Northwest Landing events survey helps us plan

Thank you for taking part in our member survey about Northwest Landing events. About 200 residents gave us some great ideas for moving forward with 2024 events. More than 63 percent said they attended a Northwest Landing event in 2023 and most said they would like to see the same events offered in 2024. These events included funds the ROA contributed toward city events – $40,000 for Independence Day activities and fireworks, $8,000 for the barbecue competition. More than half said they would prefer to return to in-person bingo events and 70 percent said they had no interest in an online cooking club or demonstration. There was a lot of interest (56 percent) in day trips outside of DuPont such as to Leavenworth, Sequim Lavender Festival or Skagit Tulip Festival. There was also a lot of interest in free classes, especially gardening (40 percent) and lawn care (41 percent). More than half of respondents said they would like the ROA to set two full weekends for the community-wide yard sales, in early summer and early fall. Results of the survey can be downloaded here.

Dear ROA,

What gives? I just got 5 separate violation notices in the mail – and I’m renting my house. Some are really petty (bicycles stored next to the house)!

– Unhappy in Northwest Landing

 Dear Unhappy,

First of all, nobody likes to be told what to do, especially when we think we’ve got it together. But you live in a community with a homeowner’s association that has rules designed to keep Northwest Landing a beautiful place to live, work, and play. So, about the violation notices: we send notices to the property owner, a copy to the property address and, sometimes, to the rental agency. Why? The property owner, by law, must receive the notices and is responsible for communicating with tenants. Oftentimes, the owner may have hired a rental agency to act on their behalf or they expect their tenant to take care of problems. You received five separate violations, rather than including them in one letter. The reason for that, is there is a timeline for each violation. The property owner may take care of one or two, but not the others. Each violation is tracked separately. Also, about the bicycles stored outside your home. There have been many bikes and other items stolen from areas that a would-be thief can easily see them. It’s best to store them in a fenced yard or in your garage. If you would like more information, email and someone will help you.

Got a question for ROA? Send it to  with ASK ROA in the subject line.

Who does what at Northwest Landing?

For the next several months, the bulletin will highlight different aspects of Northwest Landing management: staff duties, board responsibilities, committee member responsibilities. This month, our hard-working staff will be highlighted.

< Pictured here from left are Emily Griffith, ROA assistant director and COA director; Denise Ford, office manager; Monica Belton, compliance officer; and Shirley Ely, director.

Monica is seated in the ROA’s truck, a 2011 Nissan Frontier.  She uses an iPad to photograph properties that need to be contacted. The photo is automatically uploaded to ROA records on the internal website that can only be accessed by owners. Monica can be reached at .

Northwest Landing actually has two associations: Residential Owners Association (ROA) and Commercial Owners Association (COA). Owners of business properties, including rental apartments, are members of the COA. Emily Griffith is the staff contact for the COA which, like the ROA, has an elected board of directors that meets quarterly. The COA and ROA boards also meet together to discuss and make decisions about common issues such as expenses that are shared between the two associations. Emily is also the staff contact for and is the chair of the Property Improvement Committee (PIC). Pretty much anything you want to do with your property – including painting, fences, major changes in landscaping, adding central air conditioning – requires a review by the PIC. Some changes also require a city permit, such as putting in a patio cover or adding a shed. Emily can be reached at .

If you call 253-964-1289 or email , you will reach Denise Ford. Denise has worked for Northwest Landing for more than 17 years. She “retired” and then came back to work part time. She’s now working 32 hours a week. Denise will be your first point of contact. She will forward your call or email to another staff member best able to handle your request if need be.

Shirley Ely is Northwest Landing’s director. She joined the team in 2021 following a career in association management for more than two decades. Shirley has a finger on the pulse of the associations. She’s the contact for all contractors, such as landscaping companies, fence repairs, alley maintenance, financial review, drafting of budgets and much more. She also keeps the board of directors informed and is the conduit for communication between our attorney’s office, our insurance agent, our reserve analyst, our accountant and the board. If a situation isn’t one that Denise or Monica or Emily can resolve, or if they are asked to do so they will forward a call or email to Shirley to assist you. You can reach Shirley at .

Loving the new mailboxes

Last year, the NW Landing ROA Board voted to fund replacement of all plastic mailbox clusters. Most, but not all mailbox clusters within Northwest Landing are plastic and several had been burglarized. So far, all the plastic mailbox clusters have been replaced in Palisade Village and Edmond Village. Next up is Yehle Park Village (McNeil, west of Center Drive).

Northwest Landing resident April Allen shared this photo of a T-Rex getting mail from one of the new mailbox clusters. She found out that this particular T-Rex took part in the T-Rex World Championship Races at Emerald Downs. No word on whether our neighbor won or not….