The Villages, Florida.

http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/sec...dontcount=true

This is rather heavy reading but has some interesting stuff in it.

Checked link March 14, 2009.

[Russ_Boston]

Heavy? I think I just earned some college credits by finishing this piece :joke:

[ejp52]

I need a beer. ;D

With Leisureville, TOTV, the Villages Daily Sun, this linked article, and other stuff they could probably create a college course on TV.

[Blondie]

Hmmm...talk about a negative slant.

[redwitch]

Definitely food for thought. I do believe there are some valid points in the article but the author seemed to fixate on the negative to the point that the whole article became irrelevant.

[beady]

This is an amazing article, and,like other posts have said, almost worthy of being the basis for a college course. Heavy reading for sure . Thanks Tal for the link.

I am afraid I do not agree with the conclusions and the negative assessment of TV.

[chuckinca]

I gave up after trying to read the first paragraph.

[jadebox]

I do speed reading and it still made me crossed eyed before I got to the end. Thanks anyway for the link. Knew most of the stuff but still interesting---I think ???

[SteveFromNY]

Interesting read. Seems to have taken more issue with the false history of the area "documented" by the developer than anything else though. Seemed more pointless than negative to me. Unless someone found offensive the fact that the buildings in SS are not historically accurate, or that Silencio Sanchez didn't exist, I'm not sure what the article's point was. It accurately describes a successful development with some hype about it being a "hometown" (and one could argue that where one lives is by definition "hometown"), some colorful faux historical markers, golf cart access to give people a sense of being on permanent vacation, and "consuming" (which I guess is a negative way of saying eating out, shopping and going to the movies). Well, I kind of like all that stuff.
Thanks for posting the article Tal.

I thought this was really interesting.

"While CDDs are technically a form of local government, officials working for them are exempt from traditional rules meant to minimize conflict of interest by the Florida Statute governing CDDs (F.S. 190). This gives wide latitude for questionable Board behaviour since the boards are initially controlled by individuals appointed by the developer. In the case of The Villages, appearances of potential conflicts of interest have been frequent. The creation of the initial Villages CDDs was endorsed by Sumter County in 1992 following review and recommendation of the county's attorney Randall Thornton. Immediately following the County's support of the CDD, Thornton was also hired by the newly created Villages CDD, earning him over $US200,000 for his work for The Villages while simultaneously earning a $US90,000 annual salary for his work with the county (Sargent & Campbell 2000)."
http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/sec...tart=768593209


Checked link August 27, 2008.

[MMC24]

I need a nap after reading this . . . . .z z z z z z z z

[ebliss1]

I actually got a bit of a kick out of this. This article, like a lot of Leisureville, seems to be focusing on the idea that the authors believ that most of the people in TV are having the wool pulled over their eyes by the development company. From what I can determine from reading on these boards and in other media, most of the TV residents are not having the wool pulled over their eyes, but rather embracing the presented show. This is rather like people who go to Disney and get into the spirit of the thing and enjoy the ride without focusing on the "hey - thats not a person, its a realistic looking robot" aspect of the attraction. The difference is that the TV residents have made a life out of the concept - just like the Disney guests who wish they never had to go back home after the vacation time is up. Everyone knows there is no long-established history to the place, but no one is there for the historical accuracy, so why portray the attempt to add color and interest as some sort of sinister plot hide the fact that the developers are making money on the deal. As long as everyone is happy with the way things are going, why make an issue out of it?

[SteveFromNY]

Originally Posted by ebliss1

As long as everyone is happy with the way things are going, why make an issue out of it?

My sentiments exactly, and part of what I was trying to say. You've summed it up well.

:bigthumbsup:

Originally Posted by SteveFromNY

My sentiments exactly, and part of what I was trying to say. You've summed it up well.

:bigthumbsup:

Except for the Mr. Midnight and other tales of characters in TV, it seems like this article by Hugh Bartling has the same meat of the arguments made by the author of Leisureville Andrew Blechman in his book.

Blechman seems to be a better writer though than Bartling. Bartling's article is in academic speak.