Red Granite Presentation/Meeting Feb. 22

[dkdiver]

Sorry for the late report.

On behalf of Badger State Dive Club I'd like to thank Neill Urban and Pat LaSage for taking the time to come to our meeting along with all who attended.

Neill and Pat gave an overview of what their plans are for Red Granite. Keep in mind we had a limited amount of time so we were not able to go into a lot of details. Many of the topics have been discussed here on another post so I'll keep it brief. They discussed the cleaning process, the restaurant, the ponds being added and general ideas for the for the area around the Quarry. They are thinking of more than just divers being able to use the facility.

The part that Neill and Pat stressed the most is that they need more information on what divers would like to see in and by the quarry. Ideas were given out. Things like access, bathrooms, air fills and more. One suggestion discussed was adding a floating dock with underwater lighting. Similar to what was done at Forty Fathoms Grotto in Florida. I have never been there but have seen articles and photos and it looks like a good idea. We also suggested following what some of the other quarries had done for divers.

What Neill and Pat need the most right now is feed back from divers. Especially divers that are familiar with the quarry itself. They need to know what type of things divers would like to see in the quarry. What the best locations are to sink objects. Feedback from instructors that use the quarry would be very helpful. What sort of platforms. Numbers of platforms and depth. Maybe a navigation course.

For the most part, things are still in the planning stage. Now is the time for divers to help turn this into the diving facility we would all like to see. Neill said that they will draw a plan and present it to the city later this year for approval. Now is the time do send them you ideas.

Overall the presentation was well done. I would like to invite Neill and Pat back when the have a drawn plan for the quarry prior to going to the city. I think then it would be easier to point out changes, additions etc.

Thanks
Dan Klink, President, Badger State Dive Club