Committee weighs $6.7M Stardust irrigation replacement and turf conversion; tennis club disputes usage counts

Sun City West staff presented a detailed capital package that included a $6,728,000 multi-phase irrigation replacement at Stardust and a proposed turf conversion that would remove turf acreage and install low‑water TifTuff at roughly $14,000 per acre.

Herschel and Cliff described project components: replacing main lines, laterals and sprinkler heads, reducing turf acreage (staff cited figures in the range of 22–56 acres depending on scope), installing drip irrigation, and replanting landscape. Staff estimated $784,000 for turf installation at the $14,000/acre figure called out in the presentation and noted additional costs for architectural fees, practice-area renovations and tree replacement in impacted areas. Staff warned some mature trees might not survive changed watering patterns and said contingency and planning dollars are included in the capital budget.

Platform-tennis usage and data collection generated a substantive exchange. Staff showed ClubTrack and POS data that recorded tennis swipes (17,500+ check-ins in 2024 rising to 17,543 in 2025 for tennis overall) and POS-identified platform players (17 distinct non-club platform players in 2024 and 32 in 2025). Larry Plaster, speaking for the tennis club, said ClubTrack club-time swipes do not distinguish platform tennis from tennis and that on‑site monitors sometimes do not log platform play; he warned the committee not to rely solely on the operational figures provided.

"We don't know how many people are playing platform tennis," Plaster said, urging improved tracking and coordination so capital decisions are based on accurate usage data.

Committee members agreed to involve the tennis club in data verification before advancing capital work on platform-tennis courts. Several members also said they want to inspect TifTuff installations at other courses before committing to a large turf conversion, and staff agreed to bring more detailed, contractor-backed cost estimates at a future meeting.