Communities adjacent to national parks (as have the adjacent communities to the Parkway) have long asked for more of a say in how the parks were managed when management decisions affect them, and it appears they will get a little more say, a good thing.
Adjacent community involvement is an important part of creating a community of support for parks, including the Parkway and should be adopted here also.
Unfortunately, current Parkway management has resisted adjacent community involvement requested by communities from North Sacramento to Rancho Cordova, not a good thing.
An excerpt.
New policies for U.S. parks
Neighbors get more say, but plan to allow more vehicles fizzles.
By Michael Doyle -- Bee Washington BureauPublished 12:01 am PDT Friday, September 1, 2006
WASHINGTON -- Yosemite's neighbors may speak louder under new management policies signed Thursday.
But after wading through 45,000 often-angry public comments, park service officials backed off earlier plans that could have opened up parks to more motorized vehicles. It's a retreat that environmentalists score as a victory.
"Enjoyment is a part of our mission," National Park Service Director Fran Mainella said, "but where there is a conflict, conservation is predominant."
Several years in the making, the new management policies will guide park superintendents like Yosemite's Mike Tollefson and Sequoia's Craig Axtell. While lacking the force of law, the policies point in clear directions.
So-called "gateway communities" like El Portal, Lee Vining and Mariposa, for instance, are supposed to get more of a say when parks consider new fees or other changes. In the past, nearby towns have complained their commercial concerns go unheeded.
"The gateway communities will probably see more of an outreach effort," Mainella said.
Derrick Crandall of the American Recreation Coalition called the enhanced gateway community outreach "praiseworthy." It's likewise long been a priority for conservative lawmakers who represent towns bordering California's mountainous national parks.
"These gateway communities are impacted by decisions made by managers of our public lands," Rep. George Radanovich, R-Mariposa, noted late last year.
