Taking a hard look at stables cost versus usage, the Seven Lakes Landowners Association [SLLA] Board of Directors appears ready to reduce the size of the Association's herd to five horses and two ponies, from the current eight horses and three ponies.
“We, as a Board, do not want to get rid of the stables," said SLLA President Bob Darr during the Monday, May 14 Work Session, "but we are looking at what we are getting for our $63,000 -- and if there is a way to still provide the amenity but reduce that cost.”
Darr estimated that reducing the herd would save the Association $8,700.
“The first question we need to look at is: What is the right size of the amenity?" Darr said. "And we accomplish that by looking at the number of rides.”
Darr said the number of rides totals 431 annually and the annual cost of maintaining and operating the stables totals $63,236. But it's important, in evaluating those numbers, to understand that Darr is talking about 431 rides, not 431 riders. In other words, the horses were taken out of the barn 431 times for trail rides that could include as many as six or as few as two riders.
At no time during Monday's discussion was any information shared on the total number of riders served; all the data presented focused on rides, not riders.
The ride total is a revised count undertaken after an initial presentation last month was derided as inaccurate. However, all of the figures discussed at the Work Session were again disputed.
Southsider Debra Kester, a frequent rider, argued passionately that the number of rides was too low and that other factors had not been considered in Darr’s analysis, for example, that rides are cancelled for inclement weather and that limited hours at the stables had reduced the total number of potential rides per day. Kester also objected that income from lessons and other paid activities were not factored into Darr's cost figures.
On the expense side, Finance Committee member George Temple cautioned Darr that his total estimated cost of the stables was too low, because it did not include costs including employee benefits, pasture mowing, utilities, and maintenance of the physical structures. Adding in those costs, Temple estimated the total cost of the stables would be closer to $75,000 to $80,000 per year.
A Unique Amenity, and Easy Target
Seven Lakes North has offered stables and riding as one of its amenities since the very beginning of the community. It may be the only community in Moore County that offers the amenity of free trail rides for members and their guests.
The size of the herd at the stables has ebbed and flowed, with some horses serving the community for many years. Currently, the herd includes eight horses and three ponies. One of those horses is lame and no longer ridden: a gentle giant named "Swift Slew," but more commonly known as "Bonnie." She is a retired thoroughbred racehorse and the granddaughter of Triple Crown winner "Seattle Slew."
Despite the stables being a unique and attractive amenity, the facility is an easy target when finances are tight. The future use of the stables has been on the Board's discussion table before, often creating controversy.
In December of 2008, a split vote of the SLLA Board of Directors placed the stables and three other common recreation areas under a protective Deed Restriction, and action designed to prevent future Boards from selling off community assets. As approved, the deed requires a supermajority vote of six of the seven directors to transfer ownership of these properties.
The current SLLA Board is facing cost pressures as they try to pave the roads, overcome years of deferred maintenance, and manage the existing amenities -- all without raising dues.
“When you are elected to the Board, one of your major responsibilities is fiduciary," President Darr explained. "As a Board, we look at what we need to provide and what we can provide with the amount of money we have to operate . . . . My situation and this Board’s is we need to look at every one of our expenditure items to see if there is any way we can cut or reduce expenses."
“We told Karen [Reeder, the SLLA Stables manager] that we did not want to cut down on the number of rides, but asked for her suggestion,” Darr continued. “She said she could still provide the same number of rides by reducing to five horses and three ponies.”
Nailing Down the Numbers
Reinforcing that recommendation with data, Darr posted several pages of figures and percentages that illustrated the number of rides, the number of potential rides, and the actual usage based on sign-in sheets for trail riders.
The majority of trail rides are taken in the months of November, April, and July – averaging approximately 50 rides per month. A specific example cited: 53 rides were recorded over twenty-one open stables days in April 2011, averaging 2.52 rides per day.
Darr said the analysis of actual and potential rides demonstrated the stables could accommodate as many riders with fewer horses.
Taking a closer look at the actual riders in 2011, Darr said 59 percent were members and 41 percent were guests. When rides by those using a non-resident pass [available for purchase by Westside residents only] were excluded, the percentage use by members dropped to 51 percent. In addition, Darr argued that approximately 75 percent of that member usage is limited to five riders who ride very frequently -- often several times per week.
Debra Kester quickly disputed those numbers, arguing the analysis was inaccurate because the earliest and latest trail rides considered are no longer applicable due to limited hours at the stables.
Another frequent rider, Kathy Lishawa, reminded the Board that Karen Reeder was injured last Spring and that had an impact on the number of rides counted. She also noted the stables are closed one day each week and can also be shuttered due to inclement weather.
“When you start adding back in cancellations, those numbers would increase,” she said.
However, any productive points of discussion were frequently lost in the tense back and forth as Kester and Darr each challenged the other's findings.
Darr flatly rejected Kester's request to personally review the sign up sheets from last year, citing confidentiality, and told her that she would have to accept that the compiled numbers were not put together to make a case or with a set agenda in mind.
“If you have five horses to take out, you have one lead and four on horses," Darr said. "It seems to me we could work with our current time schedule of trail rides."
Policy changes also recommended
Recommending no change to the size of the herd while further research is accumulated during the heavy use period this Summer, former SLLA Director Laura Douglass presented the Recreation Committee’s recommendations that focused on policy rather than figures. Director Bob Racine was unable to participate in the Work Session due to a health issue.
Using the current definition of a member and a guest, Douglass said the committee recommends no change in the current policy towards members, which allows unlimited riding privileges as space allows. However, frequent guests -- identified as a guest at the stables who rides more than two times in any given month -- would be charged a rate of $20 per ride for any additional use. The same policy would also apply for pony rides, but at a reduced rate of $5 per ride.
This means that an SLLA member may sponsor any guest they desire, but that the same guest may only ride twice in the same month -- regardless of which member is the sponsor -- or be assessed the riding fee.
Further recommendations offered by the Recreation Committee include eliminating the option for non-residents to purchase passes for a single ride or an annual pass -- presently only available to Seven Lakes West landowners -- and a more stringent approach to signing in guests. The proposed policy would require the SLLA member to personally register their guest at the stables, though the member would not be required to accompany the guest on the trail ride. For example, a Seven Lakes grandparent could sign in their visiting grandchild without actually going on the trial ride.
Darr expressed concern that the guest pass system can be abused, with a non-resident potentially having unlimited access to the stables for just over $6.00, a fourth of the $25 annual guest pass [four cards are issued].
“What the Recreation Committee has recommended -- free rides for residents -- is a huge over-utilization,” Darr said.
Northsider Chuck Stephenson suggested that members should be allowed to ride as often as desired, but that guests should be limited: strictly to family only.
Douglass responded that the Recreation Committee was looking for equity among all the community’s amenities.
“We do not count the number of times a resident goes out fishing or uses a lake, visits the pool, or uses a beach or playground," she said. "So we do not feel it is reasonable to limit the number of trail rides, until we reach a saturation point when a member cannot go out because of the high volume of other users.”
A call for action
“These utilization numbers came from Karen," Darr said, "and she said she could handle the same number of rides per week with five [horses] and three [ponies] -- that she could handle the flow of traffic -- and what I’m asking the Board to do is to downsize to that."
Opposed to the Board making any decision at this point, Debra Kester lobbied that the number of horses should be left alone until accurate numbers are presented.
“I could not find any other community in this entire country that has what we have, for the cost that we pay,” she said. “Our lakes, swimming, tennis, and stables. If you are talking about bringing property values down over a deteriorating island bulkhead, then we should be looking at our overall amenities and not make decisions based on just finances.”
Another resident argued the pool is also a major expenditure and is only open fourteen weeks, versus the stables, which is open year-round.
“If the Board is looking to reduce costs, the pool is more expensive than the stables,” he said.
Darr agreed but said the stables discussion was not tied to an analysis of numbers for the pool.
“I’ll say what I have before," Darr said. "We are looking at everything we spend money on: what is its utilization and what it costs us.”
Darr continued, “For example, I saw five ladies playing cards in the Game Room this week and four of them were from the Westside! The point is: That is the kind of number stuff we are reviewing. Who is using it and how much does it cost? We have to look at every cotton-picking thing we have expenditures on.”
After over an hour of discussion that ranged from helpful dialogue to shouting matches, Darr drew the line.
His request for a show of hands from the Board in support of reducing the herd was unanimous. A vote will be called at the May 30 Open Meeting.
