From: Don Schroer
Columbus
Life is not without risks. Every day we face risks — behind the wheel of a vehicle, our workplace, etc… But why take unnecessary, unknown risks? This is exactly what city officials are inviting inexperienced people to do in the in-water recreation area being proposed in the riverfront project.
River are inherently dangerous, especially to canoes and kayaks. The recent spate of drownings across the state this spring is testament to that. People enter the streams in dangerously high and swift water conditions. Every flood event brings new downed trees blocking the river. The current can pull a canoe or kayak into the limbs, turn it sideways to the flow and cause it to capsize. Even with a life jacket, occupants can get caught in the limbs with the current holding them under with no escape.
The news coverage of these events is hard to watch. Usually officials and conservation officers state, "This is not a rescue but a recovery." Even these experienced men don’t want to be out on the stream after dark, and resume the search at daylight.
Why would city officials encourage people to take this kind of risk? Who makes the call when the river conditions are safe enough to enter? Is this a possible liability to the city? A thunderstorm upstream can drop 2 or 3 inches of rain in a short time and raise water levels significantly in a few hours. Why subject a family to the almost unbearable grief of losing a family member, especially a child?
All the brown silt-laden water will discolor the blue tile or whatever is being placed in the river. Moss, algae and scum make things slick and unpleasant. Each rain event will leave a new ring of mud at the high-water mark. People will be exposed to any and all unknown contaminants carried by the river.
How is the $8.6 million cost even remotely justified? A half-million dollars on consultant fees have been spent before anyone turned a wheel to actually do something. Canoes and kayaks are best enjoyed on still water — ponds and lakes. The entire project is just a huge ego trip for city officials and the Redevelopment Commission.
