Villagers Are Fed Up With Saving Chairs
 

There have been previous posts regarding the roping off and saving of chairs at LSL, especially when Rocky & The Rollers are there. Last Sat. my wife and I decided to venture to the square, knowing it would be packed. We were fortunate enough to find 2 seats at the fence, in front of the clock. Our seat was next to a fellow who is an avid TOTV member. During our conversation, he mentioned that he was paying special attention to an area in front of us that had been roped off (approx 16 chairs) since he got there at 5pm. He said he watched some folks take the rope down and sit in those seats. It was now about 6:45pm and the chairs were full of people. Pretty soon a large group of people walked in front of us checking that area that they thought was being saved. They were overheard grumbling about the fact that people were sitting in THEIR chairs. I was overjoyed to see that the villagers are no longer going to honor chairs sitting empty, for hours on end, while others have to stand. Finally, a member of the party decided they wanted their rope, so while the folks were dancing, they collected their rope, still muttering about stealing their chairs.
As far as I'm concerned, the only seats that should be saved are for folks who get up to dance, go to the restrooms, or get something to drink. The entertainment dept. should be policing this activity, particularly on a busy night. We see many people, with "Staff" or Event" shirts on, walking around, but seldom see them attempting to enforce the rules. I'm not sure what they do. Maybe we really don't need them if enough people dis-honor those "saved seats". I for one hope this starts a movement.

What rules are you referring to?

Hmmmm..... Doesn't seem to me that anyone needs to police anything. Whomever took the "reserved" seats, policed the area just fine.

Is it just me ??

Sounds like that whole thing worked out well. Sorry about the folks with the rope! :shrug:

Bill

... or was it the dopes with ropes?

HA!! :)

Bill

Maybe this is what Ali meant by rope a dope?

I myself was at the square in that very location Saturday night and and saw the roped off chairs. I had my own chair so I was quite comfortable. However I did see the roped off section of chairs and thought it was uncalled for. People were walking around looking for a place to sit and there the empty chairs were right under their nose. They wre circling like buzzards but no one made a move to take any of them. Finally a gentleman sick of walking around
took the rope from one of the chairs and sat down. He wasn't approached by anyone else. This was the signal to the other chairless people to make their move. In three minutes the dozen or so chairs were occupied. The time was well towards 6pm so I assume the "rope a dopes" felt their chairs were safe all night. Hats off to the guy who made the first move to sit down. Maybe if more people would step up to the plate like that, this roping off of chairs and tables would become history. A heads up though, on a Rocky and The Rollers
night bringing you own chair is a great idea..

:agree:Nice work to those who said "This is BS" and took those seats. 16 seats? That is outrageous. Almost 2hrs after the band starts in walk the Special People to claim their selected seating. Would have enjoyed watching.

Some folks think it is there God given right to inconvenience others so they can be taken care of and do as they please. Hats off to the chair takers. I hope it starts a trend.

I am happy out of my mind that someone finally sent a little message to all the chair savers who don't even bother to show uo til late !!!! In Spanish Springs people now put washcloths, chair pads, magazines and even tie two chairs together with a plastic bag. Almost all chairs are "spoken for" by 2 PM sometimes. Now I can't wait til Weds......I will be sitting in any empty chair I find. Wonder how someone will prove to me that 's their plastic bag saving a chair??? Let the revolution begin, chair by chair !

It would be interesting to hear from some chair savers for their side of the disussion. I'm guessing that ain't gonna happen though.

Yes Yes Yes! This has always upset me. In the past I have seen a man sitting next to me tell about 100 people that 4 empty chairs were saved. Finally 4 people show and say they can't sit as they needed dinner. :shocked:
Another time someone had put a chair on top of a chair to save two chairs. After standing 2 hours, a man walked up and sat in the two chairs telling the people saving them that as soon as their friends came they would get up. Never had to get up.:shocked: Just a couple nights ago Scooter was at SS and it was packed. People standing all over the place with saved empty chairs all over.:shocked: I bet less than half the saved chairs were ever used. I always bring our own chairs but saving chairs is for the birds.

A couple of weeks ago I got in line at 8:00am at the ticket booth at Lake Sumter Landing to purchase tickets for a show at the Savannah Center. There were a few empty chairs at the head of the line. At 8:20am the people showed up, put the chairs in their cars and came back to the head of the line. The person standing next to me said those folks put the chairs there last night so they could be first in line.

Someday, someone is going to find a secret set of written instructions, circa 1990, used to train new new Villages staff who work in the squares.

Up near the top, one of the statements will probably read...

"UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you pay any attention to patrons who reserve chairs in the square areas. Ignore any comments about this. If you are approached by persons making a complaint, do not engage in conversation or show support for what they might feel is an unfair situation. Our policy is that if patrons see this as a problem they will resolve it, if and when they choose to do so."

Congrats to the guy who moved the rope and sat down. If enough folks read this thread and pick up on it, then he's responsible for starting a small cultural shift here in TV. And I'd like to know who he is. I'd buy him a drink and we'd go sit down and enjoy the music.

Didja slap 'em? :1rotfl:

Guess I just don't understand come people's thinking. Why some do things like that is beyond me.

Bill

I have taken "saved" chairs a couple off times. Once it got a little hairy when the saver demanded that I leave his "saved" seating alone. I told him to find someone in authority to move me. He got up and left. Didn't see him again. Sometimes you get p___ed off enough, you don't care anymore.

If I was in line to purchase tickets and there were empty chairs ahead of me the first thing I would do is move the chairs, on your feet (or absent in this case), lose your seat....gn

A fellow TOTVr sent me a message about the chair situation that you are talking about. He was there too and he said that the perps (Original ropers) were 30 somethings and they gave a lot of lip to the sitters.

Hmmm.

I say. Take back our town.

I was on the square for other activities from about 10:00 in the morning. I asked someone about the personal chairs being over on the deck area. I was told it was for the Rocky concert. Personal chairs no problem and TV chairs were not even moved until after 2:15. Our group was off the stage at about 2 to give Rocky time to set up and TV chairs were not moved in on trailers yet.

I killed some time and went to Red Sauce for supper. When I got back to the square it was 4:35 and I saw about 6 or 8 chairs still stacked up near the fountain. I went to get one but when I got there only 2 were left and I let the lady take both of them. I was able to score one a few minutes later but in my looking I saw 4 chairs that were chained and locked up on the deck area that is on the Urban Flats side of the square. Now that takes nerve.

Next I moved over to an open spot over by the clock and watched the entire episode unfold in front of me and it was interesting to say the least. I think it was about 7:00 when the people showed that roped off the chairs only to find them occupied. There was a blond that was involved and she was really pi$$ big time. She was standing right next to me talking on her cell about the incident. I was waiting to see a good old bar fight break out but it never did thank goodness.

30-somethings! Off with their heads!! or at least their chairs.

Oh, come on now! We are in The Villages and have a wonderful life. Why the kvetching over some chairs at the town squares? Get there early for the popular shows and you will not have trouble getting a chair.

If there are many chairs (maybe more than 4?) roped together and there are no other chairs available, unrope them and sit down - and if someone complains, just smile and continue to sit there. No one is going to physically throw anyone off a chair.

This is a great place to live; we have all worked long and hard to get here. Be happy and get over the petty stuff.

I saw the Ropers on Three's Company the other night!

If I'm understanding it correctly there is no written rule that says chairs can't be saved. It seems to me a simple sign stating that 'Reserving chairs is not allowed' would help prevent a confrontation if someone 'unreserves' a seat and it might encourage others to do the same. All you need to do is smile and point to the sign.

I do have a question: At a popular venue I gather it gets quite crowded. Is there any control over 'outsiders' attending these events (not accompanied by residents)? I think I'd be upset if I found a large number of chairs occupied by non-Villagers.

Why? We don't pay for the events in the Squares. They are funded by the developer and merchants. All events in the Squares are open to the public. If an "outsider" gets there first, stays in their chair, doesn't save seats for others, I see no reason why they shouldn't enjoy an event in as much comfort as a Villager.

They also spend $ in restaurants and stores.

Cuddos to those that were "fed up" with the roping. Lest we think this situation is isolated to LS, it also has been going on at SS for a long time. Although there has been "talk" of stopping the saving practice, nothing has been done by the "Event Staff" to my knowledge. If they have taken action, I'd be ecstatic...but alas, my excitement must surely wait. Power to the people !!

My wife and I went down for one of the parades recently and brought our own chairs. We proceeded to open the chair in an empty area and were quickly told by a more elderly lady that "the space in this line is being saved".

Not a seat, an area for a seat. As I am a keep the peace kind of person, we just moved to an area to the right, but not as good an area. When the parade started, the others arrived with their chairs, and claimed their spots.

What do you do, tell an elderly lady to take a hike. Not worth the aggravation.

Sorry to be negative, but you're dreaming if you think conflict is out of the question.... I agree with your position, but there is a reality !!!

I think it's obvious that chair savers don't have computers. Keep on checking your postal mail box for a hand written letter. Of course, we'll be counting on word of mouth for them to hear about this. :Screen_of_Death:

No fanny in a seat equals a non-reserved seat.

As a wannabe, I hope this situation gets resolved. This is a conflicting situation that people shouldn't have to get aggrevated over. It's a sad commentary when some people don't have consideration for other people's feelings.

Thanks to all people who challenged this situation.

I like you. I like you. I like you, I do.:pepper2:;):beer3:

We've seen the "chair saving" at both Squares. It's annoying, but we've never sat in a "saved" chair, because we go to the Squares for fun, not to get into a confrontation with an unreasonable person.

But saving space is a whole new dimension. :a20:

On our first lifestyle preview a couple of years ago, my wife and I visited Sumter Landing in the early evening. We saw some empty chairs on the raised deck toward the Urban Flats side of the square. We sat down and immediately were told that the seats were reserved. Another couple nearby saw what happened and asked us to join them. I'm thankful for the invite because we might not have learned to love TV the way we do now.
See you all right after Christmas!

PS...save us a seat!

So when we come down for our Lifestyle Preview visit, I want to be prepared. What size and length of rope do we need in order to hog 4 chairs up front? If the event is at 7, will roping off our chairs around 3 be early enough?
Kidding of course!

I totally admire that first guy that sat down in those reserved seats! Way to go man!

Good Luck with the Christmas tree lighting and Christmas Parade!
We bought 7 years ago and never missed any event. So much fun. Now it is so crowded it is no fun. You have the majority of the people very polite and a few of the nastiest you will ever meet. Thus, the last 3 years we have seen nasty incidents and pushy people. Rude Rude Rude. And no room to sit to see the shows whille whole groups of spaces and chairs are saved. My favorite is after getting there early, someone will come at the last minute and stand in front of everyone. Then someone asks them to move and a fight breaks out. Yes, seen this 3 times.
Always bring your own chairs and get there early. Merry Christmas.

I think it's high time we get gracie, red (broken elbow and all), and pturner to start policing these kinds of events! :boxing2:

Hee-hee! :popcorn:


Bill

AND just how do you think Red broke her elbow????

I've heard of space-saving appliances, but saving space at an unreserved public event, what the.... :shocked:

I can't understand what folks think give them the right to measure out space at an open public event and say, in effect, that "all this territory belongs to me". Using that logic, why not just claim all the space and invite your friends to a private, uncrowded event; or better yet, claim all the space and charge admission!

Hey wait... I thought of it first. I hereby claim all the space at the Christmas Parade. Space available to the highest bidders.

anyone seen this?
 

I went to my first free "Total Workout" at one of the regional rec centers this week - I called first to make sure it was open to all and to confirm what to bring. Was told to "come early" as it gets crowded. Apparently they do limit the # of people in the large room, and have another room for the overflow, or maybe some people prefer it, but when I arrived (about 15 minutes early), could only find a little space in a back corner. Not too many people, but all kinds of spaces marked with mats, bottled water, etc.

Apparently, groups of friends must take turns coming early and marking their spots. Just like the town squares. Hard to tell for sure whose spaces they are as there are some people standing around, but not nearly as many (maybe 50%)? as there are spaces marked off.

Same kind of deal - wish it wasn't so.