It was December of 1980 and three candidates were elected to the RCSC board. DEVCO was gone, along with all of their subsidizing of community events and amenities. We were facing budget deficits and projected increases in fees. The three incoming board members were calling for fiscal restraint, as those living here would be hurt by those hikes in everything from bowling, golf and the yearly rec fee (we know it as our lot assessment). The other six board members realized/argued they needed to be progressive and prepare for the future. There was never a more contentious time in RCSC history. The infighting got fierce and by early summer the three new board members started a recall petition drive against the board president and vice president. Law suits and legal challenges flew from both sides of the aisle. At one point members were locked out of meetings and could request being let in and if they wanted a question asked, they had to submit it in advance. That was a short-lived fiasco, proving to make those in control look foolish and afraid of the membership. The recall petition garnered enough signatures to hold a vote. The board passed a motion for a mail ballot, which resulted in another legal battle with the court ruling a mail ballot was perfectly legal under our documents. The real fight was over whether Sun City was to remain a cheap place to live, or with DEVCO out of the picture, were we going to realize we could not afford to ignore raising rates and spending the money necessary to remain competitive and maintain our amenity package. Sound familiar? That question was answered when the two board officers were easily kept in office by the membership. While no one likes raising rates, anyone with an ounce of sense understands with the size and scope of everything the RCSC owns, we can ill afford to let it deteriorate with neglect. Two years ago, we found ourselves in much the same position. After years of pretending we could just ignore updating and maintaining, we suddenly realized we were way behind on way too many fronts. Playing catch up was going to be costly and could not be done quickly. Yes there was a lot of money just sitting there (called carry-forward), but it was nowhere near what was needed. The board took several decisive actions and raised fees across the board. 2024 was handled poorly with the general manager neglecting the budget that had been carefully crafted. The promise/vow for this year is it will not happen again. Good. That said, we need to continue catching up with all that had been ignored, especially from a technology standpoint. The list doesn't end there and the 5 year reserve study must be followed to insure we don't fall behind again. With that out of the way, let me address quickly a couple of short-sighted remarks made on social media: 1). $600,000 deficit and we want to party? This community cannot afford not to "party." We were built on and around a platform of self-governance, self-reliance and forging a sense of community. The idea we roll up the sidewalks and stand still is utter nonsense and i know the poster is smart enough to know that. Many of the events we have held over the years raised money and just as important, they brought the community together. 2). We need to convert to pay to play. I cannot begin to find words dumb enough to respond to this remark. Sorry, but with 2000 like communities out there, please show me one where they use a "pay to play concept." Virtually every one who came along after us modeled their amenity package in a mold like ours. I get it, you don't like the fact that golf and 10 pin bowling costs extra, but the fact is those were the conditions the two amenities were sold to us under. If anything, this community needs more events to create that sense of community, not less.
“If anything, this community needs more events to create that sense of community, not less.“ BPearson Thank you for sharing the historic backstory and the need for engaging Sun City residents in more events to create the unique sense of community we were founded on.
Events are fun, no disagreement there. It takes money to organize and run them. Lots of money. Where will the money come from?
What is dumb or do I dare mention “insane” is the consistent poor decision making by our leaders. This I believe is the reason for much of the community anxiety, frustration, anger, etc. Perhaps some teaching, training, and application of best practices for effective decision making. Spend some money developing an effective model for all decisions. This I believe would help bring the community together. And if one wishes, call it “ pay to party.”
IE: TORCH in SCW. This place does not need a party. People are angry. People are financially strapped. There has been one voice for many years with several devout followers. The voice will not be silenced to make room for new voices. The same song is played year after year and that old LP is getting scratched. There are about 5 to 10 people who post here. I posted the article from the Independent on Nextdoor and received a ton of responses, some good, some bad, but at least people are reading. Someone from Grand re-posted to his community to tell them (with SC as an example) why they need to stop complaining about minor annual assessment fee increases. He said 'we could be them'. I drove down 107th past Grand to get to a pet food store. What I saw made me want to cry. Yards with 2 foot tall dead weeds. chain link fences that looked like cars drove through them, broken things everywhere. But let's party.
I have written several times that there is an extreme need for training for the new new board members. I even posted a comment that asked several questions about where to start and who are the stakeholders. I got crickets. The deficit is a clear indication of a GM overspending the budget with the apparent approval of the board. Bad fiscal management. I can’t say fiscal policy as apparently there aren’t any. So, short term, the board needs to hold the gm’s feet to the fire. Why, how, and most importantly how does he justify his actions. If the answer is ego based, then he needs to be fired. If his response is one that in anyway indicates he thought he was right in creating this situation, then this person doesn’t understand how budgets work and needs to go. A person who feels they are right in causing the wrong outcomes has no place in the public sector. Planning for the future of this community, to include events and outings, is critical to its success. To allow membership to stagnate and not be involved in the overall opportunities for fun and enjoyment is a crime. The RCSC has all but eliminated fun community events for the members to participate in. This again has to fall on the shoulders of the GM as well as the management team at the RCSC. This membership needs to be able to embrace what it is that makes living here special. Those opportunities need to be sponsored by the RCSC for the members. Not rocket science folks, it’s a way to keep Sun City alive and vibrant. If we choose to do nothing, not reinvest in our community, then stagnation will have been allowed to happen.
Super. Though I would suggest decision making training and model be for all interested members of the community. I guess we will have to experience the new approach being implemented by the BOD.
Do you receive the weekly email from RCSC which lists upcoming events, happenings, etc.? I would go so far to say that maybe there are to many opportunities for fun. Just a thought.
Hey Riggo, long time no hear. Hope all is well. Several of us have been pushing Sun City West"s TORCH program for years. It's not new, but if the board/general manager have no interest, there is little hope for a program of this scope to ever get off the ground. We tried when i was on the board through one of the committees i chaired and it was DOA. It would mean board members would have to admit/agree there are things they should know before they take the job. That's a challenge for some. It also puts the general manager in an awkward position because as board members become better versed in their duties, his/her ability to just do as they please is threatened. Which is a great segue to not meeting the 2024 budget. For years we had the luxury of hearing every month the RCSC is "within it's operating budget," (or some such pablum). The reality was it meant nothing because we simply paid little or no mind to what was proposed, or whether anything was being fixed or updated. The only thing the board paid attention to in any detail was whether there was going to be an increase in the lot assessment. It wasn't until the former, former GM left and suddenly the details started to unfold. Large carry-forward funds were found, with even larger disrepair and disregard for so many of the amenities we owned and the equipment that went with them. Our salaries for golf employees was well behind area standards and our technology was hopelessly mired in the past. 2023/2024 held the promise to be an improvement. SAC was on the right path, the 5 year reserve study was exactly what the doctor ordered and it appeared as if the newly hired GM had a grasp of what the community needed. Unfortunately, board members couldn't get along, two left, new ones replaced them and were even less trained in insuring their role in oversight. By early summer the library fiasco unfolded, and with each passing month, more poor choices followed. The board failed to understand where the general mangers duties were supposed to come in alignment with their obligation to represent the membership. Then, with the year ending and two prominent long term board members leaving, the decisions they made looked like last breath gasps at getting what they thought the community needed. That too blew up in their faces. Oddly, through all of this, the GM told me 2024 was a great year. Really? Great from the standpoint they spent a lot of money (obviously more than they should have spent). Great in that they increased the number of events held for members. Not so great in how the community at large received and reviewed some of their actions. Two steps forward, one step back. That's long been the story of board's ill prepared for general managers being granted and given more authority than they should have. It's why a TORCH like program would help us all. It's why general managers should learn to better function with the 9 member board (not just the two top officers). It's why this community needs better interactions through and with board and management. Sun City's history is rife with turmoil. There's always differences of opinion. Arguments over needs and wants (they are not one in the same). In spite of the spats and even through the ugliness of 1981, Sun City survived, flourished and came out better for the disagreements. That was then, this is now. I see the potential of the 2026 celebration of our country's 250 year anniversary as being one massive event with multiple dates to bring the community together. The cost is almost meaningless, when compared to the outcomes we can achieve. When we ran the 50th anniversary, we were coming out of the worst housing collapse in years and businesses were unable to do much more than buy $50 window decals. Even with those worst of times conditions we held monthly events, raised enough money to give checks back to the organizations that helped fund us, and still had a remarkable turnout of the members month after month. These events are far less about a massive, capital driven expense and more about the number of volunteers who step up and make sure the community buys in. Either we believe in investing in our future; or we don't. I know which way my mop flops.
I like the mentions made regarding investment and outcomes. Will the community see quantifiable outcomes for our investments in these community events?
