X-Message-Number: 716
From:
Subject: Alcor's Arizona move
Date: Thu, 9 Apr 92 11:31:08 PDT
Kevin,
Would you please post this to the cryonet? Thanks.
--Tanya
Anyone who has access to the electronic mail systems by now is aware of
the rising furor over Alcor's potential move to Scottsdale. I want to
submit my two cents, not specifically as a response to Michael Paulle's
postings, but as an initial listing of a few of the problems Alcor has
already begun considering.
First, we have been searching for a new building for some time now. The
entire membership has been informed of the space constraints of the
current facility. This constant, low-publicized search for a new home
went on for months before an actual possibility was located. As it's a
topic near and dear to our hearts (and heads), I suppose I should have
expected an uproar once a potential new site had been located.
There has been no argument about the fact that it is a beautiful building,
that it would begin to present the kind of image to the visiting public
that our slick literature demands. Public relations may not sound
critical to people who are already consider cryonics a worthwhile pursuit,
but as we continue to solicit new members, we will begin adding the
conservative and image-conscious to our numbers. Hugh Hixon has a saying:
"cryonics is not for the timid." For now, that is true. But if we want
to become an accepted alternative to the conventional methods of
disposition, we will have to anticipate the mindset of people currently
preferring those methods. Part of that anticipation process requires
establishing a sterling public image. (Despite past, highly publicized
legal battles.)
Neither has there been any argument about the fact that Alcor **must**
move. Space considerations are critical. There is no room for further
expansion in the current facility.
I would **very** much like to see a building comparable (to the Scottsdale
facility) in the Riverside area, for a comparable price. Unfortunately,
there are at least two complications: so far, there have been no
comparable buildings of comparable price located in the area (Hugh Hixon
is still looking), and the County regulatory agencies won't give us the
necessary zoning permits to legally perform such a move, should we have
the unlikely good fortune to locate a nearby building without too great a
price tag.
Also, should cryonics be declared illegal in this state, via the Roe v.
Mitchell case, Alcor may not be able to obtain the permits to move our
patients out of the state. Currently, all of our eggs are in a California
basket, and the potential for cryonics being declared illegal in
California is such that we should find a site in another state for patient
storage, well in advance of any court decision.
Our Los Angeles area transport/suspension capability is yet another
**major** concern. Although LA has the highest concentration of Alcor
members in the world (85), it also has the lowest number of support team
members. Logically, I used to think that we would have a lot of volunteer
help, as there are so many members nearby. **Wrong!** New York, with 23
members, has more volunteer help than we do. Part of that can be
attributed to the fact that when someone comes to the facility to
volunteer, the staff is doing all the interesting stuff. We need people
to do the drudge work, like stuffing envelopes and making information
packets and doing data entry. It's not particularly exciting, so most
people don't come all the way out to Riverside for just **that**. If
Alcor were to move out of the LA area, there would be an incentive to
develop a trained transport team and response capability, like the other
groups have done. With all time constraints and logistical headaches
aside, I see this as a reason why a move to Scottsdale wouldn't hurt the
LA membership unless they let it. The more trained personnel Alcor can
call on during an emergency, the better off the entire organization (and
especially the patients) will be. Training has been accelerated since the
loss of Jerry Leaf and the departure of Michael Darwin, and the local
members who are interested in beginning a non-staff member transport team
should take advantage of this.
Still, even with the large membership base in the LA area and the staff in
Scottsdale (as this is the only option currently on the table), a
transport could be performed within acceptable time limits. In the
suspension of patient A-1312, trained and equipped **local** team members
were involved from the start, and Alcor staffers **drove** to northern
California in the ambulance.
For those members not in the LA area, or driving distance from Scottsdale,
the Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix is about as far away from
the proposed facility as the Ontario Airport is from the current facility.
Carlos Mondragon obtained flight schedules for the Phoenix airport, and
there are **no** commercial flights leaving from Phoenix between the hours
of 12:00am and 5:00am. Identical restrictions have always been present at
Ontario Airport, but have yet to affect Alcor's response in an emergency.
Nonetheless, a potential problem, this could be remedied by contracting
the services of a private air ambulance company, which is designed to
handle unexpected, middle-of-the-night traffic. The airport is open 24
hours a day to private traffic.
Sufficient time has already been spent detailing the difference in
earthquake potential. The Phoenix area is much less likely to be
devastated by an earthquake, and (as Keith mentioned) maintaining our
current (California standards) precautions despite the low probability of
an earthquake should be satisfactory protection in Arizona.
Protection from regulatory agencies is, in my opinion, one of the most
critical considerations. We should attempt to get an engraved invitation
from the Arizona Health Department and the Maricopa Medical Examiner's
office **before** transferring even a single cell sample. I believe that
Carlos Mondragon has already submitted introductory letters to these
agencies and more. At the last monthly meeting, it was also decided that
one of the **necessary** contingencies to the move be that we receive a
friendly response from these offices. Jackson Zinn's suggestion of
obtaining a declaratory judgement on the legality of cryonics in Arizona
is a good one, and one which (according to Carlos) might be pursued if the
Health Department response to Carlos' letter is favorable.
The Board of Directors resolved that further conditions be met before they
would vote on **any** move. Fundraising for the purchase of a facility,
in addition to the price of the building, must include sufficient funds to
cover some of the logistical costs associated with moving: telephone
forwarding, utilities, employee time and effort, new stationary, new
bracelet for those members with the (714) area code, etc. Additionally,
a reliable tenant must be located to rent the Riverside facility, although
it wouldn't be prudent to completely vacate the Riverside building
immediately. Keith Henson was absolutely correct in asserting that
"patient care is the gold standard by which we have to measure our
activities." Until we have determined that another environment will not
endanger the patients, **no comprehensive move will occur**. Until we
have performed a suspension or two in the new state, a "wait and see what
regulatory agencies come out of the woodwork" tactic should be adopted
without moving the patients.
All of the above listed concerns **are** being considered. Everyone
involved is aware that no decision to move can be made in a spur-of-the-
moment manner. I must reiterate that the search for a new building has
been going on for some time. Locating this Scottsdale building was
chance, yet it has been the most reasonable option so far. No other
viable alternative will be taken lightly, but so far, except for the
Scottsdale property, **there have been no viable alternatives presented**.
I strongly urge anyone out there who can locate a facility for sale with
comparable amenities to tell us, and send us information. Help us find a
new home. Personally, Arizona is **not** my first choice, but I will move
there if Alcor does. To paraphrase Joe Hovey's recent comment, I would
move to Antarctica if Alcor moved there.
--Tanya L. Jones
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