Something else to consider:
It seems having a soft spot of the side of the console is not UNCOMMON on the 23's. Over the years, that area is stepped on when boarding, walking etc over and over. The bottom of the deck was bonded to the top of the stringer in the same area. As with my deck, there also was a soft area on the starboard side. I was in doubt and cut it out. Inspection revealed the balsa core was not wet and the deck was in good shape. The deck had only pulled loose from the bonding putty on top of the stringer.
Bottom line is, I would drill some test holes into the core first and check for dampness before I cut out a significant piece of the deck.
Make sure do not drill thru the bottom of the deck 