On Jan. 11, [2009] Century Village East (CVE) will no longer have the transportation we were told would be ours upon purchasing our condos. How anyone in their right mind can concoct a new situation such as this one –- listen to this –- there will be county-wide, 20-seaters coming down areas where people will have to walk to certain stops for the ride to the highway, where they will be left off to walk to the shopping center for food. The white county “seaters” will not go into the mall. First of all, if you can’t get a seat you have to wait 45 minutes. If you can’t get a ride you have to walk –- people with walkers and canes, and people who walk slow will never be able to stand in the hot sun waiting for a ride, and will also miss the transportation. Only “one” county bus will be allotted to CVE. It will go down Hillsboro towards the beach.

I sent a letter to the governor, who said he could do nothing because it is a county problem, not a state problem. He said he was sending my letter to the [Broward] county commissioners. That’s the joke! These commissioners do nothing to help us. Where do the commissioners’ salaries come from? Why don’t we get a detailed list of who gets how much? We now have to pay 60 cents each way extra even though we pay for the transportation in our “envelopes” (maintenance money). Now we’re paying extra. The commissioners refused to pay for the trolleys but they’re telling us to vote for them [the politicians] in the next election. Why, so they can mistreat us some more? The Pembroke Pines Association President got [it] together. They are paying for their trolleys. They take care of their own, not like over here. Master Management spent $50,000 to have a study done for the irrigation system. We got no report. They spent $50,000 on signs you can’t see or read that have to be redone.

We need transportation. Hello, is anyone listening? Who’s minding our Senior Citizens here in Broward? How much comes off the top to the so-called Board –- from whom you can’t get answers or ask questions?

Marilyn Fernando

Oakridge A

Deerfield Beach

Reader asks for comparison study of firefighters’ compensation

To the Editor:

The Observer Opinion column in the [Jan. 1] edition brought up an interesting observation about the “bloated standard negotiated here” regarding the number of paramedics (3) that are sent per incident vs. a more common nationwide standard of 2. Simple math would conclude a 50 percent increase in manpower costs that Deerfield Beach taxpayers have to bear vs. most of the rest of the country every time there is an incident requiring the services of a paramedic team.

It might be an interesting exercise if the Observer would publish a comparative analysis of all of the compensation differences including other work rules that exist in the current and proposed union contracts for the firemen and paramedics vs. national averages so as to enlighten all taxpayers and voters as to what we are actually paying for vs. other localities.

Such a comparison might help to settle the confusion for one of our sarcastic local businessmen who has previously chastised the analysis of the published numbers reported in the Observer regarding union contracts for firefighters and paramedics and who suggested that anyone who criticized the costs to the taxpayers was somehow unpatriotic, unknowledgeable and should be censored by the Observer. This same local businessman suggested that criticizing the costs of providing for public safety servants indicated a lack of support for the public safety members that protect the citizens of Deerfield Beach. Nothing could be further from the truth but everyone is entitled to his or her opinion.

Specifically, is the Observer up to the challenge of publishing such a comparative analysis? If so, we could all be educated and decide for ourselves whether the costs of the union contracts for firefighters and paramedics are reasonable. Perhaps a comparison with other communities of response times, lives saved and any other performance criteria that are used for firefighters and paramedics could also be published so that we can judge whether premium compensation and “bloated” work rules are justified.

David Nace

Deerfield Beach

Century Village Insider ... Out of Touch

Dear Editor:

Most CVE residents have a different outlook today than often expressed in the Century Village INSIDER column. Owners consistently voice the desire for upgrades in signage, guardhouses, plantings, etc., along with infrastructure modernization like automated irrigation. Sad that such a valuable resource as the Observer chooses to keep the old, negatively cast CVE image alive. The column just seems more and more out of touch.

In touch residents know comparing the Recreation Committee to CVE Master Management Company, Inc., is apples and oranges. The volunteer Recreation Committee oversees the operating budget for our leased clubhouse, multiple pools and tennis courts and has a large, professionally managed, full-time paid staff planning for improvements and carrying out directives. Master Management has a 15-member volunteer Board of Directors and a three person, part-time administrative staff . They are responsible for all planning, policies and procedures, as well as managing and running the day-to-day operation required to maintain all CVE-owned common areas, facilities and services including signage, waterways, irrigation, security, transportation, cable, trash removal, roadways, lighting, etc., owning and operating a conference facility, office building, pool and four tennis courts. The budget is about double that of Recreation, with fees the Observer regarding union contracts for firefighters and paramedics and who suggested that anyone who criticized the costs to the taxpayers was somehow unpatriotic, unknowledgeable and should be censored by the Observer. This same local businessman suggested that criticizing the costs of providing for public safety servants indicated a lack of support for the public safety members that protect the citizens of Deerfield Beach. Nothing could be further from the truth but everyone is entitled to his or her opinion.

Deerfield Beach

1-8-09