I'm thinking the normal stuff world class aquariums are known for, sharks swimming overhead, moving sidewalks, artful displays of jellyfish, lots of colorful fish, you know, the usual. But what if we also had a monorail that doubled as a submarine and took visitors on an underwater voyage through a freshwater lake outside the aquarium while paddle-boats floated overhead and fish swam past. Maybe a few professional divers, smart enough not to get too close to the monorail, could dive nearby while interacting with the wildlife as the passengers watch?
On a more practical level, are you aware there is a looming worldwide shortage of edible fish on the very near horizon. Aquariums do research in those areas and more including medical research and lots of other stuff that will bring high paying jobs to Greensboro. One thing the Greensboro Aquarium Project could do with the help of the professional staff that would have to be hired would be to retrofit several of Greensboro's empty big box retail buildings and other abandoned commercial buildings into indoor fish farms and packing houses producing Carolina Brand (If there are no trademark issues) fresh and frozen Tilapia, Catfish and other breeds to be sold through wholesalers, restaurants, retailers and grocers throughout the Carolinas and beyond.
Will stores and restaurants carry our brand? Believe me, if enough people walk into any one store and ask the manager for a specific brand that store or restaurant manager will figure out a way to carry that brand. Pretty soon, by building a downtown Greensboro Aquarium, Greensboro could become the largest fish exporter on the east coast producing lots of jobs and products people really need.
And don't forget the byproducts. All the byproducts from commercial fish farming right down to the water in the tanks and the sand in the filters has well known agricultural uses for farming and growing crops and animal feed. Even the bones are a needed dietary supplement for chickens and turkeys to ensure egg production and healthy bones. (I raise chickens.)
In reality, we don't even have to wait for the aquarium to be built to retrofit old buildings and start raising and selling fish. We just need people to get involved. Greensboro not only has empty buildings but it also is home to several regional restaurant chains and seafood distribution companies who would love to add locally produced products to their lines. Then the profits from raising fish for food could go towards building the aquarium.
How about a small hydroponic farm display managed by NC A&T University that draws its nutrient filled water from the lake teaming with fish, uses the plants to filter the water then returns the filtered water to the lake? I'm working on the very same thing on a much smaller scale in my own backyard farm. It can even be powered by updraft wind mills above parking lots on the sides of taller buildings and solar panels on walls and roofs.
Simplistic? Yes, but not impossible. As a matter of fact: everything I'm discussing is proven to work.
And while it's off the subject of what an aquarium should include I want to leave you with my thoughts about what the Downtown Greensboro Aquarium Corporation or whatever its name should come to be, should, in my opinion, be. From the beginning, I hope this corporation will ba a corporation about giving, a corporation that puts people over profits, employees over stockholders and community over the bottom line. In the beginning, because we have no money for donations, I would like to give shares of stock to non profits that help the hungry, homeless, the needy, animals and others who cannot fend for themselves. In the years to come those non profits can sell those shares to continue their works. Yes, that will water down stock prices in the beginning but it will also make it possible for more poor and working class citizens to buy into the company. Some will say this will drive potential stockholders away and they're probably right but I'm betting most of those who would be driven away are the dangerous speculators, banksters and corporate raiders who jump in and out quickly destroying everything they trade. I'm betting there's enough people who care about people and animals to make this dream float if only Greensboro will believe.
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