[bigfox]

Hello to all,
I will be proposing a change to The Villages guest pass policy to allow single residents the same rights that a married couple have. The petition (See Below) will be presented to the board hopefully at the July 8 meeting to be held at the Savannah Center at 1:30PM. This will have to be introduced during the audience participation portion of that meeting. If any of you or your friends can also attend that meeting as a show of support, that will have a bearing on how it is received and voted at that meeting by the board. The last time this was on the agenda, there were only one or two people in the audience so the board did not think it was important enough to vote favorably on it.

Please help us out and get as many signatures as you can before July 5th and get them to me somehow on or before then. You can email me to arrange a pickup or delivery. I presented this proposal to the Villages Singles Club Monday night and it was well received. We hope to get many signatures from the singles clubs. You can get married couples to sign also if they are sympathetic to the cause.

If you know a retired lawyer who can provide some guidance on how to write a proper amendment to the bylaws, see if they would be willing to provide advise.

Thanks, and good luck.

Bob


To: Ms. Janet Tutt, Director VCCDD

Single residents in The Villages pay the same amenity fee every month that married couples pay, yet they are not allowed to bring a friend into The Villages to enjoy dances, swim in the pool, and play other games, golf, etc. unless they live outside the tri-county area. Specifically, we ask that single resident households be allowed the same opportunity to enjoy all the things that The Villages lifestyle has to offer married couples. We believe this is the only fair thing to do since single residents pay the same amenity fee as a married couple.

Proposed for consideration:

We the undersigned, call upon you to pass an amendment to the bylaws to allow a single resident household the same privileges that married couples have. Each single resident household shall have a special guest pass that is linked to the resident’s Identification such that the guest shall be in the company or presence of the resident at all times in order to use it. The guest pass shall be electronically linked to the resident’s bar code. This would ensure that the guest pass could not be given to someone outside The Villages for use by anyone unaccompanied by the resident. Our sense is that this is what the representatives are concerned about and we believe this addresses that concern.
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[Romegirl]

I agree ..and will support you in your effort to gain the same rights for single residents as those afforded couples.....

Romegirl

[chachacha]

for taking up our cause and putting all the time and effort into this...i hope many people support you at the meeting....

[Russ_Boston]

In theory I support you since the monthly payment is the same.

Question: I thought that up to 4 people (assuming they are on the deed) can get resident passes with the one amenity fee?

If so then shouldn't every amenity fee get up to 4 to do with as they wish?

I'm not supporting that argument but it would be the 'devil's advocate' position.

[Cassie325]

Russ...
Wile your thought about the four people is correct, they would all have to prove residency at that home before they can get their ID from that home. There are as you know specific requirements to prove residency.


All....
If you thnk that single resident households should be allowed different rules in regards to amenities, then do you think that those residents that can not enjoy the amenities any longer should get a discount?

For instance a couple moved here together 20 years ago and neither can golf, swim, golf cart around any longer. They are aging a bit and in fact don't get out of the house much at all, so they don't really even enjoy the flowers etc....

They don't use the amenities....they can prove it with all of their doctors notes and homecare aides but they still have to pay their fee. Shouldn't we discount them?

I guess I am playing a little devils advocate as well....but once you start making changes and exceptions....well don't you have to do that for everyones special need or circumstance?

I am not trying to start an argument....just throwing a different perspective out there....

I am sure there are other exceptions to the rules that could be made as well!

[Russ_Boston]

Let me change my answer in light of those facts.

It should remain that all owners on the deed (up to 4) get a resident pass for their one monthly amenity fee. Simple, efficient. Some homes get 1 some get 4.

Otherwise those with 2 would start complaining about those that have 4 etc. etc.

[clyd709]

Just a suggestion: It would be a good idea to put in a provision for Widows and Widowers. Quite often when a Spouse Dies monthly income can drop substantiously, and since there will only be one surviving spouse in the household that should then become a single household. It is only my opinion so there are many components to this proposal. Good luck to all of you

[zcaveman]

Originally Posted by clyd709

Just a suggestion: It would be a good idea to put in a provision for Widows and Widowers. Quite often when a Spouse Dies monthly income can drop substantiously, and since there will only be one surviving spouse in the household that should then become a single household. It is only my opinion so there are many components to this proposal. Good luck to all of you

I am not sure how a single household would affect any of the costs. The amenity fees are not affected by number of people in the household.

The way I understand this post is that a single Villager wants the ability to bring a date (note I do not say friend) into the Villages and allow them to have the run of all the amenities that the Villagers have. While I understand what they want and I actually feel that they should have the ability to bring a date (note I do not say friend) into the Villages for dances and the pool and golf I don't think all amenities should be open to them. I still want to reserve the use of executive golf courses but since the SSDDCC (or whatever) punked out on the 30 day a year rule for in-county relatives, I guess that is fair game also but negotiable

Just my feelings. I know if I was single and meet someone in Lake, Marion, or Sumter that I took a liking to I would like to be able to invite them to the local dances, etc.

[Cassie325]

Originally Posted by zcaveman

I am not sure how a single household would affect any of the costs. The amenity fees are not affected by number of people in the household.

The way I understand this post is that a single Villager wants the ability to bring a date (note I do not say friend) into the Villages and allow them to have the run of all the amenities that the Villagers have. While I understand what they want and I actually feel that they should have the ability to bring a date (note I do not say friend) into the Villages for dances and the pool and golf I don't think all amenities should be open to them. I still want to reserve the use of executive golf courses but since the SSDDCC (or whatever) punked out on the 30 day a year rule for in-county relatives, I guess that is fair game also but negotiable

Just my feelings. I know if I was single and meet someone in Lake, Marion, or Sumter that I took a liking to I would like to be able to invite them to the local dances, etc.

Z-I don't think it was the CDD that punked out on anything....this was a homeowner issue at hand I believe....it was the homeowner elected reps on the board that voted it down.

[bigfox]

The abuse of the guest pass situation is coming from the fact that if 4 residents per household can prove residency they can get IDs. There are 11 forms of ID that are availabe and only 3 of the 11 are required to get an ID. The new policy about not allowing guests that live in the tri-county area is not affected by the above. That is where the abuse is still coming from. Not giving a single person household an extra pass for a girl friend or boy friend.

There are less than 4500 single resident households in TV. Historically only 1.5% use guest passes. That would amount to 45 extra people using the facilities that the single person household is already paying for anyway. They pay the same fee as a couple.

Some people have dance partners living outside TV and can no longer bring them to the dances sponsored by the rec department. That is not right.

I was talking to a widow who lost her husband 5 years ago. The same day he passed away she got a call from someone requesting that the husband's ID be turned in to the office. That is what is going on here. Singles are being discriminated against in TV. This is a couples oriented place. If you are single you are just out of luck. Sorry that is just not right.

[diskman]

x

[diskman]

Originally Posted by bigfox

The abuse of the guest pass situation is coming from the fact that if 4 residents per household can prove residency they can get IDs. There are 11 forms of ID that are availabe and only 3 of the 11 are required to get an ID. The new policy about not allowing guests that live in the tri-county area is not affected by the above. That is where the abuse is still coming from. Not giving a single person household an extra pass for a girl friend or boy friend.

There are less than 4500 single resident households in TV. Historically only 1.5% use guest passes. That would amount to 45 extra people using the facilities that the single person household is already paying for anyway. They pay the same fee as a couple.

Some people have dance partners living outside TV and can no longer bring them to the dances sponsored by the rec department. That is not right.

I was talking to a widow who lost her husband 5 years ago. The same day he passed away she got a call from someone requesting that the husband's ID be turned in to the office. That is what is going on here. Singles are being discriminated against in TV. This is a couples oriented place. If you are single you are just out of luck. Sorry that is just not right.

Bigfox, I beg to differ with your final sentence, because I have never read a thread posted by a single, that complained about their life in the villages.

[ijusluvit]

Diskman: There have been previous threads from single residents which have brought to light this fundamentally discriminatory practice. Just because those folks are in the minority and have not raised the roof doesn't mean that they don't have a complaint, and a valid one to boot.

Bigfox: You've said it very well.

Bob: Good luck with the quest. Don't give up! As a happily married couple for lots of years, we are not in your situation, but we fully support it

It's irrelevant that TV policy allows up to 4 resident passes if there are as many as 4 co-owners. It is a clearly unfair practice to deny singles a second pass, which they should be able to use for a person of their choice, as long as they register the identity information with TV. The pass should be transferable to another person in the same way that a married person could arrange to do if they divorced and remarried. No questions asked!

[SteveFromNY]

Originally Posted by ijusluvit

It's irrelevant that TV policy allows up to 4 resident passes if there are as many as 4 co-owners. It is a clearly unfair practice to deny singles a second pass, which they should be able to use for a person of their choice, as long as they register the identity information with TV. The pass should be transferable to another person in the same way that a married person could arrange to do if they divorced and remarried. No questions asked!

I think that makes a lot of sense - although for "fast moving" singles it may be a burden to register them.
But I think the idea of allowing singles a guest pass for whomever is a really good idea. One per single household!

[ilvgolf]

Well, I wish it would go one further in that I think it is discriminatory that a single person has to pay 88% of the total fee that is required for a couple for a priority membership. A couple pays approximately $981.(approximately) and a single person pays $791. Several years ago I wrote a letter and questioned this practice and was told "well, someone has to make up the difference so it is the singles that have to do it". Just blew me away. I wouldn't bother with the priority membership except that I play a lot of golf - but still don't feel that single people are getting a fair shake.