Sun City West presents FY 2025–26 budget proposal with $28 dues increase, $5.5M in capital projects

Sun City West General Manager Steven Erno presented a proposed FY 2025–26 budget to residents, saying the plan balances operating needs, wages and an anticipated capital program while preserving the community's long-term reserve fund. "It's fantastic to see such a great crowd," Erno told members at the public meeting, then outlined a strategic plan and the budget process that produced the proposal.

The proposal would raise annual member dues by $28 (a 4.9% increase), increase the Association Processing Fee (APF) by $200 (management is assuming about 1,100 title transfers), and budget a 4% pool for salaries and wages and taxes effective Jan. 1, 2026. Cliff Swan, chief financial officer, said the 4% wage amount is a pool intended to address cost-of-living, minimum-wage changes and merit increases for select employees. "Labor is our basic biggest expense," Swan said, adding that labor accounts for roughly 64% of the association's expense structure.

Why it matters: Sun City West is a large, amenity-heavy planned community whose operations depend on member dues, APF receipts and earned revenue (notably golf). The governing staff framed the proposal as a way both to maintain service levels across four recreation centers and seven golf courses and to fund a multi-year capital plan that includes irrigation work, equipment replacement and a major bowling-center upgrade.

Budget and revenue highlights: The operating plan assumes a balanced budget with a 4% overall increase in expenses. Key figures presented by staff include about 26,000 owner members, 1,100 associate members and roughly 1,700 tenant/landlord members; approximately 490 employees (about 200 full time, 290 part time/seasonal) equating to roughly 300 FTEs; and golf-generated revenue of about $12 million. Management proposed partitioning $1.2 million from operations into the reserve fund this year and projects APF receipts near $5.9 million. Investment income on operating and reserve cash was presented as an additional, but variable, revenue source.

Capital plan and reserve: Dave Johnson, capital projects manager, outlined about $5.5 million of capital line items for FY 2025–26, including course irrigation and replacement projects, building repairs and equipment renewals. Staff said an irrigation program using longer-life materials will extend useful life for those systems (management described a change from a 35-year expected life to roughly 70 years for some irrigation work). Bowling-center work includes lane and pinsetter replacements and related systems; Gary Zarek, Sports Pavilion manager, estimated pinsetter replacements at about $30,000 per machine and said new equipment would likely be installed in late April–May 2026 if procured on schedule. Staff said the association's reserve fund stands near $28 million and that policy calls for keeping at least 40% of the fully funded reserve balance; projected cash flows in the presentation left the reserve near that level over a five-year model despite $53 million of forecasted capital needs across the period.

Wages, benefits and staffing: Swan said the association uses a national pay database (Payfactors via Employers Council) to align roughly 93 unique job descriptions to market benchmarks and found Sun City West's pay averages about 12% below the survey mean. To address retention and minimum-wage pressure, the budget includes a 4% salary-and-wage pool applied via annual evaluations. Swan and other managers also flagged rising health-insurance costs (an 8% premium increase budgeted), and called out worker's-comp experience-rating improvements that could reduce future insurance costs. Staff described recurring operational staffing challenges, including turnover in hard-to-fill roles such as golf maintenance.

Rates and user fees: Management proposed specific rate changes tied to revenue lines: a $6 peak-season increase for nonmember golf rounds and a $3 transition-season increase; a $1 member golf peak/transition increase; increases to unlimited and twilight golf cards ($150 and $50, respectively); a 25¢ snack price increase in golf; and a bowling-rate change to help cover recent capital lane investments. Cliff Swan noted that dues increases take partial effect in the first year because titles turn over through the fiscal year (the association realizes roughly half a full-year dues increase in year one).

Cost-control and efficiency efforts: Staff outlined multiple cost-management measures: consolidating purchases and contracts, bidding routinely below the policy threshold when feasible, using volume purchasing for fertilizers and supplies, implementing a phone-system replacement that reduced annual costs, contracting a reserve-study conversion to software (Smart Properties) rather than replacing the retiring analyst full time, and delaying or eliminating about $1.2 million of reserve-study items this year based on reassessment.

Public comments and concerns: Residents pressed staff on maintenance and affordability. A number of speakers raised maintenance issues (tennis courts, pool finishes and site upkeep), staffing and open positions, and the size of the reserve fund. Resident Frank Bagnato, who identified professional experience in credit analysis, urged management to rebate unspent wage dollars and to reduce the budgeted wages line to reflect long-term unfilled positions; he cited Arizona Revised Statutes 10-11601 while urging greater transparency on unused budgeted payroll. Lou Bonar asked whether the $28 million reserve is "real money" and how it is invested; staff confirmed reserves are invested and that investment income appears as a line item. Several residents suggested additional efficiency steps (for example, further review of software contracts and exploring solar power for utilities); other speakers praised staff for maintaining facilities and amenities.

What was not decided: Staff presented the proposed budget and took public comment; no formal board vote or final approval was recorded at the meeting. Managers repeatedly framed the numbers as the staff-and-committee proposal that will move through the governing-board process and future budget-finance committee steps.

What to watch next: The governing board and budget/finance committee will next consider the package and any changes resulting from public comment and committee review. Items to monitor include final board adoption (date not recorded at the meeting), APF and dues timing (first-year revenue realization is partial), any changes to proposed golf and bowling rate increases, and implementation details for the large capital projects (irrigation phases, bowling center pinsetters, equipment replacements).