Details on our Five 2015 Asks:

Catskill Forest Rangers

Forest Rangers are a critical safety net in the backbone of tourism in a wilderness area. We ask you to fully support funding of the Forest Ranger Programs including:

- $10 million in payroll (plus funding for new recruits)

- $2,164,100 for Other Personal Services

- $1,350,000 for Non-Personal Services (NPS)

- $3,479,000 in capital funds (update aging fleet of vehicles and equipment, and replace outdated radios)

- establishing a 2015 Academy with biennial Academies thereafter

- assure the hiring of 20 AFRs supported by a specific budget line which is not part of Forest Ranger OPS funding

Land Acquisition Priorities

Please contact the NYS DEC Commissioner to request action on these priority land protection projects:

- Lindo-Ulster 237 (in-process)

- Bearpen Mountain

- Bolcek

- Spruceton

- Bowman Owen (in-process)

- Ulster 307 (in-process)

Catskill Recreation Plan

We request your help in securing funding to conduct a planning process for a comprehensive integrated Catskill Park Recreation Plan.

Environmental Protection Fund

We request your support for full funding of the Environmental Protection Fund in 2015 with the amount of $172 million.

We request a dedicated line in the EPF of $4 million dollars dedicated to the promotion and protection of the Catskill Park. 

A dedicated line in the EPF will give the region the source of funding necessary to protect and promote our region through:

- comprehensive planning

- acquisition

- forest preserve stewardship

- integrating tourism service businesses with public land opportunities

- funding to build a modern park

Catskill Association of Tourism Services

Please support additional funding in the amount of $100,000 for CATS to implement its marketing program in 2015.

 A Vision for the EPF & Catskill Park

The economy of the Catskill Region is built on the natural beauty of its forever wild land. In order to preserve this region’s economy we ask for an appropriate funding level of $4 million per year from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund. Few other places on earth contain so much abundant undisturbed land so close to so many millions of people. With few options for economic development, appropriate access to the more than 450,000 acres of public land within the Blue Line of the Catskill Park is the key feasible foundation for economic opportunity. Access for the millions who rely on its open space, facilitated by acquisition of the key parcels of unprotected land within park boundaries, will significantly enhance economic opportunity while meeting Governor Cuomo’s conservation goals and principles, in line with New York State’s proud and leading legacy of first-in-the-nation conservation.

A region with the cultural and historical significance of a National Park just two hours from the largest population center in the country is held back by an outdated recreation plan, limited funding for public access to land, and urgent unmet needs of various stewardship programs.  After more than a century of public investment, the Catskill Park is increasingly threatened by several years of inadequate funding, putting into risk the stature, value and viability of this spectacular public amenity.

With dedicated annual funding from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund we can ensure that the growing acreage of New York City watershed lands are integrated into a recreational strategy that provides economic leverage while protecting our most vital resource, the New York City watershed. The history of the Blue Line also includes acquisition of lands that enhance the public land available for recreation and preservation. Over the EPF’s more than twenty year history the state has contributed a total appropriation of nearly $3 billion. Consistent funding of a $4 million dollar annual line item generated from future EPF increases will allow the Catskills to proactively and strategically plan for the future while appropriately managing this extraordinary resource.

Proposed Annual Catskill EPF Line Item Budget
 

                        Comprehensive planning                                                 $150,000

                        Land acquisition                                                                  $1,000,000

                                    Fee purchases & conservation easements

                                                Allows up to 10 small parcels to enhance public access

                                                (10 @ $100K/ea.)

                        Stewardship                                                                          $2,000,000

                                    Public access, consulting fees, capital improvements

                                                Marketing and promotion

                        Grant program for regional small businesses                 $500,000

                        Grant program for smart growth                                      $500,000

                                    Distributed to regional municipalities

                                                                                                                         ____________

                                                                                                      TOTAL      $4,150,000

                                                                           TOTAL EPF APPROPRIATION    $2,766,412,000

                                                                                                    (Enacted budgets 94-95 to 13-14)

                                                                           AVERAGE ANNUAL EPF             $145,600,632

                                                                                                    (Enacted budgets 94-95 to 13-14)

Building a Better Catskill Park
Comprehensive Planning
The last public access plan for the Catskill Park was completed 15 years ago in August 1999. New York City had just begun its land acquisition program, and newer uses like mountain biking were starting to gain popularity. The 1999 plan called for the establishment of new signage, information centers, better promotional tools, building networks of volunteers, and improving access for hiking, fishing, swimming, boating and camping. In the last few years some progress has been made on a few of these recommendations, but without dedicated funding much of this access plan remains unimplemented.

This year for the first time, four New York City reservoirs were opened for recreational boating. We have recently developed a collaborative volunteer group, the Catskill Conservation Corps, which works across the park pulling volunteers from a variety of affinity groups.  

At the same time the Catskill Park is experiencing a new wave of visitors as more and more people understand the value of unplugging and getting out into nature, as well as the increasing pressure from potential development. In Sullivan County (one of the four counties of the Catskills region) Governor Cuomo recently approved a 391-room casino and resort project. This and other projects can only accelerate the demand for public access and create new stewardship challenges for our public land.

Capitalizing on this momentum of visitors and enthusiasm for the Catskill Park, the ideal time is now to develop a new comprehensive plan. Now is the time for an updated blueprint for increased access and recreation as well as sustained economic growth.  

 
Land Acquisition
The preserved lands in the Catskill Park have been assembled gradually over the past 110 years as land protection opportunities matched the availability of funding.  A focus on preserving high peaks and scenic vistas has created a history of tracts with scarce road access, limited parking and difficult terrain for general public access. Acquisitions made by New York City focused on willing sellers and water quality criteria and have tended to be a collective patchwork of lands. This resulting mosaic of public lands makes management for recreation and tourism very challenging.

The next generation of acquisition must focus on building tourism-friendly access with continuity and comprehensive integration between city and state land holdings.  A focus on making access points between these parcels, area towns and villages is critical to helping local businesses connect to this vital tourism resource while sustaining access, interest and use.

Further complicating these acquisition patterns are the enormous wait times for state funds to purchase parcels acquired through land trusts. Six-year holding times effectively tie up the resources of cooperating land trusts, restricting their ability to respond to important land protection opportunities. Dedicated annual funding from the EPF for land protection would leverage this partnership by more than 100%.

 
Forest Preserve Stewardship
The Catskill Park Coalition is very concerned about safeguarding the many acres of public lands that contain sensitive ecosystems and provide vital environmental services, such as protecting the water supply for New York City. Any successful effort to increase visitation creates a stewardship challenge, thus requiring additional funding.  Nevertheless, analysis by the Trust for Public Land completed in 2012 found that for every $1 dollar of EPF investment in public lands the state gained $7 in economic benefits through natural goods and services.

These investments continuously yield sustained and long term economic gains. Recent support and investment in the Catskill region is building great momentum for the park improving the economic vitality of the region as a whole. The opening of the Maurice D. Hinchey Catskill Interpretive Center in 2015; the establishment of the Catskill Conservation Corps; and the work of the Catskill Park Advisory Committee and  Catskill Park Coalition are creating a foundation to further cement the economic advancement of the region. Through an EPF line item we can insure these continuous economic gains.

Funding to upgrade current facilities and build new trails, bridges and parking areas can be further leveraged by the participation of passionate volunteers and sportsmen, like the Catskill Conservation Corps, who will provide the required labor.  Many of the projects identified during the comprehensive recreation plan process will require stewardship funding, investments that inevitably reap rewards for the region as well as the state.

 
Integrating Tourism Service Businesses with Public Land Opportunities
After a historic economic decline, the average income of residents in the Catskill Mountain region is nearly 40% below the state average. Small business creation to capitalize on new tourism opportunities can revitalize the moribund economy. We propose that a portion of the EPF funding for the Catskill Park be designated for a grants program to stimulate related business growth and creation. New businesses focusing on interpretation, guide services, hospitality, arts and culture, and recreational equipment will help grow this new green economy.   These grant funds would also be made available to municipalities seeking to reinforce the assets of villages and hamlets that help preserve the heritage of the Catskill Park.

 
Funding to Build a Modern Park
In the current environment of tight competitive funding, these necessary and urgent initiatives are not being implemented rapidly enough. We propose a dedicated line be established within the EPF, to be funded from future EPF increases, beginning in fiscal year 2015-16.  We project the annual needs for this fund at $4 million a year. Rather than creating any further administrative structure we suggest that this funding be administered by NYS DEC, with advice from the diverse stakeholders of the Catskill Park Advisory Committee.

Now is the time that a dedicated and recurring line item in the EPF be established for the Catskills. A line item insures that obsolete five-year recreation plans are no longer updated just once every few decades. A line item guarantees that land acquisition occurs in a holistic fashion that benefits both the environment and the economy rather than be restricted by untimely and ad hoc funding availability. A line item appropriately stewards and protects the land of the Catskills, particularly critical as we now approach the greatest demand for access seen in years, if not in the history of the region. A line item integrates our natural resources as an economic asset stimulating growth in the villages and hamlets of the Catskills while preserving our heritage. This is the year that a recurring $4 million dollar line item in the EPF begins to transform the park for the benefit of all.