Chamber Head Digs Up Exhibit Solution
When directors of the Mesa Consolidated Water District voted earlier this month to share their fossil collection with Orange Coast College, they did not allocate funds to create the display.
Officials said they felt that the estimated $1,400 required to arrange the displays and hire a paleontologist to write a narrative describing the specimens was simply too much.
Fortunately for the board, Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce President Tony Petros came up with an offer that the water district could not refuse.
On Monday, Petros said he had spoken with a colleague, Steve Conkling, a licensed paleontologist who is willing to do the work for free.
Conkling has done fossil displays for museums, including the Ralph B. Clark Regional Park in Buena Park. “This is a hobby of his and something he just loves to do,” Petros said.
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