ELCASTILLOn"OPDRAWERPRODUCTIONS «(MEX!

CO-52) 13650055 8010/9/97 <54:25PM 01/4

Posada

El Castillo
Thursday, October 9,
BUD GOLDSTONE, N.J. BUD GOLDSTGNE

3I0 56S-I571

Number cf Pages (includes lliis cover page); 4

Bud,
I a m Ta K i n g t h i s t o y o u a s u i e l l a s s e n d i n g i t b y e - m a i l s i n c e y o u m a y w a n t t o
cut-and-paste this together in a different luay I hope this helps!
Let me knoiu asap if you want copies of the articles mentioned in theis fan, I
can make them and take them to the US when I leaue this Sunday for the Hot
Springs Documentary Film Festiual. Keep in touch ouer the net
Ruery D
I will send a copy to Seymour Rosen's friend who may help us forming a
F o u n d a t i o n . . .

EL CRSTILLO/TOP DRRLUER PRODUCTIONS

El Castillo • Ocampo #105, XilltU, S.L.P.,CP 79900.MEXICO * (52) 136-5 00 38 Fi* (52) 136-5 00 55
Internet mall : lnfo®JaiigleGos8ip«coin
W e b s i t e : w w w. J u n g l e G o 8 B i p . c o m
 EL CASTILLO/TOP DRAWER PRODUCTIONS (MEXICO-52) 136 500 5S

Dear Bud, 10/9/97

Great to hear the check finally arrived and things have started cooking on your end! As to your deadline of
Nov.. 7th, it is far more important, to us at least, that you have adequate time to prepare your study and to
champion our cause to potential fund raisers than to adhere to an exact schedule.
As per your fax to Doc Wulff, I would be glad to take whatever detailed photos and/or video of areas you
have concern or questions about, and send them to you via a departing guest or federal express.... Your getting
the necessary information to make the best evaluation possible, both for restoration and potential funders, is our
top priority, so don't rush yourselves unless you have to
As to your questions posed in your latest fax here are some of the answers, with more to follow;

SINCE I WILL BE TRAVEUNG A LOT DURING THE NEXT FEW WEEKS, PLEASE E-MAIL, AS WELL,
A \ /POO A \r/^TT P A V A ^ TTTTT T \ if! A O Ajn A \TTrO I
 E L C A S T I L L O n " O P D R A W E R P R O D U C T I O N S « ( M E X I C O - 5 2 ) 1 3 6 5 0 0 5 S 1 6 11 0 / 9 / 9 7 ® 4 : 2 7 P M 0 3 / 4

& POZAS 8&9) and structures is though the private area. Kaco charges around 75 cents to enter Las Pozas.
2. The official assessed (tax) value of Las Pozas is very low, probably around $15,000 and is determined by the
number of acres Las Pozas occupies. It is valued as undevelo^d jungle, with no value given to the structures.
The value is increased slightly every year, again only as the value of all local undeveloped jungle property is
raised. There has never been a reduction due to weather damage or annual deterioration of the property.

Several times Kaco has been offered quite large sums of money to sell Las Pozas, the last offer he turned down
was from the governor of the state who recendy offered him over $500,000 for the property. Kaco does not want
to sell the property since the money will make him just another rich kid in Mexico, but Las Pozas allows him to be
a kind of celebrity. That is why he is willing to donate the property as long as he remains in some position (even
figurehead) of power. Kaco also knows that any development of Las Pozas will only increase the value of his
surrounding property, as evidenced of his recent sale to die governor of 1 acre of land, near Las Pozas, for over
$30,000! ^co may be vain but he is very savvy with his assets!
3. &4. The only major damage that has occurred here is during the Sept 19th 1986 Hurricane (called GERT here
in Mexico) which dumped over 3 feet of water here in less than three days. This brought VW sized boulders
down the river, causing a lot of damage to the river structures, and the rains caused a major mud slide to occur
immediately above the HOUSE OF 3 FLOORS THAT COULD BE 5 - (Estructura de tres pisos...) p29,49,61.
This mud slide covered part of this structure and knocked several free standing walls above and to die cascada side
(NW) of the structure. Some of the mud has been removed from the structure and a few small repairs were done
replacing the broken concrete leaves which adorn the concrete support columns which had several leaves broken
off of them. The James Foundation gave Kaco $6,000 to build 1/2 km long, 3 foot deep stone lined culvert
which basically follows the straight black line shown on the map surrounding and just above the structure which
terminates just above the Bathtub In The Shape Of An Eye. This seems to have prevented furdier damage from
mud slides as excess water is channeled into Poza #7.
One of the biggest tasks will be to remove the stones tiiat have collected in Poza #8 to the depth of about 5
meters, this Pozas was always cleared annually by Edward, but since his death in *84 and the inundation of *86 it
has remained full of stones. The structures here and immediately below in Poza 7 have suffered the most obvious
damage.
I have no idea if these storms and our area were ever declared **disaster zones" but Kaco has never applied
for federal assistance, since he fears, rather than appreciates, their intervention. His feeling is that the usual
Mexican **fix up" leaves the property in worse shape than before.

Bibliography
N E W S PA P E R A R T I C L E S

''Eccentric Exile: Edward James and his Garden of Eden", by Patrick Boyle, Sunday Magazine - DAILY
TELEGRAPH - London, May 8th, 1977 p. 20-29

**Builder of Dreams", by George Melly, OBSERVER -(DAILY TELEGRAPH-LONDON) Dec. 13th,

1981

"Private Lives" -excerpts from Edward's personal archives from the James Foundation - HARPERS &
QUEEN, March 1991
"In Search Of Shangri-La", by Sara Love, Scene Magazine- COLUMBIA (MO) DAILY TRIBUNE- Oct.
28th, 1993 p. 12-13

"Fantasy Garden in Mexico's Jungle", by Allen Myerson, NEW YORKTIMES-Feb. 19,'95 - Travel
section, p. 16 (multi-page article)

"A SurreaUst Dream In The Huasteca", by Jim Budd, MEXICO QTY TIMES - Dec. 16th, 1995 p. 19
(full page article)
"An Englishman's Xanadu Mirrors A Fantasy Worid Created By Poe", by Gerald Jonas, LOS
ANGELES TIMES - May 12th,'96 - p. L15 (full page article)