It’s slated to be closed, but Max V. Shaul State Park can easily stay open––if state senators and assemblymen put a small portion of their member-item money towards it and other parks on the hit list.
That’s according to Assemblyman Pete Lopez, who’ll propose the plan this week.
Shaul Park is one of 41 state parks and 14 historic sites targeted to close in order to help narrow the state’s large budget gap.
The potential closure has activated the group Friends of Minekill and Max V. Shaul Parks to start a petition drive to keep Shaul Park open.
Members have also met with Assemblyman Lopez, who last week attended a bi-partisan legislative press conference that called for the parks to remain open.
“It sounds good, but where’s the money going to come from?” Assemblyman Lopez asked. “The parks should be open but there are other needs, too––health care, education, you name it.”
The mood of the press conference was forceful, he added, as legislators attacked Governor David Paterson’s closure plan.
“There was a lot of bravado there,” Assemblyman Lopez said.
So if other legislators are adamant about keeping parks open, they should offer their member-item money, he said. Legislators normally use that money for special projects within their districts.
The state budgeted $260 million last year for member items––in other words, pork. The Governor asked the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation to cut $29 million from its budget, so legislators would surrender a little more than 10 percent of the pork to keep the parks open.
“My pitch is to take it from the member items,” Assemblyman Lopez said. “Put their money where their mouth is. There’d still be enough for member items.”
The Friends of Mine Kill and Max Shaul are looking for any solution.
They’ve reached out to similar groups that support parks and historic sites in other parts of the state to build support for keeping all of them open.
“Everyone’s in an uproar over the Governor’s proposal,” said Brenda Weaver, co-chair of the Friends. “We’re trying to get all of us together in a single group.”
The Friends have started an on-line petition that can be reached at:
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/maxshaulstatepark/
The petition points out that Shaul Park has many users: a woman’s softball league, the county Youth Bureau, and local and visiting campers who spend money in area stores.
The Friends are also concerned that the state Parks office began returning deposits from summer campers for Shaul Park last week.
But the state’s Dan Keefe said returning the money is just good practice.
“We felt it was the right thing to do,” Mr. Keefe said. “Max Shaul is on the pending closure list. If the cuts are restored, people can still reserve.
“Sending the money back gives people the chance to make other arrangements.”