We have the new sand filter and pumps installed on the small pool and they are working well. We have been able to open the suction on the bottom drain and this will help get the dirt to the filter more effectively. We will continue to upgrade the pools as needed.
 
We have some very important issues ahead of us in the next six weeks. Your involvement is important and needed to plan the direction the Park will take in the next few years. We had a very successful Town Hall meeting last week with approximately 300 people in attendance. People ask how I handle all the comments. It is important for everyone to be heard and I enjoy this type of exchange. Some can ask some very pointed questions but they are important.
 
The temperature of the ballroom has always been a challenge for us. The way the thermostats work is they are set for heating or cooling but not both. This may not seem like a big deal but let’s look at what happened this last weekend. Thursday and Friday were nice days and therefore the air was set to cool for the dance Friday and Saturday. By Saturday it had turned cool and the units were still set to cool and would not produce heat. So by Sunday it was like a meat locker in here and people were looking around for blankets.
 
I was approached yesterday to have a group of 10 or so residents trained to control the thermostats. I told this person to get the 9 others and come and see me and we would train them. This will be fixed when the Ballroom remodel happens but until that time we could really use your help.
 
No matter how many times we say “drive 10 miles per hour” or “take a shower before you get in the pool” it seems to fall on deaf ears. I wish we had a way to get people to understand both are safety issues and should be followed. Speed is not safe for anyone and not showering puts stuff in the water none of us want.
 
Our solar rebate check will be issued soon. The SRP engineer will be here at 1:00pm today to record the data from the Btu meter. We met the goal in September 2011 of 71,000 Btu’s produced and are currently at 109,639 Btu’s. This means we will be getting a check shortly for just over $18,000 which will go into the reserve account.
 
We currently have 197 renters and 685 owners for a total of 882 compared to last year’s 169 renters and 702 owners for a total of 871.
 
Larry

A.R.C. report for the January Board Meeting
 
            First of all I want to thank the ARC committee Jack Taylor, Ken Kennedy, and Bob Francois for the tremendous help they continue to be to the ARC office and to me personally. We have been spending more time in the park and working with educating residents on particular rules and guidelines that we trust will make the park a better and safer place to live. So far this season we have issued 91 permits and currently have 8 Arizona rooms and 3 park models either in construction or in the pipeline. Also in the past few months a master list of the entire park has been completed; the list notes each and every lot, what is on the lot, restrictions, grandfathered items, and public utility easements all complete with pictures.
 
Also we continue to work with residents on resolving their phone issues. Resident Bill Montgomery from lot #993 has been a tremendous help to us in troubleshooting phone problems as well as repairs.
           
This season we are making use of GV7 to periodically display a particular rule or guideline, and then we are going through the park and addressing issues in violation of those guidelines. Our intention is not to shove a book of rules at everyone but to simply make residents more aware of the guidelines so that we and the residents can work together to make the park a better place. It appears that the majority of residents we have already spoken to are very much on board with what we’re doing and understand that our intention is for the betterment of Golden Vista.
 
            Some of the issues we have already addressed are indoor furniture placed outside, utility trailers, weeds and grass maintenance, and parking issues just to name a few. We know this is an ongoing process but we feel as we continue to address these issues and encourage residents to abide by the guidelines that compliance in these areas will become more a part of the norm.

Thank you.
Jeff Elkins

Activities Report to the Board: January 2012
 
The Activities Office is in full swing now with a busy counter area selling tickets & merchandise, answering questions, starting new subscriptions to the newspaper and scheduling/confirming rooms.  This is handled by two very friendly & capable volunteers each morning & again each afternoon, 5 days a week in addition to my assistant, Mary & me. 
 
Regarding the activities: we still have good attendance at most of our dances and that number is usually determined by which band is playing.  Many similar communities have cut back on the number of dances each month due to dwindling attendance.  As long as the right bands are booked, we get the attendance needed to pay the bands.
 
The weekly barbeques, put on by the silversmith, lapidary, woodshop, fitness club are serving large volumes of customers each Wednesday.  Keeping enough food on hand is the big challenge.  Some of the clubs have added new items to the grill menu which appeals to those who come every week to eat.  Of course, the Saturday breakfasts are a big hit and we should have over 400 people at this Saturdays breakfast.  I order about ½ our food from Shamrock, a food supplier who delivers and the rest from Sam’s club that I deliver weekly.
 
In the summer, I preorder tickets for various venues like Broadway Palm Dinner Theater, Hale Theater, Barleens, Herberger Theater, even for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir coming in Feb to Phoenix.   We sell the majority of those tickets and in some cases, try to arrange to get more.
 
I’ve added two new programs this season: first: orientation of the fitness equipment: we have a exercise person who gives an overview of the equipment in our fitness room so both men & women feel more comfortable using the various pieces of equipment.  In addition, she is doing a 6 week cardio interval class for 10 residents.
 
The other new program is the occasional bus outings for ladies only.  We have a large number of single women here and I wanted them to feel part of the community and get more social by meeting some other women and doing fun things.  Of course, married women are welcome to join and it does give them the chance to get out and do things, maybe, their husbands aren’t interested in.
 
Beginning in January, we started our big concerts & shows with more reserved seating since that appears to be what the residents want. 
 
 I started doing our own bus trips last season and have continued to schedule them this year.  The Verde Canyon Railroad trip in December was a fun one and now next week, almost 100 residents on two busses are headed to Las Vegas for a two night stay.  Future trips this season include: Palm Springs, Tombstone & Bisbee and Wine Tour in Northern Arizona.  Rather than going through a travel agency, I’ve done them myself to save the residents money and to be sure the bus only picks up here at the park and back again.
  
After the calendar of activities and events has been set and I’ve finished the monthly newsletter, I meet with the coordinator of the table & chair committee to determine types of set ups and times, then with the sound coordinator to go over microphone and other needs and then to communicate with the ARC office for our front gate coverage of these events since the gate remains closed unless there is staffing.
 
This is just an overview of what goes on in Activities during the season.  Without the residents stepping up to help with taking tickets, working in the kitchen, setting up chairs, making coffee, cooking, cleaning up, heading up committees, most of this wouldn’t happen or would cost more since we’d have to pay workers to get it done.
  
Jan Miller, Activities Director
January 17, 2012