tumbling into the sea

i work just down the hill from the noaa southwest fisheries science center, perched on its cliff on the scripps institution of oceanography campus. ten years ago, soon after i started working at sio we were asked to perform an analysis of whether the building was moving due to cliff instability using high-precision gps technology, which we use for geophysical research and other applications. so we scouted out the roof (quite a view from up there) and other locations where we could locate a gps antenna. but apparently our project percolated up the noaa chain to some folks who weren't too excited about our work. and that was the last i heard about the erosion issues at the fisheries building until a recent e-mail to ucsd staff two weeks ago proposing a move across the street for the center. then this ut article appeared today, which explains in detail the cliff stability issues and the new buildings. while two buildings are being emptied now, all four will be cleared (and demolished?) by 2011.

since two of the center's four buildings will be demolished, it got me to thinking about when buildings die. it's kind of sad to think of all the designing and planning involved, and excitement for building a structure at such a spectacular location. and then to only last 44 years before mother nature wins? surely erosion must have been considered when the structure was built, but they probably figured they could get more than 40 or so years out of it. and what about the folks who enjoy the incredible views? the outdoor walkways connecting the offices are vertigo-inducing but offer unparalleled views of the ocean now directly below. i guess the comfort of knowing that your office won't go crashing into the sea while you're sipping your morning coffee offsets the disappointment of losing that view.

fortunately there's a great big open area across the street from the center, and this site will accommodate parking for the center's employees. now whose cars will the tweakers break into along la jolla shores drive? let's hope the center continues to employee the security guard who actually patrols the steep hill (he's lost quite a bit of weight since he started a couple of years ago). we can use all the help we can get now that the catalytic converter removers (i.e., tweakers) have moved into the parking lots of the scripps campus. we actually had an employee threatened with a sawzall when he confronted one of these guys.

as usual, la jolla residents are worried about loss of views due to the new structure, but if anything it seems their views will be improved by removing four cliffside structres and placing them into a fairly steep hill across the street. plus they're painting the roofs green. and having had to paint gps equipment with that same green (the la jollans didn't like the look of our little gps antenna tripod ruining their view behind the scripps aquarium), i know that it's been color-matched to the local vegetation! the things rich folks (whoops, i mean generous scripps benefactors) will make you do...