Ethical Duty of Care

This article was submitted by Meadows residents Lynne Lockie and John Owen. We think it is worth a read about how we all may have different perspectives and interests, our primary interest should be for the long-term success of The Meadows.

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Ethical duty of care may be considered a social agreement.  It is the agreed upon, deeply held belief in the responsibilities held by individuals/entities towards the well-being of each other within society.

The Meadows Community Association (MCA) has an Ethical Duty of Care to use the monies of MCA Owner/Member’s households wisely.

The Meadows Country Club had an Ethical Duty of Care to wisely use financial resources (memberships) to manage/ or alter the facilities over the last years as membership has declined.

By way of an analogy, husbands and wives have an Ethical Duty of Care to not cause financial or emotional hardships for each other, insofar as humanly possible. For instance, I might want to buy a Mercedes Benz, but should I buy one and cause financial distress for my husband? Instead, I might choose to get my perfectly good old Subaru repaired, creating harmony in our household.

Our MCA households have an Ethical Duty of Care to assist our members who enjoy golf and tennis and pickleball by providing course and court facilities meeting high quality standards common to their sport. We want their enjoyment.

The golf, tennis and pickleball players have an Ethical Duty of Care to not insist on quickly reopening a financially unsustainable number of holes during the summer months, before many golfers are ready to return to play, generating a healthy revenue stream. During the summer months, course maintenance costs with low offsetting revenue could create unnecessary stress on household budgets – and to those among us with low or limited fixed incomes due to increasing high MCA assessments, (This topic has not been discussed at the MCA Board Meetings).

We must all be willing to incur some short-term pain by having the facilities closed for a period of time (some will miss the use of the facilities, and all will incur the cost of maintaining them while they are unused), in order to make sure we make the right long-term decision for all of us in the Meadows. A decision that will permanently shape The Meadows. We are in a difficult situation, but don’t be overly influenced by the seeming urgency of that short-term pain.

All of us – club members and non-club members alike, have an Ethical Duty of Care to our landscape, our natural world and wildlife, as well as to our shared health, sense of well-being and quality of life. Recent studies have shown that links may exist between the application of chemicals – herbicides and pesticides – to golf courses, to the onset of Parkinson’s Disease and other ailments.

So, on this account, it would appear to be prudent to rethink our need for the number of holes and acreage. Way back in 2017 the MCA President, Claire Coyle stated 54 holes are an unsustainable business. Perhaps cutting the area and holes down to 27 holes, for instance.  Doing what the UK is doing – banning most herbicides and insecticides that are proven to cause problems and returning some lands to their natural and sustainable states (“rewilding”), with stormwater management (flood mitigation) ponds and streams, walking paths, biking trails, bird and creature habitats. Studies have shown that property values are maintained just as well or better in the vicinity of such amenities, as contrasted with golf course views.

We might investigate the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf Courses which guides golf facilities in protecting natural resources and enhancing the environmental quality of their property. Participants work on projects to improve wildlife habitats, conserve resources, and engage in sustainable practices.

Thus, if we want to nurture and build community, we need to ponder our Ethical Duty of Care to each other and our environment to foster the community spirit we enjoy. That is, putting our community needs, the needs of 3,500 households above our own personal wishes in order to foster fiscally wise, environmentally friendly sports and leisure facilities for The Meadows.