"Local Opposition to Park Closure Increasing"
By STEPHEN J. NOVAKWANTAGE — Word of High Point State Park's impending closure, announced April 1 as a result of proposed state budget cuts, recently reached the Maryland home of John Mather.
The NASA astrophysicist and 2006 winner of the Nobel Prize in physics was flabbergasted by the news that the park — and his childhood home on a farm within its boundaries — could be shut down in the name of savings.
"It's a shock to imagine that a major research establishment could be closed, reduced to rubble eventually," said Mather, a Newton High School graduate. "I think there's a better use for the property."
When he was growing up on the historic Lusscroft Farm, the 578-acre property was an agricultural research station. It is currently maintained by the Heritage and Agriculture Association, a group of volunteers that seeks to fully re-open the farm.
Now, those volunteers fear their efforts to promote and restore the historic property may be in vain.
The state Department of Environmental Protection is anticipating an $8.8 million reduction from its $34 million parks management general fund, as a result of budget cuts proposed by Gov. Jon S. Corzine. To account for the change, the staffing budget will be reduced by about $4 million if nine state parks are closed — including High Point — and the services of three others are reduced.
A High Point park closure, one Lusscroft Farm volunteer told the Sussex County Freeholders last week, will bar the group from the buildings, which will eventually fall into disrepair without the proper attention.
But the full effects of a closure have not been determined by the state, a department spokesman said. A summary of the effects of the proposed budget that was recently posted on the department's Web site said High Point's swimming and camping areas, along with the office, would be closed. Access to the High Point monument and some trails "would be impacted," though how is not yet clear.
DEP representative Elaine Makatura said the "operational details" of the closures are still being worked out. Specific closure plans will be developed for each individual area, to make sure proper care is taken of resources and mind public safety.
"Groups should express their concerns to us through our Web site to make sure we are aware of them," Makatura said. "We're soliciting input. We're listening."
Veterans' groups have complained that High Point's closure will block their access to the park monument, which was constructed as a memorial for those who served in the military. Environmental and outdoors advocacy groups have said the trails and park resources will deteriorate without staff to maintain them. Local officials have griped that the parks are owned by taxpayers, and they should not be blocked from using them.
Mather said he will soon add his voice to those who have already started protesting the park closures.
"I'm sure no one cares that I used to live there," he said. "But I think (the parks) are something that millions of people use."
Meeting the criteria
Outlined in the DEP's online closure summary is the criteria used to select parks to shut down or limit services. Department officials analyzed the parks' approximate annual attendance, annual revenue, if there are similar services nearby, and if a closure could result in savings.
High Point State Park draws about 202,000 people each year, and generates about $210,000, Makatura said. She said she could not provide the figures for other nearby parks, but said the "people who handle the info probably did a comparison."
According to the online information, $860,000 in total revenue would be lost through the park closures — out of about $7.5 million generated annually through the park system.
The State Park Police budget will be reduced by about $740,000, but will retain funding for patrols of closed parks.
Also included in the savings measures is the "organizational consolidations" of the park system's four regional offices, Voorhees State Park and Sussex County's Kittatinny Valley State Park.
The announcement has concerned members of the Paulinskill Valley Trail Committee — a non-profit volunteer organization that promotes resource conservation in Kittatinny Valley. They worry that a potential lack of staffing could lead to the deterioration of the park's trails, which include the Paulinskill Valley Trail and a portion of the Sussex Branch Trail, or the closing of the park altogether, member Marge Barrett told the Sussex County Freeholders at their meeting on Wednesday.
But what the consolidations will mean for park services falls under the operational details under consideration, Makatura said.
High Point is the only affected park in Sussex County, but parks in Burlington, Hunterdon, Mon-mouth, Salem and Warren counties will also be shut down.
When taken in context with other proposals — such as cutting aid to small towns that do not consolidate services, or charging rural areas for State Police coverage — Assemblyman Gary Chiusano, R-24, said the park closures reflect an "an overall spending accountability mentality" in Trenton.
Cuts could be made in urban areas, he said, where "an unfair share" of tax dollars go.
"It's another example of, in my opinion, the Corzine people taking another shot at the rural areas," Chiusano said. "It's bad management to go after state parks instead of waste in the city."
Opposition mounting
At Wednesday's meeting, Freeholder Director Hal Wirths said there may be a measure of legitimacy to some of the cost-cutting actions in the park service, such as consolidating administrators.
But the idea of closing parks entirely, he said, is "a nightmare" that will affect the county economically. The draw of the area's state parks bring customers to area stores and restaurants.
"The state government has said we're going to be an 'agri-tourism' county," Wirths said. "I think this would be devastating.
"At this point, I hope it's a bluff," he said, theorizing the proposal might be a way to garner support for highway toll increases or other measures. "But you can't assume."
The county freeholders agreed Wednesday to make their opposition to the park plan known to the state through a letter, though such an effort is largely symbolic. However, discussion also gave the county officials an opportunity to vent on the issue.
Wirths referenced New Jersey tourism commercials that advertise everything "from Cape May to High Point."
"It's going to have to be Cape May to Newton from now on," he said flippantly.
If High Point and the other eight designated parks were to close, it wouldn't happen until July 1 when the 2008/2009 state budget goes into effect.
It shouldn't be too difficult to arrange a physical presence at the High Point park gates that day, said Freeholder Susan Zellman. She noted more than 100 residents and local, county and state officials attended a rally at the park last weekend with only a day or two notice.
The support for the park system is evidenced in the fact that of the four ballot questions in last year's general election, the one designating more funding to parks was the only one that passed, Freeholder Glen Vetrano said.
The state is still paying for a restoration of the High Point monument, Vetrano said, and volunteers are still working to maintain the Lusscroft Farm.
If the park closes, he said, "what message does that send to a group of volunteers who devoted time and energy into a property destined for bulldozers?"
painting
by Louis Larson • courtesy of Fred Space
