The Minutes
SLE HOA BOARD MEETING
Date: May 12, 2026
Location: Cup of Grace
President Introduction (DAVID PETERSEN):
Board Members in Attendance: David Petersen (Pres.), Gus Ferguson (VP), Brendan Mills (Treasurer), James Stover & Bryan Pettit (Members at Large) *Recorded for Tisha Dore (Secretary)
Quorum: YES
Call to Order: 7:00pm
Minutes from the last meeting: Accepted (Motioned by: Gus Ferguson, Seconded by: James Stover)
Welcome to the Spirit Lake East HOA semi-annual meeting here at Cup of Grace where many community members volunteer. Donations are welcome. This will take us an hour. We’ll adjourn promptly by 8pm. We've allocated time for each section of business, so we stay on schedule, and respect your valuable time.
Treasurer’s Report (BRENDAN MILLS):
Current in checking account: $ 15,848.05
Current in savings account: $ 32,070.78
Current in petty cash account: $ 201.00
Total in bank accounts: $ 48,119.83
We've collected most of the 2026 dues, and even after an emergency purchase of a new-to-us grader in spring 2024, and the majority of spring clean-up + major road improvement project complete this year, we're still in a solid position of rebuilding our savings. Total owed by the community is: $ 10,522.92
******************** REMINDER: The 2026 dues are $273.17 (22.76/mo) ********************
The credit card payment option is now turned off. The 40+ homeowners still owing dues may still pay by check or money order. If you don’t have checks, you can transfer the money from your account to the HOA’s at First Interstate Bank in Spirit Lake. Also, Walmart in CDA processes money orders for just $1.
Dues Poll: We mailed a non-binding poll with dues invoices explaining the challenges with the dues being behind today’s costs, needing to catch up with inflation. We asked for your opinion about a possible increase to $400, $550 or $675 with a summary of changes that could potentially occur with each amount.
143 polls cast (out of 296 lots, that’s 48% participating). 93 polled YES (65%) and 50 polled No (35%).
Of the yeses: 41 for $400 (44%) ….. 31 for $550 (33%) ….. 21 for $675 (23%).
For a vote to pass, there must be 2/3 of lots not just voting on a measure, but voting in the affirmative. The board does not believe the poll numbers—although strong—reflect support needed for an election. Instead, we’ll focus on continued education, future polling. Results: www.spiritlakeeast.org/poll-results
Also, the 2025 Audit is in process, thanks to volunteer, Elisika Ambler. It will post next month with the June minutes + Summer newsletter. For now, see Q1 receipts: www.spiritlakeeast.org/financial-reports.
Behind on your dues? Send payment ASAP or contact Brendan Mills, at treasurer@spiritlakeeast.org. For more info on payments + donations (including mailing address): www.spiritlakeeast.org/payordonate
*Treasurer Report Questions & Answers can be found at the end of this document
Motion to accept Treasurer Report by: Bryan Pettit
Motion Seconded by: James Stover
Roads Report (JON DORE):
I’d like thank Lead Operator, Joe Sandbank + Lead Grader, Jake Sandbank, and the rest of the Road Crew for all the great work on the asphalt project and spring cleanup, which is near done including CDA, Hayden, Kelso, Liberty, Newman, Priest, Spirit and St. Joe. But I want to get everything graded, including areas that don’t get enough attention like Fernan and West Liberty, which will be done soon. In the minutes, you’ll get a detailed report on which roads/sections had what kind of work done and on what days.
In the middle of spring clean-up, the largest road improvement project yet was done.
In two days, 2,300 yards of asphalt grindings (negotiated for just $3K) from Highway 54 project leader, Scarsella. The material was distributed + rolled on the most in-need and highest-traffic areas around SLE (CDA, lower Hayden, Liberty, St. Joe). We employed every deal from volunteers + 35hrs donated grader time and a good price for trucking + roller rental, the use of which was maximized every day we had it.
Speeds are really picking up. Please slow down to preserve our unpaved roads and drive safe around our equipment, operators. Drivers are passing them even on blind curves without being waved-on to pass. If you encounter equipment, wait for their signal. They see you and will let you know when it's safe to pass.
Fundraising For Above-And-Beyond Items...
The new-to-us grader has been making a big impact and is continuing to save us money. We've since invested in ice chains for the grader (so we're ready for anything and they were needed with all the slush over an unseasonably warm winter), reminder: we’re still working to rebuild the crown in our roads and want to keep distributing (+ rolling) more asphalt grindings. We're also looking for a new-to-us roller.
None of those items are covered by our annual HOA budget, so we're asking for your help.
Please consider donating for above-and-beyond work + materials and roller rentals that aren’t a part of our existing budget for the usual maintenance + repairs. Donations—big or small—are welcome. THANKS, ALL, FOR YOUR HELP! Mail checks to: SLE HOA – P.O. Box 217, Spirit Lake, ID 83869 *Memo: Road Fund
Email: roads@spiritlakeeast.org. For the roads form (to report issues): www.spiritlakeeast.org/roads. Email Q’s to roads@spiritlakeeast.org. For roads form for reporting issues: www.spiritlakeeast.org/roads
*Roads Report Questions & Answers can be found at the end of this document
Motion to Accept the Roads Report: James Stover
Motion Seconded by: Gus Ferguson
Architecture Report (JAMES STOVER)
Spoke with owner about their pole barn build. They have a permit and will submit paperwork for approval. If you have building plans (or Q’s to prep), contact ARC Chair, James Stover, at arc@spiritlakeeast.org. For info on building in SLE + Architectural Form for approvals: www.spiritlakeeast.org/building-info
*Architecture Report Questions & Answers can be found at the end of this document
Motion to accept ARC Report by: Gus Ferguson
Motion Seconded by: Brendan Mills
Timber Report (GUS FERGUSON)
Spoke with one owner not about commercial logging, but just cleaning-up their property, removing diseased trees and mulching, which doesn’t require a logging application for approval. We appreciate being looped in, though, especially if it’s at a time of year when we’d need to coordinate on timing of logging trucks driving through SLE to avoid damage to delicate roads during spring break-up, for example.
Also, the time to safely burn slash piles is at an end. Fire restrictions started on May 10th and burn permits are now required. They are free, but it’s getting to be the dry season when it is not recommended. See Timber Q&A section for more info on burn permits and how to get one when it’s not too dry as it is now.
If you’re clearing trees in prep for fire season, please take precautions. Use of chainsaws during dry times can lead to sparks/fire. So, the earlier in the season, and in cooler/damp mornings, the better. Be safe.
Send timber/logging questions to: timber@spiritlakeeast.org. For links to the Commercial Logging + Timber Exemption Forms, visit: www.spiritlakeeast.org/timber
* Timber Report Questions & Answers can be found at the end of this document
Motion to accept Timber Report by: James Stover
Motion Seconded by: Brendan Mills
Welcome Report (BRYAN PETTIT)
If you’re new to Spirit Lake East, Welcome! If you haven’t yet registered as a new owner here or you’ve been living here for years but your contact info has changed, please register or re-register with us online. Visit www.spiritlakeeast.org, click on Newbies, and enter your info. Newbies, come up after for a little gift.
Questions? Contact Tisha Dore at welcome@spiritlakeeast.org. Newbies who’ve yet to register for HOA billing/mailings (or if you have a new email), fill-out the form here: www.spiritlakeeast.org/new-residents.
Motion to Accept Welcome Report: Gus Ferguson
Motion Seconded by: James Stover
Old Business – (BRENDAN MILLS)
Signs – Signs in need of repair or replacement in the community are on order. The remaining sign updates at the entrances (consolidating + no soliciting) will have to wait until after highway construction is done.
Intermax – Take advantage of the grant while it lasts including trenching up our long driveways for FREE. It adds value to any home. Services: $80, $100, $130/mo (208-676-0471 or intermaxnetworks.com/fiber).
Summer Newsletter: Latest edition underway including Local Events, Fire Safety, Updated Map, etc. IMPORTANT REMINDER: Given the newsletter is posted on Facebook, NextDoor, website + email, we will no longer be mailing newsletters to those who have not provided an email and can find it on our website. It’s also difficult to email PDFs without tripping a spam alert, so we’ll just email the link to download. Please send updated emails (or newsletter entries for consideration) to: newsletter@spiritlakeeast.org.
Newsletters & Ad Info: www.spiritlakeeast.org/newsletters
*Old Business Report Questions & Answers can be found at the end of this document
Motion to Accept Old Business: Bryan Pettit
Motion Seconded by: Gus Ferguson
NEW BUSINESS (DAVID PETERSEN)
Shooting – There have been complaints, the shooting range is right at Farragut with new seasonal hours (Fri-Mon, 9am- 4pm). This also includes the archery ranges. The fee is $10 per person and $5 for those under 18 years old. The single fee includes the use of the rifle and handgun ranges, archery ranges and trap stations. For more info + location visit this link: https://idfg.idaho.gov/shoot/farragut
We are now turning this over to the fire department for the next 15 minutes. We’ll adjourn at 8pm.
*New Business Report Questions & Answers can be found at the end of this document
Motion to Accept New Business: James Stover
Motion Seconded by: Brendan Mills
FIRE SEASON & LEVY INFO (FIRE DEPT)
· Fire Season Prep (printable handout: https://tinyurl.com/PrepYourHome4FireSeason)
· Emergency Vehicles Easily Get In & Around SLE. BUT, OWNERS, CLEARLY POST YOUR ADDRESS.
· Fire & Rescue Levy: Community members will vote on this soon and it does impact SLE.
· Spirit Lake Fire Dept. in attendance tonight is asking for our support on the upcoming levy vote.
· From the temporary levy that’s ending, they said, we've been able to expand our personnel + hire a fourth member on our green shift. Our overall goal is to expand our crews to four for every shift.
· That way, we can have two on an ambulance, two on the fire truck, and [can] respond to multiple calls at once. Right now, there's about 3% of our calls that we flat-out miss, because our only one unit—our crew—can only respond to one [call]. And that means Athol or Timberlake has to come over, and cover whatever calls that we are missing, or even more than that.
· They have to come up from Hayden or Rathdrum, and when they're busy, then it's somebody from KCFR (Kootenai County Fire & Rescue) in Post Falls (south of Coeur d’Alene, for new folks).
· So, right now our budget, like I said, is good until next year. [But] if we cannot pass another levy, well then, we just have to have some hard conversations.
*Fire Season & Levy Report Questions & Answers can be found at the end of this document
THANKS FOR COMING, WE’RE HAPPY TO ANSWER MORE Q’S, AFTER WE ADJOURN
- Motion to adjourn at 8pm by: James Stover
Motion Seconded by: Gus Ferguson
- Meeting was adjourned at: 8pm
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Treasurer Q&A
RESIDENT: How much does the community still owe on dues?
BRENDAN [read the number from the report again]: $10,522.92
RESIDENT: You need 2/3 of the community to vote yes [on a measure] to pass, not 2/3 of respondents.
BRENDAN, DAVID, GUS [variations]: That’s what was said [during the Treasurer Report including the poll].
Roads Q&A
RESIDENT: How much on-average does our fuel cost?
JON: It varies year-to-year, depends on projects we have going on.
DAVID: You can find all the receipts on the website [www.spiritlakeeast.org/financial-reports].
Architecture Q&A
RESIDENT [Inaudible]: Question regarding building process and setback requirements.
DAVID: There’s a permit process through the association. But it's not like we come + examine your plans. We're just making sure it's within the general guidelines of the bylaws. The state or the county [is] really doing the oversight of your building, but we don't want you too close to the property edge. It has to be a certain style. It can't be an accessory dwelling unit, so no mother-in-law [guest houses], things like that. You've got a shop out there…a pole barn. You can put in a toilet and a sink…but we can’t have multiple residences on the same property. Pretty easy to follow. James will counsel you if you…need to get something done. If you're putting in a chicken coop, you know, a standalone chicken coop, nobody cares. If you're building a pole barn, you're laying concrete, yes, it has to be looked at.
RESIDENT: It was our understanding we could have an ADU [Accessory Dwelling Unit] or Mother-In-Law.
DAVID: No, You may not. I'm not saying that there haven't been a few that the camel got its nose under the tent, but if we find it, we are actually authorized to go in and remove that structure. That's in the bylaws. It's one of the few things that we're allowed to do.
RESIDENT [Inaudible]: Is it fair to say that if we’re building a shop and the county comes out and does an inspection, and it’s permitted, is that what you’re talking about [in terms of the SLE arc approval process]?
DAVID: There is a separate HOA approval process, and really what it boils down to…James handles it. Twenty-five words or less, James, what do you do?
JAMES: Basically, just making sure…your building is not encroaching on your…or neighbor's property line. Minimum setback requirements. Making sure you’re not building a second house.
GUS: So, it's pretty simple. Yeah, we're not trying to control anything. It's mostly a formality because in the past nobody was documenting anything…and…allegedly somebody that had gotten involved in the board and arc chair had threatened to sue some neighbors because they didn't have any documentation that they had gotten approval prior to that. So, it's actually for the homeowner's safety, not our control. It's so that it's documented and somebody later on comes at you, and you can go, here you go.
RESIDENT: What is the offset?
JAMES: I believe it's 15 from the side of your property line, 15 feet.
DAVID: Whatever the county requires…I want to make one other point is that whatever you construct has to be from new materials. You can't build it out of old shipping crates or pallets, and no blue tarps.
Timber Q&A
RESIDENT: When a contractor comes in, and logs the property, are they responsible…for cleanup?
GUS: That's between the homeowner and timber company. That's in their agreement. Ordinarily, that's the case. I'd advise people to not let the logger get their hands on the money before they've completed cleanup because you don't have any leverage to force them to come back later, as far as I know.
SAME RESIDENT: But they don't, by law, have to come back to cleanup?
GUS: I'm not exactly sure how that works [beyond making sure it’s in your contract].
ANOTHER RESIDENT: It all depends on how many board feet [how much] you take out, too.
GUS: Ok…it might have to do with, like you say…are you hiring a guy to come out, cut one log truck load, and then you agree that you're going to handle cleanup [in other words, depends on the job/agreement]?
ORIGINAL RESIDENT: My question comes from…so there was logging done…last fall on the corner of Tahoe and Newman…where they hit the property pretty hard…and their equipment came on the road and down the road, and logged on the other piece of property just off the road…Now, they cleaned up the property where they did the big logging, but as they came down the road, and cut down trees, and put all the debris along the side of the road, they didn't come back, and touch it.
GUS: Well, so that thing there, so as far as I know, they were not logging on that other property you're talking about.They went and just, I think it must have been somebody saying, hey, you got that equipment here, can you knock some of these trees down along the road?
SAME RESIDENT: They picked them up. They took them out. They didn't knock the trees down and leave them. They specifically cut trees, cleaned them, threw them on the back of the road, and went down the road for quite a ways [continuing the same].
GUS: Maybe a dozen trees?
JON: Yeah, that was an issue because they also hit the overhead lines.
RESIDENT: Yes.
JON: So, anyone that's coming in with logging [equipment]—buncher or harvester—needs to trailer it in, you know, it can work on the property. It has to be trailered out. I spoke with that logger at length about that because I ended up having to deal with that. And that was one of the other things too, like the person on the corner there didn't file with us that they were logging.
GUS: No, he did. What he told me was that he was going to just thin out a few trees around the house.
JON: But I didn't have the logger's info [they changed loggers], so I couldn't get ahold of people. And I'm trying to coordinate this on a Friday afternoon, you know…to get Ziply out there to fix the overhead lines and try to figure out, like, what exactly went on. So, it took me a lot longer, whereas if [we] had everything on paper, it would have been easier for everyone involved. So, yes, in the future, and to your point too, there are a lot of trees that are blown down right now. And with fire season…coming around, it would be nice that everyone…be aware of that and try and get this stuff off the road. There are a lot of properties on Liberty that have still quite a bit of [trees down + debris] in there. So please, everyone, be aware.
REMINDER FROM SLE HOA BOARD: It is the responsibility of each homeowner to clear the trees that have fallen from their property. Even if a volunteer had to initially cut/clear them from the road because the homeowner didn’t in a timely manner after they fell on or near the road. So, if you’re wondering when those logs will be removed, and they are stacked next to your property, that’s your responsibility to remove those, especially in prep for fire season. If you need help, contact timber@spiritlakeeast.org.
RESIDENT (Inaudible): You could put out an ad for folks to come/remove cut logs for firewood.
JON: That’s a great idea.
RESIDENT (Inaudible): Timber Exemptions, I think most people have those in here. Ten years went by and I called up the [property] tax lady, and she gave me another 10 years, but when you do it…I’m assuming someone here has done it…do they come out and take the wood…do they pay you for the wood? (question asked during New Business, moved under Timber Q&A).
DAVID: He's talking about the timber exemption.
GUS: Who comes out and takes the wood?
RESIDENT: Inland Paper Company?
GUS: No. No. No…You're getting an exemption on your property taxes because you're declaring it to be timberland.But you need to manage it.
ANOTHER RESIDENT: Yeah, and nobody does.
GUS: Right. Very few do. And, you know, the end result is they're hoping that sooner or later you log it, and then they're getting income tax off the logging operation. The guy at the sawmill making a wage is paying income taxes. They are getting sales taxes off the 2x4’s at Home Depot… blah, blah, blah… A lumber company doesn't show up and take your trees.
RESIDENT: Well, they told me that every 10 years, they…come out.
DAVID. They [your forester comes out to] review the property so they can give you the timber exemption.
RESIDENT [inaudible]: But don’t they come out…and take one load [or something like that]?
DAVID: It's got nothing to do with logging your timber. Sir, we can talk [more] about that afterwards.
CLARIFICATION ON BURN PERMITS (for when it’s not too dry to burn slash piles as it is currently):
As mentioned in the Timber section of the meeting minutes, it is currently too dry for burning slash piles. However, in the future, if the conditions are wet and right for burning slash piles, it’s always recommended to get a burn permit. That way, as Gus noted during the meeting, if neighbors start calling in that there's a forest fire, and they see that you've got a burn permit, and your phone number is included, they can just call you and ask, hey, is everything okay, instead of showing up with the calvary. David added, yes, what I do is call the fire department, and say, hey, I'm at this location, got a permit, and they make a note of it.
Gus then confirmed with Gary Pfahler (Fire Commissioner, SLE Resident + Previous HOA President) that homeowners can get burn permits through Idaho Department of Lands (link below), and noted that it will say your burn location on the permit, and then next year you can just renew it.
Gus added that getting a burn permit (again, when conditions are right for burning, not now) is super easy. Just click on the map whereabouts on your property it's going to be. If there's a little flare-up that you didn't get put out, at least they have a heads-up that you’re burning: https://burnpermits.idaho.gov
Old/New Business Q&A *combined because all concerned shooting
RESIDENT: When you’re fixing the signs, would it be possible to get a No Shooting sign (another resident seconds this)? I've been here for 33 years, and there's always been shooting, but now it's just ridiculous.
BRENDAN: I'd have to retake a look at that Spirit Lake East sign [at the entrances]. I think it’s on there. Maybe we need to make it bigger. Paint it.
RESIDENT: It’s on there. No Hunting, No Shooting. Yes, there’s one out on Sand Creek.
BRENDAN: Yeah, that one. So, I'll definitely take a look at that because I do know it's an issue. Unfortunately, I live in the back where I back up to the BLM land, and I got nothing. They're firing over my property all the time.
DAVID: Shooting. We live in northern Idaho. Strong Second Amendment. Big gun nut myself. The HOA bylaws say no shooting. There have been complaints. The best we can say is that the shooting range at Farragut is open. It's cheap. It's a good range…$10…whatever, the fees. It's against the bylaws to shoot in the subdivision. But there's no enforcement ability granted to us in the bylaws.
We can't go out there and tell you not to shoot. Well, we could if we were bold. I'm not going to do it.
The only thing that can happen is if somebody is shooting in an unsafe fashion, the sheriff can be called. We won't call them for you. If you call the association and you happen to get us on the phone, which is not very common [email is better but we do answer/return calls as quickly as possible], we're not going to call on your behalf.
You'll have to call the sheriff. You'll have to make your case to the sheriff why this is unsafe. Just because somebody is shooting and it's against our bylaws, they're not going to step in and tell somebody they can't shoot. They will evaluate the situation, make a best-case judgment, and move on from there.
It's frustrating. But I'm pretty sure that shooting will continue in the subdivision, and hopefully people will use wisdom.Now, there could be…some terrible tragedy in the future. We can't prevent it. We're not liable for it. That's up to the property owner. And if you do shoot, you know, use common sense. Have a dedicated backstop. You're not supposed to do it, but if you're going to do it, do it right.
JON: Or go behind Brendan’s house on BLM land [laughter].
JOHN: His address is…[laughter].
BRENDAN: OnX [location app…more laughter].
RESIDENT [Inaudible]: There’s a free sandpit down off Clagstone [where you can go to shoot].
BRENDAN: That sandpit actually just got closed down because people were taking all kinds of trash out there, and they were tired of cleaning it up, and putting up signs that people shot at. So now that, from what I heard, got closed down.
JOHN: Oh, that's too bad.
GUS: There's lots of good spots on the state and Inland Paper land to the north of Spirit Lake East.
DAVID: [To conclude the discussion on shooting]…It's going to happen. If you find somebody that's shooting in an unsafe fashion, call the sheriff. And that's about all I can say.
GUS: One thing on that. A lot of people don't really realize that they, they call us and want us to call the sheriff on matters. Well, the sheriff's not going to show up because that's a “I heard that somebody was shooting” complaint not a “yeah, a bullet just hit my house from the next-door neighbor.” So, they're not even going to respond about it if we call, even if we wanted to.
RESIDENT: It’s also legal to shoot in the county…so, they’ll [probably say] it’s legal in the county.
GUS: We're talking about if they're not using a backstop and you got bullets whizzing past your house. Yeah, then that's not legal in the county.
DAVID: When I first moved here and was getting my vehicle inspected, the sheriff was there at my house, and I heard somebody rip off certainly a big magazine, full auto. I said, you hear that? And he said, yeah, that's the sound of freedom in Northern Idaho.
FIRE SAFETY + LEVY Q&A
RESIDENT: Fire prevention question…what's the legal…number [of feet]…from your house outwards… taking all the brush out and everything…is there a certain number [of feet] that's required?
FIRE DEPT: Well, I wouldn't say required but it's recommended. I have wildland paperwork in my hand. About 200 to 300 feet…you want to clear from around your house any kind of tall fuels…what we call ladder fuel…which is branches. Anything that's creeping over your house, you want to cut that back. If you have solid grass coming up to your house, break it up. Try to add more islands and use dense mulch for landscaping…things of that nature. We brought some preparedness guides (link below).
PRINTABLE PDF:chttps://tinyurl.com/PrepYourHome4FireSeason
SAME RESIDENT: My insurance company called me up to say that they were going to cancel me because they said that my house wasn’t properly [inaudible but something like “fire-safe”]. But they said they picked me…specifically…for an inspection…how do you do that? They said it was random…
ANOTHER RESIDENT: It’s a drone.
FIRE DEPT: Are you a new homeowner?
SAME RESIDENT: No, I’ve been here for 13 years.
FIRE DEPT: Just think of it as what's burnable up to your house. If you step out your front door and you're looking at nothing but tall grass and dense trees, then yeah, you need to clear all that away from your house. Any kind of manmade material, firewood, especially with the wildfire season coming up. You want to keep firewood stacked at least 30 feet away from your home. If any embers in the air catch in the land, it's like a domino effect. You can look up information online. There's literature out there that will help. Like I said, we brought some preparedness guides.
SAME RESIDENT: Are you guys expecting a pretty serious fire season this year?
FIRE DEPT: I haven't heard anything official, but I personally am, yes. It was 83 degrees here today in Spirit Lake. The lakes are at all-time lows. So, it’s going to be kind of scary this year, sure.
GARY (FIRE COMMISSIONER, RESIDENT + PREVIOUS HOA PRESIDENT): The other thing is we had a weak winter, not much snow, but a lot of rain. So, all of the grasses that should be here [indicating lower] are up here [indicating higher]. The grasses are all green right now, but that's not going to last very long, they’re going to turn. We’ve already seen several vegetation fires throughout the region. We had a couple in the last couple weeks.
FIRE DEPT: Ten minutes ago, Ohio Match [impacting] Highway 95.
GARY: I want to explain a little bit more in depth about how the levy worked…
The levy that was passed, we received money in January. That was half of the levy rate. It was a 50% levy, so it's a temporary levy for two years. We've hired two people, so far, off that money. We have a deputy chief now, and we have one extra firefighter.
We have enough in the levy to—I think—hire one more firefighter, so that would get two of the three shifts staffed and four per shift. That means we can handle two calls simultaneously. I have the statistics here for every month on how many calls we miss, which is anywhere from one to five.
The highest is usually in the summer months because there's more fires, and we're missing up to eight calls a month. It doesn't mean somebody is not responding. It means they're coming from farther away. That can be critical if you're having a heart attack. Can you wait another 10 minutes, 15 minutes for someone to get there? Our goal is to be able to handle two calls simultaneously.
With a two-year levy, we have, like I say, a deputy chief. You might say, well, why do you need a deputy chief if you have a chief? The chief is the only one there. He's on 24-7, 365, getting calls at two in the morning, six in the morning, days off, he's never off, and the burnout is tremendous. And the paper load on the chief is tremendous, all the inspections that have to be done.
So, we're going to take some of that load off of him and have another body in a command position so that he can actually be off for a couple of days and have a day off. When we hire people on a temporary levy, we tell them, well, you're good for a year and a half, and we may have to lay you off. I don't want to see that. If you end up with three plus five, you have to lay them off because the levy won't pass.
That's where we're at. The permanent levy requires 67%.
A temporary levy is 50%. We got to about 57% on the last one when we tried a permanent levy. If 3,000 people moved into this region, it really doesn't affect us financially that much. There's not really any extra money because we are held at 3%. The state mandates that we can only increase, or our budget can only increase by 3%. Now, what can you do with 3%? You can't hire anybody else.
DAVID: That sounds vaguely familiar [laughter].
GARY: Yes, it's the same as the HOA, and if you look at the last five years, inflation has gone way over 3%. I think we were at 15%, 16% back in ‘21, ‘22, roughly. So even though we're below 3%, it’s still pretty high.
DAVID: What is the percentage they're asking for, or what's the actual nuts and bolts of the levy?
FIRE DEPT: Well, the [temporary] levy that was passed, it was $477,000, and that was for two years. So, it was $277,000 that we just got in January. In July, we'll get another $277,000. That is enough to hire a deputy chief and two fire chiefs.
DAVID: But what is the percentage that we're going to see on our package?
GARY: I can't tell you that right now. It will be posted on the Spirit Lake Fire website, the actual cost. You'll be able to figure out what it costs. This levy that was passed—the temporary—was roughly $150 a property. But it's also hard to calculate because every homeowner, the state paid some portion of the year, the property tax, the fire, there were discounts on there. I think mine was $400 for the year…and the state, I think, picked up $200…
UNKNOWN: Overall, it was about a 9% increase, a 9% jump.
DAVID: Okay. I'm going to ask one other question…[joking]…how many hundreds of pounds of gunpowder can I keep safely in my gun room? [Laughter]
JOHN: Not a question you thought you'd get tonight, was it? c
FIRE DEPT: People just bring it to the fire department and we dispose of it for you.
SAME RESIDENT: I think I saw $85 increase [from temporary levy] on my house.
GARY: It isn't all that much…if $85 or $100, is it worth…risking a 15-minute more response or would you rather spend the 80 bucks?
GUS: Well, and I think you mentioned it to me before about if there's different levels of insurance ratings for your risk.
GARY: ISO 4, ISO 8, ISO 9, ISO 10.
GUS: So, once you get into the fire department, it's getting reduced, and now you're in a higher risk area. Well, now your insurance is worth $500 a year because you didn't want an $85 increase.
GARY: ISO 4 is the city of Spirit Lake. They have fire hydrants. If you don't have fire hydrants and you're within five minutes of a response, five to six minutes, you're ISO 8. And every insurance company does different things. I talked to State Farm. They don't use the ISO rating, but they send someone out.
RESIDENT: I'm an 8, which is one of the worst you can be.
GARY: 10 is the worst. ISO 10 is no hydrants, and you're more than 15, 20 mins away. Hoodoo, some places way out are ISO 10 and getting harder to get insurance. Eight and nine is still not good insurance.
RESIDENT: Quick question about this year's fire season (inaudible, asking about air support)…Are we going to have that available to us this year, or are they being held back a little bit there, too, or what?
GARY: That's Department of Lands and they have all the air assets, and they can be ordered up based on the fire. It doesn't matter if it's in Spirit Lake East or out in the wild land. But it does take, I think, a chief or higher to order them out. I believe our chief, you know, did you order them out?
FIRE DEPT: Oh, I can order them, but it would basically break our budget for the year if it was deemed not necessary. So, we can recommend a drop…[but it needs to be critically necessary].
GARY: Honestly, it’s very close to go to Spirit Lake.
GUS: That's maybe for a wildland fire.
GARY: Look, this is the crew that's on right now, and we are covering 120 square miles, just two people.
DAVID: Okay, ladies and gentlemen, it is time for us to call this to an end.
