Wednesday, April 25, 2012

AND THEY TOLD YOU THIS WAS A COUNTRY CLUB

I have to apologize to Tom Morrow for pushing his entry down on the page. As a golfer with a 7 handicap, I think what he has to say about Farmington Woods Golf Club is extremely relevant. But I like history and thought you folks might enjoy reading about Farmington Woods from a different perspective.  


from ctwatchdog.com

FARMINGTON WOODS: CONDOMINIUM OR COMPANY TOWN?


When a business runs a town, it’s a company town.



When you think of company towns what usually comes to mind are dirty coal towns like Claghorn, PA, smoky steel towns like Gary, Indiana or if you you’re up on your history, a little place called Pullman, IL, where in 1880, just as the Robber Baron era began, George Pullman built 900 tidy row houses for the workers who produced his Pullman sleeping cars, luxury railroad conveyances, at the factory located in his “ideal” factory town.



Unlike some of the filthy coal mining towns owned by unscrupulous mine owners who built them for their workers with the intent of draining every last drop of capital from their labors, Pullman’s town was neat, clean and orderly. Because he was acquainted with the issues of labor unrest and poverty that other company towns, with their tenements, drunkenness and of course prostitution, Pullman built his town so that his workers would remain happy and productive. But like every other company town of its day, every home, business and amenity belonged to the Pullman Company. But I’m getting ahead of myself. This article is about Farmington Woods Condominium. I’ll get back to Pullman a little later in this column. (CONTINUE READING HERE: http://ctwatchdog.com/finance/giant-avon-condo-complex-has-curious-rule-finances-are-kept-secret-from-condo-owners-who-pay-the-fees.

2 comments:

  1. What a great article it gives us areal picture of what's going on here.
    I can't believe we as residents can't find out what the management makes in salaries here . It's surely not a democracy in the woods if this is the case.
    Thanks for your efforts of keeping us informed.

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  2. topcat:

    it's called thinking outside the box, something that leaders here have a tough time doing. it's not 1985 anymore, or '95 or even '05 for that matter. we need to start looking at things here "with new eyes" which is what the focus groups asked for, in addition to their "overwhelming" desire for golf to be self-supporting again. hard to miss, if you actually read the report, unless you want to.

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