BELLA VISTA — POA must be more inclusive

I was appointed to the Property Owners Association Recreation Joint Advisory Committee in December 2008 and have served on the committee since that time.

A majority of the members of the recreation committee are young POA members with families who have fulltime jobs. These individuals always provide very valuable input and perspective during our recreation committee meetings, which are scheduled every third Monday of the each month at 4 p.m.

The advice and opinions of these young POA members were particularly helpful as the recreation committee wrestled with our recommendation regarding the Branchwood Golf Course.

The following comments of POA Board Director Nancy Owens, during the September POA board meeting, deserve further thought, consideration and action by the POA board and administration.

“I thank the board for allowing me to express my personal opinion.

I would like us to start being more inclusive and sensitive to the needs of working POA members and members with young families because they are a major part of our future. So let’s talk about inclusion. For the POA to be inclusive, we need to make a deliberate effort and place at its highest priority, reaching out to these members and give them a reason to be involved in our different committees. That starts with giving them a reasonable chance to attend and listen.

But as many of my friends in the village tell me, “As a working member, if I see that 90 percent of the committees meet during normal working hours Monday though Friday, not over the lunch hour or later in the afternoon-why should I even bother to participate? My impression is that they only want people who don’t work.”

According to the 2008 census, there are well over 2500 families with children; members total almost 43 percent between the ages of 20 and 59. These working people, their opinions, their participation, their perspective, their wants and needs as part of the POA, as well as their vote in the next POA election, are just as important as any other demographic in the village. So this is where our challenge lies,because in order to move towards being “member friendly” we must do a better job at providing the ability of these members to participate-in any capacity-even if it is just to attend and listen to a committee meeting.

As a working member of the POA board of directors, even I am having problems with inclusionrecently being excluded from one of my own committee meetings-and let’s be clear, although I am not the only working member of the board of directors, I know of no other working director having a problem with inclusion.

My recommendation: I would encourage all committees to take the lead, as the recreation committees to take the lead, as the recreation committee at 4 p.m., and the golf committeemeeting in the evenings in the summer-already has, and take a look at the times that are set for monthly meetings, and just consider alternative ways of either rotating meetings between the day and the evenings, or set times over the lunch hour, or later in the afternoon to better accommodate-and include more of our working members in the village. If we as a board, continue to schedule committee meetings that appear to be, or are perceived by the membership as being more for the convenience of board members or committee chairman, then we will continue to send the message that we do not consider inclusion to be important.

The working members of this community are our future and we must provide them the ability to be equally included in this equation.”

Well said, director Owens.

Charlie Teal Bella Vista

(Editor’s note: While this letter violates the maximum allowed number of words (500), we believe it is important to allow it so that the words of Director Owens be made available to more than those in the room the night she spoke them.) Is it not ludicrous

In the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette printed Oct. 1, the Walton’s still remain in the top 10 bracket of the richest in the USA.

Thanks Sam; where on earth can all those billions be spent?

The direct offspring of Sam and Helen Walton are worth: Jim, $19.6 billion; S. Robson, $19 billion and Alice, tuckedaway in Fort Worth, Texas, $19.3 billion. Descendants are all out of state at $27 billion. Jim and S. Robson alone could finish the U.S. 71 by-pass, estimated at $250 million, add another $25 million by the time it’s a go and never miss the bucks. It would lead right to their back yard, Bentonville.

The by-pass would be known as the Sam Walton Memorial Highway. It would contain the latest in a fire station, medical clinic for emergencies, Walton Neighborhood Market, Arkansas state rest area (present one in Bella Vista is outdated) a couple of fast food restaurants, a sit-down to order family restaurant, and a few other options. This would help Arkansas stay financially healthy.

Paul Bonner Bella Vista Thanks for a job well done

We enjoy receiving the local news in The Vista.

We think the news is varied, well written and always interesting.

We'd especially like to say many thanks for the men who paint the white and yellow guide lines on the highways.

One dark night during a heavy rain storm those lines were life savers to us, and they are amazingly straight!

We just want to let them know how much they are appreciated.

Ted and Beth Olson Bella Vista Band appreciates its many fans

A big "thank you" is due to many people for the fine concert season just completed by the Bella Vista Community Concert Band.

First and foremost, thank you to the Community Church for allowing us to rehearse in the Overflow Room; without this, the rest of this letter is moot.

At the risk of overlooking someone, I must pay tribute to the many fine musicians who sacrificed and shared their talent and time, frequently postponing events or changing family plans, to be able to rehearse and perform with the band.

Thanks for the fine support we have enjoyed from those who chose to attend our concerts, whether at Blowing Springs or more recently at the First United Methodist Church.

Again this year the fine folks at Metfield Clubhouse have providedtasty suppers at Blowing Springs for those who chose not to cook that evening. Thank you for a job well done.

The men and women with the Parks Department of the Property Owners Association did a good job of keeping the Blowing Springs area tidy and trash free.

Lastly, a big thank you for a job well done for the various radio and television stations and newspapers that so generously helped get the word out.

You are all to be commended and we look forward to working with all of your again next concert season.

George Alter Musical Director Conductor Bella Vista Community Concert Band The forever war

Afghanistan absorbs men, materials, and money like a black hole in space. It exhausted the British, it exhausted the Russians, and it will do the same to us. Whether we stay for 5, 10, or 20 years, or until our country is bankrupt, will make no difference. Then they will go back to the same way they have lived for more than 1,000 years. Imagine what we could do with the hundreds of billions of dollars we have spent in Iraq and Afghanistan if we had used them to provide health care for those who need it here.

Afghanistan is a country only geographically. Internally it is a group of city-states. Each town and village has its own head man, usually the richest one in town, who has his own, personal militia for his own and the town’s protection. There is no “national” army. That which is socalled is in and around the capital city of Kabul and a few other large cities. To control “the country” we would need a detachment of soldiers in every village and hamlet in Afghanistan. Then the Taliban could decide when, where and how to pick them off, one at a time. It is truly a no-win situation. The “least lost” situation is to get out as quickly as possible.

Another dilemma - we are protecting farmers who provide 92 percent of the world’s heroin supply and our soldiers are not allowed to destroy it because we have to be friendly to the Afghan people. This crop also supplies major funding for the Taliban. These farmers got only $2,000 - $3,000 for crops. We could buy these crops directly from the farmers for a few hundred thousand dollars and destroy them on the spot.

Then the next year pay the farmers the same amount to plant food crops, which they could sell and keep the money.

This would:

1) Cut a major source of Taliban funding.

2) Cut 92% of the world’s heroin supply.

3) Save hundreds of millions of dollars trying to prevent it from coming into the U.S.

4) Save other millions of dollars fighting criminals who distribute and sell that which does get in.

5) Save countless other millions of dollars treating hopeless addicts and keeping our jails overcrowded.

Every citizen of this great country who is willing to write or call his Congressman will have a part in the final decision.

What will you do?

Bill Keller Bella Vista It’s not paranoia

The Bella Vista Property Owners Associatin Board of Directors Rules and Regulations Committee, led by Director George DeGroot, is reviewing our POA election process according the Bylaws Article V Section 2.

DeGroot and the Committee are trying to push through a change in the POA election countingprocess. DeGroot and his

committee are trying to take the personal/manual counting of electionballots away from the Election Counting Committee.

DeGroot said at the Sept. 17 Board meeting, “The main reason for these proposed changes is to allow the Election Committee to find a better way to count ballots - a mechanical way of counting ballots.”

Current Bylaws election process Article V, Section 2:

“F. Upon receipt of each ballot by the POA, it shall immediately be opened to determine voter eligibility. The ballots shall be delivered and secured as directed by the Election Committee until counted.

“G. The Election Committee shall then proceed with the counting and tabulation. It shall have the right to appoint a Counting Committee consisting of such number of POA Members as the Election Committee shall deem necessary to assist in the counting and tabulation of the ballots. No Board member shall serve on the Counting Committee.”

Friends and neighbors, our election counting process is working perfectly. The Election Counting Committee in 2008 counted all ballots without one error.

We the POA members have a wonderful dedicated group of election counting volunteers who verifies the credibility of the election process.

I know you ask why the fuss? The fuss is we the property owners should never allow the board to take volunteer property owners away from counting the election ballots.

The current electioncounting process prevents fraudulent election results. There are enough doubtful issues with the POA board, so why should we, the property owners, allow them to change the electioncounting process? This sounds a lot like “trust me.”

This is not paranoia, but just good common sense. Why fix something that is not broken?

Why is our board trying to replace a perfectly good election counting process? Do you really believe a machine is better than property owners counting your ballots?

If you agree the POA Rules and Regulations committee should not change Article V Section 2, write the board at Board@bvvpoa.com and let them know your response.

Tommy Freytag Bella Vista

Opinion, Pages 6 on 10/14/2009

Comments

To report abuse or misuse of this area please hit the "Suggest Removal" link in the comment to alert our online managers.

Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.