Tubac

State parks, a vision now out of reach

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[Source: Arizona Republic Editorial] – The bulldozers were a distant rumble when the push began in 1973 to create Catalina State Park north of Tucson. It took another decade before the land could be acquired and the park dedicated by then-Gov. Bruce Babbitt.

The land was remote then. Its 5,500 acres of foothills, canyons and streams lie between Tucson and Oracle, near the Pusch Ridge Wilderness, where the Coronado National Forest climbs up into the Santa Catalina Mountains.

The park, dotted with 5,000 saguaros, is so rugged that desert bighorn sheep were relocated there. More than 150 species of birds live within its boundaries.

Today, the park is anything but remote. A bustling shopping center sits across from the park entrance. Development tickles the boundaries.

Without the vision of state leaders 40 years ago, this pristine piece of Arizona could be covered with houses and 7-Elevens today.

Today, creating a Catalina State Park would be impossible. Buying the land “would be out of reach,” says Ken Travous, who was executive director of Arizona State Parks for 23 years. “It was almost out of reach then.”

Catalina draws a wide variety of visitors even on a weekday. Campgrounds are full and horses wait in the corrals at the equestrian center.

The value of this lush, open desert in an increasingly urban landscape far exceeds dollars and cents. The wisdom of those who preserved it sings on the wind through the needles of a saguaro: Prescient. Far-sighted.

As Arizona’s population grows and the cost of land increases, places like Catalina become even more important to a state shaped by its wide, open spaces.

The same is true of other state parks that celebrate the state’s natural beauty, as well as those that recall the past, such as the historic courthouse in Tombstone, the Spanish presidio in Tubac, the prehistoric ruins at Homolovi (closed for a year because of budget cuts) and the world-class geological formations in Kartchner Caverns. And don’t forget the bikini country of Lake Havasu or water skiing at Lyman Lake.

These are picture-postcard places where families make memories and rural communities make bank.

Nearly 2.5 million people visit the state parks each year, with half coming from out of state, says State Parks Director Bryan Martyn.

The parks are a playground for urban Arizonans, but they are an economic driver for rural areas.

Martyn says state parks bring more than $300 million to rural economies annually. That’s a powerful economic driver, but years of funding cuts have left those who run the parks unable to keep up with necessary repairs, let alone acquire new parks for future generations.

“Simply put, without a stable, sustainable funding, Arizona’s park system will not be able to survive,” according to a 2009 report from Arizona State University’s Morrison Institute.

When it comes to the consequences of not putting resources into our parks, Travous puts it even more bluntly:

“It will get to the point where they are so hammered you don’t want to go there.”

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WHAT YOU CAN DO

Arizona State Parks are a resource for today and a promise for tomorrow. But short-sighted funding decisions imperil their future. You can help change that.

  • VISIT. Arizona’s state parks offer dazzling natural wonders, family recreational activities and authentic windows into Arizona’s history and prehistory. azstateparks.com
  • BE A CHAMPION. There’s an election coming up. Ask candidates for state office how they plan to support Arizona’s parks and let them know you want this to be a priority issue.
  • GET INVOLVED. More than a dozen parks have volunteer “friends” groups that provide fund-raising and other services for their chosen park. For information on joining or starting one: azstateparks.com/volunteer/v_foundation.html

Arizona State Parks Foundation is a non-profit that engages in advocacy, fund-raising and other support:arizonastateparksfoundation.org

The Arizona Heritage Alliance is a non-profit that promotes and protects the Heritage Fund and its goals: azheritage.org

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ABOUT THIS SERIES

Arizona State Parks are a valuable resource in great peril. Stripped of funding during the recession, they struggle without state money and stagger under deferred maintenance. Yet they offer open spaces and outdoor recreation for a growing urban population and an economic engine for rural communities. Popular with the public, but lacking political support, funding solutions can help the parks deliver on their remarkable potential.

More Arizona state parks eyed for closure

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Tonto Natural Bridge State Park added to closure list.

[Source: Associated Press] — Three more state parks are being considered for closure because of state budget cuts, bringing to 11 the number that could be shuttered in coming weeks.  Parks Director Ken Travous told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he is adding the three additional parks to a list of eight others previously identified as being considered for closure.

Travous identified the three as Red Rock State Park in Sedona, Jerome State Historic Park in Jerome, and Tonto National Bridge State Park near Payson.  Jerome State Historic Park centers on the Douglas Mansion, a landmark built in the former mining community that overlooks the Verde Valley.  Red Rock State Park, originally part of a ranch, is a 286-acre nature preserve and environmental education center.  Tonto Bridge is a natural geological feature located in a valley in pine country below the Mogollon Rim.

The state Parks Board will meet Friday in Peoria to consider cost-cutting measures that include park closures, seasonal closures and reduced hours of operations.  Other options include grant cancellations, shifting expenses to other accounts, and layoffs and unpaid time off for employees.  The board on Feb. 3 declined to take immediate action on park closures but voted to have Travous’ department proceed with planning possible economy moves, including alternatives to closures.

Travous said he has already effectively laid off approximately 65 seasonal employees, including some who had been slated to go on the payroll but now will not.  Parks previously identified as being considered for closure were: Fort Verde State Historic Park in Camp Verde, Homolovi Ruins State Park in Winslow, Lyman Lake State Park in Springerville, McFarland State Historic Park in Florence, Oracle State Park in Oracle, Riordan Mansion State Historic Park in Flagstaff, Tubac Presidio State Historic Park in Tubac, and Yuma Quartermaster Depot State Historic Park.  Travous said those were chosen for possible closure because of low visitation rates.  [Note: To read the full article, click here.]

Arizona state park closures delayed

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[Source: Casey Newton, Arizona Republic] — The closure of eight state parks was delayed Tuesday as the Arizona State Parks Board asked to be given more alternatives to consider.  The board voted unanimously to ask parks director Ken Travous and his staff to consider closing parks seasonally, furloughs for employees, and other reductions in operating expenses in an effort to spare the parks targeted for closing.  “I’d like to see a bigger menu,” said Mark Winkelman, a member of the board and the Arizona State Land Commissioner.  “We need to come up with some options instead of (just taking) one approach.”

The board will meet again Feb. 20, when it is scheduled to make a final decision.  The parks up for closure are: Fort Verde State Historic Park in Camp Verde; Homolovi Ruins State Park in Winslow; Lyman Lake State Park in Springerville; McFarland State Historic Park in Florence; Oracle State Park in Oracle; Riordan Mansion State Historic Park in Flagstaff; Tubac Presidio State Historic Park in Tubac; and Yuma Quartermaster Depot State Historic Park.

About 20 people from around the state spoke out during a Tuesday morning meeting that lasted more than three hours.  In all cases, speakers urged the board to resist closing the parks and seek alternatives to closing a 2009 budget deficit estimated at $650,000.  “We must be vigilant in saving our few remaining historic buildings as a legacy for our future generations,” said Shifra Lea Boehlje, a volunteer at Fort Verde.  “If we don’t preserve these buildings and artifacts, we will be destroying the only remaining monuments devoted to the memory of those soldiers who gave their lives for this great state.”

Despite residents’ cries, Travous was not optimistic that park closings could be avoided. “We need to make up a lot of money real fast,” said Travous, who has worked at the parks department since 1986. “We can chip around the edges, but the fact is that we’re out of time.”