A Burn Ban will be in effect from August 4, 2023 12:01 AM (midnight) until further notice. A Burn Ban is implemented when High Fire Conditions exist prohibiting ALL OUTDOOR BURNING, including recreational fires.

• ALL field/pile/rubbish/rule/slash/yard vegetation or non-emergent agricultural burning on private lands within the unincorporated areas of Okanogan County is PROHIBITED, reducing the risk of wildfires.

• Recreational fires are NOT ALLOWED.

• When rescinded, the Burn Ban will revert back to a Burn Restriction.

Questions? Please visit the Okanogan County Burn Ban Information page.

Great news! Methownet and Okanogan County Electric Coop have partnered to bring federally-funded fiber to up to 2600 homes in the OCEC service area. The project size is limited by the funding source, so please check out our online map to see if your address qualifies for FREE installation! Follow the sign-up instructions below, so we can schedule the build-out…

1. Visit https://okanogancountyconnect.com/FiberMap.html and enter your address.

2. If your address shows correctly on the map, please select “Yes”. If not, please select “No”.

3. The next screen requests your contact information. This enters your information into a database of customers who want a fiber connection.

We will contact you once we determine the terms of monthly service and give you the opportunity to schedule an installation when work is being done in your neighborhood.

WHY A FIBER CONNECTION?

• Lightning fast! Fiber to the home is designed for symmetrical speeds, which makes it faster to upload and download data. Our fiber accounts start at 100M/100M.

• Robust fiber connections have the bandwidth to support multiple devices and users at the same time within a household.

• Stable fiber optic networks are not susceptible to inclement weather, overgrown trees, or snow loads.

• Dependable service - no throttling, data caps, or overage charges.

• A fiber connection can save money when you disconnect a land line telephone and satellite TV.

• With Methownet you can bundle our affordable VOIP phone service.

The project is expected to be completed by late 2025. Future funding is anticipated for the remainder of OCEC membership.

Questions? Please visit the Okanogan County Connect website or attend the final Town Hall meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, July 26 @ 5 PM at the Winthrop Barn.

A Burn Restriction will be in effect from June 15, 2023 12:01 AM (midnight) through October 15, 2023 at 12:01 AM (midnight). The Burn Restriction is activated by a set date, but may be implemented earlier or extended due to conditions.

• ALL field/pile/rubbish/rule/slash/yard vegetation or non-emergent agricultural burning on private lands within the unincorporated areas of Okanogan County is PROHIBITED, reducing the risk of wildfires.

• Recreational Fires are ALLOWED during a Burn Restriction if used for pleasure, religious, ceremonial, cooking, warmth, or similar purposes and the fuel being burned is other than rubbish. Fires used for debris disposal purposes are NOT considered recreational fires. Recreational fires must be contained in a concrete, rock, or steel ring (made from non-combustible material), no larger than 3-feet in diameter and no less than 8-inches in height. The fire (flames) shall be no higher than 2-feet and not conducted within 25-feet of a structure or combustible material. Recreational fires SHALL be attended to at all times.

• When high fire conditions exist, a County Wide Burn Ban will be implemented PROHIBITING ALL OUTDOOR BURNING, including recreational fires. When rescinded, the ban will revert back to a Burn Restriction.

Questions? Please visit the Okanogan County Burn Ban Information page.

May 2023, V1

We’d like to introduce the newest committee to the HOA. We now have a Firewise Committee working to keep our neighborhood safe and increase our preparedness in the event a fire should impact our neighborhood. Below is some information that may be helpful in understanding who we are and what we strive to do.

If you have any questions, feedback or anything you’d like more information on, please contact us via the Contact Us page. (Select “Firewise” from the dropdown topic menu in the contact form.)

This is the first newsletter for LRAA so we look forward to engaging the community and providing resources that help YOU!

What is a Firewise USA® Community?
Living here in the Methow Valley safely and responsibly requires adapting, understanding the risks and taking action to better prepare for, respond to and recover from wildfire. There are things you can do to protect your home and neighborhood as well as your family’s safety. The Firewise USA® program will help our community with this preparedness and improve our resilience to wildfire.

• For detailed information on what this program is and for helpful information, please visit Firewise USA

• Do residents have to participate? No, this is completely optional and highly recommended!

Who are the Firewise committee members?

• Nick Glatt

• Pam Saxton

• Maria Hines

• CB Thomas

• Malcom Griffes

• Caryn Darmer

Committee Updates as of May 2023

• LRAA has been awarded a Dept. of Natural Resources (DNR) micro grant for $3,000. With the recommendation of DNR and the firewise committee we determined the best use of these funds are to protect our HOA propane tank and HOA generator near the fire hall against fire explosion by clearing the brush near it, laying down weed cloth and surrounding it with gravel. This work will be completed by early June in advance of the summer season.

• Please email us if you’d like to come help spread the gravel around when it arrives, meet committee members and take a step towards keeping our community safe. We’ll be throwing a couple short community work parties in May!

• We will continue to look for funding to help with fire safety and are actively working with our DRN and Forest Service representatives.

• Our next step is to complete a community firewise assessment as an aspiring Firewise USA® community. This assessment will help us understand our vulnerabilities and provide guidance specific to LRAA on how we can better protect our neighborhood. This will also give us access to more resources that we can leverage to protect our neighborhood from fire.

What can you do to protect your property against fire?

• Order blue reflective address signs so emergency vehicles can locate you quickly.

• Perform a self-inspection home firewise assessment of your property.

• Earn rebates for clearing small trees, limbing, raking or any action you take to help clean your property of debris that could be a fire hazard. Information on rebates and what’s required can be found at https://www.dnr.wa.gov/cost-share.

FAQ

Q: How many unexpired fire extinguishers should I have in my home and where should they be?
A: Check out the safety checklist.

Q: During fire season in case of an evacuation, what essentials should I keep packed and ready for us and our pets?
A: Read this handy essentials sheet.

Q: Do your guests or renters know when there is a fire ban?
A: It’s posted on the large green sign as you enter the HOA and on the LRAA website. If someone has an illegal fire burning during the burn ban, call 911 so they can handle it.

Additional Resources

Purple Air - Air Quality App

National Interagency Fire Center - Fire tracking map.

Fire Adapted Methow Valley - We invite you to explore the resources shared on the Fire Adapted Methow Valley website that are relevant to our Methow Valley including some highlights listed below.

• Adapting western North American forests to climate change and wildfires: 10 common questions - This is a fantastic article – well worth reading.

• Fighting Fire with Fire - Includes a video about home loss in Rising Eagle fire and rebuilding using Firewise principles. Definitely watch the video!

The Firewise USA website and its information on the FirewiseUSA program provides you with a structure for actually preparing for wildfire and how to engage folks in your neighborhood. This site will help with:

• the reasons WHY this work is so important,

• HOW the dry east of the mountains, fire-prone and fire-shaped ecosystemsfunction and remain healthy,

• WHAT do people mean when they say restoration work is needed in our forests,

• WHAT is wildfire risk mitigation and why is it important.

Please join us for the Annual Membership Meeting on Sunday, May 28th over Memorial Day weekend at the Firehall on Mink Road.

We will start the morning with a one-hour session beginning at 9AM, where members can ask questions, meet your current trustees, get registered and visit with your neighbors. We will start the meeting promptly at 10 AM. When the meeting is over (noon or 1PM) we will provide hamburgers with all the fixings, as well as paper plates, silverware, and refreshments. Please bring a dish to pass and chairs.

A few highlights that we look forward to presenting are:

• Overview of what has been accomplished by your Board in 2023

• Update on past member dues collections.

• Vote on the 2024 Budget

• Election of Trustees (Read Candidate Bios)

We look forward to seeing you on May 28th. If you have any questions, or if you would like to receive paper copies of the Annual Meeting documents, please contact our Business Manager, Bahia Rowan, at lraa.business@gmail.com.

View 2023 Annual Meeting Documents

We are fortunate to have three of our Trustee’s seeking re-election for their second term, and one appointed member running for their first term. The membership elects Trustees, and they in turn elect officers and committee chair positions.

Our LRAA voting bylaws are located on the Governance page. If you’re interested in running for a seat on the Board, please email our Business Manager, Bahia Rowan, at lraa.business@gmail.com.

Board Members Seeking Re-election:
Aaron Sanday
Sylvia Silberhorn
J. Gordon

Appointed Board Position:
Caryn Darmer

CANDIDATE BIOS

Aaron Sanday
Current President seeking final year of Board membership
Areas of Responsibility: Contracts
We bought our first lot in Lost River nearly 20 years ago when our children were small. We all fell in love with the rivers, the mountains, the access to public lands, and the peaceful nature of our community here under the trees. We had to sell that lot in 2007, but life just didn’t feel right. Fortunately, we were able to buy another piece of paradise in 2016. Our children are no longer so small but they still love accessing the wild places from our cabin. We snowmobile, snowshoe, hike, run, hunt, go birding, and search for wild flowers in this quiet place. I deeply enjoy our community and chatting with our neighbors. This appreciation for Lost River, and the people that reside here, led me to serve on the Board for the last five years; the last 2 years of which I have served as President. Looking forward to my final year as Board President.

Sylvia Silberhorn
Current Treasurer seeking second 3-year term
I spent a majority of my life living in a small town in southern Michigan. where I worked as a Materials Manager for a manufacturing facility until I retired in 2018.  For many years, I traveled to Washington to visit my daughter and her family (grandkids!!), who also owns property in Lost River. My husband and I purchased our property in Lost River in 2017. We traveled back and forth from Michigan to Washington several times a year, until we sold our home in Michigan in 2022 and became permanent residents of the state of Washington. The beauty of Lost River is so breathtaking and I feel so fortunate to live here.

J. Gordon
Current Trustee seeking second 3-year term
Committee: WUCIOA (Governance)/Legal
My wife Krista and I have owned our cabin along Harris Road since 2006. We live in Bellingham where I am still a practicing geotechnical engineer. I served for 11 years on the (governing) City of Bellingham Public Library Board of Trustees, and served on our company Board of Directors. I have served one three-year term on the LRAA Board. My professional career and previous board experience allow me to contribute these skills to the LRAA Board. My wife and I love to hike, road and mountain bike, and ski in the Methow Valley and looking forward to spending more time in our cabin as I get closer to retirement!

Caryn Darmer
For the past four years I have been a dedicated LRAA community member who is very passionate about the Methow Valley. I happened upon my land in Lost River in an ad on craigslist of all places. Currently, I am in the process of building a fire-resistant cabin out of recycled materials along the runway with the help of my family. To get to LRAA I either fly in on the airstrip with my boyfriend or drive up to Mazama with tools in tow. Professionally I am a project engineer in Seattle and have ten years of expertise working with all aspects of commercial construction. What I will bring to the board is a vast range of knowledge on development, actual experience of using our community’s runway and a diverse range of practical skill sets to best serve our community. Outside of work and cabin building I can be found riding horses, skiing, farming hay and fly fishing in our local rivers.

---