Interesting Months Ahead

As the 1st of September rolls around, there is a lot to look forward to these next few months. The additional meetings from TriArc about Mounntainview should be a dynamic presentation with the goal of moving forward as soon as possible.

Then the Bylaws review should also be offered soon, as referenced by the dates posted. This, too, shall be quite interesting for the members and the corporation.

Then at some point, the readout about the votes that were denied during the annual meeting. Let us hope information is available and provided in a clear and concise way. No legalese or double intraday with the intent to avoid the issue at hand. Here’s hoping the RCSC board treats this situation with honesty and transparency in regards to these issues. Also, some humility from the board, in regards as to how the RCSC board handled the situation may be in order.

There are numerous meetings outlined on the board agenda. Hopefully, this will provide better clarity about the issues needing to be addressed and offer members a clear explanation and direction for moving forward. My hope would be more member engagement and less formality.

I know the rollout of the new website has been a hallmark event every one with electronic media has been anticipating. I truly wish the board would consider print media, piggybacking with the Independent for delivery to possibly reduce costs. When we lost Sunviews , this community fell apart. Everyone I knew would discuss the articles and it provided info to all who subscribed. That major community link is gone, and I, for one, miss the sharing of the news in print format with others in my household a well as others in the community. Snowbirds would take copies back home for sharing with friends and neighbors, helping to sell the community. Grow the circle needs poignant communication and sharing with everyone, not just via electronic media. There are too many people in Sun City being left out because they don’t have the ability or means to communicate in this manner. So, bravo for the new website. I hope someone takes note that community communication is more than electronic media. My opinion.

 

Just a few thoughts on your post, Carole:
As the 1st of September rolls around, there is a lot to look forward to these next few months. The additional meetings from TriArc about Mounntainview should be a dynamic presentation with the goal of moving forward as soon as possible.
Sun City Players are advertising three performances this year - all to be held at Mountain View so it will be interesting to see how much will actually be accomplished by TriArc. If wishes were horses, the beggars would ride.....
Then the Bylaws review should also be offered soon, as referenced by the dates posted. This, too, shall be quite interesting for the members and the corporation.
Not trying to be a Debbie Downer here, but I really doubt there are that many Members who are interested in the Bylaws. Unfortunately.
Then at some point, the readout about the votes that were denied during the annual meeting. Let us hope information is available and provided in a clear and concise way.
Please enlighten me (and possibly others) as to what the readout about the votes denied means? What did you hear the Board was going to provide? This statement has me perplexed.
There are numerous meetings outlined on the board agenda. Hopefully, this will provide better clarity about the issues needing to be addressed and offer members a clear explanation and direction for moving forward. My hope would be more member engagement and less formality.
The Board and communication employees have done a remarkable job of presenting us with a fall full of meetings to attend. Important meetings - Mountain View, Bylaws and The Budget.
I know the rollout of the new website has been a hallmark event every one with electronic media has been anticipating.
Yes, I, too, hope that the Website roll-out is a BIG DEAL. It has been anticipated by many and sorely needed. Hopefully there will be lots of explanations on how to use it.
I truly wish the board would consider print media, piggybacking with the Independent for delivery to possibly reduce costs. When we lost Sunviews , this community fell apart.
Correct me if I am wrong, but I don't think that we have LOST Sunviews. We still have a monthly printed newspaper that is available to download or picked up at each of the Recreation Centers and the library. What would be ideal is a special edition devoted to the new website. There should also be some computer kiosks available at each Recreation Center for Members to use after signing in to their account.

Something that I am looking forward to is the work and advancement of two things: the Committees, and the idea of a better method to educate our homeowners - especially our new homeowners - as they embark on their years here.

I hope the Bylaws Committee realized that the community (Members) are smart enough to become a Co-Chair of every committee. Our dollars make everything here happen; let's reflect that by listening to the Members and giving them a chance to participate.

And let's resurrect a Welcome Wagon Committee or an Ambassador Committee. Perhaps that could come under the wing of the Communications and Outreach Committee. Knowledgeable current Members of Sun City could answer questions and do a more thorough job of communicating the "whys, wherefores, and rules" and the "spirit" of our community in person - rather than a stapled, in-house (printed in black and white) booklet handed to them when they arrive at the Cardholder office that first time to pick up their cards.

Thank you.
Jean Totten as One Day at a Time

 

Jean, the members have a voice now to participate but l large amount choose not to show up to committee meetings. A case in point is the Insurance committee. The committee voted to recommend the renewal package of coverage to the Board at an annual of $1.75M of the members money and not one member ever showed to any meeting, but bellyached about the cost. It would make no difference if a member was co-chair as I still believed no member would have attended.

I have personally invited members to attend these meeting but I hear the same old justification, I don’t know anything about insurance. My response has always been that it would make no difference as our insurance brokers are very knowledgeable and discuss the state of the insurance market for each coverage, what our experience has been and anticipated increases or maybe deceases. If you have a question, the brokers are happy to answer.

Remember that it is your money and if you are not part of the solution, you are part of the landscape. You don’t attend, you are part of the landscape and have no grounds to bellyache.The first meeting is in March of 2026 on the third Friday at 9AM in the Board room. The brokers also bring donuts as an incentive to attend. The meeting will be in the email blas for that week.

 

Hi Jean,

It was my understanding that the motions that were withdrawn from the membership meeting for further review, were to be made available in October. This was the date offered to reveal the results of the attorneys review of the submitted documents. I would need to scour TOSC to relocate the conversations around the documents and the timing for the review report.
I will follow up as soon as I find the information.
Carole

 

Jean,
March 11, 2025 Annual Membership Meeting
(Ad Hoc Bylaws Committee)

Per the minutes, Foster explains, in great detail, the purpose of the formation of an Ad Hoc Bylaws Committee. He asks for volunteers.
See pages 3 & 4 HERE

View the video of Foster HERE at 13:30

❗️Reminder the Proposed Motions
➡️ Read the 18 member proposed motions here: https://suncityaz.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/02_27_25-Proposed-Motions.pdf

 

Jean,

Please see excerpt extracted from the minutes, per President Foster.

'There is no specific time frame for the Ad Hoc Committee to complete its assignments. Addressing some of the Member proposed motions may take less time than others and hopefully some of the Member proposed motions can be resolved relatively quickly. That said, my charge to those serving on this committee is that they reach recommendations for consideration by the 2025 October Board Meeting. Thus, if you wish to volunteer, you should be aware there will likely be meetings and discussions over the summer months.'

This is the date that stuck in my mind, hence the reference to October of this year.

I also take issue with the existence of the Sunviews being available to everyone. The number of people who no longer drive, live alone, and do not have electronic media is still around the 22% mark as per the latest numbers I read from the latest U.S. Census results. This means that almost 25% of the residents are not getting timely information available to them. The idea that electronic media is the answer to member outreach is, in my opinion, bunk. When a community knowingly excludes a certain percentage of the population, ones still living within our own community, by saying electronic media is your answer and come to the centers is the only way to be informed, is , again in my opinion, a sad state of affairs. Why is it always up to the member to come to the RCSC? Why cant the members expect to receive a small community newsletter, perhaps included with the Independent, to come to their home? Are they not paying enough in their yearly assessment for some sort of consideration that news can come to them in print, with colorized options, pointing out events and activities coming up? I feel it is a duty to reach all of the members, not just those with electronics. If someone doesnt want to receive the information, they can opt out.

I know I have been beating this same old drum about print media. But we live in a community, that although changing, is still got a number of elderly who do not use or want to use electronic communication. By turning a blind eye to the needs of the entirety of the community, we are ignoring far too many people.

Thank You eyesopen for providing the link to the date above.

I authored a post earlier about the need to possibly utilize the visitors center as a hub for new member orientation as well as a place to welcome new and those seeking to move to the area, a place for information. We do virtually nothing to make members feel welcomed once they have gone through their home closing, and do even less to seek new homeowners to the area. The visitors center can be made to be Sun City Central with the addition of colorized brochures, greeters that are well informed about the community, and offer a warm and inviting opportunity to come and view the literature and meet with the staff, even on Saturday. The need to be available to the time when people are available to come and visit, not just during limited business hours.

I am backing away from the computer now. I get so adamant as to what can be done, versus what we are doing, and my heart breaks. Thank you for your time today, it is appreciated,

 

Gotta disagree with your statement about being part of the landscape. We members are part of the “process” whether or not we attend any committee meeting. And absolutely nothing wrong with a good “bellyache” when we disagree with decisions made by the BOD. Cases in point: $40,000,00o MV initial plan, and the plan to build a PAC on lawnbowl greens at Lakeview. Please don’t censure us members because we are not in attendance at meetings. I sure hope the BOD folks don’t have this same attitude, and if they do maybe it’s part of the problem.

 

TY. ROFLMAO!

 

I have always been a fan of the printed word, i still am to this day. I wasn't pleased when the RCSC dropped delivery service, but i also knew the reach via the Independent wasn't very good (less than 50%). I also have found myself more focused on how much stuff costs. Back in the days of small lot assessment, or none at all, it didn't matter as much. These days there need be an awareness of the return on investment. Costs truly do matter.

Given the discussion, i took the time to open the RCSC Sept Update and compared it to the RCSCW (Sun City West) Sept Rec Center News. There is no comparison. The RCSC is 16 pages, the RCSCW is 32 pages. Let me be clear, that's not the biggest difference. Years ago the RCSCW hired a reporter from the Independent and she is still with them. She's been promoted several times (i think) but her influence is abundantly obvious.

Here are the links to the two digital versions, no idea if they will open:
RCSC.
RCSCW.

I don't see the future of the print media as being very bright. Sorry for those of us loving the printed word, but the dumbing down of America is upon us and meme and AI will only make it worse. The upside of the 32 pages the RCSCW has published is at least half is created by the members and the clubs they belong to. That used to be an integral part of the RCSC's efforts but we ran from that as well.

It would behoove someone to find out the particulars of the RCSCW's monthly production cost and related delivery charges.

 

SCW has a stunning brochure. Makes me want to take a look at everything. Wish I had an extra 6k laying around.

 

Perhaps AI would be a benefit? It would help with content and give us more pages.

It was good to see the ad for "Newcomers." Duh!

That's a great idea. I still think the RCSC should establish a Journalist Club that could interface with the Outreach and Communication Club. The Journalist Club could buy some used printing equipment and the RCSC could publish their own Newspaper along with the many other print items?

Heck, we see all the equipment the Woodworking and Metal Clubs have. Why not a printing press? And I'm sure we have retired journalists in the community. Rusty Bradshaw????

 

Bill,
RCSCW doesn’t mention mailing news and information to members, only reference electronic delivery, their website and social media.However, on their newsletter, they credit the Independent for printing and list the advertising phone number.

“NEWS AND REPORTS
Our Information
The Recreation Centers of Sun City West strives to keep its members informed. Learn what management discussed last week by reviewing the weekly GM Reports. Pore over the numbers by reading the latest monthly Financial Reports or view the most recent edition of the Rec Center News. You can also read the latest press releases from the Rec Centers to stay informed about important updates.

Want weekly community news sent straight to your inbox? Sign up for the Sun City West Enews! Every Wednesday at 3 p.m., you will be sent a weekly newsletter containing the latest updates from the Rec Centers’ Events Department, Trips and Tours, Library, Sports Pavilion and Golf.

Sign up for Enews
Spend a lot of time browsing Facebook or Twitter? The Recreation Centers of Sun City West are also on several social media websites, giving the community another avenue of staying in touch with the latest news and updates. Give us a like or follow!
#
Source HERE

Also, at the August Meet with Mike, he said the cost of including RCSC’s monthly UPDATE with a mailed Sun City Independent edition would be $16,000 (publishing, inserting, postage, etc.) which currently is NOT mailed to ALL Sun City residents. (Not a viable solution.)

❗️Cost quote is NOT per month❗️

 

FYI,
(AI generated.)
Hot press printing has gone to cold printing:
Newspapers still use printing presses to produce physical copies, but they are modern, offset printing presses, not the older, Gutenberg-style hot metal presses.

These presses use digital plates and rubber blankets to transfer images to rolls of paper, which are then cut into pages.

While the technology has changed, the fundamental process of using a press to apply ink to paper remains.

(Quite a large startup investment in necessary equipment for RCSC to consider. In my opinion.)

 

That cost quoted is per month? And not mailed to every home? The Sunviews was not printed in-house, it was always printed by the Independent.

To piggyback, in print, onto the Independent is being quoted as $16000 per month? I don’t find that number to be reasonable. The Independent itself probably doesn’t create that kind of revenue in Sun City, so why would it snub its nose at adding some additional revenue. The Independent and Sun City have not always enjoyed a friendly relationship, as I recall, which was one more reason a former GM relished the cancellation of the Sunviews.
Right now, I am searching for alternative publishing options beyond the Independent. I also am going to do some reading on bulk rate mailing costs for nonprofit organizations.
I will be the first one to admit I was wrong in my opinion about print media and its costs once I search other publishers and mailing options.
But, should reasonable options be available, I will scream it from the rooftops, repeatedly.

 

I still have my PR and marketing peeps from Sun Health, Banner and 2 independents who worked with us. I will not give their names now, however if you would like me to contact them I will.

That SCW brochure was awesome.

 

That might be an excellent resource pool. I feel with that many possibilities, there may be some opportunities for producing a good product for a reasonable amount.

 

The two sole proprietorships may be good resources. They both produce awesome content and are less expensive than large corps.

 

Please pursue your contacts using some of the generic information I included on other sites that offer an overview of services offered, pages printed on matte paper, folded, 8 page newsletter, utilizing non-profit bulk mailing rates with a 6 day lead time. Also include recycling of the mailing unable to deliver.
Additional 5000 printed in color on bond to create handouts for visitors who come to the visitor center seeking information. The amount will probably be 5000 every 6 months.

A special budget for a handout brochure to be fulll colo, gloss bond, 28 pages thick, delivered to the visitor centers for handouts to new home buyers.
My initial costs for the monthly newsletter, mailed , to 75% of homes, per some online information calculator is around $8000 per month to reach the membership of Sun City. This would not utilize the independent, but rather our own independent publisher with input from local writing staff.
Once we have an idea of cost. A provider of the service, then finding writing staff, photographer, and proofreaders will be a must for a complete Sun city NewsViews paper. Would Rusty Bradshaw be willing to author, editorialize and forward for publication in a timely manner.
Lots to wrap one’s arms around.

 

I sent a request to the RCSCW about the amount they pay for printing and mailing their community newspaper, and here is their response:


Hello Carole,

Thank you for your questions. It costs us about $36,000 a year to print the Rec Center News. That cost is going up slightly with a change to USPS delivery instead of home delivery, but it will stay under $40,000. That doesn’t include staff time.



I was under the impression Sun City still printed its local RCSC newsletter. Is that not the case? When they did print it, it was under the same scenario as us. The Independent handles the printing and distribution, and they are allowed to offset their costs (and lower ours) by selling ads in the back of the newspaper. Ads that conflict with RCSCW business can be refused by us.



I hope that answers your questions. Please let me know if there are any others I can help with.



Thanks

Katy



Katy O’Grady

General Services Officer

Office: 623-544-6027
Fax: 623.544.6050
katy.ogrady@suncitywest.com

Recreation Centers of Sun City West Inc.

19803 RH Johnson Blvd., Sun City West, AZ 85375

suncitywest.com

This amount is not $16,000 per month. If a community editorial staff was assembled, utilizing on staff video and other media resources, and seek volunteers to do be the reporter about clubs and their events, the editorial costs could be reduced.
And as noted, the ads sold reduced costs for production.
This is just one result. There are others that I am waiting for a response from.
An annual cost to provide outreach to the members as well as others in our community should be considered invaluable. In my opinion

 

Katy O'Grady might well have been Sun City West's best hire; ever. Her communication style has always leaned into open and direct without being insulting or degrading. Kudos to the boards and the GM's over the years who allowed her to flourish and bloom.

Think in these terms; good employees who are micro-managed and limited to what the GM wants, are never able to reach their full potential.

We suffered through too many years of controlled leadership who saw fit to save us (the membership) from what we wanted/needed.

Sun City West elected years back to use Tittle 33 as their guiding light. Sun City fought it every step of the way.

You be the judge on which direction worked best?