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The
POA announced in the previous issue that it would be looking into the problems
with The Villages Regional Hospital (TVRH).
We asked that anybody with any story about their experiences with TVRH
either write or email to us with the details.
To date we have received 42 communications with detailed stories about
the hospital. We
urge any other residents who may have information about the operations of the
hospital to also contact us. This
information can be either good, bad or indifferent.
You can either write or email to us at the addresses listed on page 15
of this issue of the Bulletin. Of
the 42 responses received thus far, 29 (69%) listed excessive wait times as
the main complaint. Many of these
wait times were in excess of 8 hours. Most
of these expressed understanding that accident, heart attack, legitimate
emergencies, etc., take precedence. But,
under-staffing at critical times seems to be the rule rather than the
exception at TVRH. And, many of
these people who had to wait long hours had what would appear to be medical
problems that demanded attention within a reasonable period of time. We
noted in the stories provided that some of the complaints came from people who
became discouraged at the long wait and just left.
One could question whether these people were legitimate emergencies in
need of Emergency Room (ER) services. However,
when it is Saturday night, or midnight during the week, and no urgent care
centers are open, what are these people to do?
As a hospital serving the community, TVRH should be properly staffed
and ready and able to help these people in need.
It is not helpful in the discussion to say that these people should
have a regular doctor who can see them during normal office hours and then
deny them emergency care or make them wait an excessive amount of time. Another
problem with the hospital is with rude and inattentive staff.
Twenty of the letters we received (48%) mentioned rude or inattentive
staff as a negative feature of their experience with the hospital.
Frankly,
we were appalled at some of the stories we received.
It is one thing to say that the hospital capacity in the wards or the
ER is full and unable to accept more patients.
It is a whole different story to identify rude or inattentive personnel
dealing with patients in pain or in need of assistance.
This is a management and training issue.
And, on this point, we would recommend disciplinary action for the
offensive staff in question. There
is no excuse for the actions and attitudes of some of the personnel described
in the letters and emails we received. Another
point mentioned was exorbitant charges in 21% of the letters.
We realize that good medical care is expensive.
However, that statement should not be considered as a green light or
justification for some of the outrageous charges documented in the letters and
emails we received. On
the plus side, we received five letters (12%) from residents who had a positive
or satisfactory experience with the hospital.
But, 12% is abysmally low. TVRH
needs to address this unacceptably low mark. We
ask that residents with experiences with the hospital continue to send their
stories to us at: poa4us@gmail.com . Your
inputs are needed in this effort. Your
stories are important. If you
don’t write to us or email us, we may conclude that the problems seen thus far
are not widespread or representative of the total picture. We
will summarize and tabulate the results. We
will discuss the results with hospital officials and see what can be done.
The current situation is unacceptable – we must see positive steps
taken to address these issues and solve the problems.
We are working on concepts for a Hospital Patients’ Bill of Rights.
This is preliminary for now, but we also need your input and suggestions.
Perhaps
we need to get TVRH’s agreement on the idea that typical ER patients should be
seen by the triage nurse within, say, thirty minutes of arrival and by a doctor
within, say, one hour of arrival. Obviously,
real emergencies in life threatening situations need to be seen immediately.
Perhaps we need a functioning Ombudsman to represent the interests of
both ER and in-patients. Perhaps
hospital staff should go through sensitivity training.
Perhaps foreign staff with limited English skills should attend on-site
English language improvement classes. Maybe
TVRH needs to do a better job of coordinating its activities with those of
surrounding urgent care centers. Why
not have the triage nurse tell some patients with less than serious problems at
3 a.m. to go to an urgent care center that is open all night or go to their
regular doctor the next morning? Maybe
it is time for the Bottom
lines on this article:
In
the February, 2008, POA Bulletin, I wrote an article about the Inferior
Workmanship that had taken place in the When
we the residents of The Villages bought our homes in good faith, with the
belief that our retirement years would be spent enjoying the wonderful
amenities that The Village has to offer, we did not plan on spending our
time dealing with the many problems that have occurred due to faulty
construction of our homes. Our
homes here in The Villages may be the last home we will be investing in and
eventually passing on to those that we love. Let’s
not stand by and let certain contractors continue to offer us resistance in
fixing the homes that we paid for and were promised to be standards of
excellence. Take
time to review The Villages publications about all the high quality standards
that the builders and inspectors promised us when we purchased our homes.
Then make sure that they follow through with their stated promises. I
am asking that if any resident in The Villages has had problems with any type
of construction in their homes, please contact me at the email address below,
so that we can document these problems and perhaps eventually we can get a
remedy: mcarole94@yahoo.com to
me — or to the POA directly at poa4us@gmail.com
.
The
next POA membership meeting will be on Tuesday, April 15, in the big room
(Lincoln) at the We
have changed meeting days (from the third Wednesday to the third Tuesday) in
order to have our meetings in the bigger room.
This should eliminate the “standing room only” situations we have had
in the past. Janet
Tutt, District Administrator for The Villages, will speak on New Services and
Features of our District Governments and how these serve you best.
The
comment is often made that the POA is too negative and complains all the time.
Do you really think this is true? You,
the reader, should study the recent Bulletin issues and articles. (You can see
five years of the Bulletins by month in the Archives section of the POA
website.) Recent
issues have focused on the vinyl siding problem, the shoddy workmanship
problems, the problems with the hospital, and the lawsuit settlement with the
developer. Earlier issues focused
on the Nancy Lopez pond sinkhole repair cost, the So,
if the POA reports on these issues, is that complaining in a negative sense? If
you think it is, you have missed the point. The
point is that the POA is addressing serious and often under-reported problems in
this community about which you need to be informed.
And,
your displeasure, if any, should be directed at the Daily Sun for lack of
comprehensive reporting or our government’s central districts (VCCDD and SLCDD)
or the developer for not disclosing important facts that residents need to know.
You
should not be displeased with the POA for its reporting.
Please don’t kill the messenger. If
you review Bulletin stories over the years, you will see that the POA’s
motivation is to identify issues that, if resolved, will make The Villages an
even better place in which to live. Don’t
you think that residents in The Villages have a right to know the important news
in our community? The POA thinks so.
Don’t
you think that the Daily Sun has a responsibility as our community newspaper to
report the important local news without bias or censorship? The POA thinks so. Don’t
you think that our local central governments should publicize their major
decisions for all to know? The POA thinks so. If
the traditional information sources in The Villages aren’t doing their job to
properly inform you, aren’t you happy that at least the POA tries to do so? Please
answer “yes” to all of the above questions. A
“no” response suggests your preference for a totalitarian state where a
dictator rules, where somebody else makes decisions for you, where the wool is
pulled over your eyes by the existing powers, where your intelligence is
insulted every day by officials that say you don’t need to know ... or
shouldn’t know. Pity
us if The Villages ever comes to that! The
POA is often the one information source that stands between you and blissful
ignorance. So, the next time you hear someone saying that the POA is a bunch of negative crybabies, please think long and hard about what the alternatives are. The
POA Board of Directors is proud to announce two new directors. Pete
Frano comes to us after a career in the Marines and seven years experience as
the president of a condo board. He
also served on the Ross Perot political team and various political position in
Carol
Martin has a bachelors and masters degree in accounting and business and a
doctorate in Pastoral Psychology. She
has served as a consultant in financial matters for a drug abuse foundation
and as the founder and financial officer in her own company which manufactured
components for custom vehicles. Carol
lives with her husband Eric in the Please
join with your POA Board of Directors in congratulating and welcoming Pete and
Carol to their new duties on our POA Board. The
POA has additional Director positions open and encourages anyone interested in
serving on the POA Board to contact Joe Gorman at 259-0999 for more
information.
The
Article “What Are Those Blue Reflectors?” contained some interesting
information as I have seen them and had no idea of their purpose.
However the writer of this article must really be upset with The
Villages’ powers that be to criticize The Villages free snow removal policy.
Naming “snowplows” as one of the sources of blue reflector removal is just
beyond the cup. John
Obrien Mar 9: Will the new shopping center across from Home Depot be cart accessible? If a pedestrian can cross from Petco to Longhorn, why not a golf cart light for the same purpose? We don't think that it should be limited to street legal carts only. What can be done to promote this? Just
a comment about the recycling program: Eleven
years ago Pete Wahl told me Editor’s
Note: Comment for the developer:
This is a good point. Where does all
that money ($1.47 per month per household) go?
If there are now really 40,000 homes in The Villages, then $1.47 per
month per household equals apx. $700,000 per year.
It
would be helpful for the understanding of residents on this important issue if
the developer would publish information on where this $700,000 goes and what
revenues or profit are being earned by whom for all the recyclable materials
produced by residents. The
POA Bulletin has become nothing more that a forum for people to b_____ and
complain. The POA Bulletin should
be renamed, The POA B_ _ _ h & Complain Bulletin. I
have lived in The Villages for four years and could not be happier over these
four years. I have met 100's of
people and, with the exception of three or four, I would say the people I talk
to love The Villages and don't seem to have all the issues that your POA
members do ... wonder why? Anytime
you have 30,000 homes in a small area you are going to have some issues.
While the POA is a great idea, unfortunately it has become outlet for
people who have far too much time on their hands to bitch and moan about
things. I can guarantee you these
same people were bitching and moaning just like they are today where they were
living before relocating to The Villages. If
you follow the proper procedure for reporting a problem issue, whether it be
your home or what ever and you do not get a reasonable response or a solution,
sue the hell out of whomever has wronged you and stop moaning and groaning
about the same issue week after week, month after month, i.e. the vinyl siding
issue. Question:
How many more months do we have to listen to the vinyl siding rehash? Those
Villagers who hate everything need to sell and move back to the Northeast, Why
not a POA Bulletin with positive comments about The Villages, for the 1000's
of us who love The Villages, we are tired hearing all the negatives. Garvin
Bailey Editor’s
Note: The POA believes that living in The Villages is 90% great – not
good, great. However, we have
roughly 10% of problems, issues, concerns, etc., that we are trying to address
so as to make this community an even better place in which to live.
We sometimes succeed, as we all did recently with the lawsuit
settlement that will recover $40 million for our amenity funds to maintain
this community in the years ahead. Surely,
Mr. Bailey, you have to acknowledge our efforts to achieve that.
If
we see issues and concerns, we want to point those out and try to get a
resolution favorable for residents. So,
if we do point those out, and sometimes sound negative because of the nature of
the problem, please do not kill the messenger. The
vinyl siding issue is still festering. Should
we now shut-up? Or, should we
continue our crusade on behalf of residents to try to get a favorable
resolution? If you just spent
$200,000 on a vinyl sided house and had these problems, you just might want to
support the POA in its efforts on your behalf. It
is the year 2033, just about 60 years or so since the mobile home park called The
population of The Villages now totals 187,000.
The cities of The
Villages now extends from just south of Belleview to the old city of Initially,
the growth of the Villages was welcomed by many.
But, traffic, taxes, and water problems have reared their ugly heads
and soured many on what was supposed to be a bigger and better paradise. Water
is a good example of these woes. When
the aquifer under All
homes were forced to convert their lawns from grass to rock pebbles so as to
save on outside watering expenses. Red
and blue pebbles were designer colors; brown and yellow were premier colors.
Priority members could use green pebbles.
Villas had to use orange pebbles. And,
all private pools and hot tubs were banned and required to be removed or
filled in with concrete. The
Villages’ desalination facility close to The
Villages tired of polo in 2017 and there was a debate in the community about
what to do with the polo facility and field.
There was a brief consideration about buying and moving the Chicago
Cubs to The Villages. After the
Wrigley Field riots in 2008, however, it looked like everybody finally got
fed-up with the Cubs and nobody wanted them here.
Since
the Cubs didn’t make the move, the VCCDD and the SLCDD decided to turn the
polo fields into The Villages Cemetery. This
was an instant hit, with people dying to get in.
Some people were upset with the requirement that bodies be buried
standing up to conserve space. And,
monthly amenity fees have to be paid in perpetuity. The
hospital expanded to 400 beds in 2014 and then to 737 beds in 2019.
The 17-story hospital has emerged as a world-renowned teaching facility
for the study of geriatrics and ranks as one of the top ten hospitals in the In
2018 it discovered and then conducted successful clinical trials for the cure
for Alzheimer’s disease. Another
discovery at the hospital was that Billy Bowlegs beer, brewed locally by The
Villages, was a significantly better hair restorer than Rogaine.
However, it only worked on half of the patients, and the other half ended
up with permanent brown stains on their bald heads. Unfortunately,
the Hospital Emergency Room was closed in 2011 after three skeletons were
discovered in the ER waiting room that had been there waiting for over six
months. Hospital officials denied
knowing that these patients were there. However,
these patients were each billed a daily room charge for the entire time as well
as $7,357.95 for aspirin. The
Amenity Fee rose to $318.00 per month in 2017 and now stands at $615.00 in 2033.
As a consequence, 27% of Villages residents now qualify for food stamps. The
building occupied by the VCCDD and the SLCDD District governments was swallowed
by a giant sinkhole in 2020. Some
thought this was God’s sense of humor. The
conversion of Katie Belle’s to a McDonald’s franchise has finally improved
the quality of food and service. The
23-story, high rise apartment building known as El Fleece Em Mucho, built on the
site of the filled-in Paradise Lake, has fared poorly.
The building was turned over to the Florida Department of Elder Affairs
in 2019 to house low-income seniors. However,
it was too expensive, never popular, and closed in 2025.
The vacant building is an eyesore, and various resident groups,
overcoming apathy (to the surprise of all), wanted the building torn down and
the lake restored. The local governments said it wasn’t their problem and
residents were on their own. The
POA is the most popular homeowners’ organization in The Villages.
Its championing of Residents’ Rights finally caught on with residents
by 2010, and in 2011 the POA surpassed the declining membership total of the VHA.
The POA Bulletin won the Pulitzer Prize for Community News Reporting in
2012 for its series on CDD abuses and solutions. Everything
considered, life is great in The Villages. Hopefully,
the next 25 years will be as wonderful as the last 25. See you again in 2058. April
Fools We
have recently heard from a number of Villagers who have told us that when
contractors come to their homes in response to their calls for siding repairs,
the contractors have been polite and accommodating.
This is a good thing—but only if the contractor follows up with
quality repairs, and is not just full of more talk, or just trying to persuade
the homeowner that repairs are not needed. Last
week, a walk around seven brand new homes in Mariel Villas revealed about 20
types of siding flaws. While
this is certainly an improvement over the usual average of 20 per home, it is
still far from the quality one would expect on new homes in a development whose
PR boasts of its quality. We still
wonder who is inspecting these homes because we just can’t understand why
these problems have not already been discovered and corrected on these brand new
homes. It would be such a pleasure
to walk around some new homes and find that they have been sided by the book,
but it still hasn’t happened. And
it seems we will still have more and more residents who have to struggle to get
repairs after they discover that they did not get what they paid for. Why
is it that a developer capable of envisioning and producing a development this
extensive cannot seem to get a handle on something as simple as vinyl siding
installations? They have engineers
and architects, designers, superintendents and inspectors, who have been
educated, certified and licensed. Why
is this so baffling for them? Why
can’t they seem to build straight walls and sheath, wrap and side properly for
a correct, functional and attractive result?
Why should people who cannot perform work according to instruction
manuals, especially those referenced by state codes, be allowed to retain their
licenses and certification? We
have had feedback from residents telling us one contractor remarked that Siding
Committee members are too particular. Is
it “too particular” to want something done correctly, following
manufacturer’s instructions, and in this case, state code? We
are presently investigating the procedure to have certification withdrawn from
those who are unwilling or unable to install vinyl siding according to the
manufacturers’ instructions or those who are unwilling or unable to fix their
mistakes without the need for multiple recalls. One
of our Siding Committee members visited a home in Winifred on March 18th. The
homeowner told us that when he called Home Warranty to report the problems
that had been found, they told him not to believe the POA because, they say,
we exaggerate the problems. It
looks as if we are going backwards again. Remember last year when Home Warranty
personnel and various contractors were telling homeowners that there was nothing
wrong with their homes? Remember the
spin about the problems being overstated and blaming everything on a
“troublemaker?” And then there
was the effort to make everyone think the problems were found in only one
neighborhood. That
was before hundreds and hundreds of homes had repairs done including moderate to
extensive work that sometimes required complete removal of the siding, and
corrections on framing and/or sheathing as well.
If the POA had not pressed on in its effort to make homeowners aware,
would anyone’s home have been fixed? Consider
how many thousands of dollars in repairs these homeowners have saved by holding
The Villages and their contractors accountable for the shoddy work that was
done. Could
this latest remark possibly have been made because Home Warranty doesn’t want
to fix the problems and would rather have you think there are no problems? Recently,
in If
we are exaggerating the problems, as they said to that homeowner in Winifred,
why have so many homes been re-sided and repaired throughout The Villages?
Why have our Siding Committee members found so many flaws on siding
installations—to date almost 1000 homes throughout all the neighborhoods that
we, or independent inspectors, have visited?
If one compares the documentation of actual flaws that have been found to
the manufacturer’s installation manual, we think the answer is obvious.
We are not exaggerating. We
are just showing you what’s really there. Open
Letter to Mr. Kass, President of the Villages Homeowners Association: Mr.
Kass, we have some questions and comments: What
do you think of the Vinyl Siding situation in The Villages now?
Do you still think it is being blown out of proportion or overstated as
you said months ago in The Voice, or have you changed your position?
If you don’t want to reply to us, perhaps a member of the VHA will
ask you this during an upcoming meeting. Close
to 1000 homes have been observed by our committee members or inspected by
independent inspectors and we still haven’t found even one home – in any
neighborhood – that was fully sided in accordance with the manufacturer’s
instructions. POA
Vinyl Siding Committee members have volunteered for 19 months now in support of
the Residents’ Right to have some professional quality in the construction of
our homes, specifically in vinyl siding installations. Our Committee members
have responded to residents’ requests for help with this issue regardless of
whether they belong to the VHA or the POA—or neither. We have gotten a lot
accomplished, and we can get a lot more done with the support of the VHA on this
serious matter. Here is an opportunity for you to prove to Villages residents
that you do care about their homes and the quality of construction in The
Villages. We
have heard that the VHA told some homeowners who inquired about the siding
situation to contact the POA about it. Why don’t you, as a larger and more
influential organization, act to help the residents? We
have also heard that F&R, who you previously referred to as the largest
siding contractor in Mr.
Kass, we noted your comment in the March 18th Daily Sun: “When we work
together in a cooperative approach, we can get more accomplished than with
confrontation.” While your remark was in regard to the hoped-for postal
facility, which the POA also supports, we think the same should hold true for
the widespread vinyl siding problems, or any other problems faced by Villages
residents. Your remarks urge the community to “get involved” regarding the
postal facility. Shouldn’t the VHA also get involved to resolve the siding
problems? Now
is time for the VHA to climb aboard and support the residents regarding the
siding issue. Wasn’t there something in your oath of office about helping,
representing or supporting residents of The Villages? After all, your
organization is called Homeowners Association, not Developers Association. If
you want to talk, please call Joe Gorman, president of the POA, and get together
for a cup of coffee to talk about how your two organizations can work together
to get this problem solved. We
are looking forward to your response in the next issue of The VHA Voice. The
Village Greens is very pleased to see that many Villagers have jumped on the
bandwagon and are participating in the Recycling Program. Over 70% of
Villagers have participated in the first few weeks and we anticipate that this
number will increase. There have been a few expected glitches. I spoke with
the trash pick up company and they are more than willing to do all they can to
correct any problems. I
suggest that if you put your recyclables on one side of the driveway and the
regular trash on the other side that it might prevent confusion. The
Village Greens will be devoting the month of April to a special
awareness of Florida Friendly Yards. We will stress the importance of proper
irrigation, water conservation, and the planting of drought resistant lawns,
shrubs, and trees. Our guest speaker for the April 23rd meeting will be Jim
Davis head of The University of Florida’s Extension Department. On April 5th
at 10 AM, at the The
Village Greens will also be on the Square at Sumter Landing selling plants and
giving away saplings on the evening of April 25th. Please contact me if you are interested in having us address Village clubs on topics relating to the environment. Sue
Michalson Chairwoman,
Village
Greens The
recycling program is off to a successful start.
But, let’s not stop there. Here
are some ideas for environmentally-related additional issues, concerns, or goals
for all Villagers and the developer to capitalize on the success of the
recycling program: -Place
Recycling Bins at all the recreation facilities.
-Place
Recycling Bins at all pools, ball fields and other appropriate places.
-Place
Recycling Bins at Town Squares. -Request
La Hacienda not to use Styrofoam products for cups, plates, clam
shells, etc. -Build
new homes with instant or tankless hot water heaters. -Build
new homes with more efficient windows and walls to keep out heat
and cold. -Build
new homes with safe rooms as protection from hurricanes and tornadoes. -Build
new recreation facilities to qualify as tornado and/or hurricane shelters. -Build
new public buildings with a gray water recycling system.
-Place
rain barrels attached to drain to catch rain water.
-Build
new homes with water conserving sprinkler systems.
-Landscape
all new homes with Florida Friendly Plants. -Eliminate
the 50% requirement of grass in front of homes and adjacent to roads and golf
courses. -Build
solar powered homes. -Furnish
homes with Energy Star appliances only. -Replace
existing light bulbs with CFL light bulbs in all existing facilities.
-Install
CFL light bulbs in all new homes. -Use
Recycled Materials for flooring and countertops.
-Require
pools to be solar heated. -Discourage
the use of plastic bags in favor of paper.
-Recycle
plastic bags.
Sue Michalson Our
golf cart was stolen from a lot in Spanish Springs behind the Rialto Theater
sometime between 5:30 and 7:00 in broad daylight.
The keys to the cart were in (our) pocket.
According to the officer who took our statement, there has been a rash of
thefts (apx. 55) over the past couple of months. He said there is a
"ring" operating out of The
Daily Sun seems to be remiss in reporting this type of theft or information
about this "ring." Unless you plan on sitting in your cart at the Mar
20: It would be helpful to
residents if details were given in the cart accident reports. 99% of ours, in
our paper, are too brief, abruptly cut off with, "...still
investigating," or "...is under investigation." Mar
20: At least the accident was
reported. Until the cause and those responsible are determined they are not
going to speculate in today’s (litigious) sue-happy society. Just
finished reading the current issue of the POA Bulletin and page 13 with the
Survey Comments as published. At
the riskof being redundant, I am repeating the notes and would like to offer
“rebuttal comments” concerning The LifeLong Learning College.
I have been both a student and instructor for the College which allows
me to know their offerings. “There
is not much learning going on in the This
is totally contrary to what most of us know.
There are 50 pages of course descriptions involving everything from
Art, Computers, Philosophy, History and a host of special classes.
They also have special speakers, trips and events.
The College is always looking for new courses and does surveys to
determine interest. If the curriculum were so boring, they would not have
students to participate. “The
College classes costs are too high.” What
is not “higher “today? The
College expense has risen along with everything else.
The course cost is determined by the payment for course instructors and
the cost of room rental and general expenses charged by the school system.
I did a rough survey of costs at other extended colleges, and the The
developer seems to continually find ways of squeezing money out of the
residents. The latest is the Village Art League was charged $900.00 per day for
a room to hold an Art class in, and the students were charged $250.00 each for
the 5 day classes. The
developer has nothing to do with the It
is unfortunate that people tend to get their information and not check it out
but jump to conclusions and because it sounds to them like what they heard but
it is not what was meant. I
hope this clarifies just a couple of issues that seem to stick out about the I
have read a few of your editorials concerning what people call “speed
traps.” The complaint seems to be that they feel it is unfair for them to
get ticketed for crossing the double line, while attempting to pass a golf
cart. It is an unfortunate
problem. However
the distance traveled on The
problem, as I see it, is not that there is a speed trap.
The problem is that these people in The Villages do not know how to
drive, and they do not understand the laws.
Numerous
times I see people passing a golf cart by crossing the double line.
They seem to get a lot of practice crossing the double line when it is
totally unnecessary. To
the best of my knowledge there is only one valid reason for crossing a double
yellow (or white) line and that is to enter or exit a driveway.
The laws are that way for a reason and people do not understand the
law. I do not feel the slightest
sympathy for them if and when they are ticketed.
(If someone crossed the double line and hit them head-on, I am certain
they would feel differently about those that haphazardly cross a double line.)
The
other issue that I recently read about is at the corner of Morse and There
is a very small percentage of the southbound traffic on Morse that turns left
onto I
recently talked to one of the commissioners concerning this problem. When I
mentioned my idea to him, he indicated that they are looking into exactly that
sort of change. I
feel that the signal at that location will be a real asset, and it will allow
much more traffic to move thru the area than would be possible with the previous
stop sign arrangement. I
want to thank you for your sound advice in recommending that I have a home
inspection done prior to purchase. I
was very pleased with their service and it gave me peace of mind in the purchase
of my new home. The inspector found
some roofing and siding problems and some other minor things – and everything
was promptly and courteously repaired. Without
the inspection (which I learned from my real estate agent was novel for a new
home here in the Villages), I would not have known about these problems until
damage was done, especially with the roof and siding.
I used AmeriPro and would recommend them. Thanks for your good work in
"keeping them honest." It
is good to have a watchdog for government.
Mar
20: Round-Abouts were designed to facilitate the flow of traffic at
intersections.
They rely on the use of common sense and good manners.
Ask ten people the proper way to enter, maneuver in, and exit a
roundabout and you will get ten different answers.
I know of one situation where a driver in the right lane was hit by a
driver attempting to turn right from the left lane.
The driver in the right lane was ticketed by the police.
However, the insurance companies blamed the driver exiting from the
left lane.
Mar
6: Why do people put their
telephone books at the postal stations? Why
can't they put a telephone book in their trash?
What is it with them? This
week someone put about 30 old telephone books, tied up with rope, by the waste
can at
In
the recently completed POA Survey of Residents, reported on in last
month’s issue, we asked for open-ended comments on whatever residents
wanted to mention. We were
almost inundated with the response. And,
we found most of these to be worthwhile for reporting to our readership.
So, here is the first batch. We
will continue with a selection of comments in future issues as space in the
Bulletin permits. ******************************** Don’t
like amenity fee being raised every year. I pay more than neighbor and he
has a corner lot and a bigger home. Not fair. Use
of Village facilities by the Charter school is outrageous. Concerns
are: reducing trash pick-up; not having a dog park, not enforcing dog size;
parking throughout; not requiring residents to accompany visitors and kids;
selective enforcement of C & R; increasing water rates based on type of
home; shafting of residents, and turning place into kids domain. I
am very happy here. I do wish we could have groups come in that would play
more up-to-date music. Need
golf cart accessible craft store, Villages Post Office, and enclosed dog
park. Need
no-cost recycling. I
feel we live in a ‘Stepford’ Community where we are told by a few what
we can do or not. - TV, newspaper and radio do not tell all the news - only
what the owners want us to see or hear and not all the news of the Villages
we need. When
it comes to the recycling this is my concern: We were in the refuse business
for 20 years. We also did recycling. When it came to pickup of the recycle
materials it did generate some reduction in the refuse that was picked up
but we did not increase the price or change the amount of times customers
were picked up during a week’s time. There is definitely a profit in
selling recycled material which will cover the extra cost. Since garbage
cans cannot be used and there is limited room in our garages to store
garbage (and who wants to) pick ups should remain at twice a week with no
extra charge. We
are against recycling if it means losing a day of trash pick-up or if it
costs additional money. Thank
you for your help in keeping Villagers informed on what is really happening
here, especially about the developer. Ticketing
golf cart drivers for speeding is stupid. Ambassadors
on the championship courses always pushing you for time even when your group
is right on time or even ahead of time. What is needed is better marks from
the 100 yard and 200 yard positions so they don’t have to spend time
looking for them. - Small red and blue stakes on one side in the rough. Use
of Villages facilities by Charter schools sucks. The
Villages is ‘heaven on earth’ for most of us and we’re grateful for
the visionary Schwartz/Morse families. The developer is 80% great but needs
to be more responsive to legitimate resident problems. Spray
love bugs when people are inside. Keep
tent up in summer/fall etc. at Palm
trees - common areas - please trim - does not present attractive or neat
appearance. Compared
to anywhere else I lived the Villages almost gets a 10 on everything. Costs
are going up. Great life. Why
complain. Be happy. Too
many 19th hole drivers in the Villages. Been
here 10 years and its become an old farts’ slum area. Maintain the older
parts as well as the new. Once it was nice now it’s hell. Ticketing
golf carts needs to be done to keep some under control but adding points to
your drivers license is not legal. You do not need a drivers license to
drive a golf cart. Sorry
The Villages has grown so large. Liked it when Harold was around. The choice
of stores and eating places is nice. In general, I like living here. Patrol
contractor vehicles parking in neighborhoods on wrong side of street, not
near curbs. What does Neighborhood Watch do? Why
have gate attendants when anyone can come in? Lower amenity fees instead. Ladies
and men’s day have been changed to no cash and certificates are too narrow
in scope. We
find living here very nice. Yes, there are issues such as siding, but most
controversies that we read or hear about have not affected our way of life. People
have to use their signal light in the round about circles - then you know. Keep
up the good work. We
are fairly new (4 months). We are pleasantly pleased with the Villages
overall. This
is to be a retirement community - students should not use our facilities. I
am not a supporter of the charter schools. Pursuit
of happiness is everyone’s right until it infringes on other peoples
rights. Even wind chimes should be used indoors (with a fan) for owner to
more fully enjoy. Owner’s doors are usually closed, so only the neighbors
are forced to hear them. Also, dogs should not be left in screen rooms while
owners go out. Entertainment
programs on squares are too loud for people to socialize. Villages
high school has no place in amenities paid pools. Abolish
neighborhood watch - it’s worthless. Neighborhood
watch is rarely seen in the We
need another bowling alley. Radar
for golf carts over 20 mph - get a life and work on catching real criminals
- waste of our money. The
Daily Sun is so biased it is ridiculous. I
like what the Morse family has done with one exception - I do not like
having the Republican mind set jammed down my throat constantly. I have a
mind of my own. I
agree that VHA may have too close ties to the developer, but I think POA is
just too strident all around. I think you’d have more impact if you were
more willing to reason and be polite. Every
community has its pluses and minuses - the Villages sells its ‘life
style’ but doesn’t always explain the real cost of this life style. Thank
you for your time and efforts. I
had a full house inspection - there’s a lot more wrong than siding. My A/C
ducts are leaking and condensation is forming. No vents to the outside. Roof
shingles not installed correctly. If
you don’t like it here - move to Water Oak. The
developer is in a ‘take away mode’ and is only interested in his
personal profit. The mentality of ‘paradise’ is insulting and I think
the developer’s plan is to create a community of Stepford wives - We’re
here for 8 years and we’re leaving. Thanks
for keeping the developer in somewhat of a check. Love the POA Newsletter. The
evening music in the Villages squares need to be improved. Does anyone
explain to these bands that this is a retirement community? If they would
only look out at the dance area they could determine if the music is
danceable. If no one is dancing surely they could figure out that their
choice of music is not working. Perhaps a DJ would solve the problem and
perhaps be cheaper too. TV
channel 2 is absolutely useless. They repeat the same material every few
minutes and for days. With all the activities, there certainly is more to
show. Head
light adjustment and some form of ID should be on each golf cart. They are
going faster and faster speedwise. This needs to be controlled. Surveys
are good, but does anyone ever do anything with them? Village
facilities should not be used by the Charter school. |
