Living in Sun City, AZ is Complex and Unique

I am not talking about residents who own the second home in SC, I am speaking of non-residents who get a visitor punch card pass to use our Rec centers while they are out here vacationing. I just think we could charge more. I think the punch card is too cheap.

 

4,ooo? Where did that figure come from?

 

PIF projects being considered in Sun City
$103M could be spent over 15 years
Posted Wednesday, December 1, 2021 7:00 am
By Rusty Bradshaw Sun City Independent
Former SunCitiesEditor

If Recreation Centers of Sun City officials’ plans come together as envisioned, the corporation will spend more than $103 million on a number of projects through 2035.

RCSC General Manager Bill Cook outlined 13 projects and their estimated costs. The list includes $4 million for the Lakes East/West Golf Course, 10433 W. Talisman Road grounds and maintenance shop that has already begun construction.

Cook’s cost projections include a 2.5% to 3% increase due to inflation over the years. However, board member Rich Hoffer believes that is too low.

“I talk to a lot of financial people daily and nobody is thinking of a 2.5%-3% CPI,” he said. “The consensus is 10%, and that is expected to go up to 13% in 2023.”

Cook said his CPI estimates were made in an attempt to be objective.

The project list also includes $20.5 million for golf course water reduction measures, including irrigation replacement, turf reduction and fixing the leaks at Viewpoiunt Lake.

“ADWR is allowing water for only 90 acres per golf course,” Cook explained. “We have some courses that are over that now.”

The ADWR’s fifth management plan is scheduled to start in 2025, so it will be a tight schedule to complete the water reduction measures, Cook said.

“We proposed an extension, but have not yet heard an answer,” Cook added.

Resident Jean Totten asked if the PIF plan and cost estimates would be available to members.

“This presentation (Nov. 18) was hard to see from the audience,” she said. “We would like to be able to see it in a more readable format.”

She also asked if the Long Range Planning Committee had input on the PIF proposed projects. Cook said the LRP recommended he develop the plan. He also said the project list could be added to the RCSC website for members to access.

The board approved the project list on a first reading, which included an increase in the preservation and improvement fee to $4,000, a $500 jump.

The board was expected to address the motion for a second reading during it’s first December meeting, which was Dec. 6, a week earlier than usual because of the Christmas holidays later in the month. Results of that meeting were not available at press time.

If it passes a second reading, the board will consider it for a third reading in its second December meeting, 9 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 16, in the auditorium at Sundial Recreation Center, 14801 N. 103rd Ave.

In addition to the water reduction measures, the projected PIF projects include Mountain View Center replacement phase I, $24.5 million; Mountain View Center replacement phase II, $2.7 million; Mountain View Center replacement phase 3, $12.3 million; Mountain View pickleball, $9.4 million; Grand Center building 2 (additional club spaces within completed structure), $549,862; Softball clubhouse and lighting, $1 million; Riverview maintenance facility, $2.1 million; North maintenance facility, $2.3 million; Lakes patio and golf cart storage, $1.5 million; New administration building at Lakeview, $4.5 million; and Lakeview Center replacement, $21 million.

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2022 PIF BUDGET & PIF FEE INCREASE APPROVED:
RECREATION CENTERS OF SUN CITY, INC. BOARD MEETING MINUTES
December 16, 2021
(Relevant excerpt)
Unfinished Business Continued: The second item of unfinished business is the approval of the PIF Budget which was read by Secretary Lehrer.

Third Reading Motion #1 by Secretary Lehrer – I move to approve the Preservation and Improvement Fund (PIF) budget with the PIF Fee at $4,000.

Secretary Lehrer spoke on the motion then members who signed up commented on the motion and whether they were for or against the motion.

After all comments were made, roll call vote was taken by Secretary Lehrer and the motion passes 6 to 1 with Director Collins opposed and President Wilson not casting a vote.
https://suncityaz.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/2021_12_16-Board-Meeting-Minutes.pdf

 

Great info EO. Now as projects and costs were shown all that is needed would be projected revenue during same time period.
I have seen such a breakdown I believe in a LRP document.(minutes?) Have tried to find that document which showed revenue also, but have not had any luck.
I would like to see a similar updated revenue vrs cost document done and placed front and center on RCSC website. Seems simple to me.

 

Not the blended report you’re suggesting, but this is the PIF budget revenue piece for 2024. The Long Range Committee will likely provide five-year projections in their presentation.

Recreation Centers of Sun City, Inc
BUDGET WORKSHEET
FOR 2024 SUMMARY
PIF RESTRICTED INCOME
Preservation and Improvement Fee
PIF Investment Income
PIF Investment Fees
Capital Reserve Investment Income Capital Reserve Unrealized Gains/ Losses Capital Reserve Investment Fees
Total Restricted Income
VIEW the projections here, page 10 of 33:
https://suncityaz.org/wp-content/up...ivision-Detail-10.17.23-corrected-version.pdf

Treasurer Report January 2024
As of December 31, 2023, PIF had a balance of $33.1 million
At the end of the fourth quarter of 2023, $27,819,348 (cost basis) of the $33.1 million in the restricted Preservation and Improvement Fund has been invested in various FDIC insured treasury bills, mutual funds, and corporate bonds. Year-to-date these investments have produced interest income of $277,040 with management fees of $50,495 for a net income on restricted fund investments of $226,545.
Full Treasurer Reports
https://suncityaz.org/category/treasurer-reports/

Preservation and Improvement Fund (PIF) Budget Summary Spend by Project by Year
Presented November 18, 2021 RCSC Board Meeting
https://suncityaz.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/PIF-Budget-SUMMARY-P1-for-Board-Meeting-111821.pdf

 

Just curious Bill, the change went into effect in 2003. The actual Resolution #28 was not signed and entered into the By-Laws until 12/2012. Why the delay, and being that you were a board member in 2012 why are you unable to answer my original question of WHY it was changed? Inquiring minds.

 

Tom...I can tell you at this point that the management team has been spending extraordinary resources preparing all of the underlying documentation for a five year plan. Just one piece has been a complete inventory of every single piece of equipment, every square foot of flooring, rooftops, paving, pool decking, interior and exterior walls to paint, square footage of various outdoor amenities that require replacement or resurface - and the list goes on. That list is several thousand line items. Purchase date, replacement date, end of life date, projected cost, etc. This is but one small piece of the analysis. Add the financial needs determined by the reserve study, factoring in next building project(s), ensuring deferred maintenance is completely funded while current needs are met (requiring staff and money) are just a few parts of the plan (that includes operations, capital spending and PIF.) Taking in to consideration RCSC has no adopted long range plan, nor a real PIF plan (just place holders as I understand the list) and budgeting has been done year-to-year, this project is not something that can just be rolled out. In a perfect world if everything had been up to date, everyone had every piece of information, a small group could just sit in a room for a couple of weeks,⁹ hammer through everything and make decisions, this plan could probably have been weeks ago (although end of year is a hard time to take on large projects in any major corporate office).

With all that, the B&F committee did not work in a vacuum over the summer. Kevin McCurdy made numerous presentations based on the best information we had. Before a final plan can be presented to the Board (or members) for adoption, we all know it has to be supported with great detail. That's what is happening. It's what the residents expect and what they deserve.

The group is on a tight deadline and wants to get this right.

 

Why do I feel that Sun City has been managed by a group of amateurs up until now?

 

Please think of the average Sun City resident when presenting the results of all this work. The average citizen probably will not read pages and pages of budget data and reports. Even if read, they may not understand what they are reading.

Keep it simple, please. Revenue vrs. Costs for 5 years and 15 years should work just fine. And quite frankly, in my opinion, should have been completed before passing the new CIF fee and increase in annual assessment fee. And yes I know more shall be revealed. Hopefully sooner than later.

 

I want to clarify the inventory - they weren't starting from scratch, but making sure that everything is on the list. For insurance purposes a lot of information was already available, but this exercise required everything be reviewed and updated to its current state. And, processes put in place to ensure it stays current.

 

Definitely! And nobody disagrees about getting this done as soon as possible.

 

For those Members of the community who are aware of the recent disclosure of $20M in deferred maintenance; who are aware of the recent changes in the Annual Assessment increase; who are aware of the newly created CIF fee: please have patience. (And why is that amount of Members who are aware so low????)

It has taken many years for the RCSC to get into the shape it is in. It will take longer than a few months to correct previous mistakes. Our new GM has created a team of staff and VOLUNTEERS to work on the 5-year plan. It's a much needed start.

Again, patience, please.

Jean Totten
Chair, Outreach & Communication Committee
Taking One Day at a Time

 

My point was using MV as an example. Discuss it til you wear it out, add $10 or $15 million more to the cost, set a totally unrealistic timeline on completion and kick the can on down the road for the next board to sort out and unravel.

 

If I understand your point, this is why it's critical that a long range plan is adopted as well as a 5 year budget plan (that rolls forward each year). This helps ensure that the RCSC board and management team have an adopted working plan (road map) and we can avoid a lot of this stop, start, redirect. The LRP is always a living document that is under constant review as the community changes and economic factors come in to play, but it doesn't just get created and sit on a shelf to never be looked at again. It goes hand-in-hand with the budget and is used to also assist in forecasting the long term needs, i.e. PIF expenditures. It's hard to imagine why this methodology hasn't been implemented in an organization of this size.

 

Jean I do appreciate your call for patience. Why didn’t the BOD exhibit some patience when pushing through the CIF and the annual lot assessment fee?

 

Agreed. My point was that each new board seemed to try and reinvent the wheel while trying to figure out what to do and end up accomplishing nothing because as you stated, no course had ever been plotted. Any long range planning was conveniently ignored and it was a popularity contest or who screamed the loudest got their way.

 

THANK YOU turnkey26!!!!! Unfortunately, it will NEVER change back to what the beloved Founders of Sun City wanted! Mr. Pearson. writes novella after novella about returning to the roots of Sun City with one exception. Assessment fees! Of course! He is married, a two deeded owner!! Sun City is not at all what it was supposed to be. I reached out to the Foundation for the 4th time last week to get a question answered. Crickets. Yes Bill, I still feel they do not consider privacy a main priority. You were president once and you sure don't. I know, I know, no one gives a SHIT about me. I know someone who had her home on the market here in Sun City for over 700 days! A family member purchased a home here for a very stupid reason and now sorry about it. Two weeks ago my dogs went nuts at 4am. Someone was on my front porch pacing. The security light went on but did not record. I now have 3 new cameras out there. It is not a good time to move, but I am actively looking with a realtor. I tell folks who ask about moving here exactly how I feel about Sun City. The utterly absurd thing about all this is that people don't care the BOD screwed up over the past 10 to 15 years. Bill weren't you on the board somewhere around 2012? You know what bothers folks about Sun City?? Putting bagged dog crap in their trash cans! Right EO and FYI?

 

In my brain, a “pay to play” is the fair method to pay for use of RCSC facilities. The per lot assessment could also be continued in some possibly different form.