Over the past two days, I've re-read this entire thread. I recommend it, actually, to anyone who's more recent to the project.
Who cares what money Wonderland has/had? Why does it matter? Why do they owe anyone on a messageboard any explanation of their actions? Time and again, Adam would come onto the board (or someone else would) with an explanation of something that had happened - no matter what they say, it's never enough. It'll never be enough, because what the detractors (including TOOP, which is by no means a legitimate "whistle blower") really want is for Wonderland to fail in every conceivable way. *Then* they might be happy. But probably not.
Can you imagine if every single non-profit were subjected to such scrutiny? Why aren't they? The United Way brings in millions and millions of dollars in a more-than-slightly coercive manner through their corporate alliances. Do y'all care how much the salaries are of those employed by them? How that donated money is allocated? What charities they chose to represent, and how those charities are chosen? I don't see any trumped up outrage over them anywhere on the boards.... only for Wonderland.
So why? Is it the group of people that had the idea in the first place? Is it that they actually had the balls and the where-with-all to try and turn an idea into a legitimate thing? Is it the people themselves - do y'all just not like them? Because that's really what this all sounds like, after reading the whole board in a continuous thread. "We Hate Adam. We Hate The People of Wonderland." It has so little to do with the project, and so much to do with someone maybe getting something they themselves don't have. It *is* childish. It *is* sour grapes.
The other thing that is painfully clear is that the detractors (most of them) have never been involved in a non-profit, never started one, never applied for a 501(c)3, never had to write a grant, never had to negotiate a million+ dollar real estate deal.... Never tried to get funding - because the great irony of starting anything is how much money has to be spent before you can even really begin.
Some folks got together on an idea - one they were/are really excited about. They likely thought the city would share that excitement, and went public - even then, there were haters. Then that group of folks probably encountered all the minutiae that's involved in setting up a non-profit, and the guts of what it would take to actually accomplish what they wanted - and it's staggering. It takes time - it probably takes a helluva lot more money than anyone thought (because it *always* does). Meanwhile, the group of haters grows and gets demanding about what they believe should be happening. The building deal falls through - which had to SUCK for the folks involved in the project. Imagine spending a YEAR+ working on something, to have that happen. In the nature of these things, they have to evolve and reconsider exactly what their plan is - if anything, this will make the end product better, because now they've learned something, and they're less tied to the romance of a place, vs delving into the heart of that idea, and what it means.
I don't think the project is dead - I think this shit just takes a ton of time, yo.
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