Decisions
A running log of decisions and agreements. Any team member can add via the Contribute form (once Phase II ships).
2026-09-07 — Current status and planning work
Dave confirms that final septic inspection and drainfield backfill have not occurred, and upper-site water delivery still needs a specific plan. Eli’s July 27 photo record has been recovered. The water page separates the immediate fill from the permanent network and identifies required measurements.
The new redwood survey and replacement workflow are proposals for use after the planting boundary and sample coordinates are finalized. No planting result, equipment purchase or contractor schedule is recorded as approved.
Tank-side structural support/backfill must be reconciled with county inspection visibility before water is added; the earlier shorthand below is not a blanket instruction to leave the tank unsupported until after filling.
— Dave’s status correction; Codex planning update
2026-07-27 — Water system moves forward as a two-zone concept
The concept proposed for review keeps the existing lower tank as the lower pressure-zone buffer and adds upper storage near the lookout. The active 2002 well supplies the lower tank. Restoring the inactive 1995 well and adding lead/backup automation remain future options, not selected installation scope. The photographed Sta-Rite HP7D-02 is carried forward as the candidate transfer pump to the upper tank. Because the lookout is above the proposed upper tank, a separate service pump and pressure tank will provide tower pressure. Final equipment roles and pipe sizes remain subject to field measurements and professional review.
Exact aerial maps of the wells, tanks, controls, and pipe routes remain private; the public Water System page uses an abstract elevation diagram.
— DS/Codex working basis
2026-07-27 — Septic closeout order
With the drainfield installed by Eli and Russell Robertson, the order is: photographs and as-built record before cover; water to the upper site; fill the septic tank; submit/call for inspection; and backfill only after Polk County authorizes it.
— DS
2025-12-03 — Gate damage handled by barter, not repair (informal)
During the 2025 logging operation, a truck driver named Alex (hired by the Robertson brothers’ Treeline Logging crew) damaged Dave’s front entrance gate. Alex went unresponsive when asked to fix it. Dave proposed an exchange: he and Eli would handle the gate fabrication themselves, and Cody and Russell would instead advise on the long-stalled septic install. Informal handshake, no written agreement.
— DS
2026-05-26 — Project gets its own coordination home
Dave bought kraemertower.org and stood up a website Dave, Barb, Eli, Cody, and Russell can all contribute to.
— DS
2026-05-26 — Eli formally partners on the tower build
Eli Kraemer is now responsible for construction planning and on-site execution of the tower build. Dave retains design and funding. The split applies to both the septic completion and the tower itself.
— DS
2026-05-26 — Tower scope and ag-building scope clarified
The fire lookout tower is built first. Its interior is a staffer’s workstation: sleeping area, bathroom, no kitchen. Eli — a full-time employee on Dave’s payroll managing the timberland — staffs the lookout as part of those duties, the way state-staffed fire lookouts have worked for a century. A future ground-level ag-exempt employee facility was also discussed. September 7 clarification: these are design intentions. Capacity and authorization to serve two buildings, the actual fixture scope and occupancy remain subject to documented design/county confirmation. The septic application describes a bathroom for up to three employees, no showers and no food preparation.
— DS
2026-05-26 — Barb is the project manager; Eli reports to Barb
The tower-completion effort is a Dave-and-Barb-and-Eli project. Barb is the day-to-day project manager. Eli reports to Barb on the build, not Dave. Eli is Barb’s grandson. Dave owns design and funding; Barb owns coordination, scheduling, and decisions on Eli’s day-to-day work.
— DS
2026-05-27 — Tower work tied explicitly to the forest management plan
The Kraemer Tower is one of the supplemental fire-detection measures the 2012/2022 Sullivan Tree Farm Management Plan recommends — alongside brushed and signed access roads, gate keys to ODF Dallas, identified water sources, and the option of an on-site fire trailer. The new Forest Management page on this site lays out the 211-acre property, the written plan, the five stands, the 2025 Treeline harvest, and where the lookout fits in the broader stewardship picture. This grounds the tower as operating infrastructure for the working forest, not a standalone structure.
— DS
2026-05-27 — Logger name corrected: Robertson, not Richardson
Substrate previously carried both spellings of the logging crew’s surname (the dwelling-strategy memo had a longstanding flag for confirmation). The January 25, 2025 signed Logging Agreement between Dave Sullivan and Treeline Logging LLC names Russell and Cody Robertson as the principals. All site copy and substrate now use Robertson.
— DS