I think we have enought amenities for the children!! As time goes by, the upkeep of what we do have will become more expensive to maintain. and so will the liability. Think about that!! It's always fun to spend some-one else's money. Many people are hurting in this community. We all have to reign in our spending, and that includes the WCA.
Dana - 1 year ago
I really don't trust the judgement of the WCA and most of Westchase after the construction of an office for the management company when there are dozens of offices for rental within Westchase.
West Park Village is already too crowded. I've nearly gotten killed a couple of times when people stop in the middle of the street to hop out for Starburcks.
The idea that Westchase would be more appealing simply because of a visible fountain from the road is laughable. The only thing that is going to support the Westchase housing market is a major upturn in the economy combined with a flushing out of current housing inventory. I don't see that happening for several years.
Ann - 1 year ago
There are two pools plus plenty of residents have pools in their backyards. There is no need for a spraypark. There are other amenities, necessities that should be considered ahead of this.
Marty: Just wanted to clarify two points. I want to reassure you that it was not WOW's intention to skew results. The poll widget we use actually limits the number of characters for the lead-in question, which, in turn, limits the amount of information that can be included when posing questions. (We actually find it a bit frustrating to develop good poll questions as the result.) We also try to keep the answers short to remove any appearance of skewing the results. The comments area here, however, allows a great deal of space for info, so I thought I'd add it here.
Should the WCA construct the spray area, its location would ultimately determine whether it's accessible to non-residents. If it were placed adjacent to one of the existing pool facilities, it would be for the exclusive use of Westchasers. If it were placed where the existing, largely dysfunctional spray fountain is in West Park Village, it would be open to non-residents. This latter approach would require cooperation with the CDDs, which own the park land containing the current fountain (near the small band shell along Montague Street). Legal liabilities would be no different than those for the parks (CDDs) or the pools (WCA). Citing the costs for repair, the CDDs supervisors have historically been reluctant to spend money on improving that fountain.
One of the arguments WOW reporters have heard for replacing that West Park Village fountain is that it would attract more people to that site, offering a needed injection of support to the commercial businesses along that strip. Many of them have gone out of business over the years. Supporters point out that those commercial landowners pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in CDD fees to keep Westchase common areas in good shape (thus reducing costs for homeowners). Those supporters argue it could help keep an ice cream shop or pizza store open there. More traffic, they argue, is just what is needed for the well-being of Westchase's commercial areas. They view this as a necessary part of West Park's neo-traditional neighborhood appeal.
Supporters who favor a site in the two large planters of the West Park Village pool (the planters lie between the restrooms and existing pool), however, have argued that a spray area here would be quite visible from Linebaugh Avenue and would provide a draw for potential Westchase homebuyers, thus potentially supporting the Westchase housing market. And it would benefit just Westchase homeowners.
I hope this helps clarify some of the questions of poll takers and thank you for taking the time to share your opinion.
Gratefully,
Chris Barrett, WOW Publisher
Marty - 1 year ago
In my view it's not really about $10 and the way the question is posed skews the result. What are the other factors in the decision? It depends on whether the spray park is exclusive to Westchase residents. Do we want to pay money in order to have more traffic and congestion in support of all of the entire population of Upper Tampa Bay? What amenities of other nearby communities are WE getting to use for free? What are the legal liabilities?
I think we have enought amenities for the children!! As time goes by, the upkeep of what we do have will become more expensive to maintain. and so will the liability. Think about that!! It's always fun to spend some-one else's money. Many people are hurting in this community. We all have to reign in our spending, and that includes the WCA.
I really don't trust the judgement of the WCA and most of Westchase after the construction of an office for the management company when there are dozens of offices for rental within Westchase.
West Park Village is already too crowded. I've nearly gotten killed a couple of times when people stop in the middle of the street to hop out for Starburcks.
The idea that Westchase would be more appealing simply because of a visible fountain from the road is laughable. The only thing that is going to support the Westchase housing market is a major upturn in the economy combined with a flushing out of current housing inventory. I don't see that happening for several years.
There are two pools plus plenty of residents have pools in their backyards. There is no need for a spraypark. There are other amenities, necessities that should be considered ahead of this.
Marty: Just wanted to clarify two points. I want to reassure you that it was not WOW's intention to skew results. The poll widget we use actually limits the number of characters for the lead-in question, which, in turn, limits the amount of information that can be included when posing questions. (We actually find it a bit frustrating to develop good poll questions as the result.) We also try to keep the answers short to remove any appearance of skewing the results. The comments area here, however, allows a great deal of space for info, so I thought I'd add it here.
Should the WCA construct the spray area, its location would ultimately determine whether it's accessible to non-residents. If it were placed adjacent to one of the existing pool facilities, it would be for the exclusive use of Westchasers. If it were placed where the existing, largely dysfunctional spray fountain is in West Park Village, it would be open to non-residents. This latter approach would require cooperation with the CDDs, which own the park land containing the current fountain (near the small band shell along Montague Street). Legal liabilities would be no different than those for the parks (CDDs) or the pools (WCA). Citing the costs for repair, the CDDs supervisors have historically been reluctant to spend money on improving that fountain.
One of the arguments WOW reporters have heard for replacing that West Park Village fountain is that it would attract more people to that site, offering a needed injection of support to the commercial businesses along that strip. Many of them have gone out of business over the years. Supporters point out that those commercial landowners pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in CDD fees to keep Westchase common areas in good shape (thus reducing costs for homeowners). Those supporters argue it could help keep an ice cream shop or pizza store open there. More traffic, they argue, is just what is needed for the well-being of Westchase's commercial areas. They view this as a necessary part of West Park's neo-traditional neighborhood appeal.
Supporters who favor a site in the two large planters of the West Park Village pool (the planters lie between the restrooms and existing pool), however, have argued that a spray area here would be quite visible from Linebaugh Avenue and would provide a draw for potential Westchase homebuyers, thus potentially supporting the Westchase housing market. And it would benefit just Westchase homeowners.
I hope this helps clarify some of the questions of poll takers and thank you for taking the time to share your opinion.
Gratefully,
Chris Barrett, WOW Publisher
In my view it's not really about $10 and the way the question is posed skews the result. What are the other factors in the decision? It depends on whether the spray park is exclusive to Westchase residents. Do we want to pay money in order to have more traffic and congestion in support of all of the entire population of Upper Tampa Bay? What amenities of other nearby communities are WE getting to use for free? What are the legal liabilities?