Race Is On For Three Open Sun City Seats

Updated: Jerry Kirschner Comments on Race

If there’s an underlying theme to the upcoming Sun City Board of Directors election it’s communication, as each of the seven candidates, including current board president Bill Ziletti, cited communication between the board and residents as one of the reasons for their candidacy and/or an area that needs improvement.

The issue of communication comes after hundreds of Sun City residents packed a board meeting last April in response to a rental agreement with a nondenominational church that allowed the church the use of a meeting room on Sundays for a three-month trial period. During the heated meeting, residents accused the board of halfheartedly seeking and/or ignoring residents’ opinions prior to approving the lease.

“I think there are a lot of residents that want more open communication and more transparency, and they want to know how that’s going to happen and I agree with that,” said candidate and current board member Bonnie Bayser.

Of course, communication will be at the heart of the election itself, as residents get to voice their approval or disapproval with Sun City leadership by casting their ballots beginning Wednesday, October 3 and continuing through Tuesday, October 18.

“We’ll have the final results at five o’clock on the 18th,” said Debby Seger, Sun City’s Director of Administration.

Because campaigning is limited by association guidelines, Sun City residents will evaluate the seven candidates, who are vying for three seats, at a series of forums, the first of which will be held at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 7 in the Drendel Ballroom of the Prairie Lodge. WGN radio’s Orion Samuelson is scheduled to moderate the event. Sun City board directors serve two-year terms and are unpaid.

“I have a feeling that because there are more (candidates), there’s going to be more people attending the forums,” said candidate Linda Davis. “Hopefully people will come out and see the seven candidates, see who they are, and what they stand for. When residents receive the information on all of us, they’ll see (our) goals are similar. So what’s different about us? What is it that’s going to get someone elected over somebody else?”

The idea of a candidate’s forum, let alone a board election, is still somewhat new to Sun City, which opened in 1999.

“In ’07 we transitioned to an all-resident board, but before then it was appointed people from the developer and association,” Seger said. “Now all seven (board members) are residents here.”

Oddly, it’s similar transition that, like the issue of communication, prompted some candidates to seek a board seat.

“We, in this community, need to have a marketing program for the future now that our developer, Del Webb, and is gradually leaving,” candidate Al Drogosz said. “Basically, they have 50 units left to sell. After that, it’s strictly up to us to make our community known to the general public so that on the resale market this is the place that you want to live. So we need to put something in place and I think a lot of people out here believe that and want that to happen.”

Jim Lunn, who created his own campaign web site, agreed that this election is also about the future.

“I come from a builder background,” Lunn said.  “I was a real estate developer so I understand both sides of the table. I also lived in Sun City for 11 years out west, and I’ve gone through this transition from builder-control to owner-control and that’s why I’m getting involved. We have to get this thing on the right track and get moving ahead,”

Still, communication and accountability remain a priority. Anthony Troy said if elected he’d push for “total transparency” particularly within the budget where he’s in favor more itemization and less grouping of expenditures into single subject categories such as “miscellaneous”. Troy, who operated National Telephone Specialists Inc. and refurbished phone equipment, would also like to review Sun City’s phone contract.

“They have (in the budget) $71,000 as a telephone expense for one year,” Troy said. “I calculated it out and it’s about $280 per working day.”

Also running is Jerry Kirschner, who resigned from the board in the wake of the church rental agreement, and whose seat was filled by Bayser just last June.

“Many people know who am I,” Bayser said. “But I don’t want to say that there’s not new people who don’t know I’m on the board.”

Ziletti could not be reached for comment.

In their applications for candidacy, Kirschner cited affordable assessments and the establishment of “working” lines of communication as some of the most critical issues facing Sun City.

Ziletti named affordable assessments, the reservation of funds for future expenditures and “continuining frequent communication.” Ziletti and Bayser are the lone incumbents.

In a phone interview Tuesday afternoon, candidate Kirschner re-iterated that increased transparency and communication between the board and residents are among the key issues, a change he had hoped would improve under the new board introduced last January.

Kirschner said it did not. In his resignation letter, Kirschner, who had served on the board for five years, wrote, “The unyielding attitude that has emerged among some board members has created an environment that I feel I cannot participate in.”

Kirschner said he’s uncertain how his stepping down will go over with voters, of whom many had voiced their support for him at the April board meeting.

“I don’t know if it’s going to hurt or not, but I am going to be making the explanation (at the forum) as to why I’m running again.” he said. “And there are reasons I’m running and the reasons all have to do with the reasons I left. I would like to correct a lot of those reasons.”

Kirschner contends that with the selection of three reformers, “we could correct all of the transparency type of issues and secrecy that took place in the past.”

As for the election, expectations are high.

“I think the turnout is going to be the most it’s ever been because there’s more candidates and there’s more people interested than there’s ever been,” Lunn said. “With the different controversies that we’ve had, I think the interest has been piqued. So definitely we’re going to have a lot of more participation in this election, which we need.”

Davis agrees.

“The difference between this election and elections in the past is the amount of candidates that are running this time,” Davis said. “There have been times where there were three candidates for three openings, two candidates for two openings. This time there are seven candidates for three openings. So I have a feeling that’s going to bring more people out than ever before.”

Residents can vote in person on specific dates and times at either lodge. Seger said residents also have the option of voting via the internet where a large number of ballots were cast previously.

“We were surprised the first time we did the online election (in 2009) because we thought people would be hesitant about it, but we had 80% vote that way,” Seger said, adding that each resident would receive a letter explaining the online voting process.

A seven-member committee reviewed candidates’ applications before approving them.

“I’m not sure if a lot of people know who is actually running that (committee),” Seger said. “It’s made up of part administration here in the association office, but it’s mostly seven very dedicated people.”