Keeping state parks open will boost tourism, bolstering business at local restaurants, hotels and other enterprises, Yavapai County Supervisors Chairman Chip Davis said.
To that end, Davis drafted a plan to give $30,000 per year of county park money for three years to benefit three state parks in District 3 to help keep them open.
In January the Legislature cut 61 percent of the state parks budget because of a huge budget shortfall. Stepping up to the plate, the county Board of Supervisors approved Davis' proposal to spend most of the $307,000 in his parks budget coffers to keep the park gates open to the public.
State Parks officials say the parks generate $266 million for rural Arizona, attracting about 2.3 million visitors annually and keeping 3,000 people employed.
The only way the state parks in Yavapai County can remain open during the budget crisis is through the partnership with the county, said Ellen Bilbrey, a spokeswoman for the State Parks.
"I believe the economic impact for the county is $37 million," Bilbrey said. "This is a tremendous boost for the economy of Yavapai County. This will be fantastic for all the leisure businesses that depend on all these visitors to keep them thriving."
Davis met with the state Parks Board and various municipal officials to gain support for his proposal.
"It's a positive impact that the parks have on our county," Davis said. "We draw tourists from all over the world - literally. So the impacts to our parks and our economy are tenfold."
Davis added, "It's a little disheartening the Arizona Legislature doesn't seem to have had Economics 101. It wasn't just the gate fee they should look at. They should have been looking at the impact on the state as a whole."
For Fort Verde State Park the county will contribute $30,000, the Town of Camp Verde will give $75,000 and the state $30,000 to keep the park, which it had planned to close March 29, open this year.
The parks contribute to the local economy keeping a myriad of businesses alive, Davis said. Camp Verde Mayor Bob Burnside echoed that sentiment.
"The state park is quite an issue, and our town has decided it's not an option to close our state park," Burnside said. "It's part of our economic engine, and that's our history. We decided to take money out of our services and keep this thing running for another year. If need be, we'll do it again."
The town also lined up 2,200 hours of volunteer time for the park.
"We're going to make this work," Burnside said. "The state park is going to provide the managers and two park rangers. Can you imagine people coming from New York and not being able to see a western park?"
Davis hopes to engineer a similar deal for Red Rock State Park near Sedona and Jerome State Historic Park, home to a mining museum and a century old mansion.
Red Rock is slated to close in early June so "we have a little more time," Davis said. The Jerome site, already closed for repairs, will reopen in August, Davis said.
Meanwhile, on Monday the supervisors will consider spending $33,000 for road repairs at Dead Horse State Park in Cottonwood, Davis said. The state will reimburse the county for that expenditure as earlier the Parks Board voted to keep open Dead Horse, which had a $19,000 profit last year.
