Yavapai County

Arizona parks rescued by communities and non-profits

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[Source; Megan Neighbor, The Arizona Republic] –  In the depths of the recession, state budget cuts made it seem almost certain that the gates to manyArizonaparks would remain padlocked. But local communities and non-profit organizations have banded together to keep 14 of the state’s most financially vulnerable parks open by providing more than $820,000 to the cash-strapped Arizona State Parks agency.

For example, the Friends of Tonto Natural Bridge State Park and the towns of Payson and StarValleyare helping provide $35,000 in funding to the namesake park inGilaCounty. Through a contract with Santa Cruz County, the Tubac Historical Society is helping keepTubacPresidioStateHistoricPark’s doors open by providing both funding and operational support.RedRockState Parkin Sedona is being aided byYavapai Countyand the Benefactors of Red Rock State Park. All but one of the state’s other 13 parks remain open, albeit seasonally in some cases, because they take in enough revenue to stay in the black and fund their own operations.

Local authorities and non-profits say they decided to cast a financial lifeline to the more vulnerable parks because they recognize their value – their rich history, intense beauty and, perhaps most importantly, their economic impact. Today, less than two years after major closures seemed certain, 26 of Arizona’s 27 parks are open, although many have abbreviated schedules [to read the full article click here].

Community involvement keeps threatened Arizona parks open

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[Source: Mark Duncan, Enterprise Reporter, the Daily Courier] – A couple of years ago, the Arizona State Parks system found itself in a second-hand crisis, thanks to the general budgeting malaise that affected the whole of state government. With gargantuan deficits looming, the Legislature chose to “sweep” pretty much any and all available money from any and all “non-essential” departments, including the state parks department, which suddenly had some hard choices on its hands.

The directors there cut staffing and programs and looked for every possible way to make ends meet. In the end, though, they had to make a list they never thought they’d make – a list of parks that might have to close because they just couldn’t make ends meet on their own. On that list were Red Rocks State Park, one of four conservation parks statewide, and Fort Verde Historic State Park, one of the nine historic parks in the system.

Well, the folks of Sedona and Camp Verde weren’t going to let that happen in their towns. And it just so happened that Yavapai County Supervisor Chip Davis had stashed away some money from cable television franchise fees – money that was earmarked for parks and recreation activities. With the blessing of the other two supervisors, he pledged $30,000 per year to each of the two parks.

In Sedona, as the staff of state employees was cut in half, the community came alive in support of the park. In addition to the county money, the City of Sedona contributed $15,000 and the Sedona Community Foundation added $10,000, and a group called the Benefactors of Red Rock State Park came up with $145,000 in donations large and small, including $15,000 from a family foundation that paid for a part-time ranger to run the school program [to read the full article click here].

Douglas Mansion project in Jerome wins Governor’s award

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[Source: Philip Wright, Verde Independent] – Among the Governor’s Awards presented for Arizona Public Archaeology and Heritage Preservation announced June 24, was an award for the stabilization project of the Douglas Mansion at Jerome State Historic Park near Jerome. The award ceremony took place at the University Park Marriott in Tucson during the 9th Annual Arizona Historic Preservation Conference. The DouglasMansionproject was recognized as a partnership among ArizonaState Parks, YavapaiCounty, the Town of Jeromeand the Jerome Historical Society.

The Jerome State Historic Park, with the Douglas Mansion as its centerpiece, reopened Oct. 14, after the stabilization project was completed. The popular state park was closed suddenly in February 2009 due to budget sweeps and needed repairs. No one was expecting the park to reopen in the foreseeable future. But a partnership of sorts among the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors, the State Parks Board, the Douglas family and the Town of Jerome gave the park new life. The partnership brought about the reopening of the park much sooner than expected.

Chip Davis, county supervisor for District 3, convinced the board to kick in $30,000. TheDouglas family chipped in $15,000, and the State Parks Heritage Fund came up with grants for the project. TheDouglasMansion was built in 1916 by Jimmy “Rawhide” Douglas, and it became a state park in 1965. Douglas designed the mansion as a home for his family and as a hotel for mining officials and investors. Originally, the mansion featured a billiard room, wine cellar and steam heat. Built from adobe bricks made on site, the home was well ahead of the times with a central vacuum system. Now the museum features many exhibits, mining artifacts, photographs, minerals and a three-dimensional model of Jerome with its underground mines and tunnels.

Game and Fish to buy Horseshoe Ranch next to Agua Fria Monument

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[Source: Joanna Dodder Nellans, The Daily Courier] – The Arizona Game and Fish Commission has unanimously agreed to buy the Horseshoe Ranch, sealing a deal to keep the 199-acre inholding surrounded by the Agua Fria National Monument in public hands. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management had wanted to buy the ranch ever since the surrounding lands became a BLM monument in 2000, but couldn’t come up with the money to maintain it in the future, explained Monument Manager Rem Hawes. So Game and Fish stepped in with the help of grant and lottery money.

The historic ranch features two homes, bunkhouses, a large barn, storage buildings, ancient rock art and a half-mile of the Agua Fria River in southeastern Yavapai County. “This is a significant riparian corridor,” said Angie Lohse, land and water program manager for Game and Fish. The agency plans to use the ranch for outdoor and wildlife educational activities, she said, much like way it uses its Sipe White Mountain Wildlife Area near Springerville [to read the full article click here].