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General manager says master-planning contract verbally awarded to consultant Barry Dunn; board seeks transparency on process
Summary
General Manager Steven reported awarding the master planning contract to consultant Barry Dunn and said a kickoff and public engagement are pending; directors urged more transparency, with some asking for finalist presentations for a contract that could cost in the low hundreds of thousands.
General Manager Steven told the Sun City West Governing Board on Nov. 20 that the organization had verbally awarded the master planning contract to a consultant named Barry Dunn and that internal and public kickoffs will follow.
Director John Chatton asked where the board was in the process of hiring a master planning group and requested that, for large contracts, finalist firms be given an opportunity to make presentations to the board. Steven replied that he had awarded the contract "yesterday" and that he plans to provide a fuller update at the upcoming GM operations meeting once the internal kickoff is completed. He said the board previously delegated authority to the general manager to execute contracts after budget approval and that some municipalities follow a different practice of bringing finalists to the council for a separate vote.
Chatton and other directors said they valued more openness on large expenditures — one director noted the likely scale of spending ("$200,000–$300,000" was discussed as an example of contracts of concern in the transcript) — while Director Schlemmer urged the board not to create unnecessary controversy over a move that represents forward progress.
Steven said the consultant team is enthusiastic about engagement and that public tours of other communities on Dec. 9–10 are planned and the consultant may join those tours; dates and detailed timings for the master plan kickoff will be provided when available.
What happens next: Staff will hold an internal kickoff with the consultant, finalize a public kickoff plan and provide a more detailed project plan and timeline to the board at a forthcoming GM operations meeting.
