Homolovi Ruins State Park

No matter state budget outcome, some Arizona State Parks likely to close

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[Source: Tammy Gray-Searles, Navajo County Publishers] — The early shutdown of campgrounds at Arizona State Parks is likely a foreshadowing of things to come for several parks across the state, including Lyman Lake and Homolovi state parks.  Regardless of the final outcome of the state budget, which was still not finalized as of press time Wednesday, the Arizona State Parks Board will be forced to make painful budget cuts.  Reducing costs by closing at least eight state parks is still at the top of the list, and was scheduled to be the topic of a July 2 work session.

According to state parks spokesman Ellen Bilbrey, board members were not expected to take action at the work session, but instead were to determine exactly how to proceed when they hold their next regular meeting on Monday, Aug. 3.

The July 2 agenda called for the board to meet in executive session “for legal advice regarding strategies necessary to balance the budget including, but not limited to, spending reductions, staff layoffs or reductions in force, transferring expenses to alternative funding sources, suspending grant payments, suspending FY2010 grant cycle, park closures, reduction of hours/days of operations, deferring parks capital projects, furloughs, salary reductions, spending reductions…”  Public discussion was scheduled following the executive session.

Parks on the potential chopping block besides Lyman Lake and Homolovi include Riordan Mansion, Fort Verde State Historic Park, Yuma Quartermaster Depot, Oracle State Park, Tubac Presidio, and McFarland State Historic Park. [Note: Read the full article at No matter state budget outcome, some Arizona State Parks likely to close]

Hopi ruins near Winslow, Arizona face closure

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Susan Secakuku, a Hopi Tribe official, speaks at an ancient structure at Homolovi Ruins State Park near Winslow. The site is important to the Hopi because it once was occupied by the tribe's Anasazi ancestors. The tribe is trying to develop a partnership that would keep the park open if budget cuts require park closures.
Susan Secakuku, a Hopi Tribe official, talks about the importance of Homolovi Ruins State Park near Winslow.

[Source: Daniel Newhauser, Cronkite News Service] — Before Homolovi Ruins became a state park, relic hunters with shovels and even backhoes used to tear through the rolling high desert here scrounging for ancient pottery.   Today, remnants of a 14th-century Anasazi village are preserved, and in some cases, restored so visitors such as Micah Lomaomuaya, a member of the Hopi tribe, can see how ancestors of the Hopi traded and farmed along the Little Colorado River.  But it also serves as a bridge between cultures, he said. “This is really a good stepping stone for us to use in terms of sharing our culture with the outside world,” said Lomaomuaya, a consulting anthropologist for his tribe.  “If this park closed, it would really limit our ability to reach and interact with the outside world.”

As the Legislature grapples with a $3 billion budget shortfall for fiscal year 2010, Homolovi Ruins, the only state park dedicated to Native American culture, is among facilities that could face closure as Arizona State Parks anticipates budget cuts.

That’s no small worry to Lomaomuaya and others in the Hopi tribe, whose reservation lies 60 miles north of Homolovi Ruins, but whose history is embedded in this auburn expanse that in Hopi means “place of the little hills.”  “It cannot close, in my mind,” Lomaomuaya said.  “It needs to be open for everybody.” [Note: To read the full article, click here.]

Arizona’s Homolovi Ruins State Park remains open at present

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Homolovi II is the largest of the sites at Homolovi Ruins State Park (Photo: Arizona State Parks)

[Source: Tammy Gray-Searles, AZJournal.com] — Homolovi and Lyman Lake State Parks got a reprieve last Friday as the State Parks and Recreation Board decided not to close any additional state parks until at least the next fiscal year, which begins in July.   The board met April 3 to discuss ways to balance the 2008-09 fiscal year budget, which was subject to significant cuts by the state. The board determined that, at least for now, parks on the potential closure list could remain open.  Other cuts to balance the budget have been and will continue to be made, however, including halting capital projects, a number of grant contracts and personnel reductions.  [Note: To read the full article, click here.]

Fate of Arizona’s state parks to be discussed, April 3

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[Source: Casey Newton, Arizona Republic] — The fate of eight state parks will be up for discussion Friday when the Arizona State Parks Board meets to discuss cost-cutting moves.  Like most state agencies, the parks board has seen its budget cut dramatically over the past 12 months.  The agency must close a $3 million budget deficit by the end of June.

Three state parks already have closed indefinitely to allow for repairs and to save money.  Eight more state parks could shut down depending on the board’s vote Friday: Homolovi Ruins, Oracle, Yuma Quartermaster Depot, Tubac Presidio, Fort Verde, Lyman Lake, Riordan Mansion, and Red Rock.

Alternatives to closing the parks indefinitely include seasonal closings, reduced days or hours of operation and layoffs.  “Anything can happen,” parks spokeswoman Ellen Bilbrey said.

The board meets at 11:30 a.m., Friday, April 3 at the Carnegie Center, 1101 W. Washington St., Phoenix.