Anyone headed out to enjoy county or state parks or hike the Grand Canyon this weekend should encounter few, if any, problems from this week’s violent storms.
Storms dumped plenty of rain and hail, but there were no reports of significant damage in Maricopa County and Arizona State parks, officials said.
“It was pretty violent,” said John Gunn, supervisor at Spur Cross Ranch Conservation Area, north of Cave Creek. “In the nine years I’ve been here at Spur Cross, I’ve never seen it rain that hard. It was unbelievable, nearly whiteout conditions.”
Although hail at the park “pounded the trees pretty good,” he said, the storm did no other damage.
None of the trails is closed at the 2,154-acre park.
None of the other members of the park system reported any damage, according to Maricopa County Parks spokeswoman Dawna Taylor.
The Los Alamos Day Use Area at Dead Horse Ranch State Park in Cottonwood was closed temporarily due to flooding, but is now open, according to Ellen Bilbrey, spokeswoman for the state park system. The park itself was never closed.
The Verde River Greenway Complex, temporarily inaccessible due to high water, is also open again.
There were no other reports of damage to state park trails or properties, Bilbrey said.
At the Grand Canyon, a little hail was reported at Desert View, at the east end of the park, but the weather wasn’t bad at the South Rim, Grand Canyon National Park spokeswoman Maureen Oltrogge said.
All trails in the Canyon are open, as are all facilities.
The lodge on the North Rim lost electrical power Tuesday afternoon. Power has been restored, said Shannon Marcak, also a spokeswoman for the park. The North Rim will close for the season next Saturday.
Preliminary recommendations by the Governor’s Commission on Privatization and Efficiency (“Arizona urged to privatize its parks,” Sept. 22) come as no surprise to those of us who have been on the front lines of the battle to save Arizona’s state parks.
For the rest of us, it should serve as a wake-up call of what’s at stake if a lack of vision and political will is allowed to destroy our state park system. Conveniently, the final proposal won’t be released until after the fall elections; but it’s difficult to envision any park privatization scenario under which Arizona citizens and taxpayers won’t be the big losers.
In comments posted to the Star’s website, one writer asked: “What’s wrong with somebody earning a profit?”
The answer: absolutely nothing, and that’s just the point.
Hundreds of businesses throughout our state earn profits by supplying park visitors with gas, groceries, supplies, lodging and meals. A 2009 study by Northern Arizona University estimated the total economic impact of our state parks at $266 million per year, about half from out-of-state visitors. When a local park closes, as has already happened at Winslow (Homolovi), Springerville (Lyman Lake), and Oracle, visitors and the dollars they spend go away.
You may ask: “Won’t they do just as well under private management?”
The answer: Not likely! Private operators will, no doubt, be eager to take over profitable parks such as Catalina, Kartchner Caverns and the Colorado River parks. They probably won’t show much interest in smaller parks that, in themselves, aren’t profitable but still support local jobs.
How did we get here? The Legislature began the systematic dismantling of our state parks long before it could be justified by a budget crisis.
General-fund park appropriations ceased in 2002. Legislators told parks to become “more entrepreneurial and self-supporting” through admission fees, souvenir sales, etc. When they did, the Legislature took the money.
As a holistic system, profitable parks could carry those that didn’t break even but still generated economic benefits for their communities. That was no longer possible when the Legislature swept away every cent parks earned for themselves. In a particularly outrageous fund grab, legislators even took money from park donation jars and $250,000 from the estate of a benefactor who specifically willed it to state parks.
Before leaving office Gov. Janet Napolitano assembled a task force on sustainable parks to consider all options, including sale and privatization.
Gov. Jan Brewer continued the task force when she took office in January 2009. In October 2009, the task force recommended a modest $12 surcharge on noncommercial-vehicle licenses. In return, anyone with a current Arizona license plate would gain unlimited admission to all state parks. The system has worked well in other states. It would have assured the future of our state parks and reopened all roadside rest areas.
The measure died when House Appropriations Committee Chairman John Kavanagh would not allow a vote by the panel. Kavanagh claimed to be taking a principled stand for taxpayers. It was nothing of the kind. If the measure had passed the Legislature, it still would have required voter approval. By denying voters a more direct voice in determining the future of our parks, Kavanagh exemplified the arrogant abuse of power that prompted the framers of our state constitution to provide for voter initiatives.
In testimony to the House Appropriations Committee, I relayed sharply contrasting experiences at two state historic parks: Judge Roy Bean in Texas and McFarland in Arizona. Although it’s far off the beaten path, at Roy Bean we found beautifully maintained facilities that celebrate a colorful chapter in the history of the Lone Star State. At McFarland, in the Tucson-Phoenix corridor, we found a closed facility with crumbling historic buildings, even though Senator, Governor and Judge McFarland arguably played a bigger role in Arizona history than Judge Roy Bean did in Texas.
Our tax code is riddled with dozens of loopholes that could be closed to distribute the overall tax burden more evenly and allow for investment in our state’s future. The legislative leadership flatly refused to consider it.
Where do we go from here? The future may look grim, but it’s far from hopeless. Much will be decided in the upcoming elections. If you agree that we need a vibrant system of parks to preserve our natural, cultural and historic treasures for all Arizonans, make your views known to the governor, your state legislators and candidates.
William C. Thornton is a member of the Arizona Heritage Alliance Board. E-mail him at cactusworld@msn.com
[Source: Maria Polletta, Cronkite News Service. via Tucson Sentinel]
Maria Polletta/Cronkite News Service
It’s around 90 degrees outside and Mary Evans is buttoned up in a long-sleeved, high-collared white blouse that’s fastened at the neck with a black cameo. A black wool skirt, worn over bloomers, skims the top of her black boots.
It looks uncomfortable, but Evans doesn’t seem to mind.
“Everything in the courthouse is special,” Evans said.
Evans couldn’t imagine losing the iconic building when budget cuts threatened funding for 19 of the state’s 28 parks, including the courthouse, earlier this year.
Neither could leaders of this former silver-mining town, which draws tourists from all over the world with attractions like the OK Corral and Boothill Graveyard.
Under an arrangement with Arizona State Parks, the city of Tombstone took over the courthouse April 1. A professional service agreement allows the Tombstone Chamber of Commerce to oversee park operations for at least three years, with two more two-year terms possible.
Since the courthouse changed hands, park hours have been extended from five to seven days a week, and volunteers have traded in state parks uniforms for period wear, said Patricia Moreno, the park’s manager. Staff and volunteers have also been working to create “living history,” such as trial re-enactments in the courthouse’s upstairs courtroom.
The number of visitors was 20 percent higher in April, May and June this year than in the same period last year, Moreno said.
Jay Ream, assistant director of Arizona State Parks, said things seem to be going well at the other four state parks now entirely operated by cities or other entities as well as the eight parks that receive funding from partners but are still operated by state parks staff.
“We’re glad they stepped up,” Ream said. “There have been minimal problems with these transitions. It’s gone very smoothly, and it’s been done very well.”
The state parks operations budget was reduced from about $28 million two years ago to about $18 million as lawmakers addressed the budget deficit.
“If not for our partners, many of our parks would have been closed,” Ream said.
Tombstone Mayor Dustin Escapule said he didn’t hesitate to step in when he got word of the decision to close down the courthouse.
“Really in one meeting (with state and local officials), we decided, ‘OK, this is how it can work, and this is what will happen,'” Escapule said.
He said feedback since the transition has been “positive, positive, positive,” not only from the citizens of Tombstone but from the state.
“Tombstone has really stepped up and claimed ownership of the courthouse,” said Patrick Greene, executive director of the Tombstone Chamber of Commerce.
Greene said the park is currently making a profit, which is used to improve the park.
“Based on our success, I would think that state parks would most likely allow us to continue, but it depends on the elected people in office and the philosophy at the state level,” Greene said.
Ream said that even if the state does assume control of the parks again, it may not be under the old model.
“Will we be able to manage (the parks) the same way? Possibly not,” he said. “We might be doing it through private partnerships or even sponsorships.
“But the goal of the Arizona State Parks Board is to keep the parks open to the public, whatever that takes.”
“We didn’t trap the bear,” said Dee Pfleger, Arizona Game and Fish wildlife manager. “It could have slipped out under the cover of darkness. We will keep looking for signs of the bear at the park.”
Lake Havasu State Park officials said Monday that fresh tracks and bear droppings were found north of the park and that suggested the bear may have left Havasu. Pfleger confirmed the findings were on the access road heading down to the PWC ramp.
The state park, which was closed to visitors early Monday, has since reopened.
Shane Ray, 43, said he spotted the bear swimming offshore about 500 yards from the north ramp. He switched off his trolling motor and started making phone calls to friends, Arizona State Parks officials, Arizona Game and Fish Department to report the sighting.
“I saw this big black object in the water,” he said. “It was swimming toward the California side. It kept swimming out there for about 20 minutes. It never growled at me or never lunged toward my boat. It seemed scared and it looked tired.
“It was breathing very, very hard and I was afraid he was going to drown, and I didn’t want to see that happen. So I forced him up on the shore,” Ray continued.
Ray said he was within six feet of the swimming black bear.
Ray said officials from the agencies told him the animal was likely a wild pig or badger. Ray insisted it was a black bear, telling them he had photographs. Authorities then asked Ray how much he had had to drink that day, he said.
“I wanted everybody to see it. I couldn’t believe it myself,” Ray said. “It really surprised me. I was astonished.”
Ray, who is on the water fishing four or five days a week, said the bear is an unusual type of wildlife he has scene on the water.
“I really want to see (the bear) captured and relocated,” Ray said. “This is personal to me now.”
Pfleger said while hiking or walking make as much noise as possible to let any wild animals know you are nearby, don’t approach the animal and make yourself as big as possible.
“We are not actively looking for the bear, but are encouraging if someone sees the bear they need to call the Arizona Game and Fish hotline at 800-352-0700 to reach the dispatch center in Phoenix,” Plefer said.
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