Don VanDer Wende is know for creating "crazy things for crazy people".  In fact he created a replica of the Defiant's bridge for an undisclosed billionaire, as a birthday present for said billionaire's wife.  "the couple did not want to keep the fully-encapsulated, fully-enclosed bridge, preferring to hold the memory in their hearts as a once-in-a-lifetime moment", said VanDer Wende.

Now, as reported by VulcanAdvocate.com, VanDer Wende is trying to sell the attraction to the small Canadian town of Vulcan, Alberta.  While he has two parties interested in buying the life-sized replica bridge, he said he wants it to find a home in Vulcan.

“I would love it to go a place like yours,” he said. “I think it has more appeal to me to put it where a lot of people could enjoy it.”

He could see if one of the major film studies would be interested in the replica bridge, but it would get “lost in the shuffle.”

“It really belongs up in your town,” said VanDer Wende.

The bridge would attract Star Trek fans to town for weddings, birthdays, family reunions, conventions and other get-togethers, he said.

“This would be a money maker.”

Much like Spock joining Starfleet, it doesn't seem that the Vulcan council is liking the idea.

Trish Standing, a Vulcan town councillor and president of the Vulcan and District Chamber of Commerce, said the replica bridge is “way out of our price range.”

She didn’t believe VanDer Wende was going to sell it cheaply, and she wouldn’t feel right about charging people to sit in the captain’s chair.

“I don’t see how we can get a return on that,” she said.

What Vulcan needs is a theatre or mini- golf facility, said Standing.

“I don’t think it’s something we’re going to be going into,” she said. “It’s just not logical.”

But she planned on taking VanDer Wende’s proposal to sell the bridge to the next chamber meeting and to the tourism board.

“That’s about as far as it’s going to go,” she said. “It’s not going to go any further.” (source VulcanAdvocate.com)

The bridge replica is still for sale.  You can check out more pics and details here.

Read the full article here.