Tom Wheir - Outgoing Chairman

Our Outgoing Chairman, Tom Wheir

With the TGO Election Day just two weeks away, and with the Chairman of the CSA Board of Directors position on the ballot, we thought it would be a good time to reach out to our current Chairman, Tom Wheir, to get a better insight into what is involved with that position. Tom has been our Chairman for the past four years, a critical time for TGO as there were many improvements that needed to be made, plus it was time to address the condition and longevity of our golf course.

With the TGO Election Day just two weeks away and with the Chairman of the CSA Board of Directors position on the ballot, we thought it would be a good time to reach out to our current Chairman, Tom Wheir, to get a better insight into what is involved with that position. Tom has been our Chairman these past four years, which have been a critical time for TGO as there were a lot of improvements that needed to be made, plus it was time to address the condition and longevity of our golf course.

The Golf Course is definitely a high priority for our community for several reasons. One of them is it helps maintain the value of our individual properties. Another is that the golf course is one of our TGO businesses, and a revitalized course will ensure our Golf Course will continue to be profitable.

A plan had to be put into place to revitalize the course, and more importantly, we needed to establish a budget and begin the collection of funds to be placed into our reserves. Tom played a significant role in the decision-making process... as will the new Board Chairman. “Making sure we spend the community’s money wisely was one of my top priorities, as it should be with the next Board Chairman..."

“When I became Chairman, there was little to no money in the reserve for renovating our course. Today, we have close to $2.2 million in the bank. In 2023, we are projected to save about $800,000, but in 2024 when the project starts, we’re still not sure what the exact cost will be, and this next Chairman will need to make sure the funds are available to complete this project.”

“We have a couple of professionals at TGO who understand what it takes to improve our golf course and the correct way to do it,” explained Tom. “As Chairman, you need to rely on their expertise. Both Chuck Kandt (TGO Golf Pro) and Shane Willey (Course superintendent) have a strong understanding of this project and know what we need to get it done. We have a great plan in place, and our community needs to continue to support this renovation.” Budgeting plays a significant role in the Chairman’s position, not only for the golf course but for all the TGO improvements. “You need to do your homework,” explained Tom. “Some of our projects and purchases are expensive, so it’s worth the research to ensure we get the best deal. The board will bring you ideas, and your job is to do the due diligence. You can’t just approve every project they present, so you need to prioritize what is best for our community.”

“Let’s face it, TGO is getting older, and there are many projects in front of us - and that’s why we need to pay attention to our budget and try to find the best solution on how we spend our funds.”

The budgeting process is interesting as our CSA Manager, Billy Specht, and the Board Chairman rely on project supervisors to let them know the improvements they are looking for or perhaps the new equipment they might need over the next few years. After a few rounds of budget meetings and input from the Finance Committee, the CSA Manager will present the Board the final budget for approval. Once approved, it is now the CSA Manager’s responsibility to allocate the budget.

These budget decisions affect all aspects of our community, from our irrigation system, lawn maintenance, road improvements, new purchases for the Blue Heron and the fitness facility, employee wages, insurance policies, and much more. A lot goes on to make our small city operate efficiently. And just so everyone knows, any expenditure over $5,000 needs to be approved and signed by the Chairman.

“Making sure we spend the community’s money wisely was one of my top priorities, as it should be with the next Board Chairman. We have all seen how inflation has impacted our daily lives... it’s no different here in TGO. We need to be more proactive to make sure the operation of this park runs smoothly. And let’s don’t waste money.”

As residents, there is a lot that goes on behind the scenes that we may not be aware of, but it is important to the continued operation of our park. An example is the new irrigation pump we put in over the summer. This is a pump we knew had to be replaced for quite a while - but this was also a $140,000+ purchase.

“In the reserve study, all CSA assets have a life cycle and estimated replacement cost,” explains Tom. “Sometimes things fail before their life cycle, and you have no choice; you have to fix or replace it. But for the $140,000-160,000 pump for irrigation, we knew it had a life cycle, and we were planning ahead for it. And that’s been in the budget. Usually, we’re looking ahead for smaller items, usually three years out. We’re trying to expand it, so we have longer to save, like five or six years. The budget is Billy’s budget to spend, but the Chairman has a say in it.”

Another example of how best to spend our budget is when our irrigation manager requested a new excavator, which is about a $100,000 purchase. “Being the Chairman is an interesting job, because all of a sudden, you have quite a bit of responsibility..."

“When I sit in the meetings and hear we need this, this, and this, I always ask why? Our irrigation manager wanted a new excavator that was about $100,000. My thought was, what happens if we save up the work and when you really need a bigger excavator, just rent one? Yeah, it’ll cost us $8,000 to rent one for a month, but when it breaks, we tell the company to come and fix it, get everything we need done and send it back. We’re not required to maintain or repair it. And we’ve been doing that. Eventually, we’ll have to replace the one we have and we will probably get a bigger one. Thinking outside the box will help keep our expenditures within budget.”

There are several ways to generate income for the budget; the most well-known would be through our Quarterly Maintenance Dues. None of us enjoy seeing the increase year after year, but it is one of those necessary evils.

“Being the Chairman is an interesting job because you suddenly have quite a bit of responsibility. And you’re being asked to make decisions, and you’re making decisions with other people’s money. I don’t do that cavalierly. Last year I got an email from a concerned owner on a pension, and she says I know you’re not running a charity, but please don’t raise the dues because I can’t afford it. Well, it’s cheaper living here than living downtown, and we’re charging what it costs us. We’re not making money; we’re charging what it costs. People ask, why don’t we hire out the lawn crew? Because we’re doing it for cost. Do you think someone else will do it for cost, for no profit?”

“It’s just not our Quarterly Dues that contribute to our budget or reserves; there is also a $2,400 initial assessment fee charged to new property owners. This fee started five years ago before I became Chairman and is levied through the real estate escrow process. It contributes a large portion to growing our reserves.”

The other profit center that belongs to the CSA community is the Blue Heron. I don’t think it’s a secret that it’s been a struggle the past few months to keep it operating smoothly. Turnover has been the biggest issue. But we are not alone; this has become a widespread issue across the country, and we are no exception.

“When I became Chairman, the Blue Heron was losing $200,000 a year. One of the options we looked at was having an outside company run it. But the cost was prohibitive. They wanted $120-130,000 a year, and we were to write all the checks and have no say. So that wasn’t an option. Then we hired a headhunter, and they gave us Orhan, who was instrumental in turning the restaurant around. After Orhan, we used another headhunter, and we hired his choice, but that guy quit an hour before he was due to show up. Karan stepped in the interim, eventually became the manager, and did a good job. I mean, we’re $60-70,000 in the black right now, which is good.”

“There was a time $15 an hour was a decent wage, but in today’s world, an employee will jump to another place for 10 cents more. And it’s not just the restaurant profession. Finding the right employees has been difficult, but I’m confident this will be a better year, and the Blue Heron will become the place all TGO residents will enjoy.”

“Just recently, we received 20 applications for the Restaurant Manager position. We only interviewed three from our sources. The headhunter sent us two, and we hired one of them. This new guy reminds me of Orhan. He has over 40 years of restaurant experience. His job will be to hire the chefs, the kitchen staff, and the servers, and hopefully create a working environment that the employees - and the customers - will appreciate. We think this new manager is a good fit.”

After four years as Chairman, we asked Tom for some words of wisdom for his new replacement.

“The hardest thing for me was realizing that I wasn’t going to make everyone happy. If I made 60% happy, I felt like it was a win. Get ready to grow a thick skin.”

“Some of the hardest things I’ve dealt with are the ARC issues. There is always someone who feels their property is more important than everyone else’s, and eventually you’ll need to get involved to help come up with a solution.”

“I feel like I helped empower Billy to get things done. You have to find a line between spending too much and spending enough. Between what you can have and what you want. The next Chairman will need to understand this and learn to work as a team to accomplish what is best for TGO.” Interview by Tim & Cindy Clark

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