That design could in all likelihood have gone through some upgrades and didn’t necessarily have to remain fixed. The receiver platform could have been made much lighter, perhaps separating the telescope from the radar transmitters and relieve some of the stress on the cables and towers, even allowing the cables to be replaced on a maintenance cycle. Many things could have been done that weren’t. Still could. It might feel like a total loss, but that location and much of the dish structure, reflective panels and electronics/cable channeling could be reused for Arecibo II.
