Like many of you, we’re happy to hear that members of the Project Wide Advisory Committee and the Amenity Authority Committee will gather this week to discuss the wads of your money that are being wasted on the printed editions of Recreation News.
For those who might not be aware of it, those copies of the pulp edition are paid for by amenity fees to the tune of more than $800,000 per year. If that’s not enough to raise the hair on your neck, then consider this: print copies of the Recreation News have continued to come out during the COVID-19 crisis despite the fact that recreation facilities were closed.
The logical question, of course, is, why print a publication loaded with recreation schedules when the vast majority of activities have been shut down? Of course, the bigger question is, why even waste newsprint on the thing in the first place when the information could easily be put online?
Trust us when we tell you this – you aren’t going to like the answers.
As many of you know, the Recreation News is normally included in Thursday’s editions of the Daily Sun, though for reasons we’re sure had nothing to do with taking care of readers, it recently started arriving in Wednesday’s editions of the Developer-controlled “newspaper.” It was mysteriously back to Thursday this past week. Obviously, community service isn’t the reason the Daily Sun prints the hefty publication. It’s a “cash cow” for the Developer’s tightly controlled communication tool.
If you’re anger level is boiling over now, you’re not alone. Community Development District 2 Supervisor Bart Zoellner has made no bones about his feelings regarding the publication that’s grown significantly in pages and costs over the past several years – and will only continue to get more expensive as The Villages tosses up homes in southern Sumter County and Leesburg.
“We are spending tens of thousands of dollars telling residents the same thing all over again,” Zoellner has said. “We should have this information at our fingertips. Let’s get into this century. The Recreation News is a waste of paper.”
As for that “cash cow” we mentioned earlier, Zoellner had this to say: “I hope we are not being unduly influenced by the Daily Sun, which could be losing more than $800,000 a year (if they are no longer printing Recreation News).”
Earlier this year, CDD 2 Chairman Bryan Lifsey grew so concerned about the big bucks residents are shelling out for the ever-expanding Recreation News that he prepared a position paper detailing his thoughts. He said it’s time to deliver on well-defined cost savings for the Recreation News instead of a myriad of broken promises to look at it in the future. (Yes, John Rohan, we’re talking about you here, but more on that later).
AAC members Carl Bell and Don Deakin also haven’t been shy about their disdain for the printed edition of the Recreation News. Bell, known for his love of technology and his admirable ability to stick to his guns when he believes in something, has cited environmental concerns in declaring more than once that the weekly supplement is adding to thousands of “tons of waste” – something that’s vitally important since newsprint has lost its luster in the recycling arena.
In addition, Bell has suggested creating a searchable online format for the Recreation News, as well as touchscreens for Villagers to use at recreation centers that would have information readily available – an idea Deakin fully supports.
The big issue, of course, is that the almighty Developer clearly has no desire to see the more than $800,000 that lines his pockets from the tightly controlled Daily Sun go away anytime soon – does anyone else remember the 73 percent increase in costs the AAC was hit with in 2017? Let’s also not forget that the fourth-generation Morse Millennials are now running – into the ground? – different aspects of the community and that means there are a whole lot more pockets to line with wads of your cash.
If you don’t believe that, then consider this – about two years ago Bell asked Rohan about the progress being made in putting Recreation News into an easily accessible online format. The Developer-beholden recreation director never really answered the question but instead suggested it was “Herculean task” and then quickly swept it under the rug. Is it just us, or does it seem like Rohan breaks into his own version of “Who’s On First?” whenever he’s asked about Recreation News and the way the Developer is screwing Villagers?
As we said earlier, we commend members of PWAC and the AAC for making this ongoing issue a priority. PWAC, which represents residents south of County Road 466, will hold a budget workshop at 2 p.m. Tuesday, May 5 at Savannah Center. The following day, the AAC, which represents residents north of County Road 466, will hold its budget workshop at 9 a.m., also at Savannah Center.
We’re confident that during those meetings, the supervisors will tackle the whole waste of residents’ money that’s taking place through the good-old-boy printing pact with the quasi-shell-company Daily Sun. We’re also hoping they’ll send a clear message to the Developer that his shoddy treatment of residents and his willingness to keep his greedy hands in their pockets for such a wasted product must come to an end.
That said, we encourage residents to attend those two meetings and share your thoughts about the Recreation News. It’s time for the so-called leaders of the mega-retirement community to remember that The Villages was founded on the premise of the “handshake of the host determines the taste of the roast,” not the current style of “give me all of your money and we could care less what you think.”
