pool musings

Resident went to fgcswim website. Info is in different format and requires some additional software to open files, apparently. All of that info would be good to know tonight so that it would at least reflect what IS being claimed for each swim meet. The program is Team Manager. If anyone has it and can open those files and present the information here, it would be very helpful. It also says that format is compatible with Adobe pdf files. After having a pool for FORTY YEARS it is incomprehensible to NOT have accurate revenue controls in place! It is either incredible incompetency OR deliberate skimming of admission fees. Neither is acceptable, and skimming is illegal (fraud? grand theft?). How long ago did the MDAC official make a payment to the pool? Who did he pay? Cash? Check? What was it for? Practice? Meets? Does anybody know how much the check was for? Was it documented in the receipt book? Who would know? Did anybody witness the payment? The receipt book sounds interesting. While they may try to BS Mr Dotson, he has been an accountant for over thirty years, and knows when the numbers dont make sense. It seems that arrogance, secrecy, and intimidation are the hallmarks of this administration, if not corruption. This has gone on too long. Change is needed. NOW. Start with a pool audit by an outside, independent auditor. Then move on to the golf course and the construction projects.

a pattern emerges

What are the chances that the city numbers arent out yet, and wont be, until they have been massaged and altered sufficiently? To say they are just incompetent and inept is to state the obvious. To say they are doing all this with criminal intent could also be a plausible explanation, but the proof isnt there yet. All they can be convicted of so far is an amazing and unbelievable lack of common sense, judgement, and management principles. As they screw up one thing after another, a pattern emerges. Where theres smoke, theres usually fire, so its entirely possible this isnt just cluelessness, and could easily involve kickbacks, bid rigging, and fraud. The proof is just not there yet. Stay tuned.

pool audit needed

Perhaps the audit committee is being lauded for creativity and imagination in the performance of their duties. Honestly, all of the people on that committee work FOR the CITY Manager. They are NOT CPAs or accountants and ALL depend on Gym for their jobs! We need an independent outside audit of the City, starting with the pool, with real forensic accountants and CPAs. Perhaps this will be provided by the State Dept of Revenues, or the State Attorneys office. The pool data has been real helpful in breaking down which people are using our pool facility, in what numbers, and when. Good documentation will be needed by those doing an honest audit in the future. Can it be that the City Manager has NO contract with MDAC and receives NO revenues for their use of our pool 6 days a week, or for meets? Or is it more likely that money is taken in but NOT recorded, or reflected anywhere? To NOT charge for the use of the pool would be defrauding the residents of monies they rightfully deserve, no? To charge for the use but pocket it or NOT have any record of it as revenues received would be grand theft, right? To obligate and guarantee a $200,000 loss to the residents by keeping the pool open during the school year for a handful of Springs residents, may not be criminal but it IS incredibly poor management and judgement, and fiscal insanity during these very difficult times for everybody else. Sound familiar? It SHOULD.

Gym dictates to Council

Gym would NEVER allow the Council to fire him, and the Council would NEVER even consider it. Who would tell them what to think and do? Who would tell them that 300% and 400% and more, are normal profit margins for construction in Dade Co.? The only way he would PERMIT that to happen is if he had his golden parachute in place and promises that everybody would write glowing letters about him as references- then he might resign for "other oppurtunities". Wonder what an indictment would do to speed up the process? Fraud and misappropriation of funds are two leading possibilities now, plus this sales tax situation. An outside independent audit would clear up ALL these questions, wouldnt it? Start at the pool.

Fraud or Grand Theft?

Perhaps you do not need to charge sales tax if you do NOT charge. Is THAT what they are saying? That they ARENT charging? They either ARE charging, or they arent! which one is it? They cant have it BOTH ways. If they are NOT charging, WHY NOT? The residents are being defrauded of deserved revenues if they ARENT charging, and it appears they ARENT. What are the chances they ARE charging, but just never get around to claiming it as revenues? Is it possible the money is just pocketed? THAT would be theft, GRAND THEFT, right? Without any other possible explanation from City officials it sounds like FRAUD or Grand THEFT are the two best explanations so far. To not ID and document people who use our facilities because of a loss of confidentiality is so patently absurd it doesnt deserve a response. Since when is pool use confidential information? Preposterous, irrational, and ridiculous are the terms that come to mind. What person in their right mind would object to verifying their name and address? Showing their driver license? Having a video showing them using a city facility? Perhaps those who arent residents and/or dont want to pay may object, but not the average tax paying citizen. These are common, everyday verification methods that are used on a daily basis in a wide range of activities, from voting booths to driver licenses to banking. Only scammers would object.

fraud vs grand theft

How do we know if they are residents or not, if they dont sign in and produce verifiable ID that confirms their status as a resident, or not?? How would we know how much to charge them WITHOUT some verification of who they are? Is it possible that those guys in charge DONT consider that important information for the everyday admissions OR the swim team? No sign-in, no validation (a drivers license or other ID would do nicely) and apparently NO CONCERN by management about documenting admission fees and protecting the interests of the residents! If the state AND the Health dept REQUIRE some form of identification, why is it NOT in place and used every day? Of course, if there is NONE of the aforementioned controls present and no way to tell how many admissions there REALLY were, it would be REAL EASY for some or ALL of that money to disappear. Having no controls regarding the amount of cash taken in every day is just stupendously stupid management principles and practices for any HONEST business. Highly questionable business practices at best, but maybe a pretty good idea to those who DONT WANT to be traced, tracked, or found out. It would be fraud if the numbers were altered, right? Grand theft if the cash was disappearing or just being pocketed and not recorded, right? Both are felonies, right? Tough call- we either have some of the worlds dumbest guys in charge at the pool, OR they are garden variety middle-mamagement crooks who think they are slick. No admission records, no contracts, verification of residency for the team or everyday admissions; no income to the City from meets or practices, birthday parties, or scuba lessons - add it ALL up and you get either incredibly unaccountable and unbelieveable management practices OR, felonies are taking place right before our eyes. What is the State Attorneys office number again?

pathetic pool management

Its been a week since the numbers (6) of Springs kids on the MDAC swim team were challenged, and NO other verifiable numbers have surfaced from City officials so one would have to conclude that those numbers must be pretty accurate. Any competent Rec Director could have, would have, and should have presented those numbers by now, if they exist. It didnt happen, and chances are, will NEVER happen, because they DONT EXIST. Lets be generous and say there are ten Springs kids on MDAC, tops - why would 13,000 residents pay $200,000 to keep the pool open for them to practice during the school year? Especially since we are in an ever-deepening recession and there are several other nearby pools they can use? Plus, we dont charge MDAC for meets that they make very nice profits on, and the residents pay for the extra staffing to put on the meets! The taxpayers pay the expenses so the the private interests can profit! We also give them prime sessions at our pool to practice everyday FOR FREE ! Whats wrong with that picture? There are apparently NO controls in place to document the cash taken in and NO CONTRACTS of ANY sort! NOT with ANY of the people who use the pool - not the scuba guys, Columbus High, MS High, Reagan High, or Miami Dade Aquatic Club ! What kind of management is THAT? The ONLY one who pays regularly is the taxpaying residents, and THEY get hosed ! The City officials are certainly NOT looking out for the residents' best interests! They are draining us dry while allowing special interests to make a nice profit. When looking at the city website for pool income we have to guess how much income was REALLY taken in as there are two different numbers listed under Aquatics. The numbers listed arent even close to each other in dollar amounts and means they STILL have NO IDEA about the revenues taken in THREE and FOUR years after the fact! It brings into question whether which, if ANY, of their figures are accurate. The rumors of fraudulent admission padding persists. This reeks of disarray, disorganization, and chaos, if not fraud. At the VERY least inept, incompetent, and unbelievably poor management of the City's facilities. Again, there is no reason to suspect the lifeguards at this time, as it appears to be a total and complete failure by those in charge. An AUDIT is what is needed, and its needed NOW! Help me Howard, help help me Howard.....

pool numbers distilled

For those who want the numbers condensed down to the basics for the pool: there were about 10,500 in surcharges charged to the individual (30 x 350) swimmers, add 1500 from concessions, 1200 from 2 sesiions for gate fees, and 600 for heet sheets, and you get about 14,000 profits for the private swim teams. That is for ONE MEET, and there have been several this year. The total projected income from Aquatics to the City is 2150 for the ENTIRE YEAR. The private team also saved 2640 in pool rentals that WERENT charged, again profits to the private team, but that was pool rental fees that Springs residents SHOULD have realized. Everyday pool rentals for practice are ANOTHER 40k per year that SHOULD be charged but that residents wind up footing the bill for every year too. In addition, Springs taxpayers paid for additonal staffing and overtime for Sunday so that the private team could make that 14k in profits. Figure 3 or 4 meets a year and that private team (MDAC) makes at least 75 to 80 grand off us a year. Since when is the City in the business of bankrolling private businesses? especially when WE are losing at least 260,000 a year? THIS is good management of our tax dollars? Ridiculous. Preposterous. Absurd. Yet ANOTHER financial fiasco form the City Manager and his assistant, at the expense of the taxpaying residents. We need an outside independent audit done NOW to see what the exact numbers are. We have good estimates, and know this situation reeks, but need the exact figures to realize the extent of these horribly mismanaged and abusive, if not blatantly fraudulent, activities. They have creatively come up with some real concoctions in the past, so lets see how creative they can be THIS time.