It keeps getting hotter and hotter in SunBird… and we’ve just entered into the monsoon season. Some unusual wind and dust storms have come through SunBird at odd times. One came in the late morning and another much later at night. These storms had some heavy winds with dust and dirt and a few raindrops just to make it a dirty mess. The last storm, as of the date of this article, brought in an extremely huge cloud of dirt from the northeast with stronger winds and more rain. Some trees in the common areas were blown over, and large branches broke off. During the monsoon season, it’s a constant battle to keep the swimming pools and outdoor recreational facilities clean.
Wendy Weber is the newest member of SunBird’s team as our Activities Director. Wendy has almost nine years’ experience working as an Activities Director in an active-adult community and brings a wealth of experience and great enthusiasm. Let’s give her a warm welcome to the SunBird community.
A few months ago, we met with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Posse Department officials to welcome and arrange more of a presence from them in SunBird. Their presence will be an additional layer in the efforts to deter crime. The Posse has answered the request and has been very visible in SunBird. Many residents have been inquiring as to “What’s going on with the Sherriff’s Department in SunBird so frequently?” This service is an additional layer to assisting in deterring crime in SunBird. We appreciate the Sherriff’s Posse and their willingness to be part of the SunBird community.
The major construction improvement project of the addition of the new multipurpose room on the upper floor of the clubhouse and extension of the balcony is progressing as scheduled. In fact, the contractors are ahead of schedule at this time. Demolition work and huge concrete footers were poured for the columns that will be supporting this structure. The gigantic steel beams have been delivered and are in the process of being installed. Inspectors and engineers are carefully observing this step of the project, as this is one of the most crucial parts. After the steel beams are in place, the new floor will be prepared for the concrete pour. This will be an interesting process, as access to the third level of this area is very limited. The project is scheduled to be completed in October.
SunBird’s veterans’ honorary memorial monument plaque is complete and looks fantastic. The plaque is made of solid aluminum 3’ x 3’ in size with raised colored lettering to honor all veterans. This has been installed and is displayed on a column in the clubhouse main hallway across from the library for all to see and be proud of. All SunBird veterans of record have been sent a letter requesting to provide information with a picture to be placed in our SunBird Veterans Book of Honor. If this letter was not received by any veteran or spouse of a veteran, please contact the SunBird office so that we can include all those who have served. We appreciate our many service women and men. We also want to thank Bob Neuman for submitting this idea, Dave Meyers and Bing Solomon from the Planning Committee who fine-tuned it and the Board of Directors for approving this wonderful tribute.
Projects completed this summer or that are still in progress: The replacement of the concrete stairs and new handrailing at the southeast entry to the patio area, installed a maintenance yard shade covering to protect the landscape equipment and materials installed, common area landscape irrigation replacement project phase one is in progress, veterans memorial plaque installed, new billiard tables are in route and will be set up this month and some new/replacement fitness room exercise equipment will be coming soon. An unexpected project to be completed within the month will be the modernization and update of the clubhouse elevator. The elevator at the clubhouse is over 30 years old and is serviced routinely by an elevator maintenance contractor. It has had many parts replaced over the years and is just in need of updating. Over the past several months, it has malfunctioned more often than normal and is at the point of a complete operational update due to the age of the circuit boards and motors. The equipment and parts have been ordered and the permit process has started. The updating includes bringing the elevator up to new fire and safety codes. The process of ordering parts and obtaining permits will take about four weeks. Once approved and all the equipment received, the elevator will be closed for two weeks for the work to commence. It is anticipated that the elevator will be completed sometime in September. The elevator is working now; however, to minimize future problems or delays, the timing is now. We will keep the latest information posted as it develops.
It’s hard to believe SunBird is 30 years of age this year. Maintenance, improvements and updates are vital to keeping SunBird a vibrant, updated and fun place to live. We are always looking for ways to continue to keep and progress towards the future.
Have a safe and healthy summer!