You are suggesting to take away half of the funding and then blame The Villages if they cancel the entertainment. If that is not sticking it to the developer, I do not know what is.

I'm suggesting you are over reacting and the entertainment is not going away. I am suggesting the Developers will be fine if they have to spend a little money for entertainment in the squares. I think they will be fine.

I'm suggesting there are other venues in Sumter County that could use that money. The Wildwood School only got $5,000 and the schools in South Sumter got nothing.

The Villages will be fine. The sky is not falling.

This thread, like the earlier "no entertainment in the squares" thread, is here to discuss an important local issue which also has ties to a local election.

As long as the replies stay on topic, don't get partisan or nasty, and stay away from name-calling, the discussion can continue. Please be civil. Discuss the topic and not each other.

Thanks for your cooperation.

Moderator

One of the very first meetings I went to one of the commissioners made it clear that with them it was "one for all and all for one". That's exactly what we have seen over the years. No discussion.. 5 to 0 DONE!


What will be different with this election. If EMS gets voted in... It won't be one for all and all for one. Just because one feels that something will be a certain way, if the others don't agree, they will get to discuss and vote. We will start seeing 3 to 2 or 4 to 1 or maybe 5 to 0 but we will be seeing the different personalities come out and know what they are voting for and why.

The people who have started this rumor don't want EMS to win so no matter what, they won't let go of the rope. I only hope people are smart enough to see through it for what it is... .an election ploy.

Suddenly, "The Developer" is trusted??? Oh please.

It's not a rumor. Oren stated he would not vote to continue to fund Entertainment on the Square.

I have no issue with any of the EMS team. I honestly believe they want to do what they feel feel is right for the residents to Sumter County.

I have to vote for the candidates that I feel will make the best decisions for Sumter County.

The fact that Oren Miller said he would vote to not continue to fund square Entertainment from the hotel tax concerns me. The money is there and has to be used to promote tourism. I think square entertainment promotes tourism and is a huge boost to the merchants and restaurants in the square. It makes me question Oren's priorities.

I'm not holding on to any rope, Angie. I'm looking at a candidate's position on his spending priorities.

How is pointing out a candidate's position on a topic an election ploy?

You're frustrated because Oren took a position that is unpopular with many residents. Now you're trying to do damage control.

You made an accusation about the incumbents in your original post. You are basically campaigning without identifying yourself as the spouse of one of the opponents. I find the integrity of that equal to changing parties for the sole reason of running in a primary against the incumbants.

It's a rumor because people want everyone to believe that if they don't get this money the entertainment will stop. Did the developers say that? They didn't get the money for Lake Sumter or Spanish Springs last year and the entertainment continued.

There was entertainment at the squares before the EVER got this money.

Do you not believe the developers will pay for the entertainment? Have they said they will cut out entertainment if they don't get the money?

This isn't like the old commissioners. When EMS gets in, they will all vote. They won't all agree like the present commissioners do. At least three of them will have to agree to make it go.

So... you decide because Oren said he thinks the schools in the south can use this money more than the developers can (yes he did say that) that people should not vote for him and give up all the things EMS wants to do for the community.

The rumor... No entertainment at the squares. Unless the people saying that can show me that the developers won't fund it like they always have, I don't buy into it and neither should you.

It's an election ploy! Nothing more.

You're misinterpreting what I said.

I'll extend the sentence for clarity:

It = our town, that we lived in at the time, the way it evolved from when it was settled in the early 1700s...

was better that way = the way it was, as a result of its evolution, as opposed to any other way it could have been, had it not ended up the way it was.

I didn't mean it was better than other places. I meant "all is as intended."

Though I'd say it was much better than Bridgeport. But everyone knows that.

For a very old suburb that started mostly as sheep pastures, became a bustling clay manufacturing town, and has become a sprawling semi-rural suburb of New Haven, it is pretty much as it was intended to become, and as it should be.

If it had attracted tourism, it wouldn't be what it is now. And therefore - it wouldn't be as good at being what it is now, if it was something entirely different.

This is what we have now. This is three different meetings, three different issues.

How the commissioners treat visitors - YouTube

I can tell by the responses that many of you have never been to a BOCC meeting.


Angie takes on Angeliadis - YouTube

This is the first time I was able to talk to a county commissioner at a question and answer.

This is what we have now.... This is why so many have said "vote them out" We just wanted them to put it on the ballot. Ask the people.

Gilpin answers questions in South Sumter - YouTube

Villagers is changing not like it was Many people will be selling and I as a snowbird would never by there

Everyone relax. First off until the square entertainment group figures out a safe way to herd people back there is no entertainment. And TV is not the be all end all of Sumter County. These elected officials will be working together for All of Sumter. Those of us who live in TV sometimes forget there is a world outside the " pink walls". Maybe the solution will be simple, add a few dollars to everyone's amenity fee and use it for the entertainment. Yes being sarcastic, many people who visit the music are from outside TV. So who pays for them? Years ago a friend visited. We house hunted. When she asked a Del Web sales person where do people go for entertainment? His response down the road to TV. BTW Del Web is Marion County. Maybe it is time for new blood in office. Stagnation of attitudes and ideas hurt all of us. Right now we might want to concentrate on staying physically and financially healthy. Entertainment will be minor if homeless and jobless numbers climb.

At least one of the challengers is running to degrade or eliminate the amenities that members of his own community enjoy.

Really? Can you prove that? You know who I am. Who are you? I am reading the lies in here and have to question who is writing them? Are you a commissioner? Or one of the developers?

Here is what I wrote to someone else. It goes beyond your post, but it points out a couple of the reasons we need new commissioners.

Oren isn't in this forum

I am speaking as a resident who has been to all the BOCC meetings until COVID for the past four years.

As to the shelter. We are the only County Shelter in Florida that doesn't allow volunteers. Why? If we had volunteers it would save the county a ton of money. People have offered to help in the meetings. We could save more animals and get them back home with volunteers. But then if we had volunteers we would have known about the dog that was recently left in the truck to die with the heat on. We asked for those records from the county three times before we got them all. The first time they said there were NO records. We let them know we KNEW and they started feeding us the records a little at a time. Oh... and a supervisor had to resign or be fired because she refused to sweep it under the rug. Yes! I have the documents to prove all of this.

Or the little dog that fell out of the truck and they denied picking up the dog until it came out there was a camera outside the house that recorded the whole event. They got lucky and the dog was found later.

Or the five dogs that were killed with their surgical collars on one even had an adopter on the way to pick her up. the person who had to kill them had just been promoted and quit because it affected her so much. (Yes, I have the text from her )

We need Shelter Reform at our county shelter. It would save us money and save our pets.

As to reversing One Sumter. Yes, One Sumter needs to go away. We need commissioners who work for us. I wouldn't want residents in Georgia voting for my Governor. If you have ever been to a meeting, you will know the Commissioners don't work for us. Yes, they work for the developers. Understand the villages are represented by the developers, Wildwood is represented by their government, Busnell is represented by their government. The Commissioners should be representing ALL the residents NOT special interest groups.

The Villages has been warned about all the building. About the lack of water for all of us and about the sinkholes. (Oh, and speaking of sinkholes, the employees of The Villages can't call them sinkholes, they have to call them "ground depressions" or "water main breaks"), Maybe there needs to be some checks and balances in our system before any more people lose their homes. I have friends dealing with the "ground depressions" now.. how many more?

As for my roll... I am a resident. Who are you? Everyone knows who I am, but most of the people in here have fake names. What is your roll in this? I have to wonder about the lies I'm reading in here. Who are the people spreading them? What do they get out of this? Others need to ask the same. You know who I am. .. who are you?

The Science Behind Florida’s Sinkhole Epidemic
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Science

Why does the Villages Charter School get $106,000 and The Wildwood Middle High School only gets $5,000?

I'm not a commissioner or developer. I am a resident who bought a home here to enjoy the available benefits and amenities during my retirement in TV. My goal in life is not to save all unwanted animals. I recognize that the current commissioners sometimes behave rudely to residents who oppose them at board meetings. However, I believe that working with the developer to make The Villages a better place for most of us is in our best interest and in the interest of thousands of employees who support our comfortable retirement lifestyle. Your insinuation that I am a commissioner or developer indicates that at least one of the challengers will also be disrespectful to opposing residents if he is elected to the commission.

That I ask who you are is rude?

As I said, I am speaking as a resident I am not running for office.

Thank you for acknowledging that you understand the commissioners are not kind to the residents.

The commissioners are not in office to work for the developers. They are voted in to work for the residents.

While they could have done nothing about the Hacienda situation , it’s an example of the fact that the developers don’t have our back.

They should have fixed it... but then that wouldn’t have made as much income, would it?

They could have built those apartments anywhere... why there?

The choices were 600 more residents or a parking garage.

Nice

What is shameful is to hoard it, especially when it is way beyond what someone needs to live comfortably. I am not calling out the Morse family or any other billionaires specifically because I do not know how they spend their money. But I do believe that if all billionaires (and even hundreds-of-millions-aires)felt a deep regard for their fellow man many problems could be resolved. Those billions of dollars represent resources that could help a lot people who suffer daily without the basic needs of life.

based upon what facts do you state 'they' are hoarding ? do you know where their investments lie ? doubtful its hard currency under collective mattresses,,, rarely does anyonew/basic economic common sense let $$ just lie in place to lose value due to inflation.

“I have never understood why it is "greed" to want to keep the money you have earned but not greed to want to take somebody else's money.”
t sowell

The last thing we need
 

is 3 guys saying no all the time, to turn back the clock , to have no grasp of the vision of what this place is becoming. . They remind me of he older people tin a condo building , that will argue for hours over the replacement of a rug , painting or plants because they won’t be around long so why spend the money. I’m 20 year resident that’s moved 5 times through the villages, for those who haven’t been here that long as nice as it is , it was even better when the family had full control, no extra ornaments , no weeds or bad lawns, no painting or structures without approval, or you would get a notice from neighborhood watch . I’m in new section and at 81 I’m excited about the changes and all the younger retirees, who have come because of all the wonderful things that have here and what will come in future , I don’t need 3 guys saying no over and over

greed definition: The definition of greed is an intense desire to accumulate large amounts of something, such as food or money, especially if you try to acquire more than you need or more than your fair share

Hmm, I think I have seen the above post in about 5 other threads with slight modifications. Yes, I guess you need county commissioners that allow a private bottler to draw massive amounts of water out of a parched aquifer or for a county to raise taxes on the whole county to pay for roads that the developer and new home buyers should be paying for.
Checks and balances are what this country is founded on

WOW! And WOW! Why would anyone want Mr. Butler to represent us? It is clearly his way, or the ''SIT DOWN, .... SIT DOWN" highway.

We don't know if 1. they have it and 2. they hoard it. It very well is their net worth with all of the property they own and is in flux and in use to keep building. I do know they SELF FINANCE.

And what people do with their money is their own business. If I had that much who knows what I would do...or who knows what anyone would do.

I think the Morses do not act uppity or show off and I see their reinvestments in new areas and I also see them renew older modular homes in the older part by buying them and replacing them with safer-during-a-hurricane site built homes that they sell at not as much margin.


ANYONE WHO HAS MORE THAN THEY NEED is rich...and many have more than they need so that if evil befalls them they don't have a hand out to the "gubmunt."

The developers are not at all trustworthy look how they hot away with ripping down Hacienda and got approval to build apartments on that property, the 4 that voted for approving this are not running for re-election. Gee do you think there was some payoffs to those 4 that voted in favor of approving it?

It is interesting to me who decides who has what and when it is too much. Usually the voices come from those who do not save and have their hand out.

The woman in charge at our bank always agrees with me; Money, you can always spend if you need to. Money is both security and power and a source of great good....and evil. And money is hated most by those who don't have it.

I think your dreaming big time. The developers have just proven how greedy they are. Harold must be turning over in his grave with what the family is doing to The Villages now!

I have friends that have pulled their store from Brownwood . $4000 a month base rental for a small store with no relief while closed . ridiculous .let some other idiot pay .

Oren Miller is a commissioner for the people. Hearing about the way people feel about this situation, he agrees that if not giving this money to the entertainment department would stop the the entertainment on the square... by all means, they should get the funds. He said his intention was NOT to "defund" the entertainment on the square, he just felt that there could have been better venues to spend the money.

Oren Miller is not in this forum and this is why I have to reply. He gives you his word, he will vote for what the PEOPLE want.

If they were in Brownwood then I am pretty sure they signed a five year leasing contract like all other businesses. If they closed due to the pandemic, it is possible that their landlords would defer the payments. Or not.

Not one soul ever was pressured to rent here, or at most places that businesses and people rent. This urban legend has been posted again and again. If you want the truth call The Villages Business Rentals and ask them. About every five years someone from there will come on this forum and clear it up, but no one has had a gun held to her/his head to rent. It is the same kind of contract that businesses sign in malls and other seasonal hot spots.

Can I hand this defending off to someone else? The new folks who don't know me will think I have some connection to the Morses. I LOVE this place. Been here for fourteen years and still love this place.

Developers I am familiar with and spoken to have funded their own growth through bonds etc. this is a first for me to Dee a county fund future development the way it has happened in Sumter.

Angie - I appreciate this post.
As I have said, I do think that Oren wants to do what he feels is right for the residents of Sumter County.

Here is my concern, and I don't think I'm alone with how I feel:
I love it here. I love what The Developer has done with The Villages. I love the vision that the Developer has for the development (medical complex, new high school and new championship golf course) south of 44.

I don't think the incumbents have always made the right decisions. I don't think the "25%" tax increase was a good move. I think the incumbents can be a little arrogant.

My concern is, I don't want to elect 3 people that are going to block The Developer at every turn. The Developer has a lot of money that he can invest in Sumter County. I want commissioners who will work with The Developer to improve The Villages and Sumter County. I'm not saying you have to roll over. But I don't want to see gridlock.

The gentlemen running for County Commissioner LOVE The Villages. They all live in The Villages. Someone has made this out to be a battle of the Commissioners and the Developers. It's not.

Here is Mr. Estep's response to the claims.

"I hesitate to respond to advertisements approved by the incumbents, but I feel this one has to be addressed. The incumbents have gone too far with their latest Mail Chimp push full of incorrect information, thereby exposing their lack of integrity. I will address each falsehood individually with facts.

“World class health care, high paying jobs, safe neighborhoods.”

The first two belong to the developer with his incentives and the outstanding employers in the county, the last one is the Sheriff.

“Low taxes (the lowest in the tri-county area and we just voted to reduce them even more)”.

The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) is the Taxing Authority on only one line on the tax bill. It is the Sumter County line on the Ad Valorem tax statement. It shows the millage rate at 6.7 for 2019. Marion and Lake County have lower millage rates in 2019 than Sumter County. Please do not spin the numbers by adding other items on the tax bill to what you commissioners passed. To say you are lowering them even more is an insult to the intelligence of the people of Sumter County.

“It’s been our task the past several years to ready our County for such progress”.

The BOCC missed the boat on that one in 2015 when THEY asked the developer to grow south of HWY 44 as reflected in the public record. There was a lack of foresight from 2015 until the 2019 hike in taxes.

“Strong Law Enforcement”.

Absolutely…and you have nothing to do with managing that law enforcement piece. There is a Constitutional Officer (the Sheriff) that manages that agency and he even does all the budgetary planning.

“Delighted to see the development of more family friendly housing – neighborhood where people who work in Sumter County can live here too.”

Once again, this is the developers doing and not the County Commissioners. Please quit taking credit for successes you have little or nothing to do with. The people of Sumter County see through this.

“Now is not the time to hand over control of our County to Democrats and others who want to change direction – raising our taxes”.

This is a two-part response: 1) There are no Democrats on the ticket. I am a lifelong Republican. The other challengers are also Republicans. 2) It is preposterous to even mention raising taxes. No challenger has mentioned raising taxes, and the five incumbents raised it 25.5% last year. Conservative Republicans do not raise taxes 25.5%. I have never seen anyone in any party raise taxes that much before. Yet you continue to call the challengers names. Gutsy.

“Underfunding our law enforcement”.

Bald-faced lie. None of the challengers have indicated a cut in law enforcement of any kind. In fact, as a retired State Trooper, public safety in all areas has my total and unrelenting support. Stop lying to the good citizens of Sumter County.

“Imposing job-killing fees and regulations”.

My apologies for not knowing my own platform. I didn’t see that part in my platform. The truth is we have 76 streams of revenue coming into the county less interest, and we have communications and compromise to work with. There is no plan for job-killing or unnecessary regulatory changes planned. Will there be adherence to comprehensive planning and back and forth communications…you bet.

“All we have to do is watch the evening news to see what happens to communities when Democrats hold control!”

This statement is a new low. To accentuate the misery and pain others are suffering right now with what is going on around the country is unconscionable. You should be ashamed of yourselves for even trying to politicize this issue.

“We have all worked too hard to create the great lifestyle we enjoy here in our community to allow Democrats to sneak into power!”

Again, no Democrats on the ticket, and we should let the voters decide who should serve the people. This statement points out a critical difference in the challengers versus the incumbents. Calling it “power” shows that the incumbents are focused on the “power” and not the public service aspect of the BOCC. The challengers are all running to become public servants, and not focused on the power. We will let the people decide Aug. 18 if they want to continue with lies and innuendos, or if they choose honest, open, and transparent government.

Villager Craig Estep is a candidate for Sumter County Commission."

There is no twisting words when your husband , Oren Miller, who is running against the incumbents stated in writing that he would DEFUND entertainment !!! 😳

Your husband, Oren Miller, has stated in writing that he would not support funding of the entertainment on the squares.....

You are now trying to defend his actions by deflecting the issue by stating in essence, Oh don’t worry about anything, the Developer will take care of it ......

It is clear that Oren, you and the rest of the EMS team are against growth in Sumter County and now you are back pedaling so fast that I’m afraid you have fallen off the bike !!

To me and A LOT of Sumter County residents have real concerns about the fact that Oren has now changed his political party THREE TIMES AND COUNTING !!

Does he change parties every time he sees the opportunity that it may be of benefit for his personal and political aspirations ???

We sure would like to know the answer to that one....

And please, don’t tell us that he “saw the light “ !!! :shocked:

Your post is right on except for one little detail. We all know that property taxes went up by 25% last year after about 10 years of steady declines.

With all due respect, I disagree.

One line item in your bill may have gone up 25% but your total out of pocket increase did not.

The OUT OF POCKET tax increase for most was in the range of 7 - 11 %

As stated above, Oren Miller’s out of pocket property tax increase was 4 %

If you would like to PM me with your real name, I would be happy to go to the Sumter County Taxes website and calculate your total out of pocket tax increase between 2018 and 2019.....

One of the reasons why your taxes might be close to the 25 % figure is if you are a seasonal resident without the Homestead discounts.....