Quiet Time: 10pm-7am, Weekends & Holidays: 10pm-8am WAC 332-52-130

Last updated March 6th, 2024 at 08:01 am

Spring Newsletter added. Click below “Latest Letter To Membership.”

  • Next board meeting is April 13th, 9AM at the Clubhouse. Agenda is located in the Members Only section as is the Teams meeting information.

Reports added to Members Only section.

  • Board meeting minutes
  • Treasurer Report
  • Budget vs Actual
  • 2023 Water Quality
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Welcome
To The
Ponderosa

welcome to The Ponderosa

Welcome

Welcome! This is the official website of the Ponderosa Community Club (Pondo) provides information about its history, features, rules and benefits. Most of this website is general in nature, however, the Members Only section requires a login with official credentials. We hope you enjoy learning about our community and if you have additional questions, please contact us.

Our Mission

The Ponderosa Community Club’s mission is to create and maintain a safe and welcoming community which enhances recreational and residential living through active membership participation, visionary leadership, and commitment to sustainability and harmony with the natural environment.​

Pool Access

Our pool is for members/long term renters and their accompanied guests only, and is not available for use by short term rental tenants and their guests, CCC 11.99.290 et al. Please see additional pool rules in the members only section and posted at the pool. Open from Memorial weekend to Labor Day weekend; Wednesday-Monday 9am-9pm, first hour and last hour of the day are reserved for Quiet Hour. No Lifeguard on Duty!

Fireworks & Campfires

Discharge of Fireworks is prohibited in Chelan County (This includes Snakes and Sparklers). CCC 7.44. Outdoor Fire Pits, Fireplaces, Campfire areas must be approved. Dimensions shall not be larger than 3 feet in diameter and 2 feet in height. Fires allowed only with permission from Lake Wenachee Fire & Rescue.

Needler News & Event Calendar

Local Weather

Air Quality

Pondo Webcam

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Pondo Webcam

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Not updating? Possible power outage.

How things work in our neck of the woods.

Fire Restrictions

RiverCom 911 – Emergency Call 9-1-1
Fire Weather Zone 696​ (Mountain Zone)

Letter TO PONDEROSA MEMBERSHIP

Welcome Ponderosa Members.

Spring Newsletter

Please read below to see our social happenings, information about the pool opening and resurfacing, pool garden project and other volunteers needed in different areas, link to the LWFR insurance meeting regarding fire coverage, open board position, and more!

It's Spring!What’s Happening
From the Social Committee:

  • March 30th Easter Egg Hunt at LW Rec Club. 11 AM. Easter Bunny arrives on a fire truck.
  • Help stuff Eggs on March 20th at 5pm at the LW Rec Club!
  • Youth auditions for SAMUEL at the Plain Community Church on March 15, 3:45-6PM. Contact Kari 509 881 1152 with any questions.
  • Ladies Game Night March 21 at 5:30PM at the LW Rec Club
  • Creative Snowman contest ends March 31st! Make sure to enter by the 31st to be included in the contest. Winners announced at the April Board meeting.
  • Marlene Glovers Memorial will be held March 24th at 1PM at The Blue Boy West Golf Course.
 

A Go Fund Me account has been created for Captain Mike Stanford from our LWFR. gofund.me/f1645a04

Reservations for the Ponderosa Vendor Craft Faire: Sat, May 18th at the Clubhouse. Please send reservations for a table to: PonderosaSocialCommittee@gmail.com

We are looking for a volunteer or volunteers to host the outdoor movie night in the park on Labor Day weekend and a Memorial Day weekend volunteer is also needed to host a movie night inside the clubhouse. Equipment is available, we need someone to run it.

Members Meeting: Potato salad cook off after the annual meeting in May!

Questions or suggestions? Contact Kathy, Social Committee Chair: ponderosasocialcommittee@gmail.com

Open Board Position starting June 2024

If you are interested in being on the board, we will have an open position starting in June, 2024. It is a 3 year term. Submit a headshot and Bio to the Ponderosa office or call Daryn at the Ponderosa office if you have any questions related to the position. 509 763 0320

We need Volunteers!

Many of our committees are in need of volunteers.

Our most immediate needs:

  • Ombudsman
  • Trails Committee Chair
  • Pool Garden Project
  • Movie Night
  • Open Board position starting June 2024

Please let any board member, Daryn, or Crystal know if you have interested or would like more information!

Pool Gate Monitor Needed Summer 2024

Interested in working as a pool Pool Gardengate monitor at the Ponderosa pool for the summer or know someone who would? We are hiring for this position and the posting will be available starting at the end of April/beginning of May. Questions? Email Daryn: manager@ponderosacommunityclub.org or call 509 763 0320

Pool Garden Project

Our pool garden is in need of an overhaul. Board member Kim Hart is leading the effort to find volunteers who can help before the opening of the pool.

You do not have to have a green thumb to volunteer! We need people to help in many ways: clear out, dig, plant, and haul in some new dirt. If you are a gardener, we also need your expertise, especially on local plants!

Work dates TBD, in later April and May. We will start planning work days once the snow has melted.

Please contact: secretary@ponderosacommunityclub.org for more information or to volunteer!

Next Board Meeting: April 13th at 9AM

Live meeting will be held in the Ponderosa Community Club building.

You can join the meeting using Microsoft Teams and attend virtually as well.

Check your email or the Ponderosa website for the link and Agenda monthly!

Shout Outs

Thank you to our staff for all the hard work this winter!
Thank you to Troy and Bob and Crystal!

For keeping the roads safe, plowed and sanded during the winter
For replacing the broken sander quickly to ensure safe roads!
For monitoring water meters to assist with freezing temps, frozen or burst pipes and notification to members as well as water shutoff to assist with these issues

Ponderosa Website

Visit the Ponderosa Community Club Website for tons of information! Website tour will be included with the May Members meeting, but you can explore it at any time.

Protip: Make a contact on your phone for your pool card number for easy access to the member’s site! https://www.ponderosacommunityclub.com/members/

IMPORTANT DATES 📆

  • March 30th- Easter Egg Hunt at LW Rec Club, 11 AM
  • April 13th- Board Meeting, 9AM
  • May 11th- Board Meeting, 9AM
  • May 25th- Members Meeting, 9AM
  • May 25th- Potato salad cook off after the annual Members meeting (Hosted by Social Committee)
  • May 25th- Pool opens after the members meeting (12-1 PM’ pending weather and work on resurfacing being completed)
  • **Pending: We need a volunteer(s) to host the Memorial weekend movie night. Equipment is available, host needed. Location: Clubhouse
  • July 6th- 4th of July parade in the Ponderosa
 

Pool ResurfacingSwimming Pool

This work will be started once the weather permits. It is our hope that the work will be completed by Memorial day weekend, however if may take longer. Please monitor the website and email communications so you are aware of when the pool will open for the summer!

Firewise and LWFR Meeting with Insurance Commissioner

This was an important meeting that talks about insuring in our area with higher fire risk as well as next steps if you are searching for insurance. Here is a link to the recording in case you missed it:

Questions?
Do not hesitate to reach out to Ponderosa staff or Board Members for assistance!

Ponderosa staff and board emails are located on the website: https://www.ponderosacommunityclub.com/members/

Ponderosa office number: 509 763 0320

Dear Members,

As many of you may know, the budget ballot and pool repairs were overwhelmingly approved by the membership. All the ballots were tallied at the December 9th Board meeting. Statements were sent out on December 15th and first half payments were due on January 15th. If you haven’t sent or scheduled your payment yet, please remember to do so.

The pool repairs are scheduled to start in late March or early April depending on
the weather. It is scheduled to take approximately 3-4 weeks to complete all of
the work so the pool should be open by Memorial Day Weekend, but it is weather dependent so please keep that in mind.

There has been a notification process started regarding some of our rules and regulations regarding advertising and use of the private, members-only amenities. In order to make sure that all members have been notified of these rules and regulations, pool cards for those who have not signed the required paperwork will be shut off until the paperwork has been signed. It is available here in the office, please stop by if you are unsure if you have signed it. At the December Board meeting, the Board also voted to approve restoring water service and selling Spur lot 12. The lot is being offered to the membership for $75,000.00 or the best reasonable offer prior to it being listed with a real estate agent, if you or someone that you may know is interested, please contact the office with any questions.

Winter 2024 part 2 has arrived with a vengeance. Just prior to the extreme cold and in between snowstorms, our oldest sander unit decided to catastrophically leave the chat! After having discussions with the Director of Operations it was determined that was more expensive to attempt to repair the old one than it was to just replace it. We were able to put the large sanding truck in its place temporarily, but we cannot use that truck in many of the steeper areas without serious risk of damage or injury.

During the last several years, we have put more sand down on the roads and in more areas than ever before. Unfortunately, all of the sand in the world is not going to help with drivers who are not prepared for conditions and do not have adequate tires and/or tire chains. There have been several near misses with people driving the wrong way on the one-way roads and/or sliding off the road into the ditch or, in one case, into a tree. Luckily, we have not had any injuries so far. Please be prepared for conditions and have adequate snow tires. If you are coming over from the west side, you are required by law to carry chains over the mountain passes, please use them when needed.

Please remember to winterize your homes prior to leaving for extended periods of time. We recommend that you shut off your water and water heater and drain your pipes prior to leaving. It is also advised to keep your water shut off valve cleared of snow or otherwise readily accessible. You are required to have your own water shut-off valve outside of the water meter box and prior to the first fixture. If you do not have one, you should make arrangements to have one installed as soon as possible. It is not unusual for our power to go out, especially in the winter when there is snow on the power lines and/or during periods of extreme cold. Sometimes it flashes off just long enough to mess with your clocks and internet access, other times it might be out for an extended period of time. If your security cameras go out, in many cases it is from the power going out. Please do not call the emergency after hours phone number to ask if the power is out, assume that it is. In many cases, when the power is out, the maintenance staff is busy working on maintaining water service and keeping the reservoirs adequately filled during the outage.

There have been several instances of people spinning donuts in the parking lots and/or “drifting” the corners here in ponderosa. It was reported that a green Honda had established a “route” and made several laps drifting and sliding around corners. This behavior is not only extremely dangerous, but it also damages the chip seal surface in the parking lots and the roads. Please understand that any potential fines and/or costs for any damage will be paid for by the responsible member. Members are responsible for their family, guests, tenants, and contractors. We have also found multiple places where people have been urinating and leaving their trash and broken items in the park. Please do not urinate in the park or parking lots, pick up after your pets, and take your broken toys and trash with you. Illegal activity will be reported to the County sheriff.

Please do not put your garbage cans out until Monday morning and bring them in promptly after pick up. We have had multiple instances where trash cans have been put IN THE ROAD as early as the Tuesday before pick-up. Cans in the road interfere with our ability to keep the roads plowed. Place your cans at the end of your driveway, off the road. The garbage truck can reach out up to 5’ from the edge of the road to pick up your garbage can.

Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner and Lake Wenatchee Fire and Rescue is holding an event to provide information and answer questions regarding homeowner insurance and wildfires on Wednesday January 24th 5:30- 7:30. Please see the attached flyer.

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to contact the office.

Sincerely

Daryn Wilbur
Manager
Ponderosa Community Club Inc.

Dear Members

The Annual Member’s Meeting was held on Saturday May 27th with approximately 55 members in attendance.

Two members, Suzanne Hull and Kim Hart volunteered for the 2 open Board of Trustee positions, there was a motion and second to elect them to the Board and all approved. Please give them a warm welcome and thanks the next time that you see them in the neighborhood. We still need volunteers for the other open committees, please contact the office or a Board member if you have any questions.

There was a presentation by Chief Walker of Lake Wenatchee Fire & Rescue updating us on Firewise and staffing. They need volunteers for the fire station here in Ponderosa. They are working on training programs for the weekends, so even if you are only here on the weekends, please consider volunteering. If they lose another volunteer, the station could be decommissioned which could mean an increase in our insurance rating.

Other subjects discussed at the meeting included presentations from the Treasurer, Adrienne Thompson, on our financials, President Larry Backstrom on the website, and me on operations which included information regarding the pool rules.

As a reminder, Per Washington RCW’s and Ponderosa Pool Rules, food, and drinks (especially alcohol) along with flotation devices (air mattresses, inner tubes, etc.) are not allowed in the pool or pool deck area. Please remember to rinse off in the showers prior to getting into the pool, no lotions are allowed in the pool, as it clogs up the filters. The pool is closed every Tuesday for maintenance.

Unfortunately, after the Pool was opened, we found many members ignoring the rules. There were people bringing in air mattresses and inner tubes, food, open containers of alcohol, including but not limited to, White Claw, Truly, Coors Light, etc. and people using lotion and not rinsing off prior to getting into the pool, which clogs the filter system. These rules are posted because they are required by law. If you have floatation devices in the pool area, you will be asked to remove them. If you have water bottles closer than four feet to the edge of the pool, you will be asked to move them away from the pool edge. If you have alcohol at the pool, you will be asked to leave and not allowed back for the day. If you argue and escalate the situation, your pool privileges will be suspended for the rest of the Ponderosa Community Club 21100 Cayuse, Leavenworth, WA 98826year. All that we ask is for the members to follow the rules and we appreciate those that do.

We hired a gate monitor, Dinah, who will be verifying membership, watching for restricted items and insuring that people rinse prior to entering the pool.

Please contact the office and let us know who your family members are so we can put them into the system for the entry gate. If you have done so in the past, please let us know again as our system has been updated and we don’t want to miss anybody.

A reminder that friends and guests must always be accompanied by a member while at the pool.

Security during the weekend was quiet this year. Only one party was a little loud, but they quieted down when they were asked. Other than that, we had multiple occasions of people riding quads and motorcycles without helmets. Please remember to wear a helmet when riding motorcycles and quads.

Chelan County has banned open burning for the year. Campfires in approved fire pits are currently still allowed.

If you have ideas or suggestions for us, please let us know.

Sincerely

Daryn Wilbur
Manager
Ponderosa Community Club Inc.

Dear Members

Annual Member’s Meeting on Saturday May 27th. Check-in starts at 9:00am The meeting starts at 10:00am. An agenda is attached.

There are still 2 openings for Board of Trustee positions this year as well as several Committee openings. Please consider volunteering to run for one of the open Board positions or on a committee. Members of the Board guide our community into the future, while committee members help with the parks, trails, governing documents, budget, events etc. Please contact any Board member or the Office if you have any questions or are interested in volunteering.

The Pool will be opened after the member’s meeting on Saturday the 27th. Normal pool hours are Wednesday-Monday 9:00am-9:00pm. The pool is closed every Tuesday for maintenance.

We are going to hire a gate monitor again this year who will be verifying membership and watching for restricted items. Per Washington RCW’s and Ponderosa Pool Rules, food, and drinks (especially alcohol) along with flotation devices (air mattresses, inner tubes, etc.) are not allowed in the pool or pool deck area. Please remember to rinse off in the showers prior to getting into the pool, no lotions are allowed in the pool, as it clogs up the filters.

Please contact the office and let us know who your family members are so we can put them into the system for the entry gate. If you have done so in the past, please let us know again as our system has been updated and we don’t want to miss anybody.

A reminder that friends and guests must be accompanied by a member at all times while at the pool.

The pickleball court should be open Thursday morning. The maintenance staff is finishing up the fencing and will install the net soon after.

Please let us know if you are interested in playing on a regular basis, we are open to reserving some time for members who want to play regularly, otherwise it is an open court.

If you are interested in learning how to play Pickleball, you can contact member Vern Little at vernlittle@gmail.com to set up a time for some free instruction.

The bears are out of hibernation and hungry. There have been multiple garbage and recycle cans left out and garbage strewn throughout. You are responsible for the garbage and recyclables generated at your property. Please secure your garbage cans and do not put them out until early Monday morning. Remember, if there is no garbage for them to pick through, they will move on.

There have already been a few mini bikes running around with the riders not wearing helmets. So please remember that the road rules require helmets to be worn. Road rule #9 states: “Helmets are required for the operators and riders of all motorcycles, ATVs, go-carts, and snowmobiles.” Please be sure to wear your helmet. We will have onsite security during the holiday weekends again this year and helmets and speeding will be monitored.

Please remember that all dogs must be under voice control or leashed per Chelan County Ordinance. “Voice control” as defined in the ordinance, states that “the owner must be present” with the dog. Please do not allow your dogs to run loose and unsupervised, keep them under your control, and please, pick up after them!

If you have ideas or suggestions for us, please let us know.

Sincerely

Daryn Wilbur
Manager
Ponderosa Community Club Inc.

Dear Members

Just a short note to bring you up to speed with what has been happening in the Ponderosa.

There are 2 openings for Board of Trustee positions this year as well as several Committee openings. Please consider volunteering to run for one of the open Board positions or on a committee. Members of the Board guide our community into the future, while committee members help with the parks, trails, governing documents, budget, events etc. Please contact any Board member or the Office if you have any questions or are interested in volunteering.

The bears are out of hibernation and hungry. There have already been reports of bears causing issues on the north shore of Lake Wenatchee. Please secure your garbage cans and do not put them out until early Monday morning. When the bears come, if there is no garbage for them to pick through, they will move on.

A reminder of the road rules, rule #9 states: “Helmets are required for the operators and riders of all motorcycles, ATVs, go-carts, and snowmobiles.” Please be sure to wear your helmet. We will have onsite security during the holiday weekends again this year and helmets and speeding will be monitored.

Please remember that all dogs must be under voice control or leashed per Chelan County Ordinance. “Voice control” as defined in the ordinance, states that “the owner must be present” with the dog. Please do not allow your dogs to run loose and unsupervised, keep them under your control, and please, pick up after them!

We will be installing a new power service to the shop, which will be underground from the corner of Morgan and Cayuse so we will be temporarily closing Cayuse St. while we lay the conduit. We will send out a notice when we close the road. We don’t expect the closure to be more than a day, but we will keep you posted.

If you have ideas or suggestions for us, please let us know.

Sincerely

Daryn Wilbur
Manager
Ponderosa Community Club Inc.

Dear Members

Just a short note to bring you up to speed with what has been happening in the Ponderosa.

Warmer temperatures are finally starting to melt the snow! With the mountains of snow receding, the roads are starting to widen out and we are discovering a plethora of “dog piles” everywhere. While a few are in little blue bags, most are not. Please remember to pick up after your pets. We appreciate the people that are at least putting the piles in the bags, but please dispose of the bags properly as well.

And, as long as we are on the subject of dogs, we have had a series of loose dog issues lately. Please remember that all dogs must be under voice control or leashed per Chelan County Ordinance. “Voice control” as defined in the ordinance, states that “the owner must be present” with the dog. Please do not allow your dogs to run loose and unsupervised, keep them under your control.

With the warmer weather, expect the bears to be coming out of hibernation. Please secure your garbage cans and do not put them out until early Monday morning. When the bears come, if there is no garbage for them to pick through, they will move on.

There are 2 openings for Board of Trustee positions this year. Please consider volunteering to run for one of the open positions. Members of the Board guide our community into the future. Please contact any Board member or the Office if you have any questions or are interested in volunteering.

The Watershed Committee has secured a grant to perform some restoration and expansion work on the existing Firefighter Safety Zone in the greenbelt area above Saddle St. near the power lines. The committee is hoping that the Board will give its final approval at the next scheduled Board meeting on April 8 th. It has been a long time since it has been maintained, so it is quite overgrown and smaller than today’s standards. You should expect some tree removal and clearing work to be done once approved. This is a cleared safety area for firefighters to assemble should they be overrun by a wildfire in our community. This is NOT an area for members to assemble, members should be evacuated and gone long before any wildfire overruns the Ponderosa. Hopefully, we are never in that situation.

The maintenance staff is starting demolition of the old maintenance shop building. The contractor will be starting to bring in equipment and materials in mid-April to start underground, grade, and concrete work for the new steel building. The building is scheduled to be delivered at the beginning of May for assembly later in the month. We will be installing a new power service to the shop, which will be underground from the corner of Morgan and Cayuse so we will be temporarily closing Cayuse St. while we lay the conduit. We will send out a notice when we close the road, we don’t expect the closure to be more than a day, but we will keep you posted.

Other projects for this year include but is not limited to, placement of the new soccer goals, replacement of the volleyball net system that a four-point buck decided to remove last fall, adding more lounge chairs in the pool area, installing fencing around the pickleball court, completing the telemetry update on the water system, cleaning ditches, and adding/replacing mailbox kiosks.

If you have ideas or suggestions for us, please let us know.

Sincerely

Daryn Wilbur
Manager
Ponderosa Community Club Inc.

Dear Members

Just a short note to bring you up to speed with what’s happening in the Ponderosa.

There was a cougar spotted last Sunday roaming throughout Ponderosa. The Dept. of Fish and Wildlife was notified, and they came out and successfully transported it to a new home without harm.

With the short break from the falling snow, the maintenance crew has been working on removing snow from the cul-de-sacs and other areas as needed. We have had an extraordinary winter so far so please bear with us as we make room for the next round.

Next week, Bob the Caretaker will be posting a short video regarding garbage cans in the road on the Ponderosa Community Facebook page. The waste management truck can reach out up to 5’ to pick up a garbage/recycling can. The video will show you how far away from the road that you can place your cans without worrying that they won’t be picked up. Please do not put your cans in the road as it interferes with our ability to keep the roads clear and pull your cans back in once they are emptied.

Unfortunately, we have had to tow a few cars that were parked in the road. When vehicles are parked in the road, it not only hinders our ability to keep the road plowed, but more importantly, it also interferes with emergency vehicles. Please remind your family, friends, and tenants that parking in the road is not allowed. If you need a place to park until your driveway is cleared, please let us know and you can park in the clubhouse parking lot until your driveway is cleared.

The Office manager/bookkeeper has moved on. We wish her the best in her future endeavors. We are looking for a Bookkeeper/Office admin. If you or anybody you know is looking for a part-time office position, are proficient in Microsoft Office suite and QuickBooks, please feel free to contact the Office.

Daryn Wilbur
Manager
Ponderosa Community Club Inc.

Voting from November 22nd – December 10th, 2022. On the ballot are two issues, the 2023 Budget and Annual Audit. Please Vote!

August 17, 2022

Dear PCC Members,

On the second Saturday of each month the Board meets to provide direction on the ongoing operations of the Ponderosa Community. These meetings are open to all members with an option to join in person or online. This email is to provide a reminder of existing rules as it relates to fires, signs and dogs. This is also to inform the membership of an update from the most recent August 13, 2022, Board Meeting. There were two additions to the Fine schedule as outlined in the Operating Procedures for Littering and Illegal Dumping that could have an impact to some members.

Fires – Burn Ban
Chelan County imposed a complete burn ban on all fires in Chelan County on August 11,
2022. The Ponderosa fine for an illegal fire during a burn ban is $1000.00 for the first
offense. The fine will double for each offense thereafter. Please do not have any fires
during the County imposed burn ban.

Signs – Not Allowed on Trees
Signs placed or mounted on trees is a violation of Chelan County Code 11.92.040. Ponderosa has followed and enforced the County Ordinance regarding signs on trees owned by Ponderosa. The only signs that we allow to be posted on trees are the blue reflective address signs for the Fire Department. Please check with the office prior to attaching any signs to the trees on the front of your property along the road. In many cases, those trees are on Ponderosa property. If there are signs already posted on trees in front of your property, please either remove them or contact the office to verify if they are on your property or not.

Dogs – Must be under voice control or on leash
The office has received several complaints regarding dogs running loose in the greenbelt areas and barking and howling at all hours of the night. Please remember that all dogs must be in control of their owners, not allowed to harass wildlife or otherwise disturb the public. Not only does this violate Ponderosa Greenbelt rules, but also Chelan County Code. Per our Bylaws and Operating Procedures, Code violations will be reported to the County if the issues are not resolved.

(New Rule) Garbage – Bears and Wildlife
Due to the extreme increase in local bear and wildlife activity, mainly due to garbage containers being unsecured, the Board added additional rules to the fine schedule regarding unsecured garbage. The volume of garbage that has been littered on homeowner property and scattered to other owners property is significant. We as a community need to take every action to secure the garbage for the health and safety of our community and for the bears that are among us. The garbage is required to be fully secured until the day of garbage pick-up. If you unsecure on Sunday or any other day this has led to the problem we face today.

 

  • (New Fine) Littering – When littering occurs on a homeowner’s property, which could include wildlife gaining access to your garbage it is considered to be littering regardless of location or how it is secured. If wildlife is able to access the garbage through whatever means it is littering. This includes bird feeders and other sources of food. (RCW 70A.200.060)
  • (New Fine) Illegal Dumping – When illegal dumping occurs on another homeowner’s property or Ponderosa Property, which could include another homeowners or Ponderosa Property garbage can. (RCW 70A.200.060)
  • RCW 77.15.790 states that it is unlawful to negligently attract bears to an area or building. Violation of this RCW could lead to a $1000.00 fine issued by Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife.
  • Waste Management can provide wildlife resistant cans, you may contact them here: https://www.wmnorthwest.com/chelancounty/index.html or call at 877-466-4668.
  • Please do your part. Secure your garbage!

If you have any questions, concerns or need to report an incident please contact the office at 509-763-0320

End of State of Emergency

January 11th, 2022
While we continue to address roads and the impacts of the most recent snowfall, we are officially ending the State of Emergency. A huge thank you to the Ponderosa staff, volunteers and firefighters who have been working around the clock to ensure the safety of our community. For our last communication during this emergency we continue to have highlights below.

Mountain Passes
Snoqualmie Pass and Blewett Pass continue to be open. White Pass remains closed and unsure of when it will open. Stevens Pass may open tomorrow, Wednesday, January 12. Please monitor the Washington State Department of Transportation for openings and closures.

Ponderosa Status
Last night we had freezing rain, which caused additional issues with the roads. They continue to be difficult to navigate and need to be driven with patience and caution. The county plow ended up in the ditch on Camp 12 this morning. Corners are hard to see around and they are mostly a single lane. The Ponderosa dump truck is down and was towed to Wenatchee. Meanwhile, we were able to hire a snow blower to work on Shetland, widened Corral, parts of Saddle, Stirrup and Palamino. With the dump truck down, we cannot pull snow out of the cul-de-sacs yet, but it should be back by the middle of next week. Tomorrow is a maintenance day, we have multiple repairs to do on the rest of the equipment, we hope to continue working on mailboxes and hydrants and we need to get to the clubhouse. We also had to get a couple of water vaults exposed so we could turn off water to a couple of houses that were having issues.

Ending State of Emergency
We are officially ending the STATE OF EMERGENCY. However, as the roads continue to be difficult to navigate and not everything has been able to be cleared, we are asking folks who come over to be patient and well prepared. Some key things to know if you are coming to the Ponderosa or intend to rent it out:

1. DO NOT PARK IN THE ROADWAY – There continues to be several properties that have limited or no access to the driveway. Before you come to the Ponderosa arrange to have your driveway plowed to sufficiently park a vehicle that does not block the roadway.
2. BE PREPARED IF YOU COME TO PONDEROSA – We continue to have our limited resources available to clear roadways and are not at the point to assist individual members in accessing driveways and dwellings. If you do come, be prepared for all conditions and may not be able to access your property at this time. Prior to your arrival you will need to have your driveway plowed to be able to park. As the staff are using all resources, there is extremely limited availability to have your driveway privately plowed at this time.
3. SHORT-TERM RENTALS – If you are a homeowner who is renting out as a short-term rental do not rent your home out until the driveway has been privately plowed and there is access to the home. With several feet drifts of snow and several feet high berms, unless your property has been plowed and cleared to the home your renter will not be able to access. The Ponderosa is not equipped or responsible for the clearing of your driveway or access to your home. Currently, our traditional snowplow drivers that provide private snow clearing have been assisting the clearing of the roads and may not be available to clear your driveway at this time. Offer them the patience and consideration in addition to the Ponderosa staff who have been working around the clock to ensure the safety of our community.
4. LIMITED RESOURCES – Leavenworth and Plain continue to be short on grocery items. There is still NO gas available in the area. If members or renters come over, they absolutely need to be prepared and not rely on local services at this point.

Thank you all for your patience and a huge thank you to the Ponderosa Staff and Volunteers!!!

Open Board Position.
Volunteer Needed.

If you are interested in serving your community as a Ponderosa Trustee and Board Member, please contact the Ponderosa office. Trustee’s responsibilities can be found in the Bylaws section 2.2.

EMERGENCY CONTACTS

Law Enforcement or Medical Emergency

RiverCom 911

Call : 9-1-1

Ponderosa Community Club Emergency

Primary Emergency #

(509) 860-6697

Secondary Emergency #

(425) 750-2289

Comments About Admin & Finance Reports

  1. See board feedback.

Comments About Ponderosa Signs

  1. Too many signs. Just because you put them up doesnt mean people read them. They should be safety only.
  2. One way signs on COLT ROAD need to be clearer or increase number. I see too many people going the wrong way.  Speeding on COLT ROAD continues to be an issue.
  3. Clean and maintain walking shoulders of the roads.

Comments About The Swimming Pool

  1. Pool has been super cold this year a couple of different times and to the point where my kids (or myself) would not or could not go in or stay in. We pay for this amenity and the heat should be fixed or the heaters replaced to resolve. Other families have also had this issue.
  2. Provide a pool monitor to control garbage, reckless behavior etc.
  3. Pool was cold many times this summer and we could not use it. This is one of the reasons we purchased in the Pondo community and it impacted our summer.

Comments About President's Communication

  1. Mary Cox used to send out regular, and informative communication. She would talk about the weather forecasts, upcoming events, and actually make them sound like fun.
  2. I think there should be more push notifications that alert people to login to check on new items or posts. Can’t just login everyday to check on changes. Gets to be a pain.

Comments About the Playground

  1. I believe we could add more activities.

Comments About The Clubhouse

  1. We should add some non summer activities such as pool table, pingpong, indie games etc.
  2. Daily access for members with pool card access. Pool table, reading area etc. Winter time gathering area for coffee, conversation etc…

Comments About The Office

  1. The office should have a presence on the weekends – at the very least on Saturday. So many people need to communicate with the office on weekends and it isn’t open.
  2. Anytime I’ve dealt with the office, it’s not been a pleasant experience. I’m a resident here, I pay my dues and I’m not sure why we get treated like second class citizens. I have replied to a few emails that have come from the office but they’re ignored. I don’t get why.
  3. Improve Response time of email requests.

Comments About Board Communications

  1. I would like to see more updates and communications from the BOD.
  2. When asking for approvals to spend the money that is the budget (like $60k just asked for), I’d appreciate to see report on what options we considered.
    Example: Is the roof replacement based on just one quote or a few, and can we see those quotes? If not, why?
  3. Communication tends to be passive. This has been an ongoing issue for a number of years. The recent updates from the President have been a big improvement. Sometimes you have to reach out, via email updates for example, and not require members to hunt for info on the website.
    Also please continue to have the Board Meetings available on ZOOM. This has been a big help as well.

Comments About Snow Plowing & Sanding

  1. Why do they ALWAYS plow huge berms in front of our driveway, usually AFTER I have cleared it to get out! The other side of the street does NOT have traffic so why can’t they use some common sense and courtesy and plow to the other side?
  2. More sand on both up and down the hill.
  3. There is a way to get it done without it looking like a war zone. Also, you could be more courteous to residents by not putting huge berms in front of their driveways.
  4. The truck skips the corral road to the right of the mailboxes off stetson. We need it sanded regularly and especially when garbage pickup on Monday am. We had several times where we could not get garbage pickup in the winter last year. Also, we saw other cars and a tow truck get stuck but when sand was added it was resolved.
  5. Plow more frequently and lay salt so we don’t have and inch of ice on the roads all winter.
  6. The plowing makes a massive berm in front of all drives. Perhaps having someone come through and push the berm to one side of the drive would be helpful for those not able to knock the berm down prior to it freezing. In addition, we understand bus routes are the key, but services like garbage, have trouble accessing the hills during heavy snow fall. It would be nice to have the hills sanded and cared for after these larger snow falls ahead of garbage pickup.
  7. We had several instances of Corral not being sanded at our end and the garbage truck would not come to our houses despite being in the neighborhood. This led to garbage backup. Additionally, there is a treacherous, icy hill/corner on Corral as it turns onto the Shetland corner that was not sanded regularly. Finally, we saw other cars get stuck on our road due to icy conditions and once sand was spread, the car could travel on the road. We would like Corral/Shetland roads sanded regularly like all of the other roads and also priority on Monday AM for garbage pickup.

Comments About Road Surface & Quality

  1. Roads bread up fast, especially in the Winter time. It takes too long to fill them in and in the mean time, the potholes get so bad, they can cause traffic hazards.
  2. Loose gravel on stirrup could be fixed as it’s been a while.
  3. The amount of potholes, thinness of the chipseal layer exposed by them, was shocking this year. The base looked shabby as well. Whoever did the roadwork initially did a poor job; it should have lasted much longer before it strted falling apart. aaathe exeption would be the hill where there is ground water, although there should have been some mitigation completed on that so it doesnt reoccur.
  4. Pot holes on upper Bridle need to be filled in again.

Comments About Dust Control

  1. Oil and/or sweep the streets more than once a year. There are WAY too many needles on the roads which can be a fire hazard as well as causing too much dust on them.
  2. The street sweeper should rented or hired more than the once per year in the spring. Pin needles and other debris accumulate too and can be slippery, especially when walking. They can also mask holes or dips potentially causing falls.