By DICK SITTIG
In My Opinion
May 16, 2008 06:11 am
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Dear future neighbors: My family and I have tried our best to be sensitive to local sentiment regarding the Wawbeek. Even though we took ownership of the property in April 2007, we decided to keep it open to the public so they could enjoy the property for one last season.
What's your opinion?
In late October, we held a tag sale at the property, attracting over 700 people who were eager to purchase a piece of the Wawbeek. We then donated all of the proceeds, $22,500 (including my daughter's cupcake sales) to LP Quinn Elementary and the Tupper Lake and Saranac Lake Fire Departments.
In late February, we were approached by an individual who expressed an interest in moving one of the buildings. This new idea appealed to us, so we quickly put out a press release to inform as many people as possible that we would give away the buildings for free to anyone who could move them from the property. We later learned this individual had contacted Adirondack Architectural Heritage (AARCH) several months before us (Steven Engelhart, March 13, Press-Republican) but was discouraged by AARCH from attempting to move the buildings. AARCH now complains that there was not enough time for proposals to be submitted, but it is AARCH that has squandered several months.
The April 4 deadline for moving proposals came and passed. The only proposal for the restaurant building came from a Tupper Lake group. Though their proposal was heartfelt, it lacked both a practical plan and funds.
We then extended the proposal deadline by a month to give the Tupper Lake group a chance to resubmit a viable proposal. Unfortunately, they could not.
In fact, we were surprised that, for all of the outcry instigated by AARCH, not a single other proposal for the restaurant was put forth by any person or group. That is why the building is coming down. To put it bluntly, after interested parties inspected the building, no one thought it was worth the money and effort to save it. And, in truth, an AARCH board member privately contacted us to "whole-heartedly agree" with our plans.
As for the assertion that the cost of dismantling and moving the restaurant would be no more than the cost of demolition, I can assure you, having looked into this option, that the difference is at least $175,000, not including re-assembly, a sum that no one was willing to pay.
While the preservationists and I may never see eye to eye about my right to build my home on my property, they should at least admit that the Great Camp I am building will have a far smaller environmental impact than the resort it replaces. A typical summer day at the resort would find 120 guests and staff producing garbage, noise, traffic and flushes. Our decreased environmental impact is in itself a positive step.
Everything I have read about the Adirondacks justifiably points with pride to the park's natural beauty and its Great Camp architecture. I understand my responsibility to the lake and to the legacy of Adirondack architecture, and I am confident my camp will be an enhancement to both.
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