New York State To Close Several Parks

NYS is looking to close several parks. When I look at my tax dollars they are some of the few I think are well spent. These parks provide a photographers paradise. They will be a major loss to NYS residents and anyone who visits the state.


by New York State Office of the Governor
ALBANY, NY (02/19/2010)(readMedia)-- The Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) today put forward a recommended list of closures and service reductions in order to achieve its 2010-11 agency savings target and help address the State's historic fiscal difficulties.

Governor David A. Paterson issued the following statement:

"New York faces an historic fiscal crisis of unprecedented magnitude. It has demanded many difficult but necessary decisions to help ensure the fiscal integrity of our State. The unfortunate reality of closing an $8.2 billion deficit is that there is less money available for many worthy services and programs. In an environment when we have to cut funding to schools, hospitals, nursing homes, and social services, no area of State spending, including parks and historic sites, could be exempt from reductions. We cannot mortgage our State's financial future through further gimmicks or avoidance behavior. Spending cuts, however difficult, are needed in order to put New York on the road to fiscal recovery. Going forward through the budget process, I look forward to a productive dialogue with the Legislature on parks and historic sites, as well as other issues."

OPRHP Commissioner Carol Ash issued the following statement:

"The 2010-11 Executive Budget included reductions to every area of State spending. As such, the Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation has today put forward proposed closures and service reductions to meet its agency savings target. These actions were not recommended lightly, but they are necessary to address our State's extraordinary fiscal difficulties."

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A fact sheet on the proposed closures and service reductions is included below:

The Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) today put forward a list of closures and service reductions in order to achieve its proposed 2010-11 agency savings target and help address the State's historic fiscal difficulties. As part of a comprehensive plan to close an $8.2 billion deficit, the 2010-11 Executive Budget included necessary cost reductions to each executive State agency, as well as cuts to education, health care, social services, and every other area of State spending.

OPRHP's plan includes the closure of 41 parks and 14 historic sites, and service reductions at 23 parks and 1 historic site.

The plan also assumes $4 million in park and historic site fee increases that will be identified at a later date, and the use of $5 million in funds from the Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) to finance OPRHP operations. These two actions were part of the 21-day amendments to the Executive Budget and are intended to reduce the number of parks and historic sites subject to closures and service reductions.

Specific recommended closures and service reductions are detailed below:

Long Island

Brookhaven State Park Suffolk Close Park
Bethpage State Park Suffolk Eliminate Winter Sports;
Reduce picnic area and polo field
Caleb Smith State Park Preserve Suffolk Close Park
Cold Spring Harbor State Park Suffolk Close Park
Connetquot River State Park Suffolk Close Weekdays
Heckscher State Park Suffolk Close Swimming Pool
Jones Beach State Park Nassau Close West Swimming Pool;
Eliminate July 4th fireworks
Montauk Downs State Park Suffolk Close Swimming Pool
Nissequogue River State Park Suffolk Close Park
Orient Beach State Park Suffolk Close Park
Trail View State Park Suffolk Close Park
New York City Region

Bayswater Point State Park Queens Close Park
Riverbank State Park New York Reduce Operating Hours;
Close Outdoor Swimming Pool;
Eliminate Seniors Classes; and
Community/Cultural Events
Palisades Region

Fort Montgomery Historic Site Orange Close Historic Site
Harriman SP– Anthony Wayne Orange Close Park Area
Harriman SP – Group Camps Orange Reduce Maintenance
High Tor State Park Rockland Close Pool
Knox Headquarters Historic Site Orange Close Historic Site
New Windsor Cantonment SHS Orange Close Historic Site
Schunnemunk State Park Orange Close Park
Stony Point State Historic Site Orange Close Historic Site
Tallman Mountain State Park Rockland Close Pool
Taconic Region

Donald J. Trump State Park Westchester Close Park
FDR (Roosevelt) State Park Westchester Reduce Swimming Pool Season
Hudson Highlands State Park Putnam Close Arden Point Area
James Baird State Park Dutchess Reduce Golf Course Season
Mills Norrie State Park Dutchess Reduce Golf Course Season
Olana State Historic Site Columbia Close 2 Days per Week
Philipse Manor Hall Historic Site Westchester Close Historic Site
Rockefeller State Park Preserve Westchester Eliminate Interpretive Programs
Taconic Outdoor Education Center Putnam Eliminate Interpretive Programs
Taconic State Park – Rudd Pond Dutchess Close Rudd Pond Area
Wonder Lake State Park Putnam Close Park
Saratoga-Capital Region

Bennington Battlefield State Park Rensselaer Close Historic Site
Hudson River Islands State Park Rensselaer Close Park
John Boyd Thacher State Park Albany Close Park
John Brown Farm Historic Site Essex Close Historic Site
Johnson Hall State Historic Site Fulton
Close Historic Site

Max V. Shaul State Park Schoharie Close Park
Schodack Island State Park Rensselaer Close Park
Schoharie Crossing Historic Site Schoharie Close Historic Site
Schuyler Mansion Historic Site Albany Close Historic Site
Central Region

Chittenango Falls State Park Madison Close Park
Clark Reservation State Park Onondaga Close Park
Fort Ontario State Historic Site Oswego Close Historic Site
Helen McNitt State Park Madison Close Park
Herkimer Home Historic Site Herkimer Close Historic Site
Hunts Pond State Park Chenango
Close Park

Oquaga Creek State Park Broome Close Park
Old Erie Canal State Park Onondaga Close Park
Oriskany Battlefield/Steuben SHS Oneida Close Historic Site
Pixley Falls State Park Oneida Close Park
Robert Riddell State Park Delaware
Close Park

Selkirk Shores State Park Oswego Close Public Swimming Beach
Finger Lakes Region

Beechwood State Park Wayne Close Park
Bonavista State Park Seneca Close Park
Chimney Bluffs State Park Wayne Close Park
Newtown Battlefield State Park Chemung Close Park
Springbrook Greens State Park Cayuga Close Park
Two Rivers State Park Tioga Close Park
Buttermilk Falls State Park Tompkins Close Public Swimming Area
Seneca Lake State Park Seneca Close Lake Swimming Beach
Stony Brook State Park Steuben Close Public Swimming Area
Thousand Islands Region

Canoe Island State Park Jefferson Close Park
Cedar Island State Park Jefferson Close Park
Eel Weir State Park St. Lawrence Close Park
Keewaydin State Park Jefferson Close Park
Macomb Reservation State Park Clinton Close Park
Mary Island State Park Jefferson Close Park
Point Au Roche State Park Clinton Close Park
Sackets Harbor State Historic Site Jefferson Close Historic Site
Genesee Region

Hamlin Beach State Park Monroe Close Swimming Beach 3 Days per Week
Oak Orchard State Marine Park Orleans Close Park
Regionwide Multiple Eliminate Camper Recreation Program
Niagara Region

Joseph Davis State Park Niagara Close Park
Knox Farm State Park Erie Close Park
Niagara Falls State Park Niagara Reduce Interpretive Programs
Wilson-Tuscarora State Park Niagara Close Park
Woodlawn Beach State Park Erie Close Park
Allegany Region

Allegany State Park Cattaraugus Close Quaker Area Swim Beach;
Close Quaker Cabins Area on December 1st;
Eliminate Winter Trails Maintenance;
Reduce Recreation Programs
Long Point State Park Chautauqua
Close Park

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Michael,
This is another episode in the battle between Governor Paterson (who is in a losing battle to keep NY State from going totally broke) and the State Legislature, which is pretty useless, but does have the power to save parks. Their main motivation is to get re-elected, so if you want your parks, you need to sit down right now and write sort letters to your State Assembly Member and State Senator (not the ones in Washington) to tell them how important the parks are to you. NPN members who live in NY State can find the names and addresses of your Assembly members and State Senators simply by typing your zip code in the box at http://www.votesmart.org/ . Write the governor too, and tell him he will get your vote if he manages to find a better way to balance the budget.

VoteSmart is a good resource Wayne. Thanks for the link. I write a lot of such letters/emails but am always looking up the people individually. It's nice to have it all in one place.

I saw this the other day and shocked to see so many of my favorite spots in the list. Terrible proposal. I encourage everyone in the area to write or join local organization's effort to protest against this

I think one of the questions I would ask is, what do you mean by close? If it just means that there will not be park personnel or maintenance efforts, that is unfortunate, but it bodes well for any future that includes solvency. If it means that, in some way, the sites will be physically put off-limits to the public, that is a worse thing, but again, it leaves hope for the future of the site. If it means that they are going to sell the site--that is disastrous.

Also, attend to what Wayne is saying--it is not the Chief Executives, no matter what we may feel about them--who decide on spending. It is the legislatures. Senators and Representatives get away with these shenanigans, at the State and Federal level, by creating popular programs and taking the credit and then cutting off the funding and blaming the Governor or President for trying to operate within the means that the Legislature allows. It is gutless, spineless hypocrisy of the worst sort.

Thanks for posting this, I cant beleive how many parks were listed and although i dont live in New York, it really feels like a personal blow whenever somthing that disastrous happens to our wildernesses and parks. I really hope the parks will remain parks and I just dont see how they could ne heartless enough to sell some of natures last strongholds (our park system) to anybody who dosnt plan on preserving the park themselves.

Arnab, could you please explain why this is a terrible proposal? The article states every department in the State has to cut their budget. If you do not agree with this proposal, what alternative cuts or alternative funding do you suggest to get their budget down to where it needs to be? It's easy to protest against any cut in service but the fact remains the State has a $8.2 Billion deficit to close, there are thousands of special interest groups that don't want their piece of the pie taken away and if everybody gets their way you end up without the required cuts. Seems to me if people are going to write letters to tell their State Representatives how important the Parks are to them they ought to also propose legitimate alternatives. For instance, how about setting up a non-profit group that would raise money/seek corporate sponsorship/adopt a specific park to keep it open, or organize a group of volunteers to run/manage the park in conjunction with the state. Or seek a private company that would run/manage the park under a lease agreement with the State.

Scott makes a great point here, and offers some valid alternatives to consider. Another one may not be popular, but should be looked at, too. With some of the general tax revenues falling in the slow economy, user fees for specific benefits such as parks might be something to look into. State parks have modest entry fees. Would you be willing to pay more to keep them open?

And speaking of user fees, the two largest state parks -- the huge Adirondack and Catskill forest preserves (larger than many entire states) don't charge ANY user fees at all! The only users of these areas who pay fees are the hunters and anglers. There is a voluntary $5 "Trails Supporter Patch" (http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/36016.html) that you can buy, to help support the trail systems. A pitiful total of 197 of these were sold last year, and I bet most of the people who buy them are hunters and anglers! Most of us get a totally free ride to use the most valuable resources the State has. Would you be willing to pay for something like an access pass or a vehicle sticker that allowed you to use the trailhead and canoe access parking lots?

As Scott said, demanding that your pet state benefits be protected from budget cuts without offering alternatives to keep the state solvent is not a big help to those who have to make the difficult decisions.

(Checking in between periods of the Canada/Russia Game )