Former CM McDonald's post regarding 'silting in' of the Mississippi making 'all recreational use other than canoeing' impossible if it isn't dredged is ridiulous. While the river's profile will change, the water has to get through somehow, and there is plenty of it to keep a significant channel accessble even to larger boats.
Define "larger boats"...
Given the poor water management upstream, I wouldn't bet on it. I've seen the Mississippi at the 694 bridge shallow enough to wade across. In a low water situation you could have even small fishing boats getting hung up on bars. Once a few props and lower units get busted word gets around and the recreational boaters and their dollars go elsewhere.The river won't plug up and become impassable. Hydrologic experts we consulted during the planning process agreed.
See that pile of coal at River Services? It's for foundries- a much older but still needed industry.Why should we subsidize 16th century industries,
Are you suggesting that we replace all castings with carbon fiber- that stuff requires some nasty chemicals to make to?with same vintage technologies and concerns for the environment
that are repellant to civic progress, environmental restoration,
This ain't no wild and scenic river. Try the St.Croix to the northeast.
You're welcome to use our public boat landing in Camden- sorry that you southsiders don't have one.and our opportunity for great access to the river?
You're cooking the numbers- that terminal helps create jobs all over Minnesota in the enterprises and farmers it serves.Could it be for the one job per six acres at the money loosing Upper Harbor Terminal the city owns?
The locks and channel have already been built, so for now we're just paying maintenance costs. BTW, with this year's bumper crops the upper harbor terminal will be very busy- where will these crops go if we close it?Or similar job densities at the other docks? Why? Not for a dredged channel, thats for sure.
Again, sorry to destroy your fantasies, but this is not a wild and scenic river.There are other recreational uses and other community values for a freer, cleaner river besides canoeing:
More fantasies... BTW, I assume you're plan includes returning the river to it's original channel. There's a lot of polluted soil in the river valley. You really don't want to dig there.small power boats, water skiing, fishing, wildlife and bird observation, visiting the beach, nature study for our schools.
First you accuse all riverfront industries of being subsidized, I assume by the upper harbor project. Ever heard of Graco, NSP, Williams Steel, etc.? How are they subsidized by the upper harbor project when they don't even use it?And how about the new land uses that would be possible if the subsidized industries had to pay their own freight? More parks and parkways for North and Northeast, cleaner surface runoff, lots more jobs
Second, you propose that we evict these tax paying industries and replace them with non tax paying parks and such. So you propose that my taxes are supposed to subsidize parks so you Lowry Hill folks can come up and enjoy your fantasy riverfront?
More fantasy- we already have plenty of vacant buildings up here- no need for you redevelopers to come up and add some more.(>2000 increase according to our projections) in more interesting and safer occupations, and many households (>2500) all within 2.5 miles of downtown. A much better commute.
Sounds like your "clean-up-the-north-end mission includes bulldozing my home and relocating me and my working class neighbors. Steve, let's make a deal- If you won't tell us Northsiders what to do with our river, we won't tell you what to do with what remains of the Devil's Backbone (Lowry Hill).The dam/locks/dredging/channel/big powerboat debate is pretty important to the parks/jobs/homes/clean-up-the-north-end mission.
Dyna Sluyter, keeping the yuppies out of Hawthorne
Steve Durrant, landscape architect Lowry Hill _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
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