I have no direct knowledge of the details and have only watched and read from afar, but not hard to believe that Stathi was due compensation for use of the Chiggen to kick-start the steam program that had not been paid.

Perhaps this was an agreement reached between the parties in lieu of payment due.

I agree, if volunteers are upset they should address the board that makes the decision. Go to the board meetings and build some relationships and see if you can work for changes or get enough voters to agree with you to vote in a new board.

Also, the general IRS Depreciation table for commercial property is 39 years. If you use straight line accounting based on % square footage used by the Chiggen the "cost" per month value is very low. Displaced equipment and opportunity cost are not part of that accounting equation but certainly worthy of discussion.


So if we consider the OP's numbers.
$3 Million /468 months(39 years) is $6,410.26 per month.
Total feet of track 1130' Chiggen using 30.5' is 2.7% of the available track

2.7% of $6,410.36 is $173.08 per month. You could add in 2.7% of utilities, applicable taxes etc. but some of those would not be fully direct such as if lights were on for other uses of the building the Chiggen would not need them(Chiggen is not afraid of the dark).

So 36 months at $173.08 is $6231. A far cry from OP's number of $80,000.

It also must be noted that just because the building will be fully depreciated at the end of 39 years that does not mean it will not still be usable or have value.

For comparison, outdoor covered storage for RV's at a storage lot can often be found for $3 per foot, so $90 for the Chiggen. Enclosed storage of 30' could probably be found for $180-240 a month range.