Information Pages

Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Are Sun City Anthem Residents Ready to Dump Board ?

Have Sun City Anthem Residents Reached the Boiling Point with Board & General Manager ?

Some Now Calling for "Recall" to Solve Problem

Image128.gif (320×285)

Excessive salaries

Senseless rules

Inefficient repairs and maintenance

A general dues increase

Support for yet another dues increase in supporting a resident subsidized restaurant

as well as

What has become...

A general negative attitude the General Manager and certain members of her "inner circle" staff have exhibited toward Sun City Anthem residents

...seem to have become the driving force behind this action.

Have Sun City Anthem residents finally had enough of such actions and ready to act ?

We have been informed that formal petitions have been drafted to remove the following individuals from the Sun City Anthem Board of Directors for allowing the current General Manager, Sandy Seddon, to incorporate rules and regulations that have adversely affected our community.

 From what we have learned, the petitions, separately drafted for each individual, call for the following individuals to be removed from the Sun City Anthem Board of Directors:

Rex Weddle
President

Aletta Waterhouse
Secretary

Bob Burch
Director

Thomas Nissen
Director

The petitions do not include Arthur Lindberg, Vice President, Forrest Quinn, Treasurer,  or Nona Tobin, Director.

In addition a petition of "No Confidence" has also been drafted regarding Sandy Seddon, Sun City Anthem General Manager, though General Manager removal is ONLY possible as a result of direct Board action to do so.

Has anything like this every been achieved in the Anthem communities?

YES

Approximately a year or two ago, the Anthem Country Club community successfully REMOVED a number of their Board Directors as a result of various financial transgressions.

Should any of these petitions go forward, NRS 116.31036 also states the current Board or management CANNOT IN ANY WAY INTERFERE with the process of obtaining the necessary signature totals to call for a recall vote.

In order to remove a Board member, the following must take place:

1. 10% of the unit owners (715) must sign the petition to recall.
2. If the 10% requirement is achieved, the matter is then placed before the unit owners in a formal ballot in which 35% (2,501) unit owners must vote to remove.

(there is no time frame in which the 10% of the unit owners must be obtained)

Note this total may be difficult to achieve, especially when close to 30% of the voting unit owners RENT their homes to others; however, a strong vote in favor of recall would undoubtedly create an atmosphere of "no confidence" toward those named,  and obviously "sends a message" to the referenced individuals...

...especially if they should wish to run for reelection.

Let us be perfectly clear.

Anthem Opinions is merely making our readers aware of this impending action. 

We are NOT leading the charge.

We have had nothing to do with the idea of a recall election or the petitions.


This was brought to us by one of our many subscribers. 

However....

Will we support removal?
YES
Why? 

...because the actions of these individuals have created an atmosphere that has, and will continue to have, a financially harmful effect on the very lifestyle we all enjoy.

Can this call for removal be avoided?

POSSIBLY

We believe this can be accomplished by:

1. Rescinding all recent OFFENSIVE regulations imposed by the General Manager.

2. Terminating the General Manager agreement with Mrs. Seddon and dismissing a number of those in her management team who have assisted her in creating the chaos that currently exists in the Sun City Anthem Community.

3. Hiring replacements at REASONABLE  levels of compensation commensurate with those currently in similar positions in the State of Nevada.

When and if this proceeds and we have additional information and copies of the recall petitions and "no confidence" petition against the General Manager, we will bring this to your attention.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
What are your thoughts?

Should a recall go forth?

Would replacing the General Manager and members of her staff avoid a recall action?

Let us know.  

Send your comments to:

scaopinions@gmail.com 
  1. From Al Chappell...to....Anthem Opinions

    Finally! Tell me where to go to sign. We need the owners to be mailed Petitions, so owners who do not live here can sign and mail it back.

    Everyone I've talked to cannot believe the salary we are paying our management team and her assistant!
  2. I am entirely for both the recall and the replacement. Could you please give us a link to the petition, or where to download and who to send a paper copy to? And thanks as always for keeping the community informed.
  3. Al, the petitions are in process and we'll get back to you on how or where to sign them.

    If any readers have any information on the locations or individuals who will assist in obtaining the necessary signature, we would appreciate your sending that information and we in turn will share that with our readers.

    Mailing costs would be prohibitive, but once the 715 signatures are obtained, the matter then goes to a formal vote.

    Those WOULD BE mailed to all unit owners.
  4. From Barbara Sidary...to...Anthem Opinions

    I definitely support the removal of the Board Members and the GM.

    I would like to know how to sign the petitions and where they will be available.

    Also, if we remove the GM, who will be responsible for hiring a replacement and deciding what salary would be reasonable?

    How would that be handled if we remove most of the board members?

    Have they ever decided on a job description for the GM?

    I know they didn't do this before they hired her, but were working on it.

    I still would like to find out what we were paying RMI (or any management company) vs what we are spending on self management. Is there any way to get some sort of comparison?


    Thanks for your efforts. As always, you are right on top of things.
  5. Barbara, all of this just recently came to our attention, and as I commented to Al Chappell, when we have full information, YOU WILL AS WELL.

    The General Manager can only be terminated by the Board. From what have learned, the one regarding her would be a "no confidence" matter.

    If any or all of the referenced Board members are removed, there are a number of options available: Appointment by remaining Board members, special election.

    I have contacted our "Nevada Know How" expert, Tim Stebbins, asking Tim to write an article summarizing the various options if removal is successful.
    1. From Keith Coffin...to...Anthem Opinions

      Proceed with the recall petitions.

      Hopefully we can be successful in removing many of the incumbents.

    2. From Robert Nusser...to...Anthem Opinions

      IF the prevailing apathetic attitude in SCA tosses this into the SCA waste basket, our community is DOOMED.
    3. Anthem Opinions has just been informed that individuals will be present at the June 22, 2017 Board Meeting at 1:30pm who will have petitions ready for signature.

      The Board Meeting will be held in the Delaware Room at Anthem Center.
      1. From Roseann Picca...to...Anthem Opinions

        I would happily sign a petition to dump Sandy & Board members stated in your message.

        As an owner of 3 properties in SCA, I'm greatly concerned about what's happening in our community.

        Having lived here 12 yrs. I'm deeply concerned regarding the changes that have occurred.
        1. From Bobbie Kerner...to Anthem Opinions

          I am in agreement of removing the named board members and the removal of Mrs. Seddon.

          We are spending way too much money doing unnecessary repairs and not doing what is really necessary (fixing overhead lighting in the gallery, adjusting air conditioning in the Maj Jong room in Independence Center so we are not freezing), and overpaying Mrs. Seddon and her assistant.
        2. From Jim Hernandez...to...Anthem Opinions

          YES. Yes and definitely “YES”.

          YES. My vote would be for those listed individuals to be “recalled” and the general manager “fired”.
          1. From Laura Shapiro...to...Anthem Opinions

            Getting more and more upset reading your articles. It's a damn shame what has happened to our community.

            Don't understand how we could let it get so far out of control.

            Come on people, let's reign in these misguided people and get back to a smooth running Homeowners Association that actually cares about the people and the community they serve.

            Count me in.
            1. From Sherry Goldstein...to...Anthem Opinions

              I will sign, plus I''m sure there are management companies that could manage us.

              I never believed Tom Nissen when he said he couldn't find anyone else.

              There are a lot of management companies and we're are not the only large community out there.

              The board, as in hopefully a new board, needs to find one, set salaries & job descriptions.

              The board should set the rules for the general manager & his or her staff & a board makes sure he / she does her job.

              She blatantly lied to us, caused chaos with our clubs, and performers, and she seems to set the rules.

              We need a board with b_ _ls who can do the job they were voted in to do.

              There should be a big meeting here in the ballroom to explain the petitions to the homeowners and have them sign if they want to, but this needs to be done immediately.

              We, the homeowners, need to take back our community, and make it great again.

              Lets stop being the joke of the town before it's too late.
            2. Sherry,

              Referring back to a management company, can you or anyone recall that we were going to choose a successor to RMI a few years back?

              A committee was formed and a solid recommendation was made to choose another company.

              A few Board members traveled to Phoenix to, what many believed, consummate an agreement, per the recommendation of that committed they HANDPICKED.

              When they returned, the new company VERY RAPIDLY decided to WITHDRAW their proposal following their spending THOUSANDS O DOLLARS in attempting to obtain SCA as a client.

              That..MADE NO SENSE, and to this day, has never properly been explained as to why they took that action.

              My thoughts....like their dealing with a prior restaurant operator who attempted to obtain a lease with SCA, came out of that meeting realizing that THERE WASN'T ANY AMOUNT OF MONEY IN THE WORLD, worth dealing with the bunch of NUTS who were making SCA decisions.

              Of course, we went another direction....and another direction...and another direction...

              ...and in each case, every time, they all traveled SOUTH into oblivion.

              Let's face facts, this bunch needs to GO, and SOON.
              1. From Emilia & Vincent Vitale...to...Anthem Opinions

                We totally support the removal of the general manager and the others mentioned in your email.

                We have lived in this community for only six months and did attend the restaurant meeting which my wife and I felt the board brought nothing to the table.

                We are aware of what has transpired with restaurants coming and going.

                The process of putting a new restaurant in place should not take this long.

                Thank you for your efforts.
                1. From Josette Brink...to....Anthem Opinions

                  Where do I sign???
                  1. From Patricia Yeamen...to...Anthem Opinions

                    Yes! Let's continue with the recall!
                  2. From Gene Greenberg...to...Anthem Opinions

                    I think a recall is the right thing to do. However, I think the termination of the G.M. should follow a process that any new board members should take a position on.

                    Trying to replace what we have now may not work any better than the current situation which your article describes very well.

                    The best option is to hire a professional management company who can bring oversight to the G.M. position in conjunction with a board who, at best, is a part time effort.

                    I look forward to your continuing efforts in this arena.
                    1. From Harlen Hendricksen...to...Anthem Opinions

                      I agree things are out of control. Sandy Sheldon's salary is outrageous.
                      1. From Alvin Gennes...to...Anthem Opinions

                        I think that we need a restaurant at Sun City Anthem. When brokers bring potential buyers into our facility a restaurant makes our club to appear upscale.

                        It is worthwhile to subsidize the restaurant because in my opinion our homes will be easier to sell and at a higher price.

                        A lot of us were treated to a meal by Pulte.

                        They know how to sell homes!
                        1. From Alvin Gennes...to....Anthem Opinions

                          I would like to see a list of these senseless rules.

                          If these are the rules which refer to the entertainers who perform here, I would defer to our lawyers.

                          Let's demand that the board provide us with a WRITTEN legal opinion about these rules. Then we can make an informed decision, which might include getting a second legal opinion.
                        2. Alvin, these rules never existed until the Board gave certain authority to the General Manager.

                          Seeking legal opinions for matters that have never caused us any problems in the past, in my opinion, is a complete waste of association funds.

                          These rules go far beyond those associated with entertainers.
                        3. From Mike Vail...to...Anthem Opinions

                          Dick..was hoping to see you at the meeting yesterday..

                          What a cluster ....

                          On trying to pass a "lets buy insurance for entertainment entities that come on anthem property", the statement was made that lets get it and review it in 6 months...I asked Barry Goldstein privately who was in the audience who would be responsible if heaven forbid, there was a big incident which wasn't covered were to happen.

                          .He told me "oh that would be the homeowners".

                          I had to leave after I heard that one..
                        4. Mike, having owned an insurance agency for 35 years, having proper liability insurance is critical to any organization.

                          The question is: "Who Should Pay for It"?

                          Up until now, the association has paid the premium and was not an expensive cost; however, because the claims experience is SO BAD...in other words, claims exceeding premiums....that an insurance crisis seems to have arisen.

                          Barry Goldstein has attempted many times to obtain a detailed claims experience without success. Barry, like myself, has a great deal of experience in that area, as he too, spent his career in the insurance industry.

                          CHUBB, the carrier that handles the association liability coverage, is going out of the homeowners insurance market entirely as of 12/31/17. That means we will need a replacement as of 1/1/18.

                          Therein lies the problem. Who wants to cover an organization that pays $1 and takes back $5 in claims?

                          My personal belief is that this became such a problem and the cost became so much higher, that the "expedient" thing to do was DEFRAY THE COST TO THE CLUBS...rather than assume the full liability.

                          Besides, it also served another purpose....making the association numbers look better...so a GM can get a larger bonus.

                          Unfortunately, this may put many Clubs out of business.

                          I'm one for "paying your own way" 99% of the time, but because so many people are involved in the 59 Sun City Anthem Clubs, in this case, I believe the Association should continue paying for this coverage. They represent the best in the SCA lifestyle and as such, should be considered a "cost of doing business".

                          Obviously, the GM with the full blessing of a bunch of incompetent board members, believe differently.

                          What I find particularly offensive are the recent DICTIMS stating so many costs have to be borne by any entertainer wishing to perform, leaving them A PITTANCE once SCA takes their "pound of flesh."

                          Of course one other option would be to REDUCE the OUTRAGIOUS INCOMES paid to five employees which total $800,000 PLUS THEIR BENEFITS to cover the cost.

                          That option seems to have escaped their mentality along with an attitude toward the clubs which is essentially...

                          "Let them eat cake"
                      2. From Evan Neumann...to...Anthem Opinions

                        I am totally in favor of a recall and dump Sandy. The sooner the petition the better.

                        I have two properties and do not appreciate the cavalier approach to excessive compensation and the poor reception we have received.

                        I would even help get signatures.

                        Thanks.

25 comments:

  1. From Al Chappell...to....Anthem Opinions

    Finally! Tell me where to go to sign. We need the owners to be mailed Petitions, so owners who do not live here can sign and mail it back.

    Everyone I've talked to cannot believe the salary we are paying our management team and her assistant!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am entirely for both the recall and the replacement. Could you please give us a link to the petition, or where to download and who to send a paper copy to? And thanks as always for keeping the community informed.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Al, the petitions are in process and we'll get back to you on how or where to sign them.

    If any readers have any information on the locations or individuals who will assist in obtaining the necessary signature, we would appreciate your sending that information and we in turn will share that with our readers.

    Mailing costs would be prohibitive, but once the 715 signatures are obtained, the matter then goes to a formal vote.

    Those WOULD BE mailed to all unit owners.

    ReplyDelete
  4. From Barbara Sidary...to...Anthem Opinions

    I definitely support the removal of the Board Members and the GM.

    I would like to know how to sign the petitions and where they will be available.

    Also, if we remove the GM, who will be responsible for hiring a replacement and deciding what salary would be reasonable?

    How would that be handled if we remove most of the board members?

    Have they ever decided on a job description for the GM?

    I know they didn't do this before they hired her, but were working on it.

    I still would like to find out what we were paying RMI (or any management company) vs what we are spending on self management. Is there any way to get some sort of comparison?


    Thanks for your efforts. As always, you are right on top of things.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Barbara, all of this just recently came to our attention, and as I commented to Al Chappell, when we have full information, YOU WILL AS WELL.

    The General Manager can only be terminated by the Board. From what have learned, the one regarding her would be a "no confidence" matter.

    If any or all of the referenced Board members are removed, there are a number of options available: Appointment by remaining Board members, special election.

    I have contacted our "Nevada Know How" expert, Tim Stebbins, asking Tim to write an article summarizing the various options if removal is successful.

    ReplyDelete
  6. From Keith Coffin...to...Anthem Opinions

    Proceed with the recall petitions.

    Hopefully we can be successful in removing many of the incumbents.

    ReplyDelete


  7. From Robert Nusser...to...Anthem Opinions

    IF the prevailing apathetic attitude in SCA tosses this into the SCA waste basket, our community is DOOMED.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anthem Opinions has just been informed that individuals will be present at the June 22, 2017 Board Meeting at 1:30pm who will have petitions ready for signature.

    The Board Meeting will be held in the Delaware Room at Anthem Center.

    ReplyDelete
  9. From Roseann Picca...to...Anthem Opinions

    I would happily sign a petition to dump Sandy & Board members stated in your message.

    As an owner of 3 properties in SCA, I'm greatly concerned about what's happening in our community.

    Having lived her 12 yrs. I'm deeply concerned regarding the changes that have occurred.

    ReplyDelete
  10. From Bobbie Kerner...to Anthem Opinions

    I am in agreement of removing the named board members and the removal of Mrs. Seddon.

    We are spending way too much money doing unnecessary repairs and not doing what is really necessary (fixing overhead lighting in the gallery, adjusting air conditioning in the Maj Jong room in Independence Center so we are not freezing), and overpaying Mrs. Seddon and her assistant.

    ReplyDelete
  11. From Jim Hernandez...to...Anthem Opinions

    YES. Yes and definitely “YES”.

    YES. My vote would be for those listed individuals to be “recalled” and the general manager “fired”.

    ReplyDelete
  12. From Laura Shapiro...to...Anthem Opinions

    Getting more and more upset reading your articles. It's a damn shame what has happened to our community.

    Don't understand how we could let it get so far out of control.

    Come on people, let's reign in these misguided people and get back to a smooth running Homeowners Association that actually cares about the people and the community they serve.

    Count me in.

    ReplyDelete
  13. From Sherry Goldstein...to...Anthem Opinions

    I will sign, plus I''m sure there are management companies that could manage us.

    I never believed Tom Nissen when he said he couldn't find anyone else.

    There are a lot of management companies and we're are not the only large community out there.

    The board, as in hopefully a new board, needs to find one, set salaries & job descriptions.

    The board should set the rules for the general manager & his or her staff & a board makes sure he / she does her job.

    She blatantly lied to us, caused chaos with our clubs, and performers, and she seems to set the rules.

    We need a board with b_ _ls who can do the job they were voted in to do.

    There should be a big meeting here in the ballroom to explain the petitions to the homeowners and have them sign if they want to, but this needs to be done immediately.

    We, the homeowners, need to take back our community, and make it great again.

    Lets stop being the joke of the town before it's too late.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Sherry,

    Referring back to a management company, can you or anyone recall that we were going to choose a successor to RMI a few years back?

    A committee was formed and a solid recommendation was made to choose another company.

    A few Board members traveled to Phoenix to, what many believed, consummate an agreement, per the recommenation of that committed they HANDPICKED.

    When they returned, the new company VERY RAPIDLY decided to WITHDRAW their proposal following their spending THOUSANDS O DOLLARS in attempting to obtain SCA as a client.

    That..MADE NO SENSE, and to this day, has never properly been explained as to why they took that action.

    My thoughts....like their dealing with a prior restaurant operator who attempted to obtain a lease with SCA, came out of that meeting realizing that THERE WASN'T ANY AMOUNT OF MONEY IN THE WORLD, worth dealing with the bunch of NUTS who were making SCA decisions.

    Of course, we went another direction....and another direction...and another direction...

    ...and in each case, every time, they all traveled SOUTH into oblivion.

    Let's face facts, this bunch needs to GO, and SOON.

    ReplyDelete
  15. From Emilia & Vincent Vitale...to...Anthem Opinions

    We totally support the removal of the general manager and the others mentioned in your email.

    We have lived in this community for only six months and did attend the restaurant meeting which my wife and I felt the board brought nothing to the table.

    We are aware of what has transpired with restaurants coming and going.

    The process of putting a new restaurant in place should not take this long.

    Thank you for your efforts.

    ReplyDelete
  16. From Josette Brink...to....Anthem Opinions

    Where do I sign???

    ReplyDelete
  17. From Patricia Yeamen...to...Anthem Opinions

    Yes! Let's continue with the recall!

    ReplyDelete
  18. From Gene Greenberg...to...Anthem Opinions

    I think a recall is the right thing to do. However, I think the termination of the G.M. should follow a process that any new board members should take a position on.

    Trying to replace what we have now may not work any better than the current situation which your article describes very well.

    The best option is to hire a professional management company who can bring oversight to the G.M. position in conjunction with a board who, at best, is a part time effort.

    I look forward to your continuing efforts in this arena.

    ReplyDelete
  19. From Harlen Hendricksen...to...Anthem Opinions

    I agree things are out of control. Sandy Sheldon's salary is outrageous.

    ReplyDelete
  20. From Alvin Gennes...to...Anthem Opinions

    I think that we need a restaurant at Sun City Anthem. When brokers bring potential buyers into our facility a restaurant makes our club to appear upscale.

    It is worthwhile to subsidize the restaurant because in my opinion our homes will be easier to sell and at a higher price.

    A lot of us were treated to a meal by Pulte.

    They know how to sell homes!

    ReplyDelete
  21. From Alvin Gennes...to....Anthem Opinions

    I would like to see a list of these senseless rules.

    If these are the rules which refer to the entertainers who perform here, I would defer to our lawyers.

    Let's demand that the board provide us with a WRITTEN legal opinion about these rules. Then we can make an informed decision, which might include getting a second legal opinion.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Alvin, these rules never existed until the Board gave certain authority to the General Manager.

    Seeking legal opinions for matters that have never caused us any problems in the past, in my opinion, is a complete waste of association funds.

    These rules go far beyond those associated with entertainers.

    ReplyDelete
  23. From Mike Vail...to...Anthem Opinions

    Dick..was hoping to see you at the meeting yesterday..

    What a cluster ....

    On trying to pass a "lets buy insurance for entertainment entities that come on anthem property", the statement was made that lets get it and review it in 6 months...I asked Barry Goldstein privately who was in the audience who would be responsible if heaven forbid, there was a big incident which wasn't covered were to happen.

    .He told me "oh that would be the homeowners".

    I had to leave after I heard that one..

    ReplyDelete
  24. Mike, having owned an insurance agency for 35 years, having proper liability insurance is critical to any organization.

    The question is: "Who Should Pay for It"?

    Up until now, the association has paid the premium and was not an expensive cost; however, because the claims experience is SO BAD...in other words, claims exceeding premiums....that an insurance crisis seems to have arisen.

    Barry Goldstein has attempted many times to obtain a detailed claims experience without success. Barry, like myself, has a great deal of experience in that area, as he too, spent his career in the insurance industry.

    CHUBB, the carrier that handles the association liability coverage, is going out of the homeowners insurance market entirely as of 12/31/17. That means we will need a replacement as of 1/1/18.

    Therein lies the problem. Who wants to cover an organization that pays $1 and takes back $5 in claims?

    My personal belief is that this became such a problem and the cost became so much higher, that the "expedient" thing to do was DEFRAY THE COST TO THE CLUBS...rather than assume the full liability.

    Besides, it also served another purpose....making the association numbers look better...so a GM can get a larger bonus.

    Unfortunately, this may put many Clubs out of business.

    I'm one for "paying your own way" 99% of the time, but because so many people are involved in the 59 Sun City Anthem Clubs, in this case, I believe the Association should continue paying for this coverage. They represent the best in the SCA lifestyle and as such, should be considered a "cost of doing business".

    Obviously, the GM with the full blessing of a bunch of incompetent board members, believe differently.

    What I find particularly offensive are the recent DICTIMS stating so many costs have to be borne by any entertainer wishing to perform, leaving them A PITTANCE once SCA takes their "pound of flesh."

    Of course one other option would be to REDUCE the OUTRAGIOUS INCOMES paid to five employees which total $800,000 PLUS THEIR BENEFITS to cover the cost.

    That option seems to have escaped their mentality along with an attitude toward the clubs which is essentially...

    "Let them eat cake"


    ReplyDelete
  25. From Evan Neumann...to...Anthem Opinions

    I am totally in favor of a recall and dump Sandy. The sooner the petition the better.

    I have two properties and do not appreciate the cavalier approach to excessive compensation and the poor reception we have received.

    I would even help get signatures.

    Thanks.

    ReplyDelete