IT’LL COST HOW MUCH?

The projected cost of the Iowa Pork Forest is $180 million. With the $50 million from the feds, plus the $40 million that Ted Townsend has already raised, it would see that the project financing is about half way there.

Maybe.

Doing some research the other day, I stumbled on a few articles in the Cedar Rapids Gazette about the Iowa Pork Forest from 2000. One from March 12, 2000 put the estimated cost at $280 million. The article notes that, at the time, Iowa Child not only included a rain forest, but also a new public school. So perhaps that accounts for the extra $100 million. Of course, I don’t know how much the average public school is going for these days, so I can’t say for sure.

However, you might want to check out this article about government cost overruns (pages 4-6). Especially check out the chart on page 5.

Makes you wonder if the cost of the Pork Forest is being deflated to make it more attractive to those who want to secure government funding for it.