California state parks closures

[TahoeBC]

Sucks, it'll be interesting on how they plan on enforcing the closures, I still plan on riding some of them.

May 13, 2011
California officials announce closure of 70 state parks

State parks officials today announced the closure of 70 parks because of the state budget
deficit, including the governor's mansion and the Stanford mansion in Sacramento

Gov. Jerry Brown's January budget plan proposed reducing the state parks budget by $22
million. The Legislature in March approved $11 million in cuts to state parks and $10
million in cuts to off highway vehicle parks in the next fiscal year, with $22 million in cuts
to state parks in future years.

The California State Parks System was directed to identify which parks would close
based on attendance rates and historical significance. The department operates more
than 270 state park units covering more than 1.4 million acres.

"We regret closing any park," Ruth Coleman, director of California State Parks, said in a
statement. "But with the proposed budget reductions over the next two years, we can no
longer afford to operate all parks within the system."

Parks officials said they tried to protect the most significant cultural and natural
resources, while maintaining the parks that provided the most public access and state
revenue. In addition, the department intends to seek partnership agreements with local
governments and non-profits in attempt to keep some of the parks open. They said 92
percent of total park attendance will be retained and 94 percent of existing revenues even
with the closures.

Besides the recently renovated Stanford Mansion and the Governor's Mansion state
historic parks, both in downtown Sacramento, the list includes Brannan Island State
Recreation Area in Sacramento County and Malakoff Diggins State Historic Park and
South Yuba River State Park in Nevada County.

Here's a full list of the closures from the parks department:

Anderson Marsh SHP

Annadel SP

Antelope Valley Indian Museum

Austin Creek SRA

Bale Grist Mill SHP

Benbow Lake SRA

Benicia Capitol SHP

Benicia SRA

Bidwell Mansion SHP

Bothe-Napa Valley SP

Brannan Island SRA

California Mining & Mineral Museum

Candlestick Point SRA

Castle Crags SP

Castle Rock SP

China Camp SP

Colusa-Sacramento River SRA

Del Norte Coast Redwoods SP

Fort Humboldt SHP

Fort Tejon SHP

Garrapata SP

George J. Hatfield SRA

Governor's Mansion SHP

Gray Whale Cove SB

Greenwood SB

Grizzly Creek Redwoods SP

Hendy Woods SP

Henry W. Coe SP

Jack London SHP

Jug Handle SNR

Leland Stanford Mansion SHP

Limekiln SP

Los Encinos SHP

Malakoff Diggins SHP

Manchester SP

McConnell SRA

McGrath SB

Mono Lake Tufa SNR

Morro Strand SB

Moss Landing SB

Olompali SHP

Palomar Mountain SP

Petaluma Adobe SHP

Picacho SRA

Pio Pico SHP

Plumas-Eureka SP

Point Cabrillo Light Station

Portola Redwoods SP

Providence Mountains SRA

Railtown 1897 SHP

Russian Gulch SP

Saddleback Butte SP

Salton Sea SRA

Samuel P. Taylor SP

San Pasqual Battlefield SHP

Santa Cruz Mission SHP

Santa Susana Pass SHP

Shasta SHP

South Yuba River SP

Standish-Hickey SRA

Sugarloaf Ridge SP

Tomales Bay SP

Tule Elk SNR

Turlock Lake SRA

Twin Lakes SB

Weaverville Joss House SHP

Westport-Union Landing SB

William B. Ide Adobe SHP

Woodson Bridge SRA

Zmudowski SB

[TheMessenger]

I think the whole point of closing a state park is so that they won't have to pay someone to enforce it.

Anyway, enjoy all the rest of the free stuff you freeloading Californians get from the government that got you into this mess. Hope it was worth it.

[slave2gravity]

I think the whole point of closing a state park is so that they won't have to pay someone to enforce it.

Anyway, enjoy all the rest of the free stuff you freeloading Californians get from the government that got you into this mess. Hope it was worth it.

Harsh as that is, there's some truth to it. Can we please start charging $600 / year for carpool stickers on hybrids and open the parks back up already?!

Read an interesting article a few weeks back that some of the deficit is attributable to administrative culture reliant on income tax from the wealthy to cover the states bills. Problem is much of California's wealthy (i.e. Silicon Valley) are paid primarily in stock. Stocks all took a dive, people stopped selling and capital gains revenue dropped... Tangential but I thought interesting.

[BeanDip4All]

bluffing.... they always bluff with the SP closures. just like caltrain "closures"... just more chips to gamble with.

[1000-oaks]

I think the whole point of closing a state park is so that they won't have to pay someone to enforce it.

Anyway, enjoy all the rest of the free stuff you freeloading Californians get from the government that got you into this mess. Hope it was worth it.

A ton of truth to it, it's unreal the freebies this state gives to the lazy and the undocumented...and how much money goes to protecting "endangered" moles and minnows, without any actual research into the populations. All it takes is one self-appointed "expert" (often someone with an agenda to put some industry on his personal sh!t-list out of business) to say a particular critter is decreasing in numbers. No proof required.

[bodywhomper]

^^^ don't wanna touch that too much except to point out that I think the "'endangered' moles and minnows" that you are talking about are/were listed and protected by the federal government. The state is secondary.

regarding state park closures, this just seems like a logistical mess. the state parks listed near me are intermixed and patchworked with federal and private property; the state won't be able to just close and lock a gate. My thought is that some of the areas that are high use will continue to be high use with either no law enforcement or very heavy handed law enforcement, and the places are gonna get trashed.

i like and hope for the bluff theory.

[nickwm21]

We should have passed proposition 21 - $18 a year.... Thats like 2 beers at At&t park.

[beaterdit]

They can't close the parks it's your (and my) land. They can close the bathrooms.

[BeanDip4All]

they can also make all the state parks that are "no dogs" but allow horses (AHEM every goddamn park on the peninsula, i am looking at you, you rich horseloving pricks) no longer enforceable!! woot. kujo and i are gonna go hunt some dogfood and glue.

[haydukelives]

They can't close the parks it's your (and my) land. They can close the bathrooms.

boltcutters?

[Arty50]

they can also make all the state parks that are "no dogs" but allow horses (AHEM every goddamn park on the peninsula, i am looking at you, you rich horseloving pricks) no longer enforceable!! woot. kujo and i are gonna go hunt some dogfood and glue.

Oh great, now I have to dodge dogshit and horseshit. Thanks!

[LightRanger]

they can also make all the state parks that are "no dogs" but allow horses (AHEM every goddamn park on the peninsula, i am looking at you, you rich horseloving pricks) no longer enforceable!! woot. kujo and i are gonna go hunt some dogfood and glue.

You think the Peninsula is bad? In the East Bay way more of the trails don't even allow bikes.

[tom111869]

Did some biking on the trails at Annadel this weekend for the first time. That place is like a piece of mtn bike heaven that fell from the sky.

[bodywhomper]

bump

this is coming back up in sacramento.

http://www.theunion.com/article/2011...ntProfile=1053