FOBIA  Friends of Belle Isle Aquarium

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Dear Governor Granholm,                                 Feb 3rd, 2005

Would Granholm receive a small delegation to put forward compelling reasons
to keep the Aquarium open?
This is high profile. Detroit's Channel 2, and 4 have shown considerable
interest in out efforts, and we have already aired on CNN news:
http://www.clickondetroit.com/community/4156261/detail.html

As you have probably heard, the Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and Detroit Zoo
Director Ron Kagan are going to shutter this national historic institution.

The decision to close the Aquarium is NOT going over well with anyone. I
urge you to glance at the comments on this link:
http://belleisleaquarium.com/citizen_comments.htm

- They come from across the City, State, country and World. There are
hundreds of comments.

The Zoological Society - the bread and butter of the Zoo - has already
distanced themselves from Zoo Director Ron Kagan's decision to close the
Aquarium by asking him to step down from the board:
http://www.freep.com/news/metro/zoo2e_20050202.htm

If you have access to the Governors public posting portal:
http://www.michigan.gov/gov/0,1607,7-168-21995-65331--,00.html

I am sure you will find a considerable amount of postings concerning this
subject.

The Aquarium's existence is completely in lock-step with the Governor's
"Cool Cities" approach to the health of the State. The gradual whittling
away of Detroit's most significant cultural institutions goes dead against
the policy.

Being $200,000,000 in the red, The Zoo director's promise of a new Aquarium
is vapor-ware. It simply will not happen in the foreseeable future.
Meanwhile, the delicate infrastructure that took 101 years to achieve will
be lost forever.
The expedience of closing a national institution to save a small amount of
money just does not make sense.

For example, did you know that there are near-extinct fish species that are
successfully maintained at this aquarium? A feat that has no one else in the
World has been able to replicate?
Of course you have not heard this. The Zoo has not given the Aquarium a
publicity budget in years. This is also the reason for declining attendance.

I have attached the raw FOBIA postings by the public.

Please, please. Act.

Thank You,

Stephen Goodfellow
FOBIA Web admin
Friends of Belle Isle Aquarium
http://belleisleaquarium.com