RCSC members propose data-driven master plan

Zoom calls work fine however you have to have the proper equipment and the knowledge to set it up. A dedicated conference line and a bat phone. Sun Health and Banner did them several times a month. That way if one or two board members were not available to physically attend they could call in.

Sun City West allows all residents to zoom into their meetings. Instructions right on their website. Maybe that is one of the reasons they operate so much better than we do.

 

I really don’t care about SCW and what they do. My point is using tech to substitute for doing your job and I believe ET phoning home all time instead of being in SC is shrinking your responsibility as a Board member. What do you think of a Board member who owns a residence here but really lives out of state and only shows up in person for the last Board meeting in December and phones in the other 11 1/2 months? What if the entire Board felt this way? Sucks, doesn’t it and cannot be justified.

 

Maybe you should care about SCW. They are doing so much better than we are.

But, but, but weren't you in favor of all those folks working from home during the Biden administration?

You missed my point as usual. I said RESIDENTS had the ability to call in which probably makes them feel like more of a part of SCW.

 

The appropriate location for this discourse is the Purely Politics thread. No need to trash every open discussion. There are folks who want to have conversations dealing with the issues and the topic. Take it to the appropriate forum, don’t waste my time and energy, as well as the people who might want to contribute to the conversation at hand, by crapping on every thread.

 

One sentence Carole. It did pertain to board members working from home.

 

No, it was Board members living out of State for an indeterminate amount of time and not in Sun City.

Yes I was in favor of people working from home during the Biden administration! Mostly because the pandemic was front and center for three quarters of his administration. You know that virus that Trump said would be gone by spring because the Sun would shine longer.How did that line BS work out?

 

No vax since 2017 when I had to because I worked in a hospital. Have net been sick since. Worked out well for me. If I had covid I didn't know it.

 

Interesting elements and perspective for consideration as our RCSC pursues developing our own plan.
Resident isn’t a fan of RCSCW strategic plan
Letter to the editor
✍️ By Tom Slade | Sun City West
The Recreation Centers of Sun City West Governing Board has adopted a “strategic plan.”

Given that implementation will require a lot of additional annual fees to support, I consider this most disingenuous behavior by both the board and general manager. Much ado is made about openness, transparency, resident input. They should have started with this.

This document has no process identified to quantitatively measure the success or failure of any governing principle or action item with respect to tangible, bottom-line results.

Examples of rambling platitudes called “governing principles”:

“Foster collaborative partnerships to maximize resources and serve members effectively.” What partnerships and resources? Board documents define the association’s functions and resources.

“Strengthen and protect existing revenue sources while exploring diversified options to adapt to changing economic conditions.” RCSCW is a nonprofit corporation that has limited ability to raise money. To me, this means fee increases.

“Streamline the delivery of community services by implementing operational efficiencies identifying costs of services, and performance measurements.” I have never seen an organization less efficient in providing services than SCW, which has 38% fewer residents than Sun City. RCSCW has a third more employees than Sun City, which has eight recreation centers to our four.

A good measurement of efficiency would be to compare the total costs associated with each community’s recreation center management. Does anyone really think this comparison will be made and that RCSCW will implement operational efficiencies by identifying costs of services and update performance measurements accordingly?

“Empower and engage employees through ownership of their roles and provision of resources to deliver effective and efficient customer service … Cultivate a professional and accountable work environment with mentoring, professional development, advancement, and job satisfaction opportunities.” Association employees enjoy competitive wages and great benefits. I presume annual reviews are conducted. What else is required?

“Support diverse recreational and leisure activities that serve a wide range of abilities, ages, and interests … Continuously evaluate and update recreational amenities to meet evolving community needs.” This redundancy should have not been included.

The remaining sections are action items with due dates. There are no measurable outcomes identified, thus, no accountability required. It appears the entire process as well as staff and management is “off the hook.”

The community will get no improvements in operation or efficiency of the bureaucracy that SCW has become. Look for big annual increases in membership fees to support staff and consultant time. This is clearly stated in the operating policy: “The Governing Board and the General Manager commit to making sure that staff have the time and resources to complete the projects in the plan.”

#
Sun City West Independent online, Monday, March 31, 2025, no subscription required:
https://www.yourvalley.net/sun-city...ent-isnt-a-fan-of-rcscw-strategic-plan,573014

 

Thanks Eyes Open! Let's learn from the SCW experience. A plan is only good if a majority of those necessary to implement it believe it is a good alternative. In this case, the author is clearly concerned about increases in annual assessments due to the cost of the planning process and does not see sufficient tangible benefits flowing from it. While the author does not identify a better way to go about it one can assume they are arguing that planning is a waste of time and money. Interestingly, the author uses RCSC as an example of efficiency but apparently does not recognize that we have a ton of deferred maintenance, and they do not. Moreover, from a reserve standpoint and utilization standpoint they are in much better shape than we are and they have always followed a plan. So, the choice would appear to be, have a plan for the future or be clueless about where we are headed. I will read their plan to judge its quality for myself.

 

One of the biggest benefits of a master plan is the effort to include community engagement and excitement that comes along with an expert helping devise a path forward. We've for far too long allowed a flawed and failed process of a GM's best guess or a handful of board members tell us what we/they want.

 

number 1 - there are NO experts.
number 2 - how is data collected from all clubs/amenities in Sun city?
if it is by the same way they collect attendees at meetings it is totally useless.
This is the 21st century. They stopped using manual counters years ago.
Stop comparing Sun City to SCW. The only thing we should be comparing us to SCW is the use of their technology.
The new web site should have the capability to conduct a poll, but I'll bet it does not.
Technology should be task ONE after Mountain View

 

I did some reading of the notes from the Technology Committee and the Outreach and Communication Committee and, in my opinion, are duplicating each other’s efforts using the same technology vendor. I found it even more interesting when I read in the comments that the company performing some of the upgrades is telling us what they won’t do to support the improvements that may need to be implemented. As I read the notes from these two committees, both of which are critical for improving the IT infrastructure, I noted both of these committees are chaired by the same director. I am in no way suggesting anything improper is going on, but when reading the reports, it seems as if the direction of both of these committees is being led by the director with little influence from the members of the committee. It also appears to me, that the process is being driven by the committee chair for both committees, who are depending upon the same vendor for completion of some of the IT projects. Why are two committees working on similar projects using the same vendor and not seeing a lot of forward movement? Why is the project, when tested, still producing significant software errors when tested? What was this vendor tasked with and was there a set of parameters to be met with a timeline for deliverables? Does this vendor provide the RCSC with a dedicated team for design and development of the required software or is this something being accomplished when they find the time?
My concern is the two committees going down the same path, using the same vendor, who is telling the committee what they won’t do. I also have a concern about these two committees being chaired by the same director and whether or not the efficiency of the committees is more or less being driven in a manner that creates lackluster results. I am the first to admit I have not attended any of these meetings, and am relying on minutes turned in by the committees themselves.
I am not reading any notes on tangible results. I am not seeing evidence of any effort to hold the vendor accountable for deliverables in a timely manner. I also find it interesting that the vendor is dictating what they will not provide to the RCSC for support. My experience has been when trying to piecemeal a project with different vendors, there can be a problems with what gets lost in the deliverables and the completed product.
As I mentioned earlier, the ability to create new opportunities for the RCSC to have member outreach via electronic media and social networking platforms should be considered a priority. As I read the comments from the committee’s report, I see no notes as to meeting established deadlines, or holding feet to the fire for a completion of usable projects. There are notes about meeting timelines for the summer.
If there is no sense of urgency placed on deliverables that are completed in a timely manner, with clear expectations for a quality product, it seems to me, we can not expect any real commitment for a finished product. In my opinion.

I now know the two committees are working in tandem with each other. This explains the similarities between them and their respective reporting. Having this information provides insight into the relationship between the two. I still have questions about timeliness of the deliverables for this project and what the membership should expect for a finished product.

 

Dave, I disagree. John

 

How many agree that this is what the majority of Sun City residents expect from a master plan process?

Moderator Insights Make A Master Plan Commitment Participants want a Master Plan Commitment They would like the commitment to include: from the Governing Board. 1. Transparency about the Master Plan Process 2. Decisions reflect utilization data of all amenities not just those used by clubs 3. Opportunities for Resident Engagement in both Concepts and Details 4. Timely Communication about decisions with rationale for decisions (communicate in e-news, emails, snail mail, newspaper and postings on easels in recreation centers) 5. Professional, thoughtful and measured (not spontaneous) plan execution 6. Unwavering Commitment to the plan, ”doesn’t change with board members” 7. Professional & Respectful Conduct at Governing Board/Public Meetings (a few participants said they’d be more likely to regularly watch or download the meetings if there was less bickering.

 

John, why is this board not open to your master plan process? I simply don't understand the closed in mindset. Not a good way to run a large community here.

 

So does everyone else!

 

1.Corporations have been doing master planning for decades. There is no need to reinvent the wheel on this. Hire a team of experts with master planning knowledge and experience and get it done.
2. Find a national organization to join for guidance and support for nonprofits and 55+ communities. I am sure there is something out there that would be appropriate. The Board should become a governing board and less of a working board. Too much time is required for them to serve in a volunteer capacity.
3. Most importantly, hire a competent general manager and give him/her clear direction from the get go. Then get out of his/her way but monitor and give feedback regularly, especially in the early stages.

This is not rocket science! Learn from our history, successes and mistakes but don't dwell on them. Let's move forward with enthusiasm and MUCH LESS complaining and criticism. All it takes is a positive outlook on our future.

 

Totally agree Janet!

 

I know John, we respectfully disagree on this point.

 

Eileen, I guess you can say LRP has made steps forward in this regard - we have just accomplished much work related to the scope, questions, scorecards for scoring consultants and finally an RFI. The RFI has been sent and we are awaiting the responses. More communication will be coming, as for now, we only did brief interviews of planning consultants to engage them in the RFI process (rather than just emailing a bunch blindly).

John has been suggesting a master plan for years now, and we are finally getting some legs to it, including an approved amt to engage the consultant . . . . LRP would not proceed forward without that commitment from the Board - and I did not turn over the developed scope until the same.

And yes, there is a Monitoring and Evaluation expectation of the plan represented in our scope document. And no it does not stop the progress on Mt. View.

Stay tuned for more as the process progresses.