By Rusty Bradshaw
Independent Newsmedia

The project to refurbish the exterior common walls of Sun City continues to plow ahead at nearly full steam.



Sun City Resident Action Program volunteers were busy completing work on sections of Bell Road-facing walls last week and this week. Lloyd Maple, SCRAP Walls Committee chairman, said the painting of Bell Road walls on the west end was expected to be complete by the end of last week and the east end is projected to be done this week.

“That will complete the Bell Road walls, except for those behind the stores in the Bell Camino Shopping Center,” he said.

Those walls, and other various locations in the community, are next to a drainage canal. That will make painting them a little difficult because there is little work room on the narrow strip of land between the wall and canal.



“We haven’t quite figured out how to get to these walls yet, but we will,” Mr. Maple said. “At another of these locations off 99th Avenue near Emberwood Drive I was holding the wall and walking sideways at times to keep my balance.”

Despite the obstacles, the walls project is progressing ahead of schedule and under the initial projected budget, according to Mr. Maple. Financially, the committee has collected just more than $60,500 in donations to fund the project.

“In the beginning we thought it would take $250,000, but we are realizing it will cost less than that,” Mr. Maple said.

It was originally estimated to cost 46 cents per square foot to paint the walls. But with the committee buying the paint, along with in-kind and more than anticipated donations, the cost is down to 39 cents, according to Mr. Maple.

“We also bought a professional sprayer, but it’s a little more complicated than a regular sprayer, so we need someone who knows how to operate it properly,” Mr. Maple explained.



He was sidelined on the project a few weeks ago as he recovered from a broken hip.

“Ritchie Miller (SCRAP Walls Committee member) did a great job of filling in for me,” Mr. Maple said.

Sun City Home Owners Association board member Ben Roloff praised the project, having been part of the effort to paint the walls about 17 years ago.

“If you can get 17 miles of walls painted for less than $250,000, that is quite an achievement,” he said.
When the project was conducted previously, the cost was $158,000.

“Considering inflation, we are getting it done for about the same or less,” Mr. Roloff said.

While the committee has exceeded its expectations on contributions, more are needed to complete the project of cleaning and painting all the exterior common walls in the community, Mr. Maple said. Donations to the walls project can be sent to SCRAP, 10401 W. Coggins Drive, Sun City, AZ 85351.