11 Most Endangered
California's State Parks
Year Listed: 2008
Location: Statewide, California
Current Status: Endangered
Threat: Deterioration, Neglect, Poor Public Policy
California's State Parks
Sutter's Fort State Park in Sacramento, California. Photo by Robert English.
California's State Parks
La Purisima Mission State Historic Park, northwest of Santa Barbara. Photo by Frank Balthis.
California's State Parks
Sutter's Fort State Park in Sacramento, California. Photo by Robert English.
California's state park system, the largest state park system in the U.S., encompasses a vast array of historic and cultural resources that chronicle the state's rich and storied heritage. Unfortunately, the park system has suffered greatly from years of chronic underfunding and deferred maintenance. The magnitude of the problem became even more acute earlier this year when Governor Schwarzenegger, prompted by the state budget crisis, required 10 percent across-the-board budget reductions that would have led to closure of 48 state parks and reduce lifeguard staffing at 16 state beaches.
What you can do
- If you're a Californian, please send a message to your state legislators TODAY to let them know you support the State Park Access Pass, and you are counting on them to approve this measure to save our state parks.
- Visit the statewide campaign Save Our State Parks (SOS), organized by the California State Parks Foundation.
- Visit a California state park.
- Help save California’s State Parks and other endangered places - donate to the 11 for the 11 Most Challenge.
On May 14, the governor's revised budget restored $11.8 million of the $13.3 million in cuts he had previously proposed, with the remaining $1.5 million gap to be covered by increasing some user fees. The new budget proposal staves off the threat of park closures for now, but the underlying problem remains and irreplaceable historic and cultural resources are still at risk. The budget for the Department of Parks and Recreation is woefully inadequate to support day-to-day parks operations, much less to address the $1.2 billion deferred maintenance bill that has accumulated through years of chronic underinvestment.
The system includes 278 parks, including 51 designated State Historic Parks, covers 1.5 million acres and protects 295 miles of ocean front. Among its many gems are the 1820's era Franciscan La Purisima Mission complex near Lompoc, completely restored during the Great Depression by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC); the 1853 Benicia Capitol, the only state capitol building predating today's capitol in Sacramento still standing; and, the historic mission plaza at San Juan Bautista, a rural community recently named a Dozen Distinctive Destination of 2008.
Funding for the state parks has suffered a precipitous decline. The 1990-91 state budget provided $4.16 per visitor; by the FY06-07 budget, it was down to $3.19 per visitor. Current general fund appropriations cover only 40% of actual maintenance and operations needs, despite the fact that public dollars invested in state parks reap real economic return. In general, for every $1 spent supporting the state park system, $2.35 is returned to the state's General Fund in the form of economic activity from park visitors, through purchases in local economies and in the state parks themselves.
"In California, and across the country, state park systems lack adequate funding for even basic maintenance. Without proper care, historic buildings and landscapes will deteriorate to a point where restoration may no longer be feasible," says Richard Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. " We must work together to ensure stable and sustainable funding for all state parks so that these threats can be avoided in the future and the parks can continue to be an educational and recreational resource for millions of visitors."
The severity of the proposed budget cuts galvanized tens of thousands of Californians to take action. The California State Parks Foundation, in partnership with organizations, businesses, local governments and individuals throughout the state, led the Save Our State Parks (SOS) Campaign, mobilizing supporters to press the Legislature to reject the budget proposals. Additionally, new tools such as MySpace, Facebook, YouTube and other social networking sites were used to increase awareness among all Californians regarding the Governor's proposed actions. The campaign has also launched a website (www.savestateparks.org) to direct individuals and organizations to effective actions they can take to express their opposition to the budget proposal.
For Press inquiries: http://press.nationaltrust.org/
Update
Modesto Bee: Park fee proposal would be a good deal for Californians
