lummox Posted July 25, 2003 Share Posted July 25, 2003 from da washingtonpost: National Park Service Backs Off Shifting Repair Funds Friday, July 25, 2003; Page A23 SEATTLE, July 24 -- The director of the National Park Service today backed away from a plan to shift money from urgently needed maintenance at Mount Rainier National Park to pay for a team of consultants. The consultants were to have studied whether half the jobs in the park, southeast of Seattle, should be turned over to the private sector. The Park Service in May sent a memo to park supervisors across the West, informing them that their budget for repairs would be cut by nearly a third. Some of the cuts, the memo said, would pay for the consultants. Mount Rainier, where 1.3 million people a year visit a 14,000-foot volcano, was to have been hit especially hard. The staff was told it had to absorb a 40 percent cut in the repair budget, where there is a $101 million backlog. News of the cuts angered members of the Washington state congressional delegation. Today, Park Service Director Fran P. Mainella said there had been "misunderstandings" about what her agency was doing. "No maintenance backlog funds have been or will be used on competitive sourcing at any location," Mainella told a Senate panel. She singled out reports of diverted maintenance funds at Mount Rainier and said they were "not true." She also said none of the jobs at Mount Rainier would be subject to review for possible private sector replacement in the next two years. This was a relief to employees at Mount Rainier, Dave Uberuaga, park superintendent, said today. This spring, he had told his 112 employees that 67 of them might be replaced. In a June interview, he had said, "My employees all feel threatened." Mainella is expected to visit Mount Rainier on Monday to discuss President Bush's commitment to restore what he has called the nation's crumbling park system. what urgently needed maintenance? what backlog? whats crumbling at mrnp? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Attitude Posted July 25, 2003 Share Posted July 25, 2003 lummox said: whats crumbling at mrnp? The freakin' mountain, dood. It's CHOSS! Geez, they ought to fix that thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairweather Posted July 26, 2003 Share Posted July 26, 2003 Frankly, I suspect the private sector should do most of the park maintainence if they don't already. I'll have to investigate this and educate myself. I agree with the sentiment; "what 100million$$ backlog?" I find this figure highly suspect/shocking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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