Summer 2024

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FROM THE BOARD - DAOA needs your help by donating your time, talent & participation. Thank you!

THANK YOU to Carol Whiteside, Glenn Lampman and Anita Hammond for their many years of service to our DAOA community!
Your current Board would like build on the communication successes and transparency of the 4^th of July event and our first Board meeting participation to recommit to further efforts to collaborate with residents/committees to become more transparent, engage more DAOA residents, renters, businesses and visitors! We love our greater DA/Mattawa community and plan to move towards more inclusion of our various community members to drive increased pride, volunteerism, comments, committee, Board and event attendance and to increase our voting members to 30-50% by next elections! YOU are literally the reasons we serve. We literally have NO PERSONAL AGENDAS and would welcome you to send your wishes, constructive input, intentions and strategies to retain and improve our experiences as a community of full time, part time, occasional visitors, local businesses and community members! Please reach out to [email protected] with your input. PLEASE use the subject line to state where to direct your messages and what the subject focus will be! We WILL respond as soon as possible, we are also passionate DA residents and volunteers trying to make a difference!

Board of Directors
Darci Ulin-President exp 2026
Matt Yanak- Vice President exp 2026
Keith Savisky-Treasurer exp 2025
Mark Pierce-Secretary exp 2026

Steve Nuce- Board Director exp 2025

From the GENERAL MANAGER’s Desk - James Curdy

It’s hard to believe we are over half way through the summer and only the Labor Day weekend remaining. It’s been great to see the increased traffic at all of our amenities this summer and I hope it continues. We can’t do all these events without volunteers so “Thank you” to those who have stepped up and gotten involved on various levels, let’s keep the momentum going.
The popular Lions Club Hot Desert Nights event is coming the 2nd Saturday in August another great community day of golf, a car show and live music in the evening.
The next Yard Waste Dump Day is 8/17 (9:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.). Be sure to bring your MEMBERSHIP CARD.

REMINDERS Garbage Service is available through Waste Management of Ellensburg at (800) 572-4559. For non-full-time residents they even offer a roll out service with a nominal fee. *Please remember to store your cans securely out of sight on non-dump days. Here are some tips for household trash disposal from our provider Waste management. https://www.wm.com/us/en/home/common-hazardous-waste?cmp=EM-SFMC----PROD_OPR_Fire_Safety_PNW-30348990-https%3a%2f%2fwww.wm.com%2fus%2fen%2fhome%2fcommon-hazardous-waste-

Mark your Calendars
Yard Waste
(behind the Senior Center)
9:00 am—1:00 pm
August 17th
September 21st
October 26th

From the GENERAL MANAGER’s Desk - James Curdy (continued) BUSINESS OFFICE-
Don’t want to pay Credit Card fees – AutoPay has none since it processes via ACH on or about the 20^th of the month following your statement so you never have to worry about a missed payment or worse yet, your water shutoff for nonpayment. You can also sign up for monthly “Bill Averaging” to prepay your account so in months that have large billings (ie annual dues), you have credit so it won’t pull too much from your regular bank account. Call or email our office for more details. Reminder: Bank bill pay checks typically take 7-10 days minimum to be delivered to our office so send them early if using this process. Tired of carrying cash when you go out? MEMBER CHARGING is an option for those on AUTOPAY! If your account has been current AND you sign up for auto pay …you can charge at the Pool, Cafe and Golf Shop with your Member Card.

PARKS & GREENBELTS
Fires can be scary…and burning in greenbelts is dangerous and not allowed. Participating in the Firewise program and having your home evaluated can be an eye opening experience for many.
4^th of July events kept the park area very busy with all the new events. Instead of fireworks (see parks article for more information).
Things are changing so… get involved with Parks to discuss the future. They meet the first Wednesday of each month at 5:00 p.m. and you can attend virtually too.

POOL & EXERCISE FACILITY
Membership to the Exercise room is up considerably at 362 members.The swimming pool has also been very busy with record usage over the July 4^th holiday.Don’t forget to send your registered guests with Your membership card for access.Short-term Rental House cards have been an option for many years but with the new annual fee and no updates required they are very convenient and becoming more popular.

GOLF COURSE
The course is looking good and we continue to get great reviews thanks to all of our dedicated staff that make it happen every day.

Recent power outages have cause some irrigation system problems and challenges but most have been resolved.

REMEMBER, you can also follow us on Facebook for information and upcoming events at: Desert Aire Owners Association and/or Desert Aire Golf and Country Club. As always please be sure your email and phone number are current with our office by calling or you can update them ONLINE through the website portal.

If you have any questions, thoughts or ideas, stop by, call or send me an email to [email protected]

Watermaster Report – Chris Guillen

I have received the paperwork for the Washington Surveying and Rating Bureau, that establishes fire rating. This rating takes in the water supply, the fire department, emergency communications, and fire safety control. Each portion is worth a percentage of the overall score and then all deficits are added together for the total score. From this score they establish our fire rating for the area. The water department will be starting to do fire hydrant inspections this month. These inspections ensure that if a hydrant is need it will function as it should. This is a dry test so there will be no flushing of the hydrants. In this test we check that the hydrant opens up fully, all the valve mechanism works properly, and grease the Storz fitting for smooth operation.
Members need to remember to bring their owner’s card for entry into the pool. Member without their cards will not be allowed entry. If your family has grown or as children get older, it’s a good idea to have your picture updated. There is no charge to update your owner’s card.
If you are gone for an extended period of time the Water Department can shut off your water at the meter for $5.00, this will not stop pipes from breaking but it will not flood your home. Just as a reminder, the water policy effective August 1^st 2009, states members are not to access the meter boxes in any way or they will be subject to the enforcement mechanisms of the policy.

All samples taken have been good. We are currently at 1,317 connections to the water system. The total year to date gallons produced for the overall domestic water system is 159,892,121.

PRO SHOP NEWS – Kyle Preston, PGA Professional

It has been HOT lately, but the course still looks great, and we have been staying busy.Most recently we had the Inland Empire Chapter of the GCSA play. About eight superintendents from different courses in the area brought some of their crew (35 players) out to enjoy our course. A couple days following that we had our first Central Washington Chapter PGA Pro/Am here at Desert Aire in several years. About 130 players from Central Washington came out to play. In speaking with the coordinator that runs all the pro/ams each week, he told me Desert Aire is the healthiest course they have played all year. And players in the GCSA all had great things to say about the facility.

We have the Sagebrush Senior Center Scramble on July 26^th, the Horserace on August 2^nd, and Hot Desert Nights on August 10^th. They will all be awesome events. The rest of August is clear of events so we will have a lot of open play. We will have entry forms soon for some of the September events including the Labor Day Scramble, and the Club Championship.
Golf Course revenue is up just over $65k this year as compared to last year. We will look forward to ending the summer and rest of the year strong. We are down revenue in clothing, which we hope to turn around. If you have any opinions on brands, styles, price points, or anything else, please feel free to let me know. My goal is to fill the shop with what our members and guests like. I will openly admit that I am no fashionista, so any recommendations are always welcome.
With some cooler weather (not over 100 degrees) in the forecast, we hope to see you all out soon to enjoy our beautiful golf course.

Golf Course SUPERINTENDENT Report – Shawn Hocking
It’s the time of the year that is very demanding for maintenance, but I think we are doing alright on the DA properties. We were battling the wind just prior to all the heat, which has its own set of challenges.
At our maintenance facility, we have made an improvement with a wash pad for our maintenance equipment. We haven’t quite finished the project but it shouldn’t be too long until completion.
The event schedule has been slowing down after July 4^th and the Pro Am on the golf course, which will give us a chance to focus on a few lingering projects. We need to continue at the entrance and this will give us a chance to do that. I am also planning to overseed on the golf course in the late summer and fall. Also, our tee sign project has been completed, and they look great.

Communication Committee—Darci Ulin

The DAOA Communications Committee would like to thank the hard work of Carol Whiteside
who recently stepped down from the Committee for her tireless efforts! In her absence, we are continuing to strive for communication to our DAOA community and beyond using our DAOA website, emails, Facebook page, mailing,message boards. Our 2024/25 emphasis is increasing inclusion, engagement and timeliness! We’re aiming to add an Instagram account to the mix and a Whats App possibly to reach all of our diverse members, renters, visitors, local businesses and community, striving to offer as many communications/DAOA documents translated into Spanish, and revamp our website!

Security and Safety Committee –Pam Thorsen
As the calendar year is half over and the new fiscal year for DAOA has just begun, Security and Safety Committee is reflecting on the progress made, and other projects going forward, wishing to thank the owner volunteers who dedicate their time and talents to work on behalf of the community. This includes previous and current members of the Board, committee members and owners who share their thoughts, concerns, and excitement for the future, and efforts of employees and management charged with carrying out what is laid in front of them each day. After many years of concern, a truly family friendly 4^th of July was experienced by hundreds of adults and kids in the park, secure in the fact that dangerous activities were avoided and with excitement building for future holidays of celebration and activities.
With another dry, windy season occurring, the launch of the community-wide FIREWISE initiative in May encourages owners to take advantage of free expertise from local firefighters who can visit any owner property by appointment to share ways to have a safer outside environment when it comes to wildfires.

Although there are always attempts to place fear in any neighborhood with the illegal actions of some towards those who live, work and play here, the efforts by law enforcement to engage with the community continues to build, through collaboration and cooperation, which is only possible if all of us use the tools for reporting any suspicious activity that allows the professionals to handle situations on behalf of us all. (see the page eight for more ways to report)

Other planning includes water, animal, and firearm safety programs through direct conversations and engagement with owners as part of the Know Your Neighbor project and continued work with regional, state and federal agencies in a pro-active effort for changes beginning in 2025 with the Safe Roads/Streets/Trails project.
As always, send your ideas or concerns to [email protected]

Parks & Recreation Committee—Brent Sprague
The 4^th of July events in the Park went very well and we were pleasantly surprised with the number of people that participated and volunteered for the various events! Special thanks goes to Sonja and Andy Hoven and friends for the morning Kids games, for helping run the 3 on 3 basketball tournament, referee Glenn Lampman, Jayme & Josh Cameron, Dede Barta, Jodi & Scott Burkland for running the Corn Hole tournament, Pam Hanson, Sue Ross, Pam Thorsen for helping overall, Mark Pierce, Matt Yanak, Mattawa police officers Alex and Balthazar for security, Anita and Steve Hammond and team for the Saturday Ice Cream Social! We will plan on this event again next year. We may also be able to enjoy a fireworks show next year also and from what I have read may be on the water but all this remains up in the air.There are some volunteers that want to do some events on Labor Day weekend with the addition of a band in the Park in the evening hours. We will be planning on doing the Turkey Trot 5k run on Thanksgiving and penguin bowling on New Years day.
We are still waiting for one piece of equipment to arrive at the Bellevue Club so we can go pick up the three pieces of equipment we are getting.

From the Airport Commissioners:
Annual Pancake Flyin-Breakfast. THANK YOU to all the Pancake Breakfast volunteers, gift basket donors, and attendees, both inside and outside of the community, who made this year’s Airport Fly-in Breakfast a success. We served about 300 attendees and the event raised over $4,400. A special thanks to Brian and Denise Hash for sharing their hangar with our community. The breakfast event is always fun and we appreciate the community support. Residential Thru the Fence Lease Agreement. The airport district is in the process of drawing up a “Residential Thru the Fence” (RTTF) lease agreement that will go into effect January 1^st, 2025. This agreement is necessary due to a state audit finding that Desert Aire Airport District (the district) is “gifting public funds” which is a violation of state law. We are “gifting funds” because we do not charge a fee (we’ve only asked for a donation) from the property owners around the airport who access the public use airport from their private property. The RTTF brings us into compliance with state law. Dissolving legal entity “Desert Aire Airport District”. The commissioners are headed down a path to dissolve the legal entity known as “Desert Aire Airport District”. This does not mean the airport is closing so please continue reading. So, why dissolve? Very simply: The airport district was formed 30+ years ago solely to apply for grants and be able to receive state grant funds. At that time community HOAs could not apply nor receive these funds. State law was changed in 2009/2010 allowing HOAs to receive aviation grant money. The district is no longer needed for thispurpose. An HOA “Airport Committee” like the other HOA committees can perform the same function as the district. Closing the district will not affect the ability of the community to obtain aviation grants.
1) Being a public entity comes at a price. A) Commissioners are elected officials which happens every 2 years. The county charges the district for the “election costs”. B) Being a public entity requires a state audit every 2-3 years. The state auditor charges the district for the audit costs. Thirty+ years ago these costs were negligible relative to overall repair/maintenance expenses. But today those costs have risen to 30% of the airports’ average annual income. Dissolving the district would put this 30% back into repair/maintenance of our community asset. If you’d like to learn more about your community airport activities, please attend the monthly commissioners’ meeting held the 3^rd Thursday of every month at the clubhouse at 4:00 p.m.Follow us on Facebook or the Airport website

Business Office
509-932-4839
Mon – Fri 8:00 am – 5:00 pm
James Curdy, General Manager ext. 100
Sarah Spurr, Accounts Payable       ext. 101
Tracey Hockman, Payroll Clerk    ext. 102
Jesenia Rodriguez, Receptionist    ext. 103
Pedro Hernandez, Code Compliance ext. 109
Water Department ext. 104
Chris Guillen, Watermaster ext. 104
Water Emergency 509-830-4332
Swimming Pool ext. 108

Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day
weekend (10:00 am-8:00 pm 7 days a week)

Golf Pro Shop
509-932-4439
Kyle Preston, PGA Professional ext. 106

River View Café
509-932-1988
Open late April through early October
open additional hours on Holidays
Thursday 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Friday/Saturday 7:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Sunday 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Village Extras!!
Lots of activities are going on at Desert Aire. This new feature highlights these going-ons that are of interest to our owners.

Country Club Happenings
Time sure flies when your having fun. We’ve hosted the Jack Rabbit in May and had a great turnout and fun was had by all. The weather was perfect. We also held the Twilight Scramble in June. They needed to do several chip offs to determine the winners. Unfortunately, we were not able to do Top Golf in July but hopefully it will be back next year. Our next event will be The Horse Race on Friday August 2^nd. Super fun, 2-person, nine holes (if you make it that far) event. Even if you don’t want to play you are welcome to come out and watch.
Country Club is hosting a golf travel trip to Wenatchee on August 26-29^th. We will be playing Three Lakes, Desert Canyons, Highlander and an option for Bear Mountain. If interested contact the Country Club at [email protected].
Country Club Championship will be held on September 7^th& 8th. We have made some changes this year to help improve the tournament. Please keep your eyes peeled for updates. We are looking forward to having all our members playing and enjoying the new changes. Don’t miss out on all the fun. There will be some surprises!!! We will have three board vacancies in October. If you enjoy planning social events, golf tournaments and want to join our crew, please let us know at [email protected]. You don’t even have to be a golfer and we would love to have you join our team!

IMPORTANT DATES
All meetings (held via Zoom, login information is available on the website member page, unless stated otherwise) and owners are encouraged to attend.
Desert Aire Board of Directors – Held the 3^rd Thursday of each month (except December) at 6:00 PM.

Architectural Committee - Meets the 2^nd and 4^th Thursday of each month at 3:00 PM. (Except in November and December, when they meet only on the 2^nd Thursday).
Golf Committee – Meets the 1st Wednesday of each month at 3:00 PM.
Parks and Recreation Committee – Meets the 1^st Wednesday of each month at 5:00 PM.
Communications Committee – Meets the 2^nd Tuesday each month at 3:30 PM.
Security & Safety Committee - Meets the 2^nd Wednesday of each month at 6:00 PM
Desert Aire Airport Commissioners - Meets the 3^rd Thursday of each month at 4:00 PM.

Interesting Facts:Grand Coulee Dam is the largest hydropower producer in the United States. The dam produces enough power to supply about 2 million households with electricity for one year.Olympic National Park on the Olympic Peninsula is home to four temperate rain forests in the Quinault, Queets, Hoh, and Bogachiel valleys. Of those, the Hoh Rain Forest is one of the largest temperate rain forests in the country.

Did you Know that you can change the language setting while browsing the Desert Aire webpage?? Then you can read it in your preferred language with over 125 choices and more added every year.
Spanish— ¿Sabías que puedes cambiar la configuración de idioma mientras navegas por la página web de Desert Aire? Luego podrás leerlo en tu idioma preferido con 125 opciones y más cada año.
Korean—그렇다면 사막 웹페이지를 탐색하는 동안 언어 설정을 변경할 수 있다는 것을 알고 계셨나요? $125 선택으로 원하는 언어로 읽을 수 있으며 매년 더 많은 금액이 추가됩니다.
geuleohdamyeon samag webpeijileul tamsaeghaneun dong-an eon-eo seoljeong-eul byeongyeonghal su issdaneun geos-eul algo gyesyeossnayo? $125 seontaeg-eulo wonhaneun eon-eolo ilg-eul su iss-eumyeo maenyeon deo manh-eun geum-aeg-i chugadoebnida.