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 renters, e.g. Airbnb, etc. 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 9:00am-9:00pm, first hour and last hour of the day are reserved for Adult Swim. 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

Pondo Greenbelt

Trail Work Party – Oct 23^rd 9am – Noon

October 11, 2021 No Comments

The Ponderosa Trails Committee is having a Trail Work Party is on Saturday October 23rd from 9:00am-12:00pm. something for everyone 14 and over. Dress warm and bring gloves! We supply all necessary tools and plan to work in groups. Volunteers will meet at the clubhouse parking lot 10 minutes prior. RSVP to the office and bradyo@outlook.com.

Online Voting

Election August 24th to September 11th

September 3, 2021 No Comments

Perform needed repairs and updates to the Caretaker House and Club Office.

Board of Trustees

President’s Letter September 2nd 2021

September 2, 2021 No Comments

Ponderosa,

What a great summer it has been, and Labor Day is now here!
Here is some information and reminders.

Local Weather

Plain weather info

Pondo Webcam Views: 40,138

Updates every 5 minutes. Click image for 4K

Not updating? Possible power outage.

Fire Restrictions

Burning Restriction June 1^st — Oct 1^st

RiverCom 911 – In Case of Emergency Call 9-1-1

© 2022 Ponderosa Community Club, Inc. (Not affiliated with Nextdoor.com)

© 2022 Ponderosa Community Club, Inc.
(Not affiliated with Nextdoor.com)

Letter From The President

Jahuary 17^th2022

Hello Ponderosa!

I want to say thank you to all of the volunteers that helped with clearing the roads, mailbox kiosks, fire hydrants and checking on neighbors. Your assistance was a prime example of neighbor helping neighbor at its finest. Thank you

A couple of quick reminders:

Please do not blow, shovel, push, or plow snow into the roads.
Please do not park in the roads. If you are a short-term rental owner, please be sure to let your tenants know that they cannot park in the roads.
Please watch your speed.
The speed limit is 15mph.
With the high snow berms, visibility is limited, please be extra cautious pulling out of your driveway and around corners.

Winter is here with low temperatures and a lot of snow! We have had many members dealing with frozen pipes, ice on roads and other issues. I wanted to take a few minutes to provide some helpful information.

To prevent frozen pipes:

There are number of steps you can take when learning how to keep pipes from freezing in the first place.

Insulate pipes located in the attic and crawl space using pipe insulation, even if the climate where you live does not often have hard freeze conditions. You can also wrap pipes in heat tape or heat cables with a thermostat control. The best pipe insulation for your situation will depend on your home. Always install according to the manufacturer’s directions.
Seal or caulk any cracks that might let in cold air, especially places where pipes run from inside to outside the home, such as dryer vents or water pipes.
Preventing frozen pipes should be done outdoors as well. As you winterize your home, disconnect your garden hoses.
For any outdoor faucets with cut-off valves, be sure they are closed and faucets are drained. You can also protect them by using faucet covers throughout the winter months.
Be sure to alert a trusted neighbor if you’ll be away more than a few days, and ask them to check periodically to make sure that the measures you have taken in preventing frozen pipes worked and that nothing has ruptured.

If you discover frozen pipes:

Turn on the faucet. If there is only a drip or trickle of water, you may have a frozen pipe.
Check along the water supply lines, taking note of very cold spots. Inspect carefully to see if you notice any line breaks.
If you find any broken pipes, turn off the main water supply to the house. Then, immediately call a professional plumber for assistance.

To thaw frozen pipes

Thawing frozen pipes needs to be done quickly and safely. Here are a few ideas for thawing exposed and enclosed pipes.

First, open up the faucet for the affected pipe. The flowing water will help the ice melt even faster.

For exposed pipes, especially, surrounding the pipe with a heat source will melt the ice inside. This can be done in several ways:

Wrap the pipe in a heating pad and turn the temperature dial up to high.
Aim a hair dryer on high at the pipe. Keep the air moving back and forth and around the pipe in 12 to 16-inch sections at a time.
Encircle the pipe in heated, dampened towels. Change these wraps frequently as they lose heat to the pipe.
Position a space heater to circulate warm air around a section of the pipe. Move the heat source to different sections as needed and continue until the pipes are thawed and the water pressure returns to normal.

For enclosed pipes, either in a wall or an area that is hard to reach, try these tips:

Turn up the heat in your home. The higher temperatures could help thaw out any pipes located inside walls.
If needed, cut out a section of the wall to access the pipe. Then use any of the above methods for exposed pipes.

Tip: Never use extreme heat or open flames, such as a heat gun or blow torch, to thaw a pipe. This presents a fire hazard and can also cause serious damage to the pipe.

In addition: We plow to keep the roads open for emergency vehicles. If you are able, please remove snow from around your nearest fire hydrant. This will help keep these accessible for emergencies.

Parking on roads is not allowed. Emergency response, school buses, and our plow team must be able to navigate our roads. At this time of year, streets are not wide enough to allow for a car to be parked, and a car to pass safely let alone a plow or emergency vehicle. Please watch your speed, we have had several vehicles speeding, creating extremely dangerous conditions for our employees working on the roads and the members walking the roads. Speeding is not allowed at any time in the Ponderosa but even more reckless under our current conditions.

We live and vacation in the mountains. It is beautiful here in all seasons. Please be prepared for cold temperatures, snow, power outages, etc. Good tires, chains, emergency supplies and general preparedness will help you through our winters. For those that live here full time, it is a good idea to check on our neighbors.

As a reminder, we do not have a board meeting in January, but we will resume monthly board meetings beginning February 12, 2022. As always, please reach out to our office or me with any questions or concerns.

Happy New Year,

Polly Hilmo

President, Ponderosa Board of Trustees

End of State of Emergency

PROCLAMATION OF CIVIL EMERGENCY THE PONDEROSA COMMUNITY CLUB . PDF

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!!!