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Sun City West committee asks for ARC cost details and timeline; golf‑range ball‑machine proposal draws scrutiny
Summary
Budget & Finance members pressed staff for definitive ARC (ARK) budget numbers and glass/air‑conditioning details by the first March meeting and questioned a $100,000 estimate to relocate golf range ball machines, citing alignment with the master plan and uncertain revenue assumptions.
The Sun City West Budget & Finance Committee on Feb. 3 pushed staff for clearer cost estimates and timelines for several capital‑improvement items, with particular focus on the ARC (sometimes called the ARK) project and a proposal to relocate golf range ball machines.
Hershel, the operations staff member presenting the capital plan, said architectural drawings for the ARC arrived recently and were shared with the art club and a steel supplier. "I received the architectural drawings last week. I passed them on to the art club for them to send off to their steel supplier to get some numbers," Hershel said, and he committed to providing budget numbers by the committee’s first meeting in March.
Committee members raised two immediate concerns: whether the plans call for heat‑resistant/low‑reflectivity glass and how the association will account for ongoing utility costs if the glassed area is air‑conditioned. Hershel told the committee engineers included air conditioning in the design, but he said definitive plans and cost figures are not yet available.
"We don't have the plans yet, so you can't answer that question," a committee member said, pressing for confirmation of reflectivity and thermal performance in the drawings. Staff said as soon as design details arrive they will present them to this committee or other governing forums and will not wait for a budget cycle if data becomes available midcycle.
The committee also debated a roughly $100,000 proposal to relocate driving‑range ball machines. Opponents questioned the financial justification and fit with longer‑range planning; one member said the numbers presented seemed to derive from earlier scoping and committee recommendations rather than fresh vendor quotes. Supporters argued the relocation could provide electrical infrastructure that benefits future events and uses.
Hershel said projects typically "bubble up" from standing committees (for example, platform tennis came from properties and the ball‑machine relocation originated with the golf committee) and explained that pullouts above $50,000 will be considered individually as part of the budget cycle.
Separately, staff reported two smaller updates: a pending furniture quote for RH Johnson and confirmation that the softball club would contribute $50,000 toward a softball‑fence replacement, covering part of that project's cost.
Committee members asked staff to present definitive numbers and engineering details — including glazing performance and operational‑cost estimates — as soon as they are available and said they expect ARC membership to complete a vote before the association commits to large capital obligations.
