[graciegirl]

There appears to be a problem at the Woodworking shop with people being on a long waiting list. Can anyone explain how the use of equipment and training work there? I also heard there is an initiation fee to be in the club. I haven't ever heard of that for other clubs.

I know nothing about this, but I know that someone who does know can explain what this snafu is.

[Nucky]

Before dewilson beats me to it, my barbers, hairdressers, mechanic, and restaurant critic who is presently missing from TOTV said they are having a small Termite problem at the Woodworking shop. That's all I know for now.

[champion6]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

There appears to be a problem at the Woodworking shop with people being on a long waiting list. Can anyone explain how the use of equipment and training work there? I also heard there is an initiation fee to be in the club. I haven't ever heard of that for other clubs.

I know nothing about this, but I know that someone who does know can explain what this snafu is.

Please visit the club's website to learn the answers to most of your questions.
The Villages Woodworkers Club

If you then still have specific questions, post them here.

[Serenoa]

Can't answer your questions, but in regard to the comment about there being a long waiting list to join I believe there are definite plans to build a second woodworking shop somewhere close to Eisenhower Rec Center. At least that's what was said at the last "Ask the Developer" at The Sharon.

[MrPelota]

I am on the waiting list for the woodshop....number 361, but that's okay because I am still three years away from being able to move to The Villages permanently. I follow the club pretty closely online....I read their meeting minutes and club updates on their website. Very thorough and comprehensive. I am in agreement with limiting the size for safety concerns. They have a system for training people on each power machine and also insist on their members taking their turn at being a shop monitor (i.e. watching others work to identify safety issues). I have toured the shop and met several members....I don't see anything "underground" or devious. You just can't jam pack a woodshop without being concerned about liability.
While I understand the frustration of a waiting list, I think things will change with the addition of a second shop.
Finally, I am not aware of an "initiation fee" but they do have dues which is typical of most clubs anywhere.
Blessings to all....have a great day!

[Madelaine Amee]

My neighbor spends almost every day at the Woodworking Shop. He tells us there are approx 780 people on the waiting list. I think one has more of a chance of passing away than getting to be a member!

[Back9]

780 people on the waiting list? Holy cow!

If The Villages facility(ies) can't meet the demand -- and they certainly are trying -- then that looks like an opportunity for something entrepreneurial just offsite. Any entrepreneurs out there?
Cheers All.

[NatureBoy]

Originally Posted by Back9

780 people on the waiting list? Holy cow!

A bit of topic drift, but...

How common are these sorts of enormous waiting lists for Villages clubs? The wife & I are seriously considering moving there when the time comes, but if all the "good" clubs are full, that severely diminishes the appeal of 2000+ clubs.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by NatureBoy

A bit of topic drift, but...

How common are these sorts of enormous waiting lists for Villages clubs? The wife & I are seriously considering moving there when the time comes, but if all the "good" clubs are full, that severely diminishes the appeal of 2000+ clubs.

Oh goodness what's a few years wait? People wait hours standing in line just to get into a 40-minute exercise session every week. And those people are already here, already engaged in the weekly classes. They show up - and it's closed. Or worse, they show up, wait an hour in line, only to be told when they get to the door that the class is now full, they aren't allowed to enter.

At least when you're on a club's waiting list, you can do other things while you wait, right? Surely there's SOME kind of club that doesn't have a waiting list you can join. I'll bet you could get interested in the navel lint crochet club if you really put your mind to it. Or how about the pie-eating-contest training club. Or the County Fair Pig Caller's monthly meeting.

Afterall this is paradise, what difference does it make if one club is closed out, you can join thousands of other ones!

[hborfitz]

To All,

My name is Michael (Mike) Borfitz and I am the president of The Villages Woodworkers Club. I would like to answer some of the questions about the Club and clarify some of the misconceptions.
It was after a great deal of thought and consideration that we made the decision to suspend taking members at the start of 2018. Never before in the fourteen years of the wood shop had we done so. Our Club population had risen to over 900 people, and we had grave concern for the safety and the ability to accommodate those numbers. We created the waiting list with the intention of regularly reviewing the situation and allowing a finite number of people to join as was possible….. Which we did. And in 2018, we did open the enrollment to the first 60 people on the list, thus making the rest of the waiting list sixty people closer to being accommodated.
Since 2017 we have been working very closely with Mr. Morse and The Villages personnel to create a much-needed second shop. We were ecstatic when Mr. Morse announced in May that he had identified land for that purpose. Our time since then has been filled with providing specs and insight as to the best set-up for this new building/site and saving money to equip the new location. Everyone would like it to be ready immediately; but, that’s just not realistic.

In the meantime, we will review the shop population numbers each month to see when we can invite the next group on the waiting list into our existing Club, as we wait for the opening of the second shop which will allow us to bring in everyone on the waiting list. At the present time our list is about 345 people. And, we can't wait for the new shop to be available, so that they too can become members. That's not likely to happen until the beginning of 2020, but as mentioned before we will be inviting some to join as we carefully assess what is going on in the shop and how many we feel we can safely accommodate.

As to the initiation fee, we do charge a $150 initiation fee when a resident first becomes a member plus the dues which are $55 a year. The initiation fee is put towards the full day of initiation activities which focus on the safety aspects of the shop and towards the purchase and/or repair of all the equipment in the shop. As long as the member remains active, he/she never pays that fee again. He/she is responsible for dues which are slightly over $1 per week!
If you are interested in becoming a member of this club, please stop by our site facing Rolling Acres (actual mailing address is 704 Oak St) and fill out the form which enters you in the system on a first-com-first served basis.
If you have further questions, please feel free to contact me at hborfitz@comcast.net.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by hborfitz

To All,

My name is Michael (Mike) Borfitz and I am the president of The Villages Woodworkers Club. I would like to answer some of the questions about the Club and clarify some of the misconceptions.
It was after a great deal of thought and consideration that we made the decision to suspend taking members at the start of 2018. Never before in the fourteen years of the wood shop had we done so. Our Club population had risen to over 900 people, and we had grave concern for the safety and the ability to accommodate those numbers. We created the waiting list with the intention of regularly reviewing the situation and allowing a finite number of people to join as was possible….. Which we did. And in 2018, we did open the enrollment to the first 60 people on the list, thus making the rest of the waiting list sixty people closer to being accommodated.
Since 2017 we have been working very closely with Mr. Morse and The Villages personnel to create a much-needed second shop. We were ecstatic when Mr. Morse announced in May that he had identified land for that purpose. Our time since then has been filled with providing specs and insight as to the best set-up for this new building/site and saving money to equip the new location. Everyone would like it to be ready immediately; but, that’s just not realistic.

In the meantime, we will review the shop population numbers each month to see when we can invite the next group on the waiting list into our existing Club, as we wait for the opening of the second shop which will allow us to bring in everyone on the waiting list. At the present time our list is about 345 people. And, we can't wait for the new shop to be available, so that they too can become members. That's not likely to happen until the beginning of 2020, but as mentioned before we will be inviting some to join as we carefully assess what is going on in the shop and how many we feel we can safely accommodate.

As to the initiation fee, we do charge a $150 initiation fee when a resident first becomes a member plus the dues which are $55 a year. The initiation fee is put towards the full day of initiation activities which focus on the safety aspects of the shop and towards the purchase and/or repair of all the equipment in the shop. As long as the member remains active, he/she never pays that fee again. He/she is responsible for dues which are slightly over $1 per week!
If you are interested in becoming a member of this club, please stop by our site facing Rolling Acres (actual mailing address is 704 Oak St) and fill out the form which enters you in the system on a first-com-first served basis.
If you have further questions, please feel free to contact me at hborfitz@comcast.net.

This deserves to be ahead of my post above.

[New Englander]

Originally Posted by Jazuela

Oh goodness what's a few years wait? People wait hours standing in line just to get into a 40-minute exercise session every week. And those people are already here, already engaged in the weekly classes. They show up - and it's closed. Or worse, they show up, wait an hour in line, only to be told when they get to the door that the class is now full, they aren't allowed to enter.

At least when you're on a club's waiting list, you can do other things while you wait, right? Surely there's SOME kind of club that doesn't have a waiting list you can join. I'll bet you could get interested in the navel lint crochet club if you really put your mind to it. Or how about the pie-eating-contest training club. Or the County Fair Pig Caller's monthly meeting.

Afterall this is paradise, what difference does it make if one club is closed out, you can join thousands of other ones!

I must say the highlighted portion of your post gave me a chuckle on this cloudy, chilly day.

[spring_chicken]

I find it ridiculous that someone who doesn't live here and won't for 3 years is allowed to be on the waiting list.

[MrPelota]

I am assuming your post is directed at me. I said I would not be living in The Villages full-time for three years. We still come down for week(s) at a time to enjoy my home in The Villages. Hopefully, some day, we can work together in the Woodshop!

[Kahuna32162]

This is Club, and not a amenity. Many clubs in The Villages limit their membership due to space and availability restrictions. As stated above, one time initiation fees go towards safety training for new members. Those on the waiting list have no choice but to wait their turn. Stop whining.