Governor's bid to close parks stirs broad dissent By Michael Gardner San Diego Union Tribune January 28, 2008

SACRAMENTO – State lawmakers have quickly learned that sparing treasured parks from painful budget cuts will be no picnic.

Alternatives from raising fees to shifting revenues to counting on volunteers are riddled with obstacles.

Existing fees are already among the highest in the nation and any new increase could drive away visitors, even though a visit to most parks is still cheaper than a movie.

There are no long lines of volunteers, nonprofit groups or local agencies eager to take over facilities, even temporarily.

Californians have long resisted efforts to commercialize parks, from Kodak-moment spots in front of Half Dome to “this beach brought to you by” Billabong banners.

Despite these challenges, Democratic and Republican lawmakers vow to resist Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposal to save $13.3 million by locking the gates at 48 state parks and cutting seasonal lifeguards.

“We will work to have a long-term solution that doesn't allow this to happen again,” said Assemblyman John Laird, D-Santa Cruz, a top budget negotiator.

No parks or museums would be shuttered in San Diego County. However, the number of seasonal lifeguards would dive by about half. Currently, 125 temporary lifeguards cover 39 towers and 17 miles of state beach along the San Diego coast for an estimated cost of $1.35 million per season. Seven million visitors are drawn to the area's state beaches every year.

Schwarzenegger told the Sacramento Bee this month that his goal was to “rattle the cage” and shake lawmakers out of a complacency toward parks.

It worked.

Critics of his cuts say public safety will be a casualty. Emptying lifeguard towers and replacing them with “swim at your own risk” signs is not an option, said Sen. Denise Ducheny, D-San Diego, a budget negotiator.

Sal Goshorn, a Huntington Beach lifeguard, said, “Not having personnel there in the busy season is just ludicrous. One of the canons of state government is public safety.”

Also, closed parks could be a magnet for criminals and transients, critics say. Rangers would patrol the shuttered parks, but the only state park ranger ever shot in the line of duty was patrolling a seasonally closed campground near Santa Cruz when the incident occurred. Lt. Sharon Galligan survived the 2002 attack.

Sen. Dennis Hollingsworth, R-Temecula, is confident lawmakers will block park closures.

“I don't know if it's necessary if we're creative in our thinking,” he said. “Closing them is a painful idea that people probably won't support.”

Park supporters are treating Schwarzenegger's threat seriously, scrambling to find alternatives.

Among those: charge more for vehicle registration and then reward motorists with a few free admission days.

But drivers may resist, particularly because starting July 1 the state will charge $3 more for registration to help fund clean-air programs. Additionally, Schwarzenegger's new budget proposes an $11 increase in vehicle registration fees to raise $500 million a year for the California Highway Patrol.

Other ideas that could be combined to offset the budget crunch include: more public-private partnerships, using money raised from sales of an existing special environmental license plate program, recruiting more volunteers and shifting revenues from lower-priority programs to state parks.

“There are many creative ways we can find millions in budget savings without sacrificing our natural resources,” said Assemblyman Sam Blakeslee, R-San Luis Obispo.

But some say the state cannot count on a swelling number of volunteers – those who want to help already do.

Also, private funding is not likely to provide sufficient revenues, said Elizabeth Goldstein, president of the California State Parks Foundation. Her nonprofit group has raised $130 million – since 1969. That's not nearly enough to sustain parks, she said.

The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office, in previous reports, has suggested opening more concessions, contracting out fee collection and maintenance, and raising fees.

Traditionally, the state has looked to charging more to park, camp and tour to offset losses. But another fee increase has met with a cool reception from park supporters, lawmakers and some within the Schwarzenegger administration.

“That solution is more of the same,” Goldstein said.

Revenue gains from fee increases also could be offset by a drop in attendance, parks officials say. At Hearst Castle in San Simeon, visitation dropped 20 percent and camping spot sales fell by 1 million after fee increases in 2004.

Closing parks may not save the state much money if the paying visitor is locked out and neighboring businesses slump, resulting in financial losses in fees and taxes, critics say.

Off the table are any suggestions that the law be changed to allow parks to charge school groups, which are now admitted free.

Critics of the governor's plan also say the savings goal should be a more modest $8.9 million, which is the amount the governor proposes to carve out of direct park services.

“I don't have a solution,” lamented Assemblyman Ira Ruskin, D-Redwood City. “I just know nobody wants to close parks.”