Thank You Mira Mesa Resident

[rubicon]

A resident living in Mira Mesa wrote an unemotional , factual and logical article, in the other publication focused on The Villages, and concerning the damage being done by the 2nd and 3rd Morse generations to the original concert of The Villages. The residents calls for removal of the Developer involvement up to and including Brownwood. Essentially let the Developer focused on Feeney, etc but never make Feeney a part of the original Villages. the resident believes over growth has badly damaged the lifestyle here.

[Boomer]

........

[Nucky]

OP, First Question. Just wondering who or what would replace The Developer? Second Question. What gives anyone the power to carry out this Coup d'état.

To the contrary without them in charge then I think it would be exit stage left. I like the way we live. Let them build.

Your Thoughts? :popcorn:

[baustgen]

Anyone not loving the lifestyle are always welcome to leave.

[njbchbum]

Hmmm...remove the Developer....and be governed by who....someone like any of the posters in the Political Forum? BWAHAHAHAHAHA

[Bogie Shooter]

A resident living in Mira Mesa wrote an unemotional , factual and logical article, in the other publication focused on The Villages, and concerning the damage being done by the 2nd and 3rd Morse generations to the original concert of The Villages. The residents calls for removal of the Developer involvement up to and including Brownwood. Essentially let the Developer focused on Feeney, etc but never make Feeney a part of the original Villages. the resident believes over growth has badly damaged the lifestyle here.

Why the thank you?

[Mleeja]

I am constantly surprised by the “I got mine” mentality that is often displayed by posters. I often wonder how often residents say of Mira Mesa, actually go south of 466a or to Brownwood? Not often I bet... I imagine when connected by MMPs, residents of Fenney or Southern Oaks will not frequent Spanish Springs or maybe Even LSL. We all live on our own area. What’s going on down south has very little impact on my daily routine here in Santiago. I imagine this would be the case with most of us.

If The Villages does not develop the area, someone else will. I would prefer it be by The Villages.

[rubicon]

I will bet that not one of you went to the other publication and read this guy's article in its entirety.

And, I knew there would be at least one poster who would reply with, "then move". And I am sure that the complexities concerning this suggestion to this response are lost on him/her.

The Developer DID PROMISE YOU A ROSE GARDEN
He sells exclusivity . However the Developer sells exclusivity to everyone and anyone and that is an example of an oxymoron. He has an amendment to the 80/20 rule. The Developer sells a "lifestyle" at a premium and yet "said lifestyle" has been compromised badly by overcrowding

My response is not a "I got mine but don't want you to have yours". That statement alone tells me we are on a different philosophical plane

and when people are on a, never mind simply do not want to argue with my neighbors

[Madelaine Amee]

I am constantly surprised by the “I got mine” mentality that is often displayed by posters. I often wonder how often residents say of Mira Mesa, actually go south of 466a or to Brownwood? Not often I bet... I imagine when connected by MMPs, residents of Fenney or Southern Oaks will not frequent Spanish Springs or maybe Even LSL. We all live on our own area. What’s going on down south has very little impact on my daily routine here in Santiago. I imagine this would be the case with most of us.

If The Villages does not develop the area, someone else will. I would prefer it be by The Villages.

Agree 100%. I thought the original post was absolutely ridiculous.

[Madelaine Amee]

This 82 Cool Facts About The Villages (https://www.insidethebubble.co/82-cool-facts-the-villages/) might help anyone who is having problems with the growth here.

[spring_chicken]

I will bet that not one of you went to the other publication and read this guy's article in its entirety.

And, I knew there would be at least one poster who would reply with, "then move". And I am sure that the complexities concerning this suggestion to this response are lost on him/her.

The Developer DID PROMISE YOU A ROSE GARDEN
He sells exclusivity . However the Developer sells exclusivity to everyone and anyone and that is an example of an oxymoron. He has an amendment to the 80/20 rule. The Developer sells a "lifestyle" at a premium and yet "said lifestyle" has been compromised badly by overcrowding

My response is not a "I got mine but don't want you to have yours". That statement alone tells me we are on a different philosophical plane

and when people are on a, never mind simply do not want to argue with my neighbors

I read it in it's entirety and agreed with several points.
I fell for the "buildout in 2 years, you better buy now because home values will go up dramatically". They probably said that to the ones that bought in 06, too. Those folks have lost a LOT of value in their homes.
I don't agree with getting the developer out. God help us if we had some of the loonies I see around here running this place.

[Madelaine Amee]

A resident living in Mira Mesa wrote an unemotional , factual and logical article, in the other publication focused on The Villages, and concerning the damage being done by the 2nd and 3rd Morse generations to the original concert of The Villages. The residents calls for removal of the Developer involvement up to and including Brownwood. Essentially let the Developer focused on Feeney, etc but never make Feeney a part of the original Villages. the resident believes over growth has badly damaged the lifestyle here.

Good morning Rubicon! First, may I ask why you are thanking the writer of this letter?

If the Developer either walks away or could be forced off his own property we could get a fly-by-night builder come in to continue building and, in my opinion, that would be a nightmare.

As for his inane comment "concerning the damage being done by the 2nd and 3rd Morse generations". What damage? As far as I can tell they are all decent intelligent young people. They appear to be well educated and interested in continuing to bring new ideas to TV.

Someone needs to very politely tell the OP that time does not stand still and you cannot stop progress.

[Goldwingnut]

I did read Mr. Ouellette's LTE in the other on-line service and just reread it again this morning, and I came away with the same opinion as the first time, uninformed whining.

The letter does the typical finger pointing at the developer and the current generation of the family that runs the company for every woe, ill, and complaint the writer has. So let's clear up the first big misconception, The Village of Lake-Sumter, the developer, owns commercial properties in the commercial districts, the Championship golf courses, and some of the residential lots under construction in D4, D10, and D11, the rest of the properties between SR42 and SR44 are either owned by the residents (their homes), the number CDDs, VCCDD, or SLCDD, with the various CDDs owning the amenities and infrastructure. The developer/the family has very little to say in the operation and control of things going on as they've basically moved on to developing other properties (VOF, SO, etc.), the sale of the amenities and amenities contracts between CR466 and SR44 to the SLCDD a year ago this month was their big exit and relinquishment of control to an elected government and the management organization (frequently just called The District) that takes care of the day-to-day operations of things. The supervisors that run the various CDDs are either resident elected for the number districts or land owner elected for the commercial districts. The latter group many would say, and I would agree with, are hand picked individuals elected by the majority land owner (the developer) and exist to do their bidding, and rightfully so. The former group is made up of 55 of your neighbors and would hardly be considered shills of the developer. All of these supervisors fall under Florida Sunshine Laws and meeting between supervisors have to be open to the public, so there are no secrets or back room deals.

The notion of "Harold wouldn't have done it that way" I discussed last night in the Separate Fenney post (Here) (https://www.talkofthevillages.com/forums/villages-florida-general-discussion-73/separate-fennny-249550/) is a bunch of bull, he was a business man who made business decisions, good ones as is evident by the growth of The Villages.

The Irma debris pickup was handled in a right and orderly manner by The District, the bailing out of the subcontractors for higher returns on their efforts unfortunately affected all of us by slowing the work. You can blame Dade, Broward, and several other southern Florida counties for instigating that mess, not The District. Mr. Ouellette's assertion that the pickup would be free and picked up by the tax payers if FEMA was involved and not The Villages again shows his lack of knowledge. "The Villages" he refers to is each and everyone one of us who is paying for it, if you don't want FEMA reimbursement then every homeowner can start writing checks to cover the costs as Maintenance Assessments and Amenity Fees would have to be raised to cover it (think 10-15% as a minimum). The outrage last year when maintenance assessment were raised in D4 to cover impending road maintenance would be just a spark compared to the fire storm that these increases would cause. That would damage the brand.

The generational comment seems more like sour grapes to me, did Mr. O's children or grand children drive his business into the ground? The failures he tries to site are I agree the fault of the previous generations in spoiling the children, I do see this as the case here. Mr. Schwartz would be proud of the way his heirs are running the business, it's still very successful and growing. I for one hope I live long enough to see the torch passed on to the 4th and 5th generation of these talented businessmen.

WVLG's coverage of the storm was a business decision, good, bad, or otherwise one that the owners will have to live with. Could they have done more, possibly, but based on its size it's doubtful they had the resources.

The hospital is run by the same company that runs the Leesburg hospital. It's a business, like it or not and they make business decisions. A level 1 trauma center would likely be economically a disaster, the volume doesn't justify the expense.

Have you ever been to a business that doesn't accept American Express? Do you know why? Amex has some of the highest vender fees in the industry. These venders make this decisions as a business decision, not to drive customers away but to lower their operating costs. The medical insurance decisions that were made last year were a business decision, they are a business not a charity. I for one find the services provided some of the best I've ever seen with very good doctors and staff and very short waits. This all comes at a cost that must be paid for, if what an insurance company will reimburse them for doesn't cover their costs adequately, they find one that does.

Again Mr. O's comments are uninformed on the age restrictions topic. The changes to the age restrictions are likely the recognition of an every changing market place for the developer. Here (https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp/seniors)is a link to the proposed standards. What's different? The big one I see is the lack of the <19 years old/30 day exclusion currently in place. What does this do to future residents? How about opening the possibility of someone having to care for their grandchildren on a long term basis being able to live in The Villages, this is unfortunately happening all to much these days (but that's entirely different topic). The 80% rule is still in place. Again this appears to be a business decision they appear to be making based on a changing market.

Lastly, the topic of throwing the developer out and stopping future growth is a horrible idea with huge negative impacts for everyone. Have you been to a "resident owned community"? These are communities where the developer has moved on, most look like crap and are filled with lots of infighting on the operation of the community. What happens to the many hundreds of workers and business involved with the growth and construction? Many will move on, many will stay, and the economic downturn that would accompany would drive this community into the ground. Crime would rise and the first victims will be Seniors who are easy targets and these pretty little houses so conspicuously empty for much of the year by seasonal residents would be prime targets for burglary and squatters. It doesn't take a crystal ball to see this happening, just look at so many other communities that it's happened to. I think I'll take a little more growth and keep the wolves at bay a little longer thank you. Better the devil you know.

Mr. Ouellette is wrong and uninformed in so may ways, if he actually took an informed interest in The Villages and how business and the economy actually work in the real work he would likely retract his LTE and hope no one every remember it.

[circletrack]

I will bet that not one of you went to the other publication and read this guy's article in its entirety.

And, I knew there would be at least one poster who would reply with, "then move". And I am sure that the complexities concerning this suggestion to this response are lost on him/her.

The Developer DID PROMISE YOU A ROSE GARDEN
He sells exclusivity . However the Developer sells exclusivity to everyone and anyone and that is an example of an oxymoron. He has an amendment to the 80/20 rule. The Developer sells a "lifestyle" at a premium and yet "said lifestyle" has been compromised badly by overcrowding

My response is not a "I got mine but don't want you to have yours". That statement alone tells me we are on a different philosophical plane

and when people are on a, never mind simply do not want to argue with my neighbors


Please explain this amendment to the 80/20 rule. All articles so far about expansion have said that it will follow the same guidelines for senior communities in Florida including the current one followed by The Villages. Or are you jumping to conclusions.

[Bay Kid]

I sure am glad they started...and didn't stop.... Thank you creating and maintaining TV!

[Marathon Man]

A resident living in Mira Mesa wrote an unemotional , factual and logical article, in the other publication focused on The Villages, and concerning the damage being done by the 2nd and 3rd Morse generations to the original concert of The Villages. The residents calls for removal of the Developer involvement up to and including Brownwood. Essentially let the Developer focused on Feeney, etc but never make Feeney a part of the original Villages. the resident believes over growth has badly damaged the lifestyle here.

I don't believe that it was unemotional, factual, or logical at all.

[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

I read it in it's entirety and agreed with several points.
I fell for the "buildout in 2 years, you better buy now because home values will go up dramatically". They probably said that to the ones that bought in 06, too. Those folks have lost a LOT of value in their homes.
I don't agree with getting the developer out. God help us if we had some of the loonies I see around here running this place.

Who exactly has lost value in their homes in The Villages? As far as I know, home values have never decreased in any year. Even in the down years of real estate homes in The Villages either held their value or increased in value. I'd love to know specifically who lost money, and on what kind of home in The Villages. Unless it was someone who totally neglected their property or was forced to sell in a hurry, I doubt that you'll find anyone.

[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

Please explain this amendment to the 80/20 rule. All articles so far about expansion have said that it will follow the same guidelines for senior communities in Florida including the current one followed by The Villages. Or are you jumping to conclusions.

I was wondering about that myself. A lot of people misunderstand the so-called 80/20 rule, so I'll explain it here.

A federal law requires that in order to qualify as an over 55, retirement community, 80% of the homes must be occupied by at least one person over the age of 55.

There is nothing about 80% of the residents must be over 55 or as some people have said, 20% of the people must be under 55.

I find that this is one of the most misunderstood and misquoted rules on this forum.

Mathematically, under this law over 80% of the residents could be under 55 and still be legally a 55 and over community. This is not an amendment to the law, it is the law.

[NotFromAroundHere]

Who exactly has lost value in their homes in The Villages? As far as I know, home values have never decreased in any year. Even in the down years of real estate homes in The Villages either held their value or increased in value. I'd love to know specifically who lost money, and on what kind of home in The Villages. Unless it was someone who totally neglected their property or was forced to sell in a hurry, I doubt that you'll find anyone.

I "believe" that people think that if TV would stop expanding, then their homes would be worth millions of dollars. Supply and demand, you know.

[spring_chicken]

Who exactly has lost value in their homes in The Villages? As far as I know, home values have never decreased in any year. Even in the down years of real estate homes in The Villages either held their value or increased in value. I'd love to know specifically who lost money, and on what kind of home in The Villages. Unless it was someone who totally neglected their property or was forced to sell in a hurry, I doubt that you'll find anyone.

Someone else questioned this earlier this year and quite a LONG list was posted of homes that were purchased in 06 and later sold for MUCH less. One, in particular, was over $200k less.

[graciegirl]

Someone else questioned this earlier this year and quite a LONG list was posted of homes that were purchased in 06 and later sold for MUCH less. One, in particular, was over $200k less.

I disagree, not with the ones that sold for less but that building more homes devalues our homes. There was a rise and fall in home values all over the country ten years ago. Many of us had trouble selling our homes then to get here.

Everyone knows how much they paid for their home, Type the address in your browser and there are several sites including Zillow that will give you the guestimate of value which I have found to be pretty accurate.

It is something I enjoy watching. I am NOT Real Estate nor have I ever been.

[slipcovers]

Someone else questioned this earlier this year and quite a LONG list was posted of homes that were purchased in 06 and later sold for MUCH less. One, in particular, was over $200k less.

Please supply an address for that property otherwise it is a made up story.

[alwann]

I think we all understand the Morse family runs a private business. They aren't required to say anything about their plans, vision, and intentions. But, still I wonder, do they care, even a little bit, about public opinion? Are they seeing any of the criticism and feedback being posted? The negative feedback seems to be increasing.

It would be great if they spent more time listening than talking at us and propagandizing. At the annual Meet the Developer night, wouldn't it be cool if they opened the floor to questions, even if just a limited number?

God love Janet Tutt for the time she takes to explain things. But I doubt if she knows what the family feels regarding the concerns being voiced by many Villagers.

Even private businesses should pay attention to public opinion. When opinions sour, people often organize a response....usually involving lawyers.

[thelegges]

Someone else questioned this earlier this year and quite a LONG list was posted of homes that were purchased in 06 and later sold for MUCH less. One, in particular, was over $200k less.

Our first visit was January 07. We looked at a new patio villa that was $168,200. Nothing special about it.

It was our decision to buy or not no one twisted our arm. I wanted to buy, but my other half said let’s wait, I am not sure I want to live here. So we bought in 2010, sold that villa with no loss and in 3 days. Even if we would have bought in 07 we still would not have lost money.

Sometimes there are reasons why break even does not happen. Your idea of improving the grounds and inside can be $$$$$. May not be to someone else’s liking

[graciegirl]

...

[Madelaine Amee]

I think we all understand the Morse family runs a private business. They aren't required to say anything about their plans, vision, and intentions. But, still I wonder, do they care, even a little bit, about public opinion? Are they seeing any of the criticism and feedback being posted? The negative feedback seems to be increasing.

It would be great if they spent more time listening than talking at us and propagandizing. At the annual Meet the Developer night, wouldn't it be cool if they opened the floor to questions, even if just a limited number?

God love Janet Tutt for the time she takes to explain things. But I doubt if she knows what the family feels regarding the concerns being voiced by many Villagers.

Even private businesses should pay attention to public opinion. When opinions sour, people often organize a response....usually involving lawyers.

I am at a loss to understand why people think they should have a "say" in running TV. You, we, all of us purchased a house on a piece of land and that is all we own. We did not "buy" into a cooperative development. The Developer does not have to explain anything to us if he does not deem it necessary. We are fortunate that he has employed an excellent "front man" like Ms. Tutt who makes herself available to residents, the next one may not be quite so accommodating.

[Bogie Shooter]

I think we all understand the Morse family runs a private business. They aren't required to say anything about their plans, vision, and intentions. But, still I wonder, do they care, even a little bit, about public opinion? Are they seeing any of the criticism and feedback being posted? The negative feedback seems to be increasing.

It would be great if they spent more time listening than talking at us and propagandizing. At the annual Meet the Developer night, wouldn't it be cool if they opened the floor to questions, even if just a limited number?

God love Janet Tutt for the time she takes to explain things. But I doubt if she knows what the family feels regarding the concerns being voiced by many Villagers.

Even private businesses should pay attention to public opinion. When opinions sour, people often organize a response....usually involving lawyers.

There is an annual survey right? Have you ever read the follow up's to the survey?
Questions at the Developer night. A three ring circus!
The bitching and complaining would overwhelm the people attending the event.

[Cisco Kid]

Yep,
We should go back to 1st gen trailer park modulars.

[maureenod]

Our first visit was January 07. We looked at a new patio villa that was $168,200. Nothing special about it.

It was our decision to buy or not no one twisted our arm. I wanted to buy, but my other half said let’s wait, I am not sure I want to live here. So we bought in 2010, sold that villa with no loss and in 3 days. Even if we would have bought in 07 we still would not have lost money.

Sometimes there are reasons why break even does not happen. Your idea of improving the grounds and inside can be $$$$$. May not be to someone else’s liking

We also looked at a new patio villa, January 2007, and it was $132, 700. Had privacy berm at rear, colony model.

[Jayhawk]

You know who you are..........

[New Englander]

You know who you are..........

:a20:

[Mleeja]

I know I will be corrected, but I believe that districts 1 - 7 are ran by resident elected supervisors. I haven’t checked in a while. Granted the districts are heavily influenced by the developer and our “consolidated” government, but there have been occasions where the districts have “gone rouge”. The AAC is ran by elected representatives, But again in the name of unity with the PWAC, is heavily influenced by the developer.

As usual I have forgotten the point I wanted to make. I’ll leave with the comment of I agree with the statement of the developers are a private business and they do not owe us a detailed explanation of thier future plans. We purchased our homes and they have provided us commercial and entertainment infrastructure and a method to maintain the buildings and grounds. As being a land development business, we cannot expect them just to stop building.

[justjim]

When Brownwood was built along State Route 44, it became increasingly clear that The Villages was going to expand south of 44. Brownwood was a huge investment (even for billionaires) and more residential development was needed to support it. Thus we have the expansion southward that we see today.

That said, more economic development does not hurt current property owners, it enhances them. That is class 101 in economic development. As others have posted, we pretty much stay within our Villages District most of the time anyway.

For those who think maybe "they" will stop coming---10,000 baby boomers will turn 65 TODAY and approximately that many will turn 65 every day for the next 19 years. That was the demographics in 2010. Bottom line---a "bunch" are coming and it doesn't matter if we care or not. Fore!