Conserve our resources by renovating, not destroying
Across America soaring public debts have stimulated governments to save taxpayer dollars by renovating and retrofitting existing buildings instead of demolishing them and erecting new ones at greater cost.
Even homeowners and businesses are taking such measures. Just Fix It has become the national incantation.
Our county legislators have an opportunity to save taxpayers $83 million by renovating the county government center. Energy-efficient technologies are available to undertake renovations at extremely reasonable cost.
And we have the local talent to do the job.
Why encumber ours and future generations with more debts when they can be avoided? For decades Americans have followed a wasteful culture of discarding things that could be repaired and rendered even more efficient.
Reports of leading local and national architects and structural engineers convince me that the fiscally responsible decision is to repair our existing buildings, especially if they are structurally sound and internationally acclaimed landmarks.
Our countys landscape is littered with unoccupied and deteriorating public buildings often the product of benign neglect.
Its time to conserve our fiscal resources by renovating, not destroying.
Richard W. Hull Warwick