By Rusty Bradshaw

Independent Newsmedia

The Recreation Centers of Sun City Board of Directors will consider staff’s proposal to improve the corporation’s WiFi system.

Chris Herring

The board is scheduled to meet 9 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 26 in the auditorium of Sundial Recreation Center, 14801 N. 103rd Ave. The board approved the proposal on its second reading during the Sept. 9 RCSC board meeting, the first after its two-month summer recess.

Numerous complaints about the unreliability of the RCSC WiFi were expressed during multiple board meetings this year. RCSC staff instructed Chris Herring, RCSC assistant general manager, to develop a plan of improvement.

“WiFi use has expanded and outgrown our existing system,” he reported to the board during its June 27 meeting. “We have heard about poor coverage, inconsistent speeds and a poor network.”

The proposal calls for Internet speed upgrade and implementation of additional access points and networking devices to provide a WiFi and networking platform. The plan would mean a $26,375 upfront cost and an annual increase in WiFi service expenses of $23,484. If approved, the plan would be included in the 2020 budget with a planned completion by the end of next year.

The RCSC Long Range Planning Committee, in a report presented to the board, called for similar improvements, but called for more work to be done in 2019 to have the system upgraded faster. The committee had planned to address further recommendations to the board at the Sept. 9 meeting, but the item was pulled from the agenda by Rich Hoffer, RCSC board member and LRP Committee chairman.

Parts of the pulled recommendations called for RCSC management to direct staff to acquire three bids from technology companies to help guide the WiFi improvement process.

“Rather than relying on non-experts, we believe by contracting out we will know better what we can do (in certain) areas and the related costs,” the committee wrote in the report.

The pulled recommendations also included a number of other items, such as enhanced parking lot and facility security, updateable software and hardware, programs that allow data integration between clubs, access to club space, WiFi that exceeds current needs and programs that allow rec cards to be the vehicle to provide access to data utilization.

The committee also wanted to be involved in reviewing requests for proposals returned for service.

Mr. Herring said there was no need to replace the existing system as it can be expanded. His plan calls for expanding the network by adding access points in areas where distance causes performance issues. Access points would also be added in areas where devices are rarely used now but projected to be in the future. Mr. Herring’s plan also calls for added high capacity access points in areas if high attendance.

“We would also have a bandwidth increase at all locations,” he said during the June meeting.

RCSC’s WiFi now operates on a 10 megabit download and two MB upload speeds. Mr. Herring’s plan would have those increased to 100/20.

“The golf courses would remain at 10/2 because we’re not seeing much use there,” Mr. Herring explained.

Access points would be added in each club space with a secure connection for devices within the space.

Bill Pearson

Bill Pearson, an advocate of improving RCSC’s WiFi, believes the plan is good, but is too slow. He cited the fall crafts fair at Sundial Recreation Center, 14801 N. 103rd Ave., where some vendors experienced WiFi problems last year, and the new show ticketing plan, which has yet to be finalized by RCSC officials, that calls for online sales.

“Will this plan be in place in time to deal with those issues this year?” he asked.

Mr. Pearson also believes RCSC officials should establish an Information Technology Committee to help officials find the best solutions.

“Higher capacity alone will not fix the problem,” he said. “It is more like a Band-Aid on a broken arm.”

Recreation Centers of Sun City West officials also see the need to upgrade their WiFi system.