Shortsighted...

Discussion in 'Sun City General Discussions' started by BPearson, May 22, 2018.

  1. BPearson

    BPearson Well-Known Member

    What's that old saying? Hindsight is 20/20. Got it, but i have a better one...shortsighted is simply stupidity personified. Seriously, i agonize often how we failed this community while i was on the board. And i take no satisfaction that i voted and railed against it.

    So what caused this pang of guilt? Easy; i attended the long range planning committee yesterday as a guest. My good friend Ben Roloff was giving a short presentation on behalf of the Life Long Learning club. Turns out another friend Don Schordje was also giving a presentation on the need for a theater for the Sun City Players (and other performing artists).

    Hence you sense my frustration. Both these presentations should have been given years ago. Tough to do though when you consider the board disbanded the long range planning committee 5 years back. The reality is both these clubs need more/better space and the only way to understand those needs is to look at what is happening in age restricted communities across the country.

    Unfortunately we had no foresight and simply felt the best thing we could do was kill the committee and commit to an all-golf-all-the time long range plan. Nope, don't hate golf, hate the fact we didn't/couldn't/wouldn't allow the community at large into a discussion about our future.

    At least we have one now, i think. Seems like good people on the committee willing to work. I was a bit dismayed when the first topic on the agenda was golf course maintenance out-buildings. The director of golf was there and they didn't want to tie him up so they asked their questions and let him go.

    If you've paid any attention to the current long range plan, there's 750K directed to those old equipment sheds with one being replaced near on yearly. The good news is both the South course and Willowbrook/Willowcreek have been done in the past several years. The bad news is both were over budget and worse the ones on the books in all likelihood won't get done for the projected costs. And if you've paid any attention to my writings in the past, you'll note those building get assessed back to centers, not golf...really?

    There's way more, but before i go there, i need take a deep breath and break this post into multiple sections. I know i ramble on, but for folks who take the time to read this i want it to sink in...our future is at stake.
     
  2. CMartinez

    CMartinez Well-Known Member

    Bill, you were but one voice in nine. And to be honest, the "Contingent" had five of the voices, all in favor of golf. You did all you could do to save the LRPC, but the deck was stacked against you, in so many ways. As I recall, since golf was going to be the predominant factor in the budget for years to come, to disband the LRPC almost became a forgone conclusion.

    I remember when it was decided to have open meetings about the dog park. It was as if you had asked someone to cut off their arm. Meet with the members and discuss this? The hell you say? Any discussion to have meetings with cardholders was met with disdain at its best. You tried so many times to open up the dialogue towards more cardholder participation, only to be shut down. I remember those meetings, you were a lone voice amongst the din of the "Contingent". It was so exhausting to want so much more from the board, and not having any power to change it.

    You are a tireless defender of what most would consider the right thing to do. You have high ideals for this community, as you see it for what it can be, and should be. With the LRPC back in play, and hopefully, in a position to right this ship, there is hope for the future of Sun City. There is a need to grasp and recognize what has been lost, where we can recoup, and move ahead with a definitive goal in mind.
     
  3. BPearson

    BPearson Well-Known Member

    No question Carole, it was a challenging time and perhaps why so many come on with good intentions and end up becoming little more than water carriers.

    My frustration at the long range planning meeting was two-fold. First the idea we should/could do two maintenance golf buildings a year was maddening. Why not eh? Another couple million here and another couple million there on golf just is what the community needs. It's the classic example of why all of this long range plan was/is so pathetically inept. We will have put well over 10 million dollars in the courses north of Bell Road (phase 3) and they are the ones the PGA "expert" we bring in every year said they were fine for years to come. And of course they were the last ones built; some 16 years after the North course. Never once did we lay out a strategic plan for renovating what we needed to do, or time lines based on those needs.

    To make matters worse, we have ignored other critical areas of community development for the sake of golf course redesign and water conservation. And along with that we are throwing into the mix patio's for the snack shops, cart storage and how about nicer pro shops. I would beg any board member reading this to go back to dig up the real numbers spent on golf since 2005, it's scary. And with every new meeting we hear more suggestions to add to those numbers.

    We've needed to do something about a performing arts theater for more than 30 years. There's been ongoing discussion for at least that long. So i am clear, i'm not talking about just for the Sun City Players. The challenge is they say they need it for 200 days per year; that is a lot, given most of those days would be for rehearsal. Sharing any venue that would be constructed only enhances the value and there need be lots of forethought about what and where. Damn, almost sounds like a comprehensive strategic plan.

    The Life Long Learning Club is a wholly different beast. Sun City AZ has fallen so far behind the curve on continuing education we may never catch up. As Ben pointed out the other day, we are living longer and as we age, we become less active. Classes often replace golf and tennis and as we know from countless studies, keeping ones mind active is like money in the bank. We've simply ignored what other communities are doing at the cost of taking care of golf...to the extreme.

    My friend Ben cringes when i dredge this up, but it was our solution. The Lakes Club once hosted Theater Works in the theater in the back portion. We could have turned it into a first class multi-purpose setting for any number of events. Along with that the Lakes Club had some 15 or more class rooms that could have spawned a hundred classes run by the RCSC. There would have been a half dozen card rooms where there was no set up and take down on a daily basis. There was room for the entire administrative offices and staff at the Lakes Club which would have opened up thousands of square feet for club space at the Lakeview center.

    The icing on the cake was the setting of the Lakes Club. Spectacular water-front with awesome outdoor areas, coffee shop, snack shop and the Visitor Center would have made it the go to spot in Sun City.
     
  4. BPearson

    BPearson Well-Known Member

    Interesting! Carole sent me an email with a link to a portion of the Lakes Club being available for rent. The nursing school is still there, so what is available is about 14,000 square. Seems to me the first step for the board would be to see if there is any interest in the owners selling the building and to find out when the nursing school lease it up. If you look at the current Long Range plan, you will see any number of agenda items that could be satisfied by buying the Lakes Club. Maybe it's not feasible, but it most certainly is worth knowing the answers to the above question before you write it off.
     
    Emily Litella and Cynthia like this.
  5. Cynthia

    Cynthia Well-Known Member

    Sounds like a good first step. Is there anyway to get the LRPC to think about it? Do you think any of them read posts here?
     
  6. CMartinez

    CMartinez Well-Known Member

    First of all, a big "Thank You" to Ron Smith for his service to the RCSC, as well as the Sun City community in general. Ron stepped down from the board yesterday, creating a vacancy that will need to be filled. Bill, this could be your time to shine and get the Lakes Club for the RCSC with the Board's blessing. Perhaps you could seek the open position for the next five months and make some headway with what needs to be done. Just a suggestion, as it would be a more direct route to helping the LRPC get through some of their needs and goals. You have the history knowledge and the desire to see the LRPC succeed as well as the board to accept new ideas and strategies. I think you would be the best candidate for the opening.
     
  7. Riggo

    Riggo Member

    I second the above. It would be the Sun City edition of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.
     
  8. Cynthia

    Cynthia Well-Known Member

    What’s the procedure? Does the board appoint the replacement or a special election?
     
  9. CMartinez

    CMartinez Well-Known Member

    Cynthia, what usually happens is the board announces a vacancy to be filled. The process for how the selection is going to be accomplished is also usually announced at the same time. Since this would be for a five month term, the inclination would be to find a prior board member to step up, as they are usually familiar with the board practices. It will take a vote of 2/3 of the board to appoint the new director to fill in until 12/31/18.
     
    Cynthia likes this.
  10. BPearson

    BPearson Well-Known Member

    Carole is spot on, the board will fill the vacancy. And as much as it would be interesting to throw my hat in the ring, this is pretty much the same board that felt i wasn't qualified to be a part of the long range planning committee. I could list my credentials and willingly lay them alongside anyone on the committee, the board or RCSC staff member for that matter, but it would only sound like sour grapes on my part. Nope, when the time comes, i will work with a two-year election plan in an effort to put 6 like-minded candidates on the board so we can actually get something done. I have no interest in wasting my life being a vote against stupidity.
     
    carptrash likes this.
  11. Cynthia

    Cynthia Well-Known Member

    Yeah, I knew that would be a no go for you.
     
  12. CMartinez

    CMartinez Well-Known Member

    Bill, I completely forgot about the snub by the board and the LRPC. Your resume stands much better than anyone I could think of when it comes to being qualified to be whatever is needed within the RCSC architecture. Got so excited at the possibility of the Lakes club, I truly did forget about the moronic events of late by the current board. And Emily is correct, depending on the set up of the spreadsheets and accounting standards, buildings may need to go under an infrastructure heading for the initial costs, depreciation allocation, and the over all PIF expenditures. I know I sat through the budget meetings many times, but I have to go be honest and say, they old eyes glazed over after about page 4.

    Is there a way to get someone's attention about the Lakes club instead of waiting until the next LRPC meeting? It should be someone with the ability to speak on behalf of the RCSC and talk real numbers as to leases, costs, and real estate holdings. That is most definitely not me. Perhaps someone with the Sun City Property Holdings could intervene on our behalf?
     

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