With Republicans at the Helm: " Texas ranks 49th among the 50 states in per capita spending on parks and recreation services."

Sun, Jul. 02, 2006

In a state of neglect
Texas parks fall on hard times after years of lean budgets and deferred maintenance
By R.A. DYER
STAR-TELEGRAM AUSTIN BUREAU

GALVESTON -- Linda Bickett loves Texas parks so much she's even made a donation: The Houston retiree took a shower curtain from her RV and hung it up in a public restroom.
It's not that there were no shower curtains at Galveston State Park -- it's just that they were so disgusting.
"It was really moldy and black," Bickett said. Her husband joked that the curtain came from the dollar store, but Linda corrects him: "It wasn't from the dollar store," she said, "but it wasn't moldy either."
Stretching more than a mile along Seawall Boulevard, Galveston State Park has plenty of sun, sand and water -- but also Dumpsters overflowing with trash, broken water spigots and dilapidated restrooms.
The story is largely the same at parks statewide: Choke Canyon State Park's Calliham Unit operates with no restrooms and no camping because the water isn't fit to drink; Martin Dies Jr. State Park in East Texas continues to limp along after suffering damage from Hurricane Rita; poachers and cattle roam Big Bend Ranch State Park, parts of which were nearly sold off because the state couldn't afford to maintain it.
After years of financial neglect, Texas parks -- 600,000 acres of canyons, rivers, lakes and forests -- have fallen on hard times. Visitation is up, but budget dollars are down. Vehicles are falling apart. Water and septic systems are failing. Parkland gets sold off. Staff positions have been cut or remain unfilled.
"With existing funding, we're completely unable to take care of the system," state parks Director Walt Dabney said.
"We have a backlog of repairs. We have equipment needs. I've got over 900 vehicles for the entire state, and I have been able to replace only one per year. Many of them are completely a mess, completely worn out. With the tractors and the mowers, a lot of times we're taking parts off the old ones to keep one or two still operating between breakdowns. We're trying to operate equipment that doesn't even work."
The money problems have been mounting for years:
While state government increased spending for services generally by 68 percent between 1990 and 2003 -- it decreased spending on parks by 34 percent.
Most parks division vehicles have more than 100,000 miles on them and are more than 10 years old. Almost all are hand-me-downs from other agencies.
Scores of parks need new water and septic systems, many of which are 40 years old or older. Replacing them could costs hundreds of thousands of dollars each.
Because of a tight budget, the agency has eliminated or left unfilled about 100 positions.
How did this happen?
Although funding for Texas parks slowly began to evaporate more than a decade ago, much of the slide occurred the watch of Gov. Rick Perry, who took office in 2000.
While the state budget has grown 42 percent under his tenure, the budget for parks has gone down. Perry also recently called upon all state agencies to submit spending plans for the upcoming two-year budget cycle that include additional cuts of 10 percent -- meaning the parks division is likely to face more reductions.
"The parks department, like other agencies, has had to tighten its belt," said Kathy Walt, a spokeswoman for Perry.
She said the agency may want to consider divesting itself of additional parkland as a way to save money, although the department has already made reductions that far outstrip the state average.
At the same time, the agency's annual recurring costs have increased by $6 million. Currently, Texas ranks 49th among the 50 states in per capita spending on parks.
A sprawling system
All told, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department maintains a system of 120 parks, which range from the massive Big Bend Ranch State Park, the Texas State Railroad State Park, the popular Garner State Park (with more than 500,000 campers annually) and small historic sites scattered around the state.
The system got its start in 1886 when the Texas Legislature created its first state park at the site of the Battle of San Jacinto, near Houston.
In 1923 the Legislature created the state parks board and during the 1930s added about 40 parks with the assistance of the Civilian Conservation Corps, a Depression-era program created under President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Another era of expansion occurred after a 1967 bond issue, under Gov. John Connolly.
The parks division makes up about one-fourth of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department's budget. Other divisions include wildlife, law enforcement, inland fisheries and coastal fisheries. The parks division operates on roughly $54 million annually, which comes primarily from self-generating revenue such as camping fees and a sales tax on sporting goods.
But depending on that budget has always been a challenge.
The sporting goods tax, for instance, has never measured up to its initial promise.
The Legislature dedicated the tax to parks in 1993 after it became obvious that a stable source of revenue was needed. While the tax raises $100 million annually, the Legislature capped the parks' share at $32 million in 1995 -- and then proceeded to appropriate even lesser amounts.
As result, the tax provides $15 million annually to state parks and another $5 million to local park grants.
Since 2001, voters have authorized more than $100 million in bonds for infrastructure needs. Dabney said he would have liked to have used that money to acquire more land, but most of it went to repair deteriorating water and septic systems. And even then the parks didn't get their full share: In recent years the Legislature saved on interest payments by leaving unappropriated much of the bond money approved by voters.
So now the system is mostly dependant on its own revenue -- about 61 percent of its overall budget comes from operating fees, oil and gas royalties, and the sale of cattle. By contrast, about 35 percent of the overall parks budgets nationwide come from self-generating sources, according to a Texas A&M University researcher.
"Our budget does not allow us to adequately staff the existing parks," Dabney said. "Our utility costs just go up and up and up as fuel costs and prices go up. ... Those costs are fixed costs. You have no discretion but to pay them when your budget is fixed, and that's what happened to us. So in order to pay the bills to buy toilet paper, and to pay utility bills and all that, to put gas in mowers and so forth -- I can't fill positions. That's the only way I can make up the money -- by not paying people."
The minor repair budget has also been cut in half -- from about $3 million annually, to $1.5 million, Dabney said. "That's [money] to do projects of $25,000 or less," he said. "This is money going for repainting and recarpeting of visitor centers, replacing a roof. It's the routine maintenance kind of things that keep a facility from going critical."
Obvious neglect
At Cleburne State Park, visitors can no longer get soft drinks from the 60-year-old concession stand. It was in such deplorable shape that park manager Bill Grubbs ordered it closed in February. "There's a public restroom, and that's been closed too," Grubbs said. "They were in such poor shape, we didn't want to let anyone else in there."
At Inks Lake State Park, workers patch 50-year-old wastewater pipes by digging random holes between the restrooms and the lift station. Because it would cost $250,000 to replace the system -- money the park doesn't have -- the workers have to engage in those maddening excavations every few months. "It's mostly guessing," park manager Ricky Meyers said.
An irritated visitor to Balmorhea State Park in West Texas complained about the moldy walls and the broken ceiling fan in the restroom. "[The] men's shower leaking water from overhead pipes, a large hole in the ceiling, and mold and mildew throughout the facility is unacceptable," the San Antonio resident wrote in a terse letter to the agency.
At Huntsville State Park, a visitor complained about the garbage and the overflowing trash bins. In Galveston, RV owner Bob Kitchens said the whole system seems to have gone downhill. "I've been in Lake Livingston State Park and Fort Parker in recent weeks -- and it's like they don't have the staff that they used to," he said.
Selling off the parks
Historian James Wright Steely says that for as long as there have been state parks, government leaders have talked about cutting them. Typically, the pressure comes to sell off tracts that aren't self-supporting -- "in bad times, everyone talks about parks not making money," said Steely, author of Parks for Texas.
But Steely also says that at least in relative terms, there hasn't been all that much to sell off. Unlike other states, Texas did not surrender its public lands to the federal government when it joined the union. Such lands form the foundation of the national park system in other western states, but in Texas they were used to pay off debt and for other public purposes, Steely said.
As a partial result, "in land per capita -- and monies spent on parks -- Texas is very low," the researcher said.
Nonetheless, calls for selling off parkland continue. Last year, for instance, staff at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department recommended selling a massive section of Big Bend Ranch State Park to a private developer. Staff members reasoned that since the agency lacked the resources to adequately care for the tract, its sale could save operating dollars while providing extra money for the purchase of more accessible land.
The proposal -- at 46,000 acres, it would have been the largest park divestiture in Texas history -- outraged conservationists, politicians and much of the public. After days of negative publicity, the nine-member Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Commission unanimously rejected the sale.
But other divestitures have received the green light: at least nine in recent years, according to the agency. Some include major properties, like Lake Houston State Park. Typically, the parks go to other government agencies or nonprofit agencies so they remain of benefit to the public.
In 1980, the Parks and Wildlife Department paid $3.9 million for 400 acres in northwest Tarrant County, bordering Eagle Mountain Lake, with the intention of making it a state park. Twenty-six years later, it has yet to develop the site and now has turned it over to the state's General Land Office to sell it.
The site could be sold to whatever developer pays the highest price for it.
Other properties sold off include the Old Fort Parker State Historic Site, Lubbock Lake Landmark State Historical Park, the Port Lavaca Fishing Pier and Matagorda Island State Park. Walt, Perry's spokeswoman, said the department should consider unloading more. "There's parkland that the public doesn't use," she said.
Ken Kramer, director of the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club, said the parks department should not be put in such a tough position.
He said the public was rightfully outraged over the proposed Big Bend divestiture -- he likened it to the federal government proposing a sell-off of Yellowstone National Park. "It was a clear signal that the park system is in trouble," he said.
Besides trying to save money through divestitures, the agency has also reduced hours or eliminated services -- like camping -- at more than 50 state parks. Other ongoing cost-saving measures include the "park host" program, in which volunteers get free RV hook-ups in exchange for volunteer work; the use of other volunteers from "friends of parks" committees; and state inmate labor.
"In straight volunteers, we had 420,000-plus hours in contributed time," Dabney said of a typical budget year. "That's the equivalent of about 290 full-time employees, or 25 percent of my total work force. I'm saving $7.5 million in salaries." He said the volunteers do custodial work, grounds maintenance, collect fees and check patrons in and out of campgrounds.
"We could not be operating without them," he said.
Expanding tourism
Steely, the parks historian, said that for at least 80 years, lawmakers have looked to cut parks when they can't make ends meet elsewhere. During good times politicians typically see parks as providing a public service, he said; during bad times, politicians expect parks to pay their own way.
But does this make sense? From a policy perspective, should the state look to eliminate public holdings that aren't self-supporting?
According to researchers from Texas A&M, Texas Tech University and elsewhere, the answer is probably not. In four separate studies, academicians, business leaders and economists found that a vibrant parks system boosts tourism and economic development, furthers land and wildlife conservation, and enjoys wide support from the public.
Take for instance a study led by John Compton, director of the department of recreation, park and tourism sciences at Texas A&M. In 2002 and 2004, a research team interviewed more than 11,700 visitors to 75 parks. They asked patrons how much they spent and compared those figures with the operating budget of area parks. They determined that the park system generated $863 million in new sales, $496 million in income, and 12,986 jobs.
Researchers also noted that tourism consistently ranks among the top five industries in Texas, and among the 50 states only California generates more tourism dollars. "The expansion of tourism in Texas and retention of Texas' competitive position in the industry is likely to be strongly influenced by the extent to which the state invests in the tourism product supplied and managed by [the parks department]," concluded Compton.
A Land and Water Resource Conservation Plan conducted in 2000 called for the creation of four new parks of at least 5,000 acres. According to the report, the state should locate the new parks within 90 miles of Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, Austin and San Antonio to serve the growing populations in those cities.
The study was completed upon the order of the Legislature.
"But the dilemma we're in is that we're completely unable to ... take care of the system we already have," Dabney said. "And there is no money for any development of new parks facilities. We're just limping along."
More cuts?
What does the future hold? A special advisory board is expected to report soon on the declining state of Texas parks -- and their ongoing budget challenges. The Legislature is also sure to consider parks funding when it convenes in January. Rep. Harvey Hildebrand, R-Kerrville, has said he'll make it a top priority.
But the state's one-time budget surplus of more than $8 billion will likely have shrunk away completely, and lawmakers will face mounting pressure for more funds from teacher groups, social welfare advocates and state employee organizations. Gov. Perry has said agency heads must find new ways to make cuts -- a task parks director Dabney has described as "impossible."
And at Bastrop State Park, maybe the fishing will improve -- although Roger Shelton doesn't hold out much hope.
"The little lake developed a leak in the dam several years, ago and the agency has not had the funding to fix it," the parks manager explained. "So with the shortage of rainfall, the lake has gone to a very low level. Our inland fisheries division used to stock it well with catfish and bass and perch ... but they've had to stop because of the dam leak. And so that cuts off one of our basic recreational opportunities park [visitors have] enjoyed for years."
Shelton says "there are still a few fish left alive, but you've got to understand that the lake is only 3 or 4 feet deep."
He said he managed a temporary patch -- and he hopes it will hold -- but to fix the dam properly would require a $30,000 engineering study and even more when construction starts.
"And that," he says wistfully, "is money we just don't have."
Broken system needs repairs
Spending: Texas ranks 49th among the 50 states in per capita spending on parks and recreation services. Buildings like the one above at Bastrop State Park are badly in need of repairs.
Vehicles: Of the 960 vehicles in the parks department fleet, only three have been replaced by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department over the past three years.
Layoffs: 73 full-time employees of the department were laid off in 2005 because of budget shortfalls.
The state of Texas parks
120 Parks in Texas
600,000 Acres of state parkland
12.2 Acres of parkland in Texas, per 1,000 people
$1.5 billion Funds needed for renovation and restoration of existing parks, recreation and conservation land and facilities
920 Permanent state park employees
450 Seasonal employees
$55.60 Per capita expenditure in Texas on local park and recreation facilities in 2000
$74.58 Per capita expenditure in U.S. on local park and recreation facilities in 2000
49 Texas' ranking among the 50 states in per capita spending on parks and recreation services
2 Texas ranking among the 50 states for tourism (right behind California)
68 percent Amount spending has increased for all state services between 1990 and 2003
34 percent Amount spending has decreased for parks and recreation services over the same period
3 Vehicles replaced by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department over the past three years
960 Vehicles in parks department fleet
19 Full-time employees laid off in 2003 because of budget shortfalls

SOURCE: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Texas Trust for Public Land Assessment
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Old bathrooms and vehicle costs cause headaches at popular park
By R.A. Dyer
Star-Telegram Austin Bureau

Craig VanBaarle, the manager of Garner State Park, drives one of the park's newer vehicles: a 2001 Chevy Impala. Even so, it cost the state $1,000 this year to repair it.
And that was on top of the repair costs for the 14 other vehicles, each with 160,000 to 180,000 miles on the odometer, and the two-ton dump truck that was around when Gerald Ford was president.
"In the last three years, we sidelined five vehicles ... because they're too expensive to fix," said VanBaarle, 53, who has worked at Garner for the past 10 years.
"I've got two vehicles that we just pull the parts off of. The transmission went out on one, so we just started pulling stuff off it."
The challenges faced by VanBaarle are not too different from challenges faced at parks throughout the state.
It's just that VanBaarle, who runs one of the most popular parks in Texas, has more of them.
Garner gets more than 500,000 overnight campers each year, the most of any park in Texas.
Getting a spot there during the high season requires a reservation 11 months in advance.
Supporting its 440 campsites and 3,000 nightly campers are 15 bathrooms, six of which don't have showers.
VanBaarle said two of the 40-year-old bathrooms should be replaced immediately.
"I don't believe the public realizes what bad shape they're in," he said.
"We've been patching the shower pans because there are leaks, and they finally rot out the wood. We put in new two-by-fours. We had to do patches and put in new tile, and a lot of cosmetic stuff. And when you get bathrooms that old, it's just hard to keep them from smelling."
Garner State Park
Location: About 30 miles north of Uvalde, along U.S. 83, in Central Texas
Size: 1,489 acres
Open: 1941
Annual visitation: 700,000, including 500,000 campers
Staff: 15 full time; 20 seasonal.
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Away from trails and tourists' eyes, aging water tank raises concerns
By R.A. Dyer
Star-Telegram Austin Bureau

It's an impressive water tank -- forest green and four stories high -- although most tourists at Enchanted Rock State Natural Area may never see it.
Park manager Ray Sierra is proud of the site's well-kept bathrooms, the new fixtures and the fresh paint. He said the park received private donations from a booster club for those repairs.
But it's the 50,000-gallon water tank, tucked away from the trails and hidden from tourists, that's got him worried. "Some of the upper parts have gotten real thin," he says, pointing up to about 20 rusted-out spots near the top. Beads of water have seeped out, leaving long trails of rust. "If I went up there with my pen and tapped it a little bit, it would leak. And this is what's providing water for the public."
Although the 152,000 visitors who come to Enchanted Rock each year might never know it, the park has expensive maintenance problems. Tourists coming down from the rock comment on the well-kept trails and the clean bathrooms -- but how can they know that the 20-year-old water tank needs replacing?
"We had a hole in the side of the thing and water was coming out of that," Sierra says, pointing to one spot. "We've had to go up there and patch that there. ... It's all rusted out, and there were pin holes of water coming out. Over there we had to come back and spot weld."
Because there's no swimming, visitation drops off during the summer, Sierra said. But the tourists sometimes line up outside during the winter and fall, waiting to get in. They probably aren't aware that the park vehicles each have more than 100,000 miles on them, that the temperamental automated phone system is more than 20 years old and doesn't always work, and that the water supply is dependant on a rusty, leaking water tank.
"We're in the same boat as the other parks -- we've got repair costs, we've got expenses," Sierra says.
Enchanted Rock State Natural Area
Location: About 20 miles north of Fredericksburg, just off Ranch Road 965, on the border between Gillespie and Llano Counties
Size: 1,644 acres
Open: 1984
Annual visitation: 152,000
Staff: Seven full time; three seasonal
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Poor water system forces juggling act as manager deals with staff cutbacks
By R.A. Dyer
Star-Telegram Austin Bureau

TEXAS PARKS AND WILDLIFE DEPARTMENT
Choke Canyon is composed of two parks, one of which had its water system shut down by environmental regulators.
More photos
The Choke Canyon State Park Calliham Unit has been without water fountains and showers for six months. Visitors can't go swimming in the pool, use the restrooms or hook up their RVs at the campsites.
Some of the reductions were forced on the park because of staffing cutbacks. But environmental regulators shut down the water fountains, the showers and the bathrooms.
The water purification system had fallen into such disrepair that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality ruled that it no longer produced safe drinking water.
"We're robbing Peter to pay Paul," park manager Rudy Mesa said.
Choke Canyon State Park -- about 90 minutes south of San Antonio and smack dab in the center of the state park system's funding crisis -- has managed in recent years to keep its water system together with little more than "Band-Aids," Mesa said.
But in December, even those patches were not enough, and the commission shut it down.
Mesa is not sure how much the repairs will cost, but they won't come cheap. In the meantime, Choke Canyon management has shut down the six public restrooms and all camping at its Calliham Unit. Managers also closed the Olympic-size pool, but not because of the water system.
"We couldn't pay the lifeguards," Mesa said.
Choke Canyon is composed of two parks along Texas 72: the Calliham Unit and South Shore.
Together they cover about 1,400 acres, and -- at least until the recent hardships -- hosted about 100,000 visitors each year.
Mesa said the parks lost three full-time employees because of budget cuts and earlier shut down camping on the South Shore side.
But then the commission shut off the water on the Calliham side, so the park suspended camping there and reopened camping in South Shore.
"We're just juggling right now," Mesa said.
Choke Canyon State Park
Location: Near Calliham, about 70 miles south of San Antonio
Size: 1,485 acres
Open: 1987
Annual visitation: Nearly 100,000
Staff: Eight full time; three seasonal

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