Refurbishing, Redecorating in Style
Comes a time when infrastructure, one's home, has reached a point where everything seems tattered and worn. Plumbing and electrical fittings need to be changed, walls need painting, cupboards changed, floors relaid. Even new furniture splurged on. It's an expensive proposition, and no homeowner goes about planning for anything this ambitious without first doing the kind of homework that will ensure they get the best value for what they can afford.Even so, this is a huge investment, a costly venture, one that makes for plenty of sleepless nights. Committing to that kind of expenditure, that amount of time and inconvenience, and hoping that the contractor knows what he's doing, and counting on having selected the best materials for the job at hand is nervous making in the extreme. Still, it's cheaper in the long run than looking to purchase another house.
This is exactly the kind of venture the United Nations is embarking on. A complete refurbishment of the once-proud, 50-year-old, glass-curtained, New York City-located United Nations headquarters. It's become a trifle shabby over the years, hardly surprising given its long and prodigious use. Extensive upgrading of plumbing, electrical work, heating and cooling along with upgraded insulation is being undertaken, at a whopping price tag.
The current condition of the building is of great concern, since infrastructure upgrading hasn't taken place on a regular basis, leading to safety hazards, security risks and difficulty of maintenance. This venture is being costed at US1.9 billion dollars, with an additional US4.5 million allocated to upgrade the secretary-general's official residence, a four-story townhouse.
There is concern about the competence of United Nations personnel responsible for undertaking the selection of contractors to perform this immense job. The United Nations has been accused in the past of mismanagement and corruption, and not without a basis in truth, so some New York developers, such as Donald Trump, insist the costs are highly inflated, with somebody looking to take kick-backs.
To get a handle on the kind of funding being allocated, and what the United Nations could accomplish otherwise with that much money, the 1.9 billion represents roughly half of what wealthy countries contribute to the United Nation's yearly emergency funding for humanitarian aid projected for 2007. This represents six months' spending for 27 million people being supported in the wake of wars or natural disasters within 29 crisis-stricken countries.
Another 14 million people could be given food, medicines and shelter. Big price to pay for a building housing the hopes of humanity.
posted by Pieface @ Thursday, January 04, 2007
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