An offer Wichita can’t refuse?

Bill Koch is thinking about buying the Wichita Boathouse, said a Koch spokesman Thursday, but it remains an informal idea and he has no plans to make a proposal to the Wichita City Council.
It’s unclear how Koch’s nonproposal fits in with six other ideas already submitted to the Wichita City Council. Of course, if Koch does decide to make a proposal, his history with the Boathouse, to which he donated more than $1 million for renovation, carries some weight.
But Koch doesn’t own the Boathouse, and the City Council shouldn’t feel pressured to give his ideas favored status. Members should choose the Boathouse plan that makes the most sense for the community.
Posted by Randy Scholfield

8 Comments

  1. Joe Blow
    Posted December 30, 2005 at 8:03 am | Permalink

    Billy’s a bozo. As is everyone who associates with him as yesterday proved beyond a shadow of a doubt.

  2. Damoon
    Posted December 30, 2005 at 9:07 am | Permalink

    I like his idea about the boathouse, to use it for parties and other functions and also to bring back the boats (canoes?) for rent. Remember the bicycles built for two? That would be too cool. It would be great if he’d follow through, what an asset that would be for the city.

  3. Jed
    Posted December 30, 2005 at 10:55 am | Permalink

    Da,Some of my best childhood memories are of my dad and I renting a canoe at the old boathouse and spending a Sunday afternoon paddling on the river. I know the lawyers have made such things difficult, but I really wish we could bring that back. That was quality time!

  4. mrcontroversy
    Posted December 30, 2005 at 12:05 pm | Permalink

    So Joe, is Wichita the Good Old Boy Network’s world, and we just live in it?The real people of this city want the Boathouse to stay (much to the chagrin of the folks on the 13th floor), and I for one think it’s great to have Bill Koch on our side.

  5. Ben Huie
    Posted December 30, 2005 at 4:24 pm | Permalink

    I guess Joe prefers “State Ownership of the Means of Production” as practiced in the WaterWalk development. I wonder how many people here know what economic theory that is that Wichita is following?

  6. Damoon
    Posted December 30, 2005 at 7:58 pm | Permalink

    Jed, remember the paddle boats? That was fun, too. Too bad things would be so complicated if they really brought it all back…. people worried about getting dysentery from the river and having to sign a liability wavers. I miss the days when things were simple and the risks were just part of the fun.

  7. Jed
    Posted December 31, 2005 at 11:34 am | Permalink

    Da,Yeah, I remember seeing them, but we always went for the canoes. And yeah, the river’s gotten all mucked up in a lot of ways since then. I miss those days too.

  8. CF
    Posted December 31, 2005 at 8:47 pm | Permalink

    Ben Huie,

    That’s g***amn funny! Where Wichita developers stand to benefit from slopping at the public trough, they are willing to entertain a broader notion of ‘ownership’ than, say, Adam Smith.

    And mrcontroversy, my thoughts exactly.