In the hullabaloo surrounding the Scribner Place Redevelopment Project, it's instructive to recall that until about a month ago, the YMCA never seemed to have any urgency or concern about the project happening. The leaders of the YMCA effort have almost continually acted as if the project was a foregone conclusion. Has the "no worries" attitude come back to bite them (and all of us in the bargain)?
Although quotes in the C-J, when offered up through the auspices of the GFNA stenographer, are often unreliable, Y director Joe LaRocca is reported to have offered up this revealing quote:
"Why would it be the end of the world if you put it out for bid again?" A cost factor of from $1.7 (C-J) to $3 (Estopinal Group) million may not be the end of the world, Joe, but it's the end of Scribner Place and the best chance this county has ever had to save its core. I wish you had thought of that sooner. It may not be the end of your world, but it is the end of something.
In case you hadn't heard, the YMCA's Bobby McFerrin approach to their responsibilities has, according to the GFNA, scuttled the Scribner Place project. We know who is directly to blame, but this negligence on the part of the Y is a betrayal from "within." If true, it goes down as the blackest of days for New Albany, and those whose obstructionism brought us to this had better be building their electoral war chests posthaste.
On a personal note, I want to offer up my sense of deepest admiration for those who have fought and fought and fought to make Scribner Place a reality. Your efforts will not be forgotten.
What now happens to those pledges made to build the YMCA? Is the non-profit prepared to refund donations and absolve the pledges, or will they just take their money and pour it into the Jeffersonville Y? Or worse, will they opt for a suburban palace with a parking lot filled with Chevy Subdivisions?
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5 comments:
Do you suppose that Donnie & Larry have awakened yet to the fact that their 3 million dollar windfall just evaporated into the open pit that was Scribner Place? As I recall, that is the amount owed by the city for services rendered on the project thus far.
Thanks be to providence that there is a silver lining behind every cloud and this one has two!
First of all, they won't have to expend any more time & energy debateing where to use it.
Secondly, and even more importantly, if we excavate a little more earth from the hole, lay it up on the perimeter as a dam, and place a few sections of 8 inch PVC pipe through said earthen dam, we will have an auxillary holding unit for waste water overflow during heavy rain events.
Add a few river carp and we'll have a self sustaining secondary water treatment facility as well!
WAY TO GO infighters & feet draggers!
Pond-raised carp are a staple in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and could easily take the place of catfish on local menus.
Now that is asset-based thinking if I ever saw it.
Thanks, guys. Leave it to me to see the dark side. I needed that reminder of the opportunity presented.
No problem on the $3 million. It almost perfectly matches the amount raised by the YMCA capital campaign. They can give their $2 million back to Caesar's and pay off the rest as liquidated damages to the city.
New Albany: The Aquaculture Capital of Floyd County.
Oh, yeah, I got the senior editor a cake, but so many people wanted dessert after the end of the Historic Landmarks Foundation's Moveable Feast that the whole group came over to the store and ate the whole thing.
Why the cake? The odometer rolled over on the NAC counter this weekend. Congratulations New Albanian. It's a blog!
Thanks.
I spent the day in Bloomington, Columbus and at the art show organized by my workers at Rich O's. So much culture, and then to return to actually read the morning paper ...
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