Nevada legislators question state parks' upkeep

Lawmakers asked Tuesday why Nevada's state parks are in such bad shape and what can be done - in a year of surplus funds - to make them better.

The parks are budgeted for $1.5 million in money for upkeep and maintenance on 50 or so projects that have fallen by the wayside in recent years, including reroofing of park buildings and other infrastructure repairs.

But Sen. Bob Coffin, D-Las Vegas, wondered why some of the state's $300 million surplus can't be used to make improvements to parks that haven't been at the top of anybody's list for 20 years.

"It seems like we have always been behind the curve. This is an extraordinary year," Coffin said during a review of the budget for the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. "We might be able to play catch-up."

Coffin said disrepair in Beaver Dam State Park in eastern Nevada is just the kind of project he'd like to see funded if possible. He asked Dave Morrow, administrator of the Division of State Parks, for a list of projects that don't simply have to be done, but that should be done.

Sen. Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, said that the parks are "all in pretty bad shape" and questioned whether the requested maintenance will even put them at a bare minimum of quality.

Understaffing and underfunding, Morrow said, have created some of the problems for the state's 24 parks, historic sites and recreation areas.

Still, Morrow said 95 percent of visitors have rated their experience in the parks as excellent or good, and the parks host 3 million visitors each year. He added that combined spending by people who visit state parks - on park fees, hotels, restaurants and other expenses - amounts to $60 million a year.

But the division faces concerns including difficulties recruiting workers to replace many staffers who will be retiring in the next three or four years. Also increasing are operating costs and the cost of paying seasonal staff, 52 percent of which qualify for above-entry-level positions.

State Conservation Director Allen Biaggi said that while state parks are always an issue, he thinks "they do a fantastic job with the resources they have available."

Biaggi presented legislators with Gov. Kenny Guinn's overall budget request for the department for $238.4 million over the biennium, with general funds accounting for 22 percent.

There are no planned program expansions in the department. But Biaggi said the budget includes critical programs such as erosion control at Lake Tahoe, which is budgeted for $16.8 million, and the Question 1 program, which provides $200 million in bonds for hiking and biking trails, open space, wetlands acquisitions and other projects. The program was approved by voters in 2002.

Biaggi also said that water will be a major focus this session. He noted that there are 17 water-related bills that may come before the Legislature. The bills include proposals to create an interim study committee and a state water authority.