My Bylaw Amendments for the Members Meeting

I am proposing bylaw amendments to the RCSC bylaws to make a Professionally Developed Member Approved Master Plan a permanent part of the RCSC governance. The proposed amendments will be made at the March 11th Members Meeting starting at 5:00 in the Sun Dial recreation center. If a quorum of 500 members is represented the motion(s) can be voted on.

The amendments will require RCSC to provide funds to:

1. Hire an urban planning professional (hereafter professional) to develop a master plan. Del Webb had professionals who developed the original master plan for Sun City. Virtually every Parks and Recreation department in the country has a master plan. We are much worse off because we do not have one.

2. The professional will engage the community, board and management to gather data and input relevant to developing a master plan.

3. The professional will analyze the data and compare it to other 55+ communities and trends in active adult lifestyle communities and develop the following three scenarios for Sun City based on cost/revenue estimates: Good, Better and Best (i.e. lowest fee to highest fee scenarios)

4. The scenarios will go through reviews by the LRP, Management and the Board who will propose changes and recommend which scenario with changes they recommend.

5. All three scenarios will be presented to the members for a vote.

6. Once voted upon the scenario chosen will form the basis for the Master Plan which shall guide PIF expenditures, facility closures and other long-term decisions.

I am asking two things from everyone reading this. First, ask yourself if giving the members the right to vote on the big stuff is a better approach to long term planning than the ad hoc process we have been following, particularly in light of our experience in 2024. And second, please be represented at the annual meeting in person or by proxy right here in the Sun Dial Auditorium on March 11 with registration beginning at 5:00 PM. If 500 members are represented at the annual meeting members can decide if they want the right to vote on the big stuff.

Thank you for your time. Further information will be provided in the coming days.

 

What is a master plan? Why are you proposing it?

According to Google AI: A master plan is a detailed plan that outlines how to achieve a goal, such as developing a community or a business. Master plans can help with focus and motivation. For RCSC a master plan is a road map to achieving our mission vision and values.

Del Webb and virtually every other developer had or has a profit driven master plan when they develop a 55+ community. For developers the master plan uses data and experience to design the community in a way that maximizes the overall profit of the development. The plan is developed by a team of experts.

For parks and recreation departments a master plan provides consistent direction in an ever-changing political environment.

As recent experience has shown, the RCSC board has made some very large PIF decisions based on the personal preferences of individual directors. For example, a new special purpose indoor dog training facility has been approved even though no other 55+ community has such an amenity and there is scant data supporting it. There are many other major projects on the PIF for which the supporting rationale is unclear. A master plan process requires the supporting data or lack thereof to be disclosed so the project can be voted upon. Finally, a member approved master plan helps to avoid the new board new plan circle RCSC is stuck in.

 

Many of us have long argued for a master plan, logically, that is how a community our size should be run. Flailing about on the whims of a few has never made much sense. The one caveat/concern i would have is the importance of getting something done at Mountain View. Curious John how do you see that fitting into the more long range prospect of a master plan.

In conjunction with the aforementioned master plan, i would argue we truly need to do a serious look at a space allocation committee. We heard it again yesterday, it appears the only flat space getting adequate use is the Sun Dial auditorium. If that's the case, the beauty of a master plan would be to create a second venue that would take some of the pressure off SD, while better using buildings sitting empty for 70% of the day/evenings.

 

How is a master plan different from what the architects are doing now on Mountain View?

Architects design buildings and sites based on what the client wants. They do not look at the entire recreation center complex and the current and future needs of the community to help determine what and how we should preserve and improve the whole complex to best meet the needs of the community. Gary Osier and I each asked the TRIARC architects whether they would advise having a master plan in place before proceeding with the redevelopment of Mountain View. We both received the same unequivocal answer - absolutely yes. Even our current architects recommend having a plan for all our facilities before we start designing and building things.

 

What does a high quality master plan cost to develop?

Honestly, I do not know but I am in the process of finding out what other communities have paid. My personal opinion is it is much better to spend the money to have a plan before you start building things. Did Del Webb have a plan before he started building Sun City 65 years ago?

 

Won't developing a master plan delay Mountain View?

My answer to this one involves an analogy of a man with a newly purchased piece of IKEA furniture. Nine times out of ten the man opens the box glances at the instructions and decides he knows a better way to assemble it. By about the third time the furniture has been assembled, disassembled and incorrectly reassembled parts are scattered all over the place and tempers are flaring. Meanwhile, in this hypothetical, the wife has been reading the instructions and been offering unwanted suggestions. While the piece of furniture ultimately gets built, it has consumed the maximum effort and produced the minimum result.
As I examine the history of the Mountainview renovation I am reminded of the man with the IKEA furniture. Board after Board has attempted to renovate the facility without having an acceptable plan for our facilities as a whole. Each time the result is the same, a small group of people spend a lot of money to develop a set of blueprints to be stored in the not so well thought out idea storeroom. I am told by a past president of the RCSC board that there is such a storeroom, and it is filled with ill-conceived plans.

This is a long-winded way of saying that if we do this right, we will only have to do this once and we will avoid the delays all the missteps have caused us.

 

It is the answer i would expect as the most logical John. That said, waiting for a master plan would mean Mountain View seeing nothing started till what? 2027 or 2028? And then another 2 years to complete it? The problem with any great idea is almost always steeped in the reality of the actual outcome. That kind of a waiting period would be devastating news for those who have waited far too long already.

From a historian's perspective, DEVCO started planning the opening phase of Sun City in the early summer of 1959. They began excavating the front nine of the golf course in July and didn't start any of the buildings on the site until Sept 1 of 59. In that time before opening, Jan 1, 1960, they built a a shopping center, The Hiway House bar/restaurant/motor inn, the pro shop for the golf course, Community Center (Oakmont) and the 5 model homes. That's 4 months to completion. These days an architect will take 6 months to a year with the county permitting another 6 months to a year (or more depending on the issues created).

So we are clear, a master plan should be on the table, my concern is what it does to Mountain View and those members who have waited way too long already?

 

Is there anything we can do at Mountainview while we are adopting a member approved expertly developed master plan?

I do not have the expertise to know for sure but intuitively Mountainview seems to have two components: aquatics which is on the lower level and everything else which is on the upper level. Would it be possible to do the pool renovations additions while the master plan is being developed? It may be something to be considered as there seems to be agreement that a pool of the same shape and size will be part of the master plan.

 

Yes, a master plan for MV and a new Lakeview one day. Maybe an outside specialist can help by looking at all the Rec centers to see if usage and amenities are working at there best.
I would like to just see that the centers get a ten year renovation refresh inside to at least keep the centers looking modern and fresh. Marinette is a fine example of a good renovation.

 

I have to tell you I have never been associated with an undertaking that has received such a warm welcome from so many people. We have already rolled out the concept to hundreds of members and they are 100% in favor of it. People I have never met are giving me thumbs up!

As you know these proposed amendments give the members the final say-so on the discretionary big stuff and requires all the big stuff to be fully explained and justified to the members by the Board and the Long-Range Planning Committee. We are still working out the final points (e.g., tiebreakers, attempts to hijack the process, etc.) but will likely have a comment draft out this week. The final proposal is due to be turned into the corporate office by February 23.

Stay tuned.

 

You were awesome!

 

John, you posted six items, how and where do the fit in the bylaws and a to be generated Board Policy. You did mentioned it was somehow boiled down to three. You should really format these into coherent bylaws so the members know what exactly they are voting on. Also, free advice, dump the parks and recreation thing, we don’t have one and I really don’t care about other communities.

Lastly, you really have to find out what this Master Plan is going to cost us before we vote, otherwise it is really the dreaded unfounded mandate. I seriously have doubts about this Master Plan idea as we are going out and getting more data, more goo goo, more gaa gaa ( apologies to Freddie Mercury and Queen) with town halls meeting exchanges, etc. Nothing will get done, just talk. I also believe that members voting on large projects is a terrible idea as more talk, arguments over what should be eliminated or added. This is why we have a Board, to make these decisions. Not against listening to members voicing their opinions but there comes a time when, as my Marine vet father said,”it’s time to shit or get off the pot.”

Thank you for your input as I suspect you spent many hours working on this and you are to be commended.

 

Dave,
Thank you for your views.
John

 

As we all know a master plan is a permanent living document. Several members have asked what the initial cost of a master plan is and this is what I found on the internet:

A master plan may cost between $40K and $150K depending on myriad factors, such as if you have accurate topographic maps or existing building inventory. It is a considerable investment, but the MP provides the key information necessary to thoughtfully spend considerably more in a smart, cohesive, and purposeful manner.

 

John, we do have a building inventory as it is required by our insurance brokers for property coverage. I’m sure either Matt or Kevin can advise you as to what person handles this aspect.
I invite you to attend the Insurance Committee meeting in March, which will unfortunately be scheduled after the Annual Meeting, probably either on the 14th or 21st. The building inventory person will be there and it will give you an insight as to what the RCSC insures and the cost. Everyone on the committee is an insurance professional, except me, as I was a bond man, but I do have a good working knowledge of insurance and coverages.

I do have a question regarding the Master Plan for you. The Budget, Finance and Audit committee the past year has been working to assemble a Five Year (done), Ten Year (done), Fifteen Year (I believe), Twenty Year (completed I believe) and Fifty Year Plans for the Capital Reserve. Contained in these plans cover not only Capital improvements but also items that would fall in the PIF domain. The question is what is the difference between a Master Plan and what BF&A has produced, other than one was produced in house? Would having both plans render one redundant? I do realize that items in the Capital Plan might not be germane to a Master Plan.

Your thoughts on this would be appreciated.
I realize I come off argumentative, it’s true, but you work with attorneys for over 40 years and see if it rubs off on you.

 

If I can jump in here for a minute I would say that a Master Plan tends more to determine what is "needed" rather than and in-house committee determining what the "wants" are.

It's a good question but I see the BF&A committee as being more like allowing the fox to watch the hen house! Could that be a conflict of interest like certain board members pushing certain agenda's (pickleball, golf).

A Master Plan by a professional has no skin in the game and comes in unbiased. Am I missing something?

 

Pardon me Dave. Just wondering when we members might be allowed to view these plans from the BF&A committee? Have these plans been accepted by the LRP committee? Just curious.

 

FYI, the plans I discussed are based on needs at the various intervals. They are extremely detailed and more than replacing lounge chairs by the pool, although that is in the plans. RCSC actually has a person that works on nothing by capital plans.
I feel you are selling the members of BF&A short on their integrity. The members of this committee, like the Insurance committee have long experience in the financial world. Since I have been on this committee, 13 years, I have not seen a member push a pet project or anything that would appear to be a conflict. Rather, I have seen and been involved in arguing against pet projects being pushed by specific Board members. I have attended every committee meeting except any held during the first three months of 2016 as I was touring Europe with one of my VISTA buddies who had never been there and in September and October of 2019 as I was dealing with some rather serious medical unpleasantness. You have attended some of our meetings and have you seen anything approaching conflicts of interest?.

Tom, I believe the 5 year plan was released last year when the town halls were held regarding the Capital plan. Not sure on 10 year plan. There was a joint ad hoc committee with LRP and BF&A who worked on plans and they were accepted by both committees. I will try to find out some solid info for you, so watch this space as they say.

 

Thanks and much appreciated Dave.