Albany, NY – State parks officials say they’ll start next week shutting down or keeping closed dozens of parks and historic sites because of New York’s budget crisis.
Subscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
Parks spokeswoman Eileen Larrabee says Friday that the gates at 41 parks and 14 historic sites will be locked starting Monday.
She says most of the properties were closed for the winter or had reduced services, but typically would be preparing to reopen for the Memorial Day weekend.
Larrabee says employees at the effected parks and historic sites are being transferred to facilities that are remaining open.
The Legislature has voted to restore $11.3 million in parks funding cut from Gov. David Paterson’s budget proposal, but there’s no agreement yet on a budget.
State parks officials say they’ll start next week shutting down or keeping closed dozens of parks and historic sites because of New York’s budget crisis.
Parks spokeswoman Eileen Larrabee says Friday that the gates at 41 parks and 14 historic sites will be locked starting Monday.
She says most of the properties were closed for the winter or had reduced services, but typically would be preparing to reopen for the Memorial Day weekend.
Larrabee says employees at the effected parks and historic sites are being transferred to facilities that are remaining open.
The Legislature has voted to restore $11.3 million in parks funding cut from Gov. David Paterson’s budget proposal, but there’s no agreement yet on a budget.
Palisades Region
Fort Montgomery Historic Site (Orange)–Close Historic Site
Harriman SP– Anthony Wayne (Orange)–Close Park Area
Harriman SP – Group Camps (Orange)–Reduce Maintenance
High Tor State Park (Rockland)–Close Pool
Knox Headquarters Historic Site (Orange)–Close Historic Site
New Windsor Cantonment SHS (Orange)– Close Historic Site
Schunnemunk State Park (Orange)– Close Park
Stony Point State Historic Site (Orange)–Close Historic Site
Tallman Mountain State Park (Rockland)–Close Pool
Taconic Region
Donald J. Trump State Park (Westchester)–Close Park
FDR (Roosevelt) State Park (Westchester)–Reduce Swimming Pool Season
Hudson Highlands State Park (Putnam)–Close Arden Point Area
James Baird State Park (Dutchess)–Reduce Golf Course Season
Mills Norrie State Park (Dutchess)–Reduce Golf Course Season
Olana State Historic Site (Columbia)–Close 2 Days per Week
Philipse Manor Hall Historic Site (Westchester)–Close Historic Site
Rockefeller State Park Preserve (Westchester)–Eliminate Interpretive Programs
Taconic Outdoor Education Center (Putnam)–Eliminate Interpretive Programs
Taconic State Park – Rudd Pond (Dutchess)–Close Rudd Pond Area
Wonder Lake State Park (Putnam)–Close Park
Cut more of the subsidy programs for housing, day-care, etc which only benefit a small number of people and keep open parks which benefit everyone. .
How many Parks does NYS have alredy??
Montreal has 1 every 2 Blocks
SEIRIOSLY.
Disgrace!!
Its time to completely eliminate all member pork barrel items. There should be absolutely no allocations for community groups. Most are just a front to benefit a few people.
This is SOP for government when faced with budget cuts; start with departments and programs with the highest visibility. Hence public safety and parks and recreation are the first to get slashed. The object is to intimidate the public away from supporting further cuts and to garner more support for increasing taxes.
Meanwhile, all the new Deputy-assistant-associate and Associate-deputy-assistant bureaucrats at the Parks Department hired in the past few years are safe and sound in their taxpayer-funded sinecures.
And it begins. Soon public parks will be sold off to private corporations as will roads, libraries, schools, and every last vestige of public space. All that will be left are iron gates with no-admission signs plastered all over them. One day all you clowns who blindly support the plutocracy that is destroying this country, will look back and wonder how you had been so easily duped into giving up the little that you had left.
Parks are still open for hiking I suppose. Just less “undocumented” citizens barbecuing and blasting music. Not so bad after all
The waterfrontont on Kent avenue in Brooklyn is a State Park. The Baywater state park isused by manyfrum people as well.