OPINIONS
Fast: Sun City resident urges others to verify
Those who remember the TV character Joe Friday will remember that line. It seems our board is having a hard time dealing with the facts that created the Mountain View Center mess, and some on the board want people to look the other way. Like Ronald Reagan used to say, “Trust but verify.”
Just the facts, Ma’am.
Those who remember the TV character Joe Friday will remember that line. It seems our board is having a hard time dealing with the facts that created the Mountain View Center mess, and some on the board want people to look the other way. Like Ronald Reagan used to say, “Trust but verify.”
September 2018 — the Long Range Planning Committee abruptly changed its charter to host two town hall meetings regarding what people wanted to see at MV. People, our corporate documents have no provisions for “town hall” meetings, so I am not sure what rules apply to them.
Oct. 1, 2018 — Two town halls are conducted and 450 people attend (1% of Sun City). Nineteen people speak and up to 16 people wanted pools and/or a dedicated theater (4/100ths of 1% of Sun City). No one in the meeting mentioned pickleball or a gym, but a few emails mentioned a gym.
January to June 2020 — A 12-person ad hoc team meets six times “to develop the recommendation for the reconstruction of” MV. A report is issued June 8, 2020 with 66 items, including converting the two tennis courts into pickleball courts and room for a rock-climbing wall. People, this report was not provided to members until 2022.
2020-2021 — Someone works with architect to develop conceptual plans for MV. One or more people give the architect the go ahead to remove all existing site amenities (so called option 2) without, to the best of my knowledge, notifying any of the clubs impacted.
May 2021 — Two attempts to pass option 2 plans, which completely remove everything on the site to make room for athletic/performance arts center, are postponed for further discussion. No input from affected clubs is officially sought by the board. No survey of the membership is sought.
June 2021 — The pickleball rebellion occurs! Board is bombarded with emails and threats regarding getting rid of the plus or minus 6-year-old pickleball courts with no plans to replace them. Club members are lectured at the meeting by the president, who promises to “find a solution” and tells them it is the board’s job to make sound decisions for the 39,000 members or potential members. Motion to approve Option 2 is passed. Ten days later a second reading of the motion to approve Option 2 is passed. A director makes a motion to waive the customary third reading, and it passed.
October/November 2021 — Architect “presents” a phase 3 plan with a 2-story pickleball “pavilion” that is approved. People, everyone knows there is not enough parking for that and no one has ever seen a drawing of this future pavilion.
Everyone knows the board dysfunction that this debacle caused. That dysfunction continues to this day.
Everyone knows the board dysfunction that this debacle caused. That dysfunction continues to this day.
So where does that leave us?
With a $40 million mess of a design that tries to combine a theater and an athletic facility through a huge lobby. A friend of mine who was a lead architect for the Marine museum told me the way you manage this incompatible combination is through scheduling (i.e., close the pool when the theater is in use).
People, in my opinion, the garbage in, garbage out principles apply to this mess. The decision-making process was garbage and so are the conceptual plans. But alas, a slim majority of the board wants to pay between $1 million and $2 million to have blueprints drawn up and cost estimates developed for this monstrosity (my words) without considering any other options or the impacts on clubs who are having their facilities taken away.
People, in my opinion, the garbage in, garbage out principles apply to this mess. The decision-making process was garbage and so are the conceptual plans. But alas, a slim majority of the board wants to pay between $1 million and $2 million to have blueprints drawn up and cost estimates developed for this monstrosity (my words) without considering any other options or the impacts on clubs who are having their facilities taken away.
People, they are already discussing in the Budget and Finance Committee how to prepare the members for a large assessment fee increase.
As you know, the preservation and improvement fee was already raised from $3,500 to $4,000. To paraphrase George Bush, if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, it is most likely a duck.
Hello, Board of Directors, read my lips: Put community unity first and for, God’s sake, take the time to get this right. There is absolutely no urgency to proceed with option 2. Mountain View is like most of us, old but still functional. My message to the board is to take a break (not enter into any contracts) and have a nice relaxing summer so you can come back with a fresh perspective. I can assure you Mountain View will still be there when you return and no one will attempt to change it.
Hello, Board of Directors, read my lips: Put community unity first and for, God’s sake, take the time to get this right. There is absolutely no urgency to proceed with option 2. Mountain View is like most of us, old but still functional. My message to the board is to take a break (not enter into any contracts) and have a nice relaxing summer so you can come back with a fresh perspective. I can assure you Mountain View will still be there when you return and no one will attempt to change it.
“Book em Danno; this is a clear case of first-degree honesty combined with inciting membership involvement.”
Let’s return to the Dragnet theme. The scene is a dingy smoke-filled interrogation room with 1-way glass. Joe Friday asks me, “What’s your motive in fighting this; the proverbial train has left the station?” I say, “Honestly, officer, I just want to see broad membership involvement in making decisions about the biggest capital expenditure in Sun City’s history.” They then shine the hot lights in my face, tighten the handcuffs and deny me water. Finally, I can’t take it anymore and I break. “OK, I confess, I would really love to see Sun City have a standalone performing arts center where members can enjoy plays, movies, musical performances, comedy shows, debates, lectures, book readings, improvisations, host large meetings and do a bunch of other really cool stuff. Is that too much to ask?” I weep. At this point in the show, Sgt. Friday looks over to Officer Danny Williams and says, “Book em Danno; this is a clear case of first-degree honesty combined with inciting membership involvement.” OK, I mixed in Hawaii Five-O.
Pick up the phone
My fellow members, if this mess troubles you as much as it does me, pick up the phone and call the RCSC board at 623-561-4620 and politely let them know you would like to see them consider other alternatives before spending millions more. You can also email President Dale Lehrer at dlehrer@suncityaz.org. Finally, if you are having trouble getting through, you can always visit the board office at room 118 in the Lakeview Center, 10626 W. Thunderbird Blvd., to schedule a time to talk to a board member. If you visit, call or write, please be respectful, and remember to thank the board member for their volunteering to be on the RCSC board.
John Fast
Sun City
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Posted Thursday, June 9, 2022 11:00 am
Sun City Independent
4 comments:
I for one loved the idea of a climate control gymnasium, being able to play basketball, volleyball, badminton and pickleball indoors when it’s 115 degrees out side would be amazing. Obviously designing and paying for it has to be thoughtful, but we only get so many days on this earth and waiting for the sake of waiting is awful. Had this been built 8 years ago, the price would have been manageable, waiting only causes the project to go even more. As for the pools… I like the idea of a sports pool, as for the resort pool, it should have a real deep end with diving boards. And for the performance arts building… I hope it’s amazing for the arts, bands and concerts and movies…. Our development, is so far behind Grand and West we need amazing facilities so people want to buy our homes and we get the most out of our investments.
Quick question for anonymous; Is there any amount of money that becomes too much? Or is the price for amazing everything unlimited?
Interesting, no response from anon. I didn't expect one. When it comes to the question if there is any amount "too much,' there's invariably silence.
John Fast's letter posted here and printed in the Independent is brilliantly on point. It isn't really a question of do we need a theater, the question is do we need one with a price tag of 40 million dollars?
I've been watching this debate rage for more than 20 years. Odd how it was always okay to shovel 10's of million's of dollars into our golf courses but a 5-10 million dollar theater was never given any consideration. It's exactly what happens when you let a handful decide the community's future.
Well, there is much to unpack regarding John’s abridged post here and his epistle.I the Independent regarding MV and some other points. It is obviously written by a person who is unfamiliar with certain processes, rumors and opinions reflects his shortcomings. Since I am not party to most of the machinations of MV after 2019, I would like to address two instances I was personally involved.
Mr. Fast states that an increase that the Budget and Finance committee is discussing an increase in the yearly assessments. This a patently false statement. I have been associated with this committee as a member or as chair or co-chair when I was a Board member for many years. I was the 9ne who raised the issue of the assessment at the last meeting because they have not been raised for going on six years. I stated that considering beneign inflation of 2%for the past previous five years and costs would have increased 10% and considering this year’s inflation rate of approximately 9% thus far would now been an overall cost increase of nearly 20%. To continue to freeze the assessment at the current amount in relation to operational costs is unsustainable and a future increase would have to large. In a nutshell, the committee and management told me that they believed an increase was unnecessary. My response was judgment day is coming and it will not be pretty.
As to the PIF increase, I have been a part of battle for the past two increases, one as a Board member and the other as a member of the committee. In the first instance, the GM used faulty prediction of home sales to produce a paper deficit in the PIF at the $3,000 amount. I knew at first glacé that my BS detector was in the red zone. I demanded that realistic figures that management had access to be supplied and revise the PIF projection to the new reality. Lo and behold the revised projection showed a healthy PIF in relation to planned expenses at the current $3,000 amount. Bill should remember that I came up short by one director to defeat that $500 increase.
Now flash forward to this year’s budget meeting where the Finance Director introduced another $500 increase utilizing the same bogus home sales figures that the previous GM used eight years earlier using the same crappy argument. I called him on this nonsense and said he should use sales numbers that reflect reality. What did he do at the board meeting where the increase was being considered, used the same numbers to justify the increase that the Board passed. That right folks, it passed on a lie.
There you go John on those two topics or as your fake policemen’s said, just the facts or as my mates in college would say, roll that up in your Zig Zag and toke on it.
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