Marketing 101...

Would you be surprised if i told you that most of the sales coming after DEVCO left were from those living here sharing their homes (and their love of the community) with their visitors. Of course you wouldn't. You said it above, word of mouth has always been Sun City's best method of reach. I've written that hundreds of times for anyone who wants to search my remarks.

It's circular SCG, always has been, hopefully some day we can return to that mindset. Historically we know everything DEVCO did was to make those living here feel like they made the right choice. Even before they moved in, they did outreach to those who placed money down on lots in case they had buyers remorse. It was an endless loop of affirmation.

The dividends it paid were massive with 170 million dollars of profit by 1980 when they left. For Meeker, it wasn't about the money, it was about the legacy they left behind. He was one of a handful who fully understood what they had created from the hardscrabble of cotton fields and citrus farms. His concern was always the looming question; without becoming a city, could it, would it survive?

It's one of the exact reasons Jane Freeman and others started the museum. She/they knew countless numbers would want to know how and why it worked. It's exactly why the interviews/oral histories with so many involved are invaluable. It's also why i am so stunned so many of those living here are clueless. It's all right there, all they need do is look.

The former general manager who decided we needed a new path, one where members weren't all that important, argued it was time. One where a small group would decide our best course of action and those moving here should just have fun. Like so many newer communities with no internal infrastructure, the idea was based on a failed and flawed assumption we didn't need people/members to succeed.

It was illogical to our history. It missed the most important aspect of the community...big picture Sun City. And what big picture Sun City included was the membership. They were from the outset an integral piece of the puzzle; arguably, the most important piece. Without them and their commitment, we became a poor man's version of newer communities. Cheaper became our salvation.

Clearly it wasn't the answer, any more than telling members they didn't matter.

Unless and until we understand the importance of every home sale and those moving in being our future, we will continue with poorly thought out decisions with even more ugly results.

It doesn't have to be this way.

 

Bill, I am concerned like you that maybe these recent years of BOD are functioning too much amongst themselves with there own thoughts and ideas taking presidence over the members.
I have been listening and observing for several years now and the thing that turns me off the most is some of our board members operate with the motivation of I know better than you, what we need here. Maybe the place always had that going on here...do you know if that was always a problem Bill? I think members like myself get turned off when we think that the board knows what is best for everyone and we are going to tell you kind of thing. Isn't this what is causing so much dissention? I think any board is going to have to find a balance between actually hearing what the members most want, and doing it. Also does our GM have guard rails? This may be a stretch for me, but I get the impression that the GM wants to bring in a lot of music concerts in here and that was the reason for the big push for building a PAC. The GM is in love with rock venues. Just wondering...that is all. He did allow a lot of maintenance to happen which was good, but don't feel SC should be a place just to come to hear vintage bands. Are we really serving all the folks living in here with that? Just asking....

 

All good questions Eileen and the answers historically are interesting. Mostly because before 2006, boards functioned closely with the committees that had been in place and given an amazing amount of leeway. Their purpose was clear, as they filled the role of the community's sounding board. No one committee was more valuable than the legal affairs committee. It acted as the buffer for all things that crossed lines regarding our documents. They were traditionalists and they insured any actions that strayed from what the Articles of Incorporation and the Bylaws called for was immediately put on hold.

It should come as no surprise that was the first committee the newly hired GM got rid of. Then the entertainment committee was dispatched, and while i was on the board they (GM and 7 board members) voted to get rid of the long range planning committee. They had put a monkey wrench in the GM's all golf/all the time plans with the costly (roughly 6 million dollar) Marinette remodel and she saw fit to encourage the board to vote them off the island. Carole and i voted no, but as usual, we were out voted 7/2.

This evolution to the GM and board being smarter than the collective body of 35,000 members started at that point. She had written new Bylaws repeatedly and the board simply rubber stamped everything she wrote. She consolidated the power and control in the GM's office and management team and reduced the workload on the board by doing all their research for them. At one point when i confronted the board president in a public setting about the folly of doing away with the long range planning committee, he arrogantly responded; " we have one, it's called the board."

Pretty easy to see how and why we quickly shifted from a bottom up organization to one where the power was now held in the hands of a few. Along the way, more than a couple of board members have quit as they have often seen their role (as one of 9) minimized with the officers within the RCSC becoming more important than the non-officers. Clearly they have additional duties, but they have lost sight of one board member/one vote.

By 2023, after 3 long years of the Sun City Advocates identifying and electing 9 candidates who ran on restoring members rights, we felt comfortable with the fact we were back to that place where members voices would be heard. Then, part way into 2024, Jean Totten and John Fast quit and we took a couple of backward steps. Replacements were quickly found and shortly thereafter the library fiasco unfolded.

Along with several other questionable actions by the GM, we watched as the remainder of 2024 created a host of frustrations. None more odd than trying to stick the PAC atop the Lakeview greens and jamming it through in a 3 week period. No one in their right mind on any RCSC board in our history would have attempted that kind of a power grab that quickly. And this was all from people i had great respect for. It simply defied logic.

Entering 2025, we are all seeing the aftermath of allowing free reign by the general manager in 2024. I just looked at the Dec 2024 year-end financials and there is a sea of red ink. No, we're not in dire financial straights, we simply allowed the GM to get out over his ski's. Organizations write budgets for a reason and the 2024 one missed on a dozen different projections. We've never functioned like that. We've always error on the side of being conservative.

I guess the good news is the new board president is vowing not to let that happen again. We'll see, because since 2006, the RCSC board had been neutered when it came to holding the GM and management team accountable. Realistically, that should be their first order of business.

We'll see eh?

 

I believe we heard that last year as well, you mentioned it before and I answered with the same response, plus I was going to look at past meetings to see how many times it was said. Have not had time.

 

I did not know how all that evolved Bill. You outlined this well. Can the GM's wishes overrule a sitting board? If the GM wanted to have ( libraries eliminated), he had the authority to set this in motion? He could come to board at any time and say, we are going to do this. What happens from there? Does he have to disclose all the items he is doing? If he does discuss all his ideas and the board goes along, when does membership get involved? As members here can we have community votes for the large changes? I have always been unclear on some of this. Thank you, Bill.

 

So, this is why i write it often as most folks reading here don't know. History clearly matters.

The GM is the one employee the board hires and fires. If he has a contract, then the terms of the contract apply. Arizona is a "employment at will" state so anyone can be fired with or without cause unless one could prove they had protections under one of the federal statutes. No idea if he has a contract or not. I do know if he does something that sets the community in a rage, continuing his/her employment is obviously in play.

Members showing up and speaking out is always valuable. During our 65 years, there have been at least a half-dozen advocacy groups formed for a variety of reasons. Some more effective than others. There is currently nothing in our documents allowing members the right to vote on large projects. The only time i know they did was regarding taking ownership of the Sun Bowl (1981).

Typically when a board wants to take an action, the obligation for ample notice and discussion is when members voices can be heard. There is language in our documents stating the board cannot assume "indebtedness" of more than $750k without a vote of the members. With PIF they have money in hand so no debt.

Finally, the members have an annual meeting to make motions that are properly submitted and fit the criteria set in our documents. We used to hold them quarterly with a quorum requirement of 100 members. In 2009 they changed it to 1250, we went 12 years with never meeting the quorum so no official meeting was held. In 2021 we scared the shit out of them with 1400 members (proxies and live bodies) and made motions from the floor.

One was regarding reducing the quorum to 500 members. They ignored it until 3 board members resigned going into 2023 and at that point wrote bylaws dropping it to 500. The next annual meeting is in a month or two. We need 500 members in attendance or by signing a proxy to hold the meeting.

Hope that helps.

 

Sun City, Arizona | Affordable, Beautiful, Active 55+ Community

16,528 views!
Great marketing of Sun City a year ago!
Read the comments, too!

Our RCSC employed Media department should be affordably creating a series of targeted marketing campaigns for social media!!

 

The guy is a realtor marketing himself.