BOARD02195

• Board Meeting Date: 9/12/1964
• Description: Minutes
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Meeting

4044

under your employ, by staff members of your
own Board, and by staff members of the Bureau
of Reclamation. It was our effort in these
reevaluations to provide you with current
estimates, based on current prices, making use
of what we feel is comparable an~ comprehen-
sive data on the two sites. The estimates I
that we presented are estimates which we feel
could be soundly supported by us before the
Congress, and it is this type of estimate that
we feel we must present to the congress in
anticipation of the construction costs that
might be incurred for either of these sites
to be built. The differential is over $23
million in favor of the Narrows site. The
consulting firm has indicated some smaller
cost for weld County.

We, of course, if we proceeded to con-
struction, would have further investigations
of geology, materials, etc., and w~uld propose
to build in final design that structure that
would accomplish the mission of the'project
but with a degree of safety that we feel is
mandatory for projects of this importance and
type. If any savings could be achieved during
final design and construction, they of course
would be considered, but we would not compro-
mise the safety of the structures.

The cost differential is of material
moment to us. The projects will accomplish
functions, when placed in terms of economics,
that are very comparable and it is our posi-
tion that we could not recommend to you or
to the Congress, construction of any site
other than the Narrows site at this time. We
spent a good deal of money on th~ investiga-
tion of the Narrows Unit. At this point we
have terminated our studies and the decision
rests with the people of the State of Colorado
and with the Congress. ~ihen these decisions
are available, we will be at your service to
proceed with further studies or whatever the
wishes of the Congress and the State of Colo-
rado might be.

I