers 1, 2 and 3) are up on May 17, 2011. All terms are for four years. To be eligible, candidates must be property owners in the District, they do not have to be registered to vote in the District. Candidates interested in running for one of these positions should download and complete the County’s Candidate Packet by March 17, 2011. For more information, please contact the County Clerk’s Office in Newport at (541) 265-4131.
Devils Lake Navigator 