K
I'm torn between the two camps in this boardwalk debate. One thing I know for
sure, it always costs heaps more to do a job right than you initially estimate.
If the "Save a Million Camp" still wants to spend $50K to do it, rest assured
it will be double or triple to do it right. Are amateur builders structural
engineers? Where's the architect to site plan it correctly? Where's the fill
for the footings.? Where's the geologist to determine how best to locate it on
shifting substrate? How about the surveyor to make sure its all on lands we
think its refuge - site elevations etc? How about interpretive brochures?
Restrooms? A project like this requires a planning process and plenty of
professionals. Thats what the university community is all about. A $50 K
boardwalk will probably require $35 to $50 K a year to keep it in place. We'd
probably get what we pay for.A million bucks for a site of International
Significance is not much.
My concern is therefore: if we're not planning to do it right at the outset,
wait for the right timing...sounds like a political professionals need
to be involved in the planning process too.
Andy Stepniewski
Wapato, WA