Nice. Saw the presentation of the project this May at the Suspended Animation conference, been wondering where they're building it.
The project apparently aims at three goals: 1) centralized storage of patients, 2) centralized research labs, 3) showing off.
Goal 3 seems dominant, those guys think that "cryonics with class" can attract more wealthy people with more resources that can go into the development of revival technology. But they do want to build some labs there, too. Oh yes, and the main person behind this project is Saul Kent.
Interesting! Thanks for the background!
(I also notice from your username and recent post to the Houston mailing list that you attended the recent Houston meetup. I wasn't there, as I still live far away. And yes, Cog, I'll post my intro there soon.)
The Timeship, which could more accurately bear the name of the Saulsoleum, shows signs of a project in trouble. The county assessor reportedly revoked the Stasis Foundation's tax exempt status and handed it a bill for nearly $100,000 in back taxes because of the lack of construction on the property (the Timeship looks like a way to shelter wealth from taxation); and the plantation-style building already on it suffered from expensive water damage when a pipe froze a couple winters back. Apparently the owners didn't bother to have a caretaker live there and keep the building heated during cold weather. That and the avoidable tax problem suggest a lack of diligence.
I listened online to most of the Timeship architect Steve Valentine's presentation about the project at the Suspended Animation conference back in May, and it did not impress me. Valentine made it sound more like the temple of a cult than a scientific-medical facility..
It seems that the non-profit Stasis Foundation is planning to build a cryopreservation "castle" (dubbed the "Timeship") in the San Antonio area. My parents pointed me to this article, which was carried in the Austin American-Statesman. I can't find a site for the Stasis Foundation; (here's the Google search and here's the Timeship propaganda page). The article discusses the effort in the context of a potential loss of tax exemption for not moving the project forward in a timely manner.
So is anyone familiar with this group? What advantages do they seek by having this facility that can't be achieved with existing cryonics non-profits?