Mission StatementThe North Peninsula Building Association

represents builders and associates of the building industry. We advocate constant improvement of

building and business practices to provide quality construction in our community.

Vol. 5, Issue 2 www.npba.info 360-452-8160 PO Box 748 • 3430 E. Highway 101, Ste. #1, Port Angeles, WA 98362 February 2012

At a special meeting of the North Pen-insula Building Association, its board of directors voted to suspend activities of the Future Builders program citing a decline in donations, difficult market conditions and lack of student interest as factors for the decision.

The program has been a collaboration between the North Olympic Peninsula Skills Center, Peninsula College and the North Peninsula Building Association. Each year, since its inception in 2000, students have enrolled in the Future Builders class and with the supervision of a construction superintendent hired by the NPBA and a teacher provided by the school district, the class would work from start to finish on a home during the Sep-tember through June school year.

After completion, the home would be sold and a portion of the proceeds would go to fund grants and scholarships to lo-cal students and vocational programs. The Future Builders Charitable Organization has been able to fund more than $180,000 in grants and scholarships during the past 12 years.

In late 2011, the Future Builders pro-gram was under way with its 12th proj-ect house which was being built in Linn

Acres, an 18-lot low-impact subdivision developed by the NPBA in 2007. House No. 12 was permitted with approved plans and progress included the completion of foundation and grading stage.

NPBA President Rick Gross observed that, “For the first time in 12 years, we started the house and didn’t have a high school class available to continue con-struction, so it’s time for us to take a look at the program and assess how we can encourage students to enroll in the class. We also need to evaluate our pro-cesses in order to run the program more efficiently.”

The 2012 Future Builders Project house was to be used as an instructional site by the Peninsula College green construction and carpentry classes and would have featured green building techniques such as advanced framing and other energy ef-ficient options. The current project, with plans, permits, foundation and grading completed, will be placed on the market for sale by the end of the month.

The NPBA would like to thank all of the community for its support of the Future Builders Program for the past 12 years and looks forward to its continuation in the future.

NPBA suspends construction of Future Builder ProjectThe NPBA Building, Remodel-

ing and Energy Expo is coming right up on March 31-April 1 at the Sequim High School campus. If you haven’t registered yet, there is still space available — don’t miss your opportunity to showcase what you do to thousands of quali-fied leads who attend the show! If you would like more information about the show, contact the NPBA office at 452-8160 or e-mail expo@npba.info. Sponsored by: PUD, Angeles Millwork,

First Federal, Hartnagels & Sequim Gazette

Expo 2012 is just

around the corner!

Celebrating 15 years!

The community joins in to help plant the rain gardens at Linn Acres, the Future Builders Low-Impact Development.

House #9

House #10

House #11

Vol. 5, Issue 2 February 2012

Donna L. Knifsend

DearDonna

Calendar of events:

Febr

uary

Mar

ch

Dear Donna,Help. I own a landscape company that pro-

vides very good service to our customers. I have a situation with a customer who recently has gotten married. Her husband is upset be-cause a tree recently died through no fault or action of our company. The husband feels that our company did something wrong, causing damage to the tree. The customer (wife) loves our company and has been an ongoing cus-tomer for two years, but she told me she must support her husband. He has told her to fire us. Any suggestions?

Answer: You did not provide information as to the

cause of “death” to the tree. Notwithstanding the reason, perception is everything in conflict management. You need to provide the wife with the opportunity to educate her husband on why they should “retain your company” while not “offending” her husband. More im-portantly, you need to provide an opportunity for the husband to understand and connect with your company. The wife has an ongoing “relationship” with your company whereas the new husband is not on the same playing field. Request a meeting with both custom-ers (yes, the husband is now your customer) at a time convenient to them. Keep in mind that dispute resolution and conflict manage-ment generally turns on not what you say, but HOW you say it.

Educate (delicately) your customers on the causes of tree rot, shock or whatever the con-dition of the tree was resulting in damage/death. Offer to replace the tree with some-thing acceptable to all parties. Offer to pur-

chase the replacement item (tree/bush, etc.) at your cost rather than retail so that your customer gets a benefit yet your company is not out of pocket. Since this is an ongoing customer, offer to plant the tree at the proper time and while your crew is scheduled to be on the property so there is very little … if any … additional cost to your company.

You need to listen to what is not being said during your meeting. Is the husband really upset about the tree or is there another un-derlying reason for his disapproval of your company (i.e. you show up at 9 a.m. on Sat-urdays when he has just gotten off work and is trying to sleep; an employee offended him; he wants the opportunity to maintain the yard, etc.).

Even though you believe that your com-pany did nothing wrong, you are building relationships in a tough economy. Word of mouth will travel when the husband feels that you are fair. If you find out that your company did caused damage to the tree, then step up to the plate. Admit your error, apolo-gize and make it right.

Note: You may download the free 71-page pdf file from Lawsuit-Prevention.com that provides tips, information and strategy on dispute resolution. It is called "Using ADR as an affirmative business strategy." It is my opinion that society has forgotten how to accept accountability and responsibility. Ef-fective dispute resolution means putting ac-countability and responsibility back into the equation by educating the disputants on their rights and obligations so that they can ex-plore options once they realize that percep-tions are not always what they seem.

Additionally, if you have a serious dispute that may head into the court if not resolved, consider using a neutral third party (media-tor/facilitator) to assist in resolving the con-flict. There are many free or low-cost media-tion services in our area.

Disclaimer: The advice given herein is strictly for informational purposes only and does not reflect advice to the readers. If you have a legal issue, see an attorney for full evaluation and advice.

Feb. 14 Your Website & Your Marketing Plan Seminar 1-5 p.m., Lincoln Center, Port AngelesFeb. 17 Super Sweet Spike Rewards 4 p.m.Feb. 23 Social Media Awareness & Protections Seminar 1-5 p.m., Lincoln Center, Port AngelesFeb. 27-29 BIAW Winter Board of Directors Meeting

March 3 3rd Annual NPBA Bowling Tournament 6 p.m.March 29 General Membership Meeting 6 p.m.March 31 15th Annual Building, Remodeling and Energy Expo-April 1

Vol. 5, Issue 2 February 2012

Single Family Residential Building Permit Activity January – December 2011

NPBA would like to thank the following companies

for their continued support:Green Crow PropertiesJ. Grice Construction

KONP RadioLand Title & EscrowLegacy Homes, Inc.

McCrorie Carpet OneModern Drywall

Olympic Garage DoorOlympic Peninsula Title Company

Peninsula Heat CompanyPeninsula Pest Control

RJ ServicesSequim-Dungeness Valley

Chamber of CommerceS-N-S Roofing

Thomas Building CenterWashington Federal

NPBA welcomes the following

new member:

DeWald’s Healthy Carpet Cleaning

David DeWald802 N. Kendall Road, Sequim, WA 98382Phone: 360-460-2700

On Feb. 2, Department of Ecology staff gave a presentation to members of the NPBA regarding the Dungeness Wa-ter Management Rule. The presentation provided some answers to our members’ questions but many still remain. The NPBA will be providing feedback on the preliminary draft rule by Feb. 17. If you would like to provide feedback, please do so prior to the Feb. 17 deadline — once the rule has been published (which is scheduled for March), no substantial changes can be made.

Several NPBA members also attended

Dungeness Water Management Rule presented at NPBA General

Membership Meeting

NPBA members listen intently during a presentation on the Dungeness Water Management Rule.

a Clallam County Board of Commissioners meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 7, where the com-missioners solicited comment and input to help facilitate county government’s com-ments on the draft rule prior to the Feb. 17 deadline. Clallam County citizens packed the commissioners’ chambers and the major-ity echoed NPBA concerns that there are too many unanswered questions to proceed with the publication of the rule in March. NPBA would like to encourage its members to get informed about this important issue and will be monitoring developments and keeping you informed as the process unfolds.

Single Family Residential Building Permit Activity Annually 2000-2011

Vol. 5, Issue 2 February 2012

2012 OffiCerS and BOard Of direCtOrSPresident: Rick Gross, Estes Builders LLC1st Vice President: Garret DelaBarre DelaBarre Construction2nd Vice President: Bill Feeley, Feeley Construction Inc.Treasurer: Julie Myers, First FederalSecretary: Donna Knifsend Lawsuit Prevention & MgmtImmediate Past President: Tracy Gudgel Zenovic & AssociatesState Directors: Annie O’Rourke, Drafting Solutions Scott Schwagler, J & J Construction Garret DelaBarre, DelaBarre Construction Mark SmithBuilder Directors: Alex Anderson, Alex Anderson Concrete Larry Hanna, L.P. Hanna Construction Bill Feeley, Feeley Construction Inc. Greg McCarry, Westerra HomesAssociate Directors: Kelly Raymond, Sound Community Bank Dan Donovan, Allform Welding Inc. Roger Wheeler, RJ ServicesLife Director: Bill Roberds, Excel Utility Construction Inc.Executive Officer: FaLeana WechFuture Builders Construction Superintendent: Troy Belbin

CODE CORNERClallam and Jefferson County, Port Angeles,

Port Townsend, Sequim, Juan de Fuca Chapter of ICC

Did you know that beginning April 1 carbon monoxide alarms are required in single-family residences?

For new construction, an approved car-bon monoxide alarm shall be installed outside of each separate sleeping area in the immediate vicinity of the bedrooms in dwelling units and on each level of the dwelling.

Existing dwellings shall be equipped with carbon monoxide alarms when alterations, repairs or additions requiring a permit oc-cur or when one or more sleeping rooms are added or created.

Exceptions: 1. Work involving the exterior surfaces

of dwellings, such as the replacement of roofing or siding, or the addition or re-placement of windows or doors, or the ad-dition of a porch or deck, or electrical per-mits, are exempt from the requirements of this section.

2. Installation, alteration or repairs of noncombustion plumbing or mechanical systems are exempt from the requirements of this section.

In 2007, the NPBA in partnership with the City of Port Angeles and Washington Department of Ecology developed an 18-lot subdivision on the east side of Port Angeles named Linn Acres. The Future Builders class has built five homes in this subdivision. Contact the NPBA office for information at 452-8160 or e-mail faleana@npba.info.

For Sale: Lot and foundation in Linn Acres, a Low-Impact

Development