Historic Preservation

Viewpoint: Closing Riordan Mansion State Historic Park would hurt Flagstaff

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[Source: Gwen Groth, Arizona Daily Sun “Letter to the Editor”] — Riordan Mansion State Historic Park remains at risk of closing due to Arizona’s grave budget crisis.  Funds have already been swept from Arizona State Parks and more will be requested.  Shuttering Riordan Mansion State Historic Park goes much further than closing a nice picnic area with a pretty house as a backdrop.  Three part-time employees have already lost their jobs at Riordan Mansion and if the park closes, four full-time employees will lose their jobs as well.  Flagstaff stands to lose nearly 30,000 visitors annually who pause to have lunch, stay in a hotel and visit other attractions.

The “mansion” does not tell the story of a wealthy family.  Instead, the energy-efficient home tells the story of Flagstaff’s beginning and one family who worked hard to build a business and a community.  The Riordans were instrumental in the development of Flagstaff’s infrastructure, education and environmental preservation.  The family donated their home to Arizona so that the legacy of giving could continue through the education of visitors for decades to come.

The state park offers more than a guided tour, museum and beautiful grounds.  Area schools use Riordan Mansion as a hands-on (and affordable) means to teach students about our history.  The park also holds lectures twice monthly that are free, informative and open to the public.  Budget cuts are painful, especially where education is concerned.  Though closing Riordan is not a direct hit to our education system, it is an indirect strike that will hurt Flagstaff in many ways.

Newsweek magazine covers Arizona State Parks mess

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[Source: Jessica Ramirez, Newsweek Magazine] — Ken Travous has spent the past month trying to get out of the red.  During a meeting with Arizona State Parks Board members Feb. 3, Travous, who serves as parks director, explained that statewide budget cuts would mean he’d have to close up to 11 state parks. The board naturally wanted to avoid such drastic measures and asked him to come back with “more options” for cutting $27 million.

Unfortunately, the options aren’t necessarily better.  Shutting down the parks would mean closing some of the oldest public lands in the state, a loss of about 31 jobs and roughly $50 million dollars in economic impact to the state. Plan B would mean asking employees to take furloughs, laying off up to 40 park workers, and cutting about $12 million in funds for community projects like local parks, trail developments, and historic preservation.  Without that funding, landscapers, carpenters, and plumbers hired by these communities would be out of work.  It’s this choice that made him feel like he’d been punched in the stomach every time he sits down at his desk.  “I have spent the last 23 years as the director of this state park system, building it up,” he says.  “Now I see it crumbling beneath my feet, and it makes me sick.”   [Note: To read the full article, click here.]

Arizona State Archives shuttered due to budget crisis

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[Source: Ray Stern, Phoenix New Times] — The new, $29 million Polly Rosenbaum State Archives and History Building Reading Room that opened late last year has closed until further notice — another victim of state budget cuts.  “I’m hoping something is going to happen so that we can re-open it,” says GladysAnn Wells, state librarian and director of the Arizona State Library, Archives, and Public Records.

Stuck for years in a cramped space at the State Capitol, the new facility at 19th Avenue and Madison Street pleased state workers and visitors alike with “50 times more room” for reading and research, according to a November 30, 2008 Cronkite New Service article.  Wells says the facility had been seeing about 10 to 25 visitors a day, but now will be available only for research “emergencies.”  The state agency’s Law and Research Library Divison, the “primary legal resource” for state officials, will remain open on reduced hours — from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wells says. [Note: To read the full article, click here.]

Arizona’s budget crisis may cut funding, close several state parks

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Riordan Mansion, Flagstaff (Photo: Jen Merrill, NAU Lumberjack)

[Source: Matthew Vinsko, JackCentral] — In response to Arizona’s $1.6 billion deficit, the Arizona State Parks Board (ASPB) decided on Feb. 20 to close two state parks.  Many others will receive a drop in funds, and may be closed in FY 2009, including Flagstaff’s Riordan Mansion.  These parks cost too much to maintain compared to what tourism and other outlets bring in financially.

Bill Meek, the president of the Arizona State Parks Foundation, said with the obvious need for cuts throughout the state, it was a foregone conclusion that parks would be affected.  “It was pretty apparent that (they) could not make it through the year with the money that they have,” Meek said.  “(Because) we face the same problems as the universities, it is just as hard to get away from the legislature.”

Kendra Stoks, a volunteer for more than two years at Riordan Mansion, said this time of uncertainty has been hard on all those involved with Arizona state parks.  “It is a scary time right now,” Stoks said.  “State parks mean a lot to Arizona.  We are all still shocked about (potentially) losing that little piece of history.” [Note: To read the full article, click here.]