Return to Nicholas Johnson's Coralville Rain Forest Web Site
 
 

Visit State 29's Blog Site for more commentary and internal links from these entries: http://state29.blogspot.com/

How To Make $2 Million To $5 Million a Year
EarthPark: Bat Wings And Nautilus Shells
Rainforest Announcement Today

First, donate $3000 to Chuck Grassley. He'll then turn around and get $50 million from everybody, including our great-great-great grandchildren.

Second, try to get more public money.

Third, spend 10 years snowing and stringing along various communities on your idea. Make sure the big newspaper in the state is in your back pocket and refuses to print anything other than your press releases and the occasional minor criticism by a rogue reporter.

Finally, just make shit up:

    Earthpark officials said they expect the center to turn a profit of between $2-5 million a year.

What? Do they plan to attach a casino onto the side of the thing?

posted by Editor at 11:44 AM

It used to be Iowa Child.

Then it was called The Environmental Project.

Now it's EarthPark.

From Radio Iowa:

    Bill Menner, Executive Director of Poweshiek Iowa Development, says they've announced a partnership with Siemens to be the "technology provider" for the rainforest, and have rolled out a name for the project -- "EarthPark."

    Menner says Siemens has been in the forefront of the technology industry and that the new developments have been in the works for some time. Grinnell is one of four communities vying for the project.

    Menner says the project’s board will make a decision soon. They're still working on the site selection, talking with the four towns interested in hosting the project, and Menner says by the time the board meets next month they hope for a decision. Pella, Riverside and Tiffin are the other three communities in the running.

Did they nick the name from this concept [http://hiddenway.tripod.com/earthpark/]  called Earth Park?

    What is Earth Park?

    The Earth Park concept is intended to rescue humankind from ecological extinction by means of a mass exodus from the planet. The posulate behind the concept is that ultimately the only workable method to preserve the biosphere of the planet from the alterations of mankind is to remove humanity from the surface of this world. This will produce a sustainable environment that will preserve the biodiversity of the planet for future generations to enjoy.

    Since humans are at present entirely dependent upon the terrestrial ecosystem, a transfer to artificial and sustainable habitats will ensure long term survival. This will serve to protect the human species from large-scale disasters, such as nuclear conflict, asteroid impacts, or an outbreak of a devastating plague.

    Under the Earth Park concept, virtually the entire human population of the world will emigrate to artificial habitats, leaving the earth as a wildlife refuge that will gradually recover its proper ecological balance and diversity. To be successful over the long term this must be a universal migration, and no pockets of reproductive humanity can remain on the surface of the earth.

Actually, the Iowa "EarthPark" already has a web site (Earthpark.org), which appears to be the same as the old Iowa Child web site, and it boasts that it will be opening on Earth Day in 2010.

Within the EarthPark web site is this bullshit from Ted Townsend:

    The attractive power in this idea is strong enough to generate financial self-sustainability. Yes, the full range of earned income opportunities should cover annual operating expenses. Moreover, the ten-year economic impact statewide is quesstimated between one and two billion dollars.

From the press release today:

    Project Executive Director David Oman noted that [the project] has a construction and start-up budget of approximately $155 million.

Also from the press release:

    Grimshaw Architects partner Andrew Whalley, speaking from London, unveiled two exciting conceptual images of what the Project could look like, each based on an inspiration from the natural world—the bone structure of a bat wing and the curvature of a nautilus shell.

Maybe Mr Whalley meant these bat wings?

Update: Side Notes poses a hypothetical and Joe coins a new term: EarthPork

posted by Editor at 2:19 PM

The Des Moines Register is reporting that the Rainforest Con Artists are going to hold a news conference this morning to announce some new bullshit that the media will eat up.

Do you think they're going to announce that they're taking over the Des Moines Botanical Center? You know, the one that has lost $2 million in taxpayer dollars over the past three years.

Not likely.

Maybe Tom Vilsack is going to ream the taxpayers some more and give David Oman $95 million to turn the Newton Maytag factory into the Rainforest after it closes in 2007.

It's anybody's guess, but I'll have a post later this morning after it happens.

posted by Editor at 7:51 AM