Support Is Needed To Keep State Parks Open

By Tammy Gray-Searles
   On Jan. 15, the Arizona State Parks Board will be forced to make some tough decisions about the future of several state parks, and according to public information officer Ellen Bilbrey, it is no longer a matter of whether some parks will close, but which parks will close.
   “It’s a pretty dire situation,” she said.
   In December the state legislature passed a bill that cuts more than $8 million from the department’s budget. According to Bilbrey, that leaves the agency in a precarious situation.
   “Last year they gave us $30 million to operate. This year we were at $19 million, and now we’re below $10 million,” she said.
   None of the funds budgeted for the parks department this fiscal year come from the state’s general fund, and Bilbrey pointed out that part of the funds being swept by the state are entrance fees collected at the parks.
   “The gate fees are what we use to operate,” she explained. “Once you start not taking in gate fees, it’s a death spiral down.”
   According to Bilbrey, the state park system is not designed to make a profit, but is intended to stimulate the economy in rural areas.
   “Rural communities need to make people understand how important parks are. They need to participate in this process,” she said. “The parks board is trying to save the parks. It’s the legislators that are making the decisions.”
   According to a Northern Arizona University (NAU) study released in February 2009, Homolovi State Park has a $3.5 million annual impact on Navajo County.   It is also estimated that 44 full-time jobs would be impacted if the park is closed down.   Homolovi visitors contributed a total of $2.6 million directly to the economy and just under $900,000 indirectly. The average Homolovi visitor spent a total of $227 in the area while visiting the park, including admission fees, souvenirs, dining, fuel, snacks and lodging.
   Similarly, Lyman Lake State Park in Apache County has a $2.4 million impact and creates 35 full-time jobs.
   Those numbers include direct expenditures, indirect expenditures and what the study terms “induced” expenditures. According to the study compiled by the Hospitality Research and Resource Center at NAU, direct expenditures are those made by visitors to the state parks on items such as entrance fees, food, hotel rooms and souvenirs. Indirect expenditures are money spent in order to provide those services, for example, purchases of cleaning supplies by motels that provide a room to park visitors. Induced expenditures are those made by the third party, such as the cleaning supply vendor purchasing spray bottles in order to supply cleaning products to the hotel that services the visitors.
   The number of jobs associated with each park also includes direct, indirect and induced jobs.
   The study did not include expenditures made by visitors who live within 50 miles of the park.
   Statewide, the study found that state parks contribute $224.4 million to the economy, with $162.8 million spent directly at the parks, and the remainder at related and supporting businesses such as hotels and restaurants. In Navajo County, Homolovi and Fools Hollow Lake together create an economic impact of $9.33 million and 117 jobs.
   In early 2009, Homolovi and Lyman Lake were on a list of state parks slated for potential closure due to state budget cuts. Despite a hefty budget reduction, the parks board kept them open, but reduced operating hours at Homolovi and limited camping at Lyman. The board also instituted a fee increase that will take effect March 1.
   When the list of parks being considered for closure was created last year, Bilbrey explained that those on the list were chosen based on cost per visitor to operate. Parks with the highest cost of operation per visitor were placed at the top of the list. In many cases, parks with the highest cost per visitor were also the parks with the lowest visitation rates.
   In fiscal year 2006-07, Homolovi hosted 15,953 visitors and Lyman Lake, 36,298. In comparison, Slide Rock State Park near Sedona had 249,409 visitors, and was one of the top revenue-producing parks in the state. Fool Hollow Lake hosted 95,495 visitors in that same time period.
   Bilbrey noted that this time around, a list has not been created or set, but a written presentation to the parks board regarding the December funds sweeps noted that, “With limited resources and severe cash flow problems, the staff recommendation (to keep parks open) will…focus on state parks with net revenue or very low net cost…”
   Officials of several cities have already met with park department officials to try to create partnerships to keep their local parks open. Bilbrey noted that some have offered to contribute cash, while others are working to coordinate volunteer efforts to keep parks open.
   “It’s critical for leaders in the community to get involved,” she said. “Let your mayors and your city officials know they should be at this (Jan. 15) meeting. We need participation.”