Goldwingnut |
03-01-2024 07:51 AM |
Yes, the lawsuit is long over, and the money needed for repairs and upkeep of the existing amenities that the lawsuit said was insufficient in the original purchase, is now spent and gone, some on new facilities that I for one question both the wisdom and need of.
The second part of the OP's question as to "The Villages" not taking care of the areas north of 466, the first thing that must be clarified is who they are referring to, "The Villages" the community, the local special purpose government, or the developer? The first is the people who live here and by and large, we the resident of The Villages take great care and pride in our community and work hard to make it that way, the second is our community development districts and they are focused on exactly that, maintaining the community aesthetics and infrastructure.
As far as the developer goes, they are a business focused on building homes and commercial properties. Once the homes are built and the warranty period is over (as it is north of 466 for the most part) they have no obligation or responsibility to support or pour money into anything; that responsibility belongs to the residents and the district government. You bought a house and everything that is included in your sales contract and nothing else. You didn't get a rich uncle or a nanny state that will take care of your every need and want, you got a house in a community. For them it is a business, and in business it is all about the money or you go out of business very quickly. Profit is good, greed is a sin, they are profitable, good for them and good for all of us. If one takes the time to really delve into all that the developer and the family has done and continues to do for the local community and economy, you'll find that they very quietly give back a tremendous amount to both. Are they Simon pure? From my own experience I would say not, they are very protective of what they have created and crossing them or not playing by "their" rules can be painful (I've found this out several times now) and sometime expensive, but honestly I believe them to be no more protective than any other successful brand or business.
As far as the YouTuber comments go, being one of them I can assure you that most YouTubers are not getting rich on the penny or two that YouTube may pay for each view, and then the government takes their pound of flesh from those earnings as well. Yes, there is some real trash out there and there are several that make their profits by trashing a community that they know little about or have an undeniable bias based on preconceived notions, political views, or sometimes just plain ignorance. There are a few of us that try to remain positive in what we produce but are also not afraid to call something out as bad when it is just as easily as we call something good. And not one of us has received a dime from the developer for our efforts. Unfortunately, if you look at the stats for the most popular videos about The Villages, you'll find that negativity and trash sells better that facts.
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