Arizona  REP Coordinator Tina Beattie, left, joins fellow REP member Andy Woodward at Capitol 
rally held February 1, 2010, to save Arizona’s state parks from closure.

Stop the Closure of Arizona State Parks!

UPDATE: Arizona REP took part in a February 1, 2010 rally at state Capitol to save state parks. Contact Arizona REP Coordinator Tina Beattie for information. See commentary on Jim DiPeso's Blog

UPDATE: On January 15, 2010, the state Parks Board voted to close 13 parks by June 3. The remaining nine could be closed unless $3 million can be found to augment the parks budget.

Many of Arizona’s beautiful state parks are threatened with closure this year because of an irresponsible raid on the state parks budget by the state’s Legislature.

The Legislature’s diversion of funds specifically designated for parks slashed the parks budget by nearly two-thirds. Unless funding is restored, the state will be forced to close many parks.

Please send a letter to Arizona Governor Jan Brewer (link to contact information below). Tell her that closing state parks matters to citizens inside and outside of Arizona. Ask Governor Brewer to find a solution allowing the parks to remain open for all to enjoy, including out-of-state visitors who spend billions of dollars per year in Arizona to enjoy the state’s scenic heritage.

All of us have a stake in stopping the closure of Arizona’s state parks.

Arizonans stand to lose access to lands for which they have paid millions of dollars per year in special fees, trusting that their elected representatives would keep their promises to spend fee income on state parks. In these challenging economic times, closing state parks would take away a low-cost, close-to-home vacation alternative for Arizona families.

Out-of-state visitors would no longer be able to visit spectacular desert and mountain parks. If Arizona sends a signal that access to public lands is not a high priority, visitors might take their tourism business elsewhere. Tourism-dependent communities would no longer enjoy the economic benefits of visitor spending for lodging, food, fuel, recreation equipment, and other supplies. Arizona’s reputation as a state that values the economic engine of tourism would be damaged, perhaps irreparably.

Public lands are not a luxury that can be tossed aside when the going gets tough. As Theodore Roosevelt knew more than a century ago, public lands are essential for keeping America a strong and prosperous democracy. Our country’s outdoor heritage, open to every citizen from every walk of life, strengthens our economy, enlivens our culture, and enriches our lives. We must protect our public lands for all to enjoy, now and in the future.

Please contact Governor Brewer today. Governor Brewer’s postal, telephone, fax, and online contact information is available here.

---

Arizona Public Lands Legislation Enacted into Law with REP Support

Statutory permanence for the National Landscape Conservation System. The NLCS includes 26 million acres of BLM lands with special scenic, ecological, and cultural value. NLCS units in Arizona include Agua Fria, Grand Canyon-Parashant, Ironwood Forest, Sonoran Desert, and Vermillion Cliffs National Monuments, which together protect 1.9 million acres of spectacular mesas, buttes, canyons, and forests. Other Arizona NLCS units include Gila Box Riparian, San Pedro Riparian, and Las Cienegas National Conservation Areas; the Juan Batista de Anza and Old Spanish National Historic Trails, and numerous wilderness areas.
Fossil Creek Wild and Scenic River, running nearly 17 miles from the confluence of Sand Rock and Calf Pen Canyons to the Verde River confluence.
Arizona National Scenic Trail, running 807 miles from the Arizona-Utah line to the U.S.-Mexico border.