The chief administrator of Leisure World has been placed on indefinite leave.
The news became public in a 26-word, one-sentence article published on the front page of the Thursday, Sept. 29 issue of the Leisure World house organ.
According to the publication, which is controlled by the Golden Rain Foundation, Administrator Dan Schaeffer was placed on paid, indefinite administrative leave following a closed meeting of the Foundation’s executive committee on Monday, Sept. 26.
No reason was provided for Schaeffer being placed on administrative leave.
The administrator of Leisure World runs a community with an estimated population of about 9,000 people. The community represents slightly more than a third the population of Seal Beach and is only slightly smaller than the unincorporated community of Rossmoor.
In Schaeffer’s absence, a team will apparently perform the work once done by one man.
“Right now we have a group set up. We have different managers in charge of different departments,” said Foundation President Addison Arnold.
He said Ms. Kevin Dugoncevic would pass complaints or questions along to the proper department.
The Sun Newspapers e-mailed Schaeffer to request an interview on Monday, Oct. 3.
An automatic reply message said: “You have contacted the email account of Dan Schaeffer. I will be out of the office indefinitely. I will not be looking at my emails. If you have any questions or need immediate assistance, please contact Kevin Dugoncevic on extension 310 or e-mail her at kevind@lwsb.com.”
Schaeffer had been a subject of criticism from some Leisure World residents since late May, when the Sun Newspapers broke the news that the Golden Rain Foundation had been late paying the property taxes of 13 of Leisure World’s 16 “mutuals.”
The result was a tax penalty of $272,948.32.
David Lyon, a frequent critic of the Golden Rain Foundation, commented on Shaeffer’s being placed on leave in a Saturday, Oct. 1 e-mail to the Sun.
“It is worth noting that shortly after the Monday (Sept. 26) meeting of the Executive Committee, President (Addison) Arnold also gave notice that the special meeting of the GRF Board of Directors originally scheduled for September 30 has been postponed,” Lyon wrote.
“The meeting is now tentatively scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 7 in the Administrative Conference Room,” he wrote.
“Because the announced purpose of the meeting is ‘to discuss a personnel matter in executive session’ (a closed meeting), it has been speculated that the meeting is to negotiate a severance package for an amicable termination of Dan Schaeffer as administrator,” Lyon wrote. He did not say who had been doing the speculating.
To make a comment on this story at the Sun Newspapers’ Web site, go to www.sunnews.org.
Historic Rancho seeks high school volunteers
The historic and local Rancho Los Cerritos in Long Beach is recruiting high school teens to get credit and life experience. The introductory program, set for Thursday, Oct. 13, is designed as a way for students seeking to enhance their knowledge of local history, develop their public speaking skills, and discover exciting new career options to learn about just those things. The meeting will take place from 4 – 6 p.m. at Rancho Los Cerritos (4600 Virginia Rd., Long Beach). Teens are asked to commit to 100 hours of volunteer service between October and June, meeting each Thursday afternoon. For information, call (562) 570-1755.
