FAQs

Why was this location chosen?

Unlike other ski lakes built in remote rural areas, Willow Lakes provides both calm serenity and urban convenience. Located just over 1 mile from an urban hub means schools, grocers, shopping, restaurants, and entertainment are all nearby. Once you turn onto the access road, you are seemingly teleported by topography, rivers, and tree canopy into an isolated retreat tucked away in the Rocky Mountains.

What is the design concept for the community?

Willow Lakes is designed for a broad demographic and primarily targets an active outdoors lifestyle. Configured as an isolated loop to ensure tranquility, the designers offered a wide range of lot sizes to accommodate owners at all stages of life. Smaller and larger lots are intermingled, and owners are welcome to combine adjacent lots. Some lots will be beautifully landscaped but may remain indefinitely free of any dwelling. This provides broader selection while simultaneously creating a more spacious and open feel. Rentable units and common facilities are grouped along the northwest access road and around the entrance to ensure quiet serenity and lighter traffic for owner-occupied homes.

What is the preferred architectural aesthetic?

Located in a small mountain valley and bordered by ~2.5 miles of river, mature tree canopy, and majestic mountain views, Willow Lakes offers the feel of mountain retreat. Design guidelines encourage a mountain lake house style. Owners should expect earthy tones with natural materials; stone, exposed hewn timbers, aged metals, and expansive windows. Please refer to the Design Guidelines.

What amenities are anticipated upon project completion?

In addition to boating, the project design connects many miles of riverside biking/walking trails, and other river sports including fishing, kayaking, tubing, and SUP. There is a dedicated ~2-mile “river float” within the Willow Lakes boundary. Each lake includes a soft sand beach along the perimeter for jogging/walking and each also includes a buoyed swim/paddle area. Additionally, there is a common beach area on the Wake Lake that aims to provide heated swimming pools, jacuzzis, splashpad, BBQ decks, natural gas fire pits, beach volleyball, pickleball/tennis, clubhouse/event center, fitness center & spa, and more under the discretion of the HOA Board and members. The west turn island on the Slalom Lake will include a jacuzzi, BBQ, and viewing dock by bridge access. The extent and expansion of amenities will be dictated by the success of the project during construction as well as ongoing profit generation.

What are the dimensions of the lakes?

The Wake Lake is 25 acres in surface area; ~2300 ft long and ~800ft wide at the widest point. It is ~20ft deep to allow for optimal wake shape. The Slalom Lake is 11 acres in surface area; ~1950ft long and ~200ft wide along the boat path, with a depth of 8ft. The turn islands dissipate the wake and increase skier setup time. They are offset to allow the boat and skier to enter straight into the buoy course.

Are the boats noisy?

Willow Lakes is designed to promote a calm and enjoyable environment. The boats provided by the Boat Club are new model inboards with substantial sound deadening material to suppress the sound the of the engine. They are generally measured at less than 55 decibels at the closest operable distance to the shore. That is equivalent volume to an average adult conversation. The Boat Club also has strict limits on the volume and content of music allowed during boat use. These can be found within the CCRs and were drafted to prevent the imposing and offensive amplified boom speakers with explicit content sometimes encountered on public waterways.

Is there a deadline for starting home construction?

There are no requirements regarding when a home must be started. A lot may remain free of any dwelling indefinitely. However, lots not starting home construction must be landscaped promptly. The timelines for completion of landscaping are explained in the CCRs.

Are camp-trailers, RVs, tents, or mobile homes allowed?

Tents, mobile homes, tiny homes, and other such temporary or trailered shelters are not allowed. The use of RVs and camp-trailers is discouraged and requires a permit from the HOA Board at its sole discretion within the following guidelines at a minimum. RVs and camp-trailers must be no more than 10 years old and in excellent working and aesthetic condition. They may be allowed on a Lot for up to forty-eight (48) hours and then must be removed for a minimum of 19 days. The existence of any such structures for greater than 20 days in total per year is not allowed. Users must carefully maintain a clean and uncluttered site that does not resemble an RV park or campground. The Board’s decision will be based on factors such as the quality of the vehicle and the behavior of those using it. There is no guarantee that the permit will be granted, and it may be revoked at any time.

Can I rent my home or lot on AirBnB or VRBO?

Willow Lakes is intended for owner-occupancy. There are a small number of lots in Phase 3 (specified in the CCRs) which allow for short-term rental. These are grouped into a location near the entrance to the community to minimize impact on owner occupants. Owners of any short-term rental must agree to professional property management to ensure consistent operation and monitor for disturbances.

Is my lot’s beach private?

Each lakefront lot includes a 10’ Beach Easement along the shoreline. The back property line coincides with the static water line of the lake and the easement extends into the lot from there. This area is property of the lot owner who is free to enjoy its use with few restrictions as follows (more completely described in the CCRs). Owners are not allowed to obstruct or alter the nature of the easement area. It must remain smoothed sand at the design grade, free from debris, structures (permanent or temporary), and equipment & toys not currently in use.

Beyond serving as the wash area for boat wake dissipation, this area serves multiple design purposes within the overall project concept. First, it is engineered to retain excess stormwater which is designed to rise up into the beach easement during very heavy storms. Secondly, this area serves as safety egress for fallen or injured skiers and winter recreation. Thirdly, as the community is designed to promote an active lifestyle, it is intended for all residents to be able to walk/jog along the beach or get a more ideal vantage point for skier observation. Residents should do their best to respect/protect the privacy of lakefront lot owners. To aid in this, there are a few strict rules. Loitering (including skier observation) within the Beach Easement of a single lot in any 24-hour period is restricted to 30 minutes while observing a skier, and 5 minutes otherwise without the permission of the lot owner. Beach Easement cannot be used to gain physical or visual access to the adjoining property. As a common courtesy, those loitering within or passing through the Easement area are requested to keep their direction and focus along the beach or outward to the lake rather than inward toward the lots, dwellings, and occupants.

Will the water level fluctuate?

The static water level generally will not fluctuate more than a few inches. During excessively heavy rains, the Wake Lake is designed to retain up to 12” of extra depth before reaching a large spillway. This will accommodate the “100-year storm” and any excess water exits through the spillway and into the river.

Can my property flood?

The lakes are designed with spillways to prevent them from overfilling. Additionally, a buffer zone was designed into the project along the Logan River to accommodate any excess spring runoff. More importantly, all lots throughout the community are raised in elevation between 4ft and 13ft above native grade, depending on location. This ensures that all grades within lot boundaries are well above even the “500-year” flood level for the Logan River.

Are these lakes designed for skiing, wake sports, or tubing?

Willow Lakes is a unique concept as compared to other ski lake communities in the West. Others have built lakes with nearly the minimum dimensions to be ski boat operable and with a heavy skew toward slalom waterskiing. Conversely, Willow Lakes recognizes that the family boating experience is generally improved on larger/deeper lakes and the largest demographic prefers wake surfing, wakeboarding, and tubing. The Wake Lake offers the scale and depth necessary for the optimal big wake experience while the Slalom Lake caters to the avid slalom skiers and beginners who don’t appreciate a big wave.

Are Jetskis allowed on the lakes?

Currently jetskis and other personal motorized watercraft are not allowed. This is both a safety and noise consideration.

What is the boating season in Logan?

There’s no denying that Memorial Day to Labor Day is the prime season and it’s not unusual in Logan to see a 90-day period of consistent dry clear sunny days without noticeable rain. The boating season typically starts in April and runs through September. The “shoulder” season includes March and October. Because of the lake design and depth, the surface temperature of the water is generally warmer than the public waterways and Logan often has warm fronts and sunny weather scattered throughout the shoulder periods.

How does the boating work?

Willow Lakes promotes a shared-use vision providing top quality equipment with less hassle and expense. The HOA includes a Boat Club that keeps 3-4 Malibu boats in rotation (less than a few years old) with trained drivers provided. A country club with a watersports focus. Residents simply access the scheduling app and reserve their time. The driver will pick-up/drop-off at the common dock or at their backyard beach. A reasonable use fee applies for each use (in 13-minute intervals) to cover the cost of fuel, maintenance, driver, and Boat Club operation. An extra boat may also be made available for off-site use by owners at a reasonable fee.

How does the Boat Club system compare in cost to private boat ownership?

Comparing apples-to-apples… Suppose ownership of a recent model year Malibu Wakesetter with a cost of $150,000+. The owner must have at least a ¾-ton pickup with a trailer at a cost of ~$60,000. Then, there is the cost of insurance for both vehicles. Further, the fuel requirements for travelling to the public waterway and fuel consumption of the boat itself. And we can’t forget maintenance and storage. Let’s assume an average family of four, boating twice per month Apr-Sep. The all-in cost of boating in this situation is nearly $30,000/year. An equivalent amount of boating for an owner at Willow Lakes would likely cost $4,000 to $5,000.

What are the other benefits of the Club model?

You only pay for what you actually use when you use it. If you are particularly busy and cannot fit in much boating, you won’t have a private boat sitting in storage costing you money every day. More importantly, recreational waterfront property has historically been the highest appreciating category in the Mountain West. So rather than costing you money on a depreciating asset, your ownership at Willow Lakes is likely to increase your net worth.

Does the general public have access to the boats and amenities?

Owner use is prioritized. Depending on boat use and availability, the HOA Board may offer additional Boat Club membership and/or day-passes to non-owner patrons provided that strict conditions are met to ensure that owners are afforded substantial availability. Owners also pay a markedly lower use rate than non-owners. This benefits owners by providing a profit center to help maintain and expand amenities while keeping HOA fee assessments low.

How much boat availability do you anticipate?

Extensive surveying of similar lake communities suggests that Willow Lakes Boat Club would generally use less than 20% of available operating time each season, if restricted only to owners. We anticipate that the most difficult boat reservations will be holiday weekends like Independence Day and Labor Day. Otherwise, we expect that residents will easily get ample boat time. The concept of Willow Lakes is to make boating so convenient that you don’t need to cram it in on busy holidays. Keep in mind, with professional drivers and scheduled time, the Boat Club can accommodate up to 200 rider rotations (13 minutes each) in a single summer day. That’s equivalent to ~13 boats on a public waterway. And at Willow Lakes, time isn’t wasted searching for smooth water.

How is boat use regulated so I get my fair share?

Through market dynamics. Each owner is allotted a generous but limited number of reservations to be scheduled more than 60 days in advance, while still paying the base rate. As they exceed that allotment, the use fee per 13-min rotation will increase. If they continue to fill up the schedule even further, the use fee will continue to climb because they are disadvantaging other owners and must pay for this privilege. It simply won’t make economic sense for a single owner to try to exploit the system by pre-scheduling large amounts of the best times far in advance.

Can I schedule large blocks of time?

Yes, and the same dynamic described above applies. If you wish to block out large swaths of boat time, expect to pay a higher rate for the privilege. You will see the rate increasing on the app as you schedule larger amounts of sequential rotations. Scheduling an entire 60-minute block a few months in advance likely won’t be cost prohibitive. However, scheduling an entire 8-hour block that is 3 months in the future will be much more expensive per rotation. Alternatively, if you wait to schedule closer to the date of use, you will be allowed far more sequential rotations at the base rate.

Can I prevent the boat use fee from escalating on me?

Yes! Simply be patient and wait to schedule somewhat closer to the date of use. Your advance allotment should be used to schedule your most important times well in advance. Your allotment of rotations at the base rate increases once you are within 30 days of the date of use, then again at 20 days, and again at 10 days. There is essentially no restriction on scheduling in the current week as everyone is deemed to have had a fair opportunity to schedule time by then. Each owner should generally have a large enough allotment to enjoy a full season of boating while remaining at the base rate.

Will there be a “stand-by” list for those willing to jump into a last minute opening?

Yes, and those rotations will enjoy the base rate regardless of how many are used.

Do you know what the rate per rotation will be?

This is dependent on fuel, labor, and boat prices over time. You can be confident that the total cost per year for an average family will be much lower at Willow Lakes than a comparable experience with private boat ownership and public waterways. It will also be much more cost effective than boat rental for both the frequent and occasional user alike. But at Willow Lakes you get top-tier boats, perfect water, and no hassle.

Can I drive myself?

The insurance policy will allow for up to 20 residents to get trained, certified, and insured for self-operation. Everyone desiring this privilege will be required to be approved by the HOA Board and pay for their portion of the increased insurance premium. Certified drivers will be supervised by the Boat Club and are encouraged to help out during the shoulder seasons when the Boat Club isn’t fully staffed. Abusing this privilege by driving recklessly or not respecting rotation times will result in revocation.

Will there be “paddle time” without power boats on the lakes?

One benefit of scheduled boat use is the ability to black out paddle time without power boats on the water. There will be 2-3 hours each day dedicated for this type of use. The times will be staggered between the two lakes. A schedule of these times can be found on the App. There will also be signal lights and tones indicating start and stop times. Alternatively, Owners can use the buoyed swim/paddle areas at any time as well as rafting the Logan River.

Can I have a private dock?

Private docks are not currently allowed.

What should I expect for HOA fees?

Willow Lakes has several profit centers that serve to generate revenue. This is expected to dramatically reduce the HOA fee assessments. It is anticipated that HOA fees will begin around $125/month and then reduce as the development is completed and there is greater insight into external revenue generation. Indeed, it is possible for the Boat Club and other amenities to generate enough revenue to eliminate the HOA assessment in a given year.

What winter activities will be available?

We anticipate sufficient ice thickness during the mid-winter months to enjoy ice skating and hockey. Sections of the lakes will be smoothed to accommodate these activities. With sufficient ice thickness (>5”) there may also be allowable times for towing tubers with snowmobiles. Owners and their guests enjoy these activities at their own risk.