The Mason County Board of County Commissioners voted July 22 to send the proposed formation of Island Lake Management District No. 1 to a weighted vote of the affected property owners.

The measure — if approved by a simple majority of weighted ballots — would authorize a 15-year special-assessment district to fund lake improvement and maintenance activities to control aquatic invasive plants, monitor lake health and maintain a neighborhood advisory committee.

Jennifer Byerly, support services, told the board the hearing was held “pursuant to RCW 36.61 0.07” and that signed petitions had been returned by “approximately 46% of property owners in favor of creating the LMD.” She said the proposed district would exist for 15 years and that the county has reviewed the plan and “finds that the formation of the district is in the public interest.”

Under the financing plan presented, the first-year assessment was estimated at $50,000; subsequent annual assessments were estimated at $15,000 with a 5% annual inflation factor beginning in year three unless the Island Lake Advisory Committee elects otherwise. Byerly gave a total projected funding amount of approximately $343,980 over the life of the district and said the county’s internal allocation (administrative) fee averages $800 for each LMD in 2026.

Byerly explained the proposed assessment formula would be an estimated 62¢ per $1,000 of assessed value in 2026 — roughly $620 on a $1,000,000 property — and an estimated 18¢ per $1,000 in 2027 (about $180 on a $1,000,000 property), adjusted annually with inflation. She said the assessments would be levied as special assessments, not bonds, and that the proposed district would include properties fronting Island Lake — 102 property owners covering 119 parcels, as presented.

Property owners and residents who spoke at the hearing largely supported the district’s formation but emphasized different priorities. Jeff Conklin, a current member of the previous Island Lake management group, said the district’s early budget is meant to “bring in people to help us figure it out” and to establish a monitoring and stewardship program beyond annual weed-spraying. “Lakes die. In their natural evolutions, lakes die. We don't want this one to die and we wanna maintain its integrity,” Conklin said.

Other residents asked about how state-owned parcels and the public boat launch would be treated. Beau Crabtree asked whether the state-owned fishing access would be assessed; Byerly replied, “Yes. They would.” When Crabtree raised that the state property’s assessed value on county websites shows no assessed value, county staff said they would base the LMD assessment for exempt parcels on real market value for the purpose of the LMD and coordinate with the auditor’s office to verify signatures on ballots for property owners registered outside Mason County.

Speakers also described past treatment programs and differing perspectives on whether past chemical treatments had been effective. Todd Fague and Steven Whitehouse, Island Lake residents, said previous treatments were Department of Ecology–approved and effective in reducing milfoil but require ongoing monitoring and repeat treatments. Bill Crabtree, another resident, urged broader state or county involvement to address boat-launch practices he said introduce invasive organisms.

Byerly described the next steps and timeline: if the board’s resolution is adopted, ballots would be mailed on Monday, July 28, and must be received at the Board of County Commissioners’ office by 5 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 25, 2025. Ballots will be weighted so that a property owner has one vote for each dollar of the estimated special assessment proposed to be imposed on that property, and the county auditor’s elections office will verify signatures. She said ballots determined valid will be tabulated and “a simple majority of the votes cast shall determine whether the proposed LMD shall be approved or rejected as per RCW 36.61 0.09.”

During deliberations the chair emphasized that the commission’s role at this meeting was procedural: to determine whether the petition and proposal met the legal requirements to be submitted to a vote. The board then moved, seconded and passed the resolution to submit the Island Lake Management District No. 1 formation to a property-owner vote.

If approved by the weighted vote, the district would fund monitoring, aquatic-plant control, shoreline best practices and a neighborhood advisory committee; specific projects and their costs would be determined by the advisory committee and contractors selected under applicable county procurement rules. The board closed the hearing after the vote and scheduled no additional county action beyond the ballot process.