Posted on 01/13/2009 12:56:40 AM PST by BellStar
CORPUS CHRISTI — The city is likely to commit $20,000 toward restoring the one ship in the Columbus replica fleet that's still floating, Mayor Henry Garrett said Monday, describing a proposed partnership with the Consulate of Spain in Houston.
"I believe spending $20,000 to get the ship in tip-top shape would be worth it," he said.
Under the proposed agreement, the city's money would pay for iron and wood to restore the Niña, which is part of a replica fleet of the ships that Christopher Columbus sailed in 1492.
In exchange, a group of donors that includes the Mitchell Foundation in Galveston, an unnamed company only referred to in planning documents as "Company X" and the government of Huelva, Spain, would pay for labor costs to repair the ship.
As part of the agreement, the ship would be displayed in the Port of Galveston for at least three weeks and then at a sailing race in Kemah.
The ship would return to Corpus Christi, this time with a local group of supporters in partnership with the Mitchell Foundation to oversee the ship's upkeep.
The city hasn't yet signed an agreement with the Spanish consulate for the repairs, but Garrett said he didn't think the deal would require City Council approval.
Instead, he said, the council likely would hear a presentation on the project, but may not take a vote. Expenditures smaller than $50,000 don't require council approval.
Tentative details were discussed during a meeting Monday between Garrett, City Manager Angel Escobar and Fernando Iglesias Moral of Corpus Christi, an honorary Consul of Spain.
The Niña has a damaged hull, needs a new deck and has a weak mast, according to previous surveys of the ship.
"It's a shame," Moral said. "You see it falling apart and you have a feeling like 'What happened?' We want to fix the Niña and we want to help the city."
Rick Stryker, the director of the Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History, originally estimated the ships would cost $1 million each to restore. In November, the Spanish construction company that originally built the ship visited Corpus Christi and estimated restoration cost between $100,000 and $150,000, Moral said.
Escobar would decide whether to sign the agreement once it's finalized. He couldn't be reached for comment on Monday.
Garrett said that if that final agreement stays along the same terms of the negotiations, he doesn't foresee a problem.
"Everything we're talking about is estimates," he said. "I want to make sure we don't spend more money than we think."
The Niña, Pinta and Santa Maria replica ships docked in Corpus Christi in 1993 after a tour celebrating the 500th anniversary of Columbus's journey.
A barge crash severely damaged the Pinta and Santa Maria in 1994 and they weren't returned to the water after the repairs. All three have steadily deteriorated since. The Niña, docked at the Peoples Street T-head, is in the best condition. The other two are on concrete platforms outside the museum.
The ships, commissioned by Spain in the late 1980s, have damaged hulls, decks and masts after years without proper maintenance.
If all three ships were restored, it would cost about $300,000 a year to maintain them, Stryker said.
Contact Sara Foley at 886-3767 or foleys@caller.com
I enjoyed those photos. Thanks.
The dimensions of those ships were similar to the dimensions of single-wide trailers.
They have these ships set up for tourists to visit. There isn’t a huge amount to do in Corpus (besides of course the beach). It’s a small city/town, but is growing. This is one of their Bayside attractions in a very nice and touristy area. I agree with another poster, they should come up with more doners. Although I must say this is not a huge amount of money considering the millions & billions I am hearing people pull their hands out for.
One thing I found interesting and did not know is that Spain had commissioned them in 1980.
Excellent link. Thanks so much.
When I saw them they were at the waterfront area, not in the center, but I don’t remember them being under a bridge.
They did have a Spanish vessel sailing along side that cooked and passed meals to them and gave them a tow when they were without wind. Columbus was not that fortunate.
Pinta ping!
If you want on, or off this S. Texas/Mexico ping list, please FReepMail me.
Maybe the people on welfare could be put to work on this? haha. Still a worthwhile project IMHO if private $ can be used.
Maintaining La Niña is a good idea. El Niño causes so many more troubles than La Niña.
Very cool.
Thanks.
Interesting.
This is the sort of project that should be done with private money. Taxpayers are burdened enough.
I have Sailed all over the Caribbean, the Gulf and the ICW and loved it until I went on my first Cruise aboard the Carnival Conquest (BIG SHIP) I will never sail a small boat anywhere I can cruise again.
Cattle are earmarked. Money is fungible.
I visited the ships in 93 at Corpus. They were buildt from wood from the same forest that Columbus’s shipwright used, using the original plans.
The ships have been plagued by problems, mostly financial, since their arrival in America
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