McAdam: Executive session has problems in Sun City
Posted
I attended the Sept.30 Recreation Centers of Sun City board meeting at Sundial Center and left with a lot of impressions. I will mention two.
First, serving as an RCSC board member is a thankless job. It demands the investment of a great deal of time and energy. To aspire to this office means you either have an abundance of free time on your hands, or you are selfless enough to volunteer both time and energy in seeking to make Sun City a great place to live. Bill Pearson’s remarks were memorable on this score, but I was also impressed with the comments of a new resident who said she has only lived in Sun City for a month and is finding it to be a wonderful experience. She also suggested that there is room for improvement in the way we do business.
Second, as far as how business is conducted, I heard director Rich Hoffer say that an email calling an the June 25 executive session was sent out at 9:38 a.m. on June 24 while the board meeting at Sundial was in progress. The accuracy of this statement was disputed. Either narrative reflects
poorly on the board, because:
a) It is possible that director Hoffer erred in this claim. If so, then the other board members should have corrected him. The alternative would be that director Hoffer was making a claim that was untrue, which is not the first time such an accusation has been levied against him.
b) If director Hoffer is correct in this claim, then Sue Wilson, board president, must have drafted this invitation to the special executive session during the June 24 board meeting, or before. One could only conclude that Wilson chose to send this email halfway through this board meeting. Why?
Perhaps a third impression deserves mention. Honesty, fairness, transparency and forthrightness are all qualities that must be on display for residents to trust their governing institutions. The RCSC board will need to work hard to regain that trust going forward.
