Re: Old High School

["Mike Sohns" <sohns@turbonet.com>]

I have been objecting to the expenditure of public funds for the renovation
of the old high school.  We all subsidize automobiles through property
taxes, gasoline taxes, and income taxes to name a few.

Tony Johnson stood firm on the expenditure of public funds for the old high
school.

I have seen very little publicity trying to raise funds for renovating the
old high school.  Will the supporters of this purchase be starting soon?

I still feel that locating a community center with the new pool would
provide flexibility and services for all ages in one area.  
Mike Sohns

----------
> From: Bruce Haglund <bhaglund@uidaho.edu>
> To: vision2020@moscow.com
> Subject: Re: Old High School
> Date: Monday, July 06, 1998 5:32 PM
> 
> At 04:04 PM 7/6/98 -0700, you wrote:
> >
> >
> >It is important to note that Mike Sohns -- despite his objection to
public
> >expenditures -- is in fact suggesting that we should expend
> >public funds to subsidize automobiles.
> >
> >Dale Goble
> >Moscow
> >
> visionaries,
> I was hoping more of you would chime in. Dale and Tom Lamar are right
about
> the parking/auto problem. More parking encourages more auto use. Parking
is
> expensive in many ways. 
> (I'm an Adams Street neighbor of the HS and students park in front of my
> house--two blocks from school, close enough, I'd say. I note the extent
of
> their parking pattern as I walk to work each day.)
> The notion that old buildings are some kind of problem just because they
> are old is wrong. Spending the $3,000,000 to rennovate the old HS would
> deliver an exceptionally sound building with durable finishes (low
> maintenance) and new systems (HVAC, lighting--low maintenance and energy
> saving) all this for $100/square foot--you can only build new buildings
of
> low quality (high mainteneance) for less. Regrettably, we rarely build as
> well today. So the bottom line is a bargain price AND a valuable cultural
> resource is saved. The old HS will delight Moscow residents for many more
> years than a parking lot will. (Note that my office is in a building even
> older than the old HS and it's a very delightful place--in spite of my
> clutter.)
> Also, I thought no public funds were used to purchase (save) the building
> and that fund raising for remodelling would occur.
> Bruce Haglund 
> Chair, Dept of Architecture