Rainforest in Iowa: Where do YOU stand?

[ZacFields]

I was going to make this a poll, but then it would over-rule the poll on the index and I think that poll is more important for the time-being.

I was listening to an advertisement on the radio for Chet Culver. The focus of the advertisement was that constructing a RainForest in Iowa would be a bad idea that would cost the tax payers money. Basically they said it would be a waste of money, and Jim Nussle supports it.

Where do you stand on the Indoor Rainforest idea?

I personally think its an excellent idea! I'd pay 7% sales tax for a few years to help contribute to it. There was once a time when Coralville was supposed to have it but apparantly they wouldn't give the company the amount of land that they wanted to construct it on. I was dissapointed when they opted out of that. I thought between the coral ridge mall, the fossill gorge, the reservoir, and the U of Iowa down the street that they could really turn Coralville into a major tourist attraction for the entire midwest if they put the rainforest there. It would be good for the economy.

What do you guys think? bad idea, good idea? Let's keep political affiliations out of this... what do YOU think?

Zac

[DustinsDuster]

i dont know, i can see light at both ends of the tunnel. yeah, itd be a great attraction, but what real good is it going to do for Iowa? and how many hundreds of millions of dollars is it going to cost?

honestly, with the little bit i know about it, id have to say im against it. it just doesnt seem like it would do enough good for how much it would cost.

[melhoneybee]

I kinda with Dustin on the aspect that I can see both sides to it. I would just to hate to see something like go under kinda like the Science Station. It's an awesome idea... if it was proved to me that it would better Iowa as a whole I'd be game.

[ZacFields]

I just think it would be awesome to have a rainforest in Iowa. I mean.... how often do you get to go to a rainforest?

Reminds me of the movie "BioDome" and that place was pretty kickass.

Zac

[melhoneybee]

until you get stuck in it!

[Ashley]

well, i really like the des moines botanical center, its pretty awesome, and TONS of people go there for tourism and school stuff. so.. i think a rainforest would be like a million steps up from the botanical center. i could see it bringing in a lot of tourism type stuff. because honestly, how many rainforests are there in the midwest? lol

[JustinS]

I personally think it would be a waste of money to build a rainforest in Iowa, especially one that was the magnitude of the one they propose to build. I just don't see it being that big of a tourist attraction in Iowa where we have a decent ecosystem. Now perhaps I could see a project like this taking off in Arizona where there is no real vegitation because they don't see stuff like that everyday. But to me it would be a tad to boring. My 2 cents.

[RandomHero]

theres a rain forest?

[ZacFields]

But guys you can't look at this from a political standpoint. I am seeing the same people who tend to support democrats saying that they oppose it and giving the same reasons you see in the commercials. lol.

I could understand money being a problem if we were lacking somewhere in government funding. People always say the schools need more money... my dilemma with that is that I went to Prairie. For the entire 9 years I was in that school....every year they were renovating something and building something and etc...funding was never a problem.

Also, this is the type of project where you would likely just pay an extra percentage of sales tax. I can't support the theory because I have done no research on it, but I can't see them just dipping into our government's money without doing something to bring in a little bit of extra temporary money.

My point is, that when you take away all the political crap you're hearing on TV and just dumb it down, 99% of people would be all for it. If you went to downtown Cedar Rapids and said to 100 random people "hey, they're thinking about building a real indoor rainforest in coralville, what do you think about that" I bet you (before the dumb political commercials) 99 of those people at least would have been like "oh that's so cool. I think that's an awesome idea."

BTW: I don't believe the science station is going out of business. I guess I'll believe it when I see it. I truly think they were in some debt and they knew if they claimed they were going out of business that the community would raise the money for it. That's just my opinion but we'll see what happens :)

Zac

[JustinS]

If they built the rainforest would it be a not-for-profit organization like the science station, or would they actually try to turn a profit to stay afloat?

[ZacFields]

I have no clue about that honestly. I know no more information than somebody wants to build a huge ass rainforest in iowa. lol

The problem with the science station was bad management. There is a lot more they could have been doing all along to at least keep themselves out of debt.

It would be interesting to know...but I bet you could charge at least $10 a head or more if the place was big enough. Like have a trail that goes through it or something that people could walk through.

Zac

[MustangSally]

I honestly beleive that the Rainforest in Iowa deal is totally stupid and a waste of the hard-earned Taxpayer's money. Whoever came up with that retarded idea needs a reality check.

[ZacFields]

I believe it was the business that is going to build the rainforest :) Not a particular politician or party in general.

And once again, from my first post, please keep political affiliations out of this conversation. The last thing we need on this site is more political debates. They get too nasty and there's no room for that on a site where we all share a common interest.

You guys gotta be a little open-minded though. I'm sure there were some people that thought Disney World was a stupid idea and a waste of tax money. Turned out to be a great attraction known the world around. I"m not saying a rainforest would be the same way, but I think it would be a huge attraction that could bring a lot of tourism into iowa. It would definitely be the biggest attraction we have here.

Zac

[69gt4speed]

My impromptu poll from work ppl, says it is a waste of money will never be self supporting and they don't care who is for it..... We got a whole 2% raise while the co. got a nice profit margin in some areas along with the ceo.... Go figure.. well maybe someone has a clue how to do this without costing us more money cause as it is many are losing money... Business is in to make money not be generous, sure maybe riverside casino or a as yet built casino will do it if the state gaming commission says ok to build. If our mom or grandma can put enough pennies/nickels in the slot on the first of the month. :yawinkle:

[MustangSally]

I believe it was the business that is going to build the rainforest :) Not a particular politician or party in general.

And once again, from my first post, please keep political affiliations out of this conversation. The last thing we need on this site is more political debates. They get too nasty and there's no room for that on a site where we all share a common interest.

Zac


Zac,
I'm not one to start a debate/arguement but from what I've read "so-far" on this thread from everyone that has posted... including me............

The only person that keeps bringing "political affiliations" up in this thread is................ ummmmmmmmmm , you ! I can carry on a conversation in just about any thread in any of the groups I'm a member of, like in http://www.abovetopsecret.com
and other boards I'm a member on , without bringing in/up something that was said "to keep the political affiliations out of".

I have not and did not bring up anything political in this thread. You asked a question as to what everyone thought about this subject, so far everyone that has replied ,including me isn't for the "rainforest" nonsense and your having a tizzy-fit because we don't agree with you.

Now, how is that right ????????

[Ashley]

http://earthpark.org/

Read.

Then make an opinion.

[ZacFields]

How much will Earthpark cost to build and operate?
The cost to design, build and open Earthpark will be approximately $155 million - not including land. Earthpark is expected to generate between $15 and $20 million in annual revenues with an annual operating budget of $13 to $15 million.

Who will pay for it?
The planning and construction budget for Earthpark will come from a variety of sources. The US Department of Energy has granted $50 million in assistance to support all aspects of the program. Earthpark has also received $10 million from Des Moines businessman and project founder, Ted Townsend, and there is also a $10 million in-kind partnership available from an out-of-state company. It is expected that the selected site and local public/private partnership will provide at least $25 million toward project financing. Additional funding will come from corporate and private sources, as well as the State of Iowa.


From that quote, they have about $95 million already locked in, with the rest coming from private sources (private investors) and as we know they are asking the state to help a little.

So once again, I don't really see money as being a big issue. Outside of that, I still think that this would be a great idea. It's just like a zoo, botanical garden, and yes, a theme park.

Anita: It is perfectly okay to disagree, but I've asked previously in this topic to please stop focusing on the money. Why? Because talking about wasting taxpayer's dollars will bring this topic into a political debate. I have been running this forum for 3 years I know how this works :yawinkle: I am asking what you as a person thinks about the concept of being able to visit a place like this in Iowa, not what you think about taxpayers money and how someone needs a reality check. If you think it's a bad idea, and it's not something that you would personally be interested in, then say that. I've got no qualms with that. I'm just politely asking people to focus on the Rainforest Idea, and forget the logistics right now to prevent this from going from a friendly conversation to a heated political debate.

And speaking of "checks," (get it? reality "check" haha I'm stupid) I just wrote a $550 check 2 days ago to keep this site alive for another year on a faster server so you guys have a place to keep in touch and post. So yes, I have the right to make requests such as these. It is totally "fair." I know you don't use the site that much, but others do and there are a lot of people that show appreciation and an understand that somebody is paying the bills, and that "somebody" is me. And $550 is literally not even 1/5 of the money I've had to spend just this year to keep this site going. So please, allow me to moderate this discussion. After all, I am the one who started the discussion.

So Please, lets just talk about the rainforest now :)

Zac

[SaNdMaNsSi]

Just for fun I'm going to take the other side and support it....purely from a comical standpoint. Think about it. With every major zoo in the country you hear of at least one animal escaping every few years. Think about how funny it'll be to see on the news that an 18 wheeler went down 380 and nailed a giraffe....

[Ashley]

giraffes dont live in the rainforest?

[ZacFields]

haha I think that would be funny actually. But Ash is right in saying giraffes don't live in the rainforest.

But... there are a lot of dangerous animals in the rainforest that... at least in my mind, they would never be able to consider putting in there if they wanted people to be able to go inside. Like anacondas, gorillas, etc. I guess the way I am envisioning this is a completely open rainforest with maybe a big trail going through it? I don't know really.

All I'm saying is I think it would be a neat place to visit. Put the money aside, I think it would be neat. I personally don't see it as a "crazy" idea just because like I've said before, there are some pretty crazy zoo's and theme parks out there so I don't see why this would be any more crazy than building a 6-flags in Iowa.

That's my own watered down 2 cents. Without really factoring in money, traffic caused by tourism, any rise in property value due to tourism or etc, I just think it would be a good thing to have.

But just FYI for everyone: Regardless of what you see on TV, the issue with the rainforest right now is NOT *IF* it will come to iowa but *WHERE* it will come to iowa. Visiting their website, it's pretty apparant that they aren't going to have problems finding a spot in eastern iowa to have it, considering according to them they have had 16 area proposals already... that's the biggest reason I don't want to have a debate on whether or not it should happen, just basically what I'm trying to ask is: Assume it's already there. Assume it's in coralville or something. Would you want to go check it out?

Zac

[Ashley]

if you read the site.. they say they're going to have monkeys, and birds, and reptiles (like iguanas) plus boa constrictors and stuff. and then in the aquarium and in the waters they're going to have electric eels and piranhas. pretty crazy stuff. i'm excited, at least.

[melhoneybee]

I see myself checking it out once... but to say I would go regularly I don't think so. Even though having the animals in it makes it much more intriguing to me... but you guys also know me on animals.. lol

[ZacFields]

Well I couldn't see myself regularly going either. I think it would be one of those things similar to how most people are about adventureland. You go once every.... maybe once a year but more realistically once every couple years.

Zac

[MustangSally]

Visiting their website, it's pretty apparant that they aren't going to have problems finding a spot in eastern iowa to have it, considering according to them they have had 16 area proposals already... that's the biggest reason I don't want to have a debate on whether or not it should happen, just basically what I'm trying to ask is: Assume it's already there. Assume it's in coralville or something. Would you want to go check it out?

Zac


I agree about not wanting to debate on this subject with you or making it a political thing (refer back to my second post on this thread ).

Here is the thread topic ;

" Rainforest in Iowa: Where do YOU stand?"

I think it would of been better if the topic would of read
" Rainforest In Iowa: Would You Pay To Visit It ? "


Anyway Zac you have done a nice job up-grading the site, I know I haven't been on here much due to it being as slow as a snell in the past but now that it is faster I'll be visiting more often :biggrin: , but can we leave the political affiliations and remarks by both sides out of the threads ?

[ZacFields]

Anita, you know I like you and Rob (69gt4spd). If you looked back 2 years ago when we had the last election, I went up and down this forum with a lot of people about politics. I just learned that people can be good friends, but when you bring politics into the picture you can ruin relationships very fast. And that's why I was wanting that to stop here too. I'd hate to put you and Rob in a situation where you didn't feel wanted on CR:U, especially after all the help you guys have given to me, you guys know I wouldn't want you EVER to feel like you were not welcome here.

Thank you for the compliments on the site. We seem to have had a rebirth of sorts. Activity is increasing and we're getting some good people back on here and posting again. And it's always nice to see all you guys who haven't been around much getting back with the CR:U community. In some ways, I'm just getting back into it myself :)

Zac

[MustangSally]

Zac
That is so true about friendships and what politics can do to them, that's why I asked in my last post to this thread if we can both just not bring up anything Republican or Democrat nor throw small nasty little remarks out about either party in any thread , as we both know there are Republicans and Democrats that are members here and one way to get the blood boiling is to make snide remarks about either party.

I'm glad we both can agree on this , this agreement will make Rob very happy.... as you and ashley are friends , Rob and I don't want hurt feelings between any of us ,plus Rob doesn't want me to get all fired-up and upset so soon after our wedding this past weekend :) .

One thing I do think would be wise as far as politics goes is to start a thread showing how the Democrats and Republicans first came about and what each party are known to stand for through the years,... with out any member or owners of CRU putting thier in-put to the thread unless a member asks question in general about the parties and only allow the party member that the questions are asked of,.... to answer. This way there is No Debate, No Arguements, only facts with "url's" included to give a very informed education of the two parties backrounds, so members that don't know or understand can take from the facts what they want to, to help them decide if they really want to vote when they are old enough.

[Ashley]

congrats on the wedding!!!

i knew it was coming up, i just wasnt sure when in november it was. lol. but regardless, congrats, i cant wait to get married =) haha

[MustangSally]

congrats on the wedding!!!

i knew it was coming up, i just wasnt sure when in november it was. lol. but regardless, congrats, i cant wait to get married =) haha


Ashley

The date snuck-up on me faster than I thought it would, I was to busy getting things done and the next thing I knew it was Nov 3 and only one day left to get everything done,lol. My son, Michael took Rob out to the "lumberyard" for his bach. party Friday night with my blessings (un-beknowing to me what the place was about ) when they got back Rob showed me a pic and I got :mad: but I' was more :mad: at myself for telling him to go and have fun after seeing what was in that pic. Oh well, live and learn.

But thank you for the congrats.

[ZZ4_Camaro]

I was going to make this a poll, but then it would over-rule the poll on the index and I think that poll is more important for the time-being.

I was listening to an advertisement on the radio for Chet Culver. The focus of the advertisement was that constructing a RainForest in Iowa would be a bad idea that would cost the tax payers money. Basically they said it would be a waste of money, and Jim Nussle supports it.

Where do you stand on the Indoor Rainforest idea?

I personally think its an excellent idea! I'd pay 7% sales tax for a few years to help contribute to it. There was once a time when Coralville was supposed to have it but apparantly they wouldn't give the company the amount of land that they wanted to construct it on. I was dissapointed when they opted out of that. I thought between the coral ridge mall, the fossill gorge, the reservoir, and the U of Iowa down the street that they could really turn Coralville into a major tourist attraction for the entire midwest if they put the rainforest there. It would be good for the economy.

What do you guys think? bad idea, good idea? Let's keep political affiliations out of this... what do YOU think?

Zac

A rainforest is fucking gay. Build a drag race track. We only have 3 so far in this entire state.