www.ncparks.gov for State Parks Info and Events
Michael F. Easley
Governor
June 2008 Volume 22 Number 3
William G. Ross Jr.
Secretary, DENR
Department of Environment and Natural Resources
INSIDE...
PARKS’ IMPACT: $400 MILLION
STUDY FOCUSES ON CONTRIBUTION TO LOCAL ECONOMIES
14 CASE STUDIES
OF ‘TOURIST’ VISITORS
CAMPERS AT STONE MOUNTAIN STATE PARK ARE
AMONG THOSE SPENDING ON AUTO EXPENSES, FOOD,
EQUIPMENT AND SERVICES LOCALLY.
North Carolina’s state parks potentially
contribute $289 million to local economies an-nually
as well as $120 million to local residents’
income, according to conservative estimates in
an intensive study researchers at North Carolina
State University conducted for the Division of
Parks and Recreation.
With “tourist” visitors spending an aver-age
$23.56 a day to enjoy the outdoors, 14 state
parks examined in the yearlong study contribute
$139 million annually when spending by tourists
is combined with directing spending in the local
communities by the parks.
In addition, the parks’ impact on local
residents’ income was estimated at $56 million
annually.
The study projected the total potential
economic impact ($289 million) based on state-wide
attendance and assumed similar travel and
spending patterns for all visitors to the system’s
36 state parks and state recreation areas.
For purposes of the study, “tourist”
visitors were defi ned as those non-local visitors
whose primary purpose for a trip was to visit a
state park.
The researchers interviewed 852 of these
“tourist” visitors in the 14 study parks and found
that the average group size is 3.14 and the aver-age
stay in a local community is 1.73 days. Thus,
the average group spends $127.98 during a park
visit for such things as food, lodging, souvenirs,
services and equipment.
“Our state parks stand on their own as
stunning conservation lands representing North
Carolina’s rich natural heritage. And, record visi-tation
shows our citizens and visitors value them
as such,” said Lewis Ledford, director of the state
parks system.
“The economic contributions revealed
in this study suggest that the true value of state
CONTINUED ON PAGE 8
With 14 state parks surveyed for the eco-nomic
impact report, there were some similarities
across the board as well as variations.
Hanging Rock State Park was somewhat
“typical.” In a rural area, it draws large crowds
for multi-day visits much of the year and offers a
traditional menu of outdoor activities.
A key statistic is a park’s percentage of
“tourist” visitors – those who come from outside
the county primarily to visit a state park. For the
14 parks, the percentage ranged from 17 percent
CONTINUED ON PAGE 9
FORT MACON EVENT P. 4
NEW EXHIBITS OPEN P. 5
HOWES HONORED P. 6
GREEN SQUARE FUTURE P. 7
BONES IN WACCAMAW P.10
FIND THE COMPLETE ECONOMIC STUDY AT
WWW.NCPARKS.GOV. CLICK ‘NEWS.’
2
From The Director‘s Desk
Sincerely,
Lewis Ledford
Most people in the communities where our state parks are
located have long held the notion that the parks are good for their
local economies.
After all, in every county where a park is located, it draws
more visitors than any other attraction. As we’ve planned new
state parks through our New Parks for a New Century initiative,
each community has welcomed the new park as a valued addition
to the economic mix. But, that’s been support based largely on
faith. It’s more diffi cult to determine a state park’s contribution
than that of manufacturing plants or retail centers, which directly
generate jobs and tax revenues.
That’s why the report just released by North Carolina
State University’s Recreation Resources Service is so important.
Authors Dr. Jerusha Greenwood and Dr. Candace Vick devised
a way to quantify the economic contribution of visitors to state
parks, based on proven survey methods and the IMPLAN model-ing
software, an industry standard for economic impact research.
Our gratitude goes to them for their hard work on the project.
Their study tallies the impact of all the visitors who travel
just to visit a state park and the spending by state government
to operate the park. And, the estimates are quite conservative
– spending by local visitors and travelers who drop by on a whim
is not calculated.
But, the result – an annual economic impact of $400 mil-lion
or more -- is impressive, even to those of us who have been in
the state parks system for decades. It’s likely that the state parks,
conservation organizations and local communities will be poring
over these numbers for some time to come.
The results are presented not as justifi cation for state
parks. That exists independently in our mission of conservation,
education and recreation. Rather, it shows how closely we’re tied
to the communities where we serve and that we’re partners in
improving the quality of life in those communities.
Operating state parks is certainly a year-round business
now, but the July Fourth holiday and the entire month remains
especially busy. July is also National Parks and Recreation
Month, and a good time to remember to make a special effort to
help our visitors enjoy the parks safely.
UP CLOSE AND ‘PERSONNEL’
Jack Gupton has been
promoted to wastewater plant
operator at Falls Lake State
Recreation Area. A graduate of
Franklinton High School and
Wake Tech Community Col-lege,
he has 18 years of related
experience and has worked for
N.C. Central University and
the towns of Butner and Wake
Forest.
Toby Hall has returned
to Lake Waccamaw State Park
as a ranger after serving three
years as an enforcement offi cer
with the N.C. Wildlife Resourc-es
Commission. A graduate of
the University of Maine with a
bachelor’s degree in parks and
recreation management, he has
also worked as a ranger for the
National Park Service.
Maschelle Peyton
is the new offi ce assistant at
Mount Mitchell State Park. She
attended West Virginia State
College and Fairmont State
College in West Virginia and
has more than 11 years related
experience including employ-ment
with the U.S. Attorney’s
offi ce in that state.
Lindy Allen has joined
the division as the publications
coordinator and webmaster.
A graduate of Garner Senior
High School and UNC-Wilm-ington
with a bachelor’s degree
in English, she has worked for
the Department of Cultural
Resources and the Division of
Forest Resources.
Becky Holmes is the
new interpretive and education
specialist for the north district.
She is a graduate of Shawnee
State University in Ohio with a
bachelor’s degree in natural sci-ence
and has worked as an edu-cation
programs instructor with
the South Carolina Aquarium
and a seasonal naturalist with
the National Audubon Society.
Anthony DeSantis is
a new ranger at Dismal Swamp
State Park. He attended Lock
Haven University and Millers-ville
University, both in Penn-sylvania,
and has been a sea-sonal
employee at state parks
in Arizona, Pennsylvania and
Connecticut.
3
‘PARK’ IT
WITH A STATE PARKS
SPECIALTY LICENSE TAG
The Division of Parks and Recreation is accepting applications and payment
for the fi rst 300 license plates. There is a $30 fee in addition to regular license
fees ($60 for personalized plates). Additional fees support conservation
through the Parks and Recreation and Natural Heritage trust funds.
Applications online at www.ncparks.gov
or write: Adrienne McCoig, N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation
1615 MSC, Raleigh, NC 27699-1615
Sam Bland, a ranger
and former superintendent at
Hammocks Beach State Park,
has been presented the 2008
Outstanding Public Citizen
Award and the Rotary Interna-tional
Paul Harris Fellow award
by the Swansboro Rotary Club.
The awards are pre-sented
to a non-Rotarian who
contributes signifi cantly to
quality life in the community.
“Sam is very dedicated
and goes way beyond the norm
in what he does,” said Todd
Miller, president of the N.C.
Coastal Federation. “It’s our
opinion that Hammocks Beach
is a stellar example of good
environmental stewardship.”
Bland worked with the
Hammocks Beach State
Park was presented a 2008
Pelican Award from the N.C.
Coastal Federation for its work
in protecting and restoring
coastal habitat.
The presentation was
made in June at a federation
rally in Raleigh. Park Super-intendent
Paul Donnelly and
Ranger Sam Bland accepted on
behalf of the park.
The Pelican Awards
recognize exemplary achieve-ments
and actions by citizens,
legislators, government offi -
cials and community groups in
protecting and restoring coastal
resources.
Specifi cally, the park
was honored for a project that
restored shoreline and wetland
habitat in an area that was once
a parking area for the park’s
former offi ce.
With the help of volun-teers
and park staff, pavement
was removed and areas were
replanted to collect stormwater.
Also, a nearby bulkhead
was removed to make way for
replanted marsh grass, and
natural reefs were built from
recycled oyster shells.
COASTAL GROUP
GIVES AWARD
TO HAMMOCKS
SUPERINTENDENT PAUL DONNELLY, LEFT, AND RANGER SAM BLAND AC-CEPT
PELICAN AWARD FOR HAMMOCKS BEACH STATE PARK.
BLAND GIVEN ROTARY HONOR
federation and other environ-mental
groups in adding Hug-gins
Island and its maritime
forest to the state park, and
also has partnered with them
to restore shoreline habitat and
wetlands in a former parking
area of the park.
He helped initiate a
rainwater collection program
and an oyster shell recycling
program to build oyster reefs as
well as the park’s annual Toys
for Tots Marsh Cruise program.
and a park Military Apprecia-tion
Day.
He writes an environ-mental
education column for
the Tideland News and docu-ments
species in the Natural
Resource Inventory Database.
4
The state parks system
launched construction in May
of its largest park facility, a
22,547-square-foot coastal edu-cation
and visitor center at Fort
Macon State Park.
A groundbreaking event
April 27 coincided with the an-nual
ice cream social of Friends
of Fort Macon, a volunteer sup-port
group.
“Fort Macon is our
second oldest state park and
among our busiest with more
than 1.2 million visitors in
2007, and that presents a tre-mendous
opportunity to teach
the natural history of our coast
alongside the military history of
the fort itself,” said Lewis Led-ford,
director of the state parks
system.
“The center has also been
designed to showcase certifi ed
green building techniques and
serve as a model of stewardship
in the coastal environment.”
The 182-year-old for-tress
was fully restored in 1999-
03 and visitors get a good dose
of Civil War history as they tour
its battlements and exhibits.
The new coastal education and
visitor center will offer other
historical details but its focus
will be on the natural history of
the state’s barrier islands.
Sometimes, military
and natural history merge. One
story the center will tell is the
work of prominent natural his-torians
Elliott Coues and Henry
Yarrow, whose day jobs in the
mid-1800s were as surgeons at
the fort.
The pair recorded their
observations at the outpost and
regularly sent dispatches and
specimens to the Smithsonian
Institution.
At the groundbreak-ing
ceremony, Ledford said it’s
important that visitors and the
state’s citizens learn the impor-tance
of the coastal ecology.
“In its very long life, this
fort has seen a lot of changes,
but the greatest changes may
lie ahead with the coast threat-ened
like never before,” he
said. “Having a place to educate
citizens and visitors is of lasting
importance.”
The parks system has
built 18 visitor centers since
the mid-1990s, and construc-tion
also began this spring on a
center at Merchants Millpond
State Park.
The Fort Macon proj-ect
represents an investment
of $8.2 million from the Parks
and Recreation Trust Fund and
will offer 4,000 square feet of
exhibit space, a teaching audi-torium
and conference room,
along with administrative of-fi
ces.
The center was designed
to meet sustainability standards
of the Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design (LEED)
program of the United States
Green Building Council. It will
have features such as rainwater
collection and low-fl ow water
systems, recycled construction
materials and preferred parking
for alternative fuel vehicles.
The center’s brick-and-block
design will refl ect that of
the fort. The building site is just
southeast of the fort and near
existing parking areas expand-ed
during the fort’s restoration.
Park Superintendent
Jody Merritt said that members
of the Friends of Fort Macon
have been staunch supporters
of the project since it was fi rst
envisioned more than a de-cade
ago. The organization has
raised funds for extensive fort
exhibits and provided volun-teers
to help with tours of the
fort.
The construction period
is expected to be 18 months.
The designer of record
is Hobbs Architecture of Pitts-boro,
and general contractor is
Daniels & Daniels Construction
Co. of Goldsboro.
FORT MACON PLANS LARGEST FACILITY
SUPERINTENDENT JODY MERRITT WELCOMES THE CROWD TO THE
GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONY FOR THE NEW COASTAL EDUCATION AND
VISITOR CENTER AT FORT MACON STATE PARK.
5
SOUTH MOUNTAINS OPENS EXHIBITS
A new exhibit hall that
completes a new visitor center
at South Mountains State Park
was formally dedicated in May.
Among more than 50
people attending the ceremony
were kindergarten and fi rst
grade students from Morganton
Day School, who helped with a
ribbon-cutting ceremony.
They were also among
the fi rst to enter the exhibit hall
with their parents and teach-ers.
Wide-eyed wonder was
followed by exclamations of
“Wow,” and “Look at that.”
“We are excited about
what this means for the com-munity,”
said Donnie Bain,
the head of the school. “Our
children will have an excellent
opportunity to learn about the
environment they live and play
in.”
The project represents
an investment of $400,000
from the Parks and Recreation
Trust Fund, the principal fund-ing
source for state park capital
projects and land acquisition.
Design of the exhibit
hall began during the construc-tion
of the 7,500-square-foot
visitor center, which opened in
December 2006.
The centerpiece exhibit
is a replica of High Shoals Falls,
the park’s most popular natu-ral
feature. A boardwalk leads
visitors to a 25-foot-tall photo-graph
that serves as a backdrop
for a diorama on the ecology
of the falls. A video brings the
sound of rushing water.
The exhibit is a way to
bring the experience to people
unable to hike the trails.
The exhibits also in-clude
a “carpet wall” mural, a
nocturnal theater, a microscope
to explore streamside insects
and dioramas of different
habitats in the park’s important
watersheds.
“Along with the educa-tional
programs that the rang-ers
provide, this exhibit hall
will be a great tool for teaching
park visitors about being good
stewards of our land,” said
Lewis Ledford, director of the
state parks system. “This is
where environmental education
at the park can begin.”
The exhibit hall will
augment the center’s teaching
auditorium, laboratory/class-room
and staff offi ces.
Much of the research for
the exhibits was conducted by
rangers at the park. The project
was designed by Discovery Ex-hibits
Inc. of Santa Fe, Minn.,
and principal fabricator was
Studio Displays of Pineville.
STUDENTS AND TEACHERS FROM MORGANTON DAY SCHOOL HELPED
WITH A RIBBON-CUTTING CEREMONY TO OPEN THE EXHIBIT HALL.
TRIMMING FOR SAFETY
MAINTENANCE MECHANICS FROM SEVERAL STATE PARKS IN THE WEST
DISTRICT GATHERED AT CHIMNEY ROCK STATE PARK FOR SEVERAL
DAYS EARLIER THIS YEAR TO TRIM TREES ON THE APPROACH ROAD TO
CHIMNEY ROCK. LIMBS AND TREES THAT WERE DAMAGED BY WIND
AND FREEZES AND IN DANGER OF TOPPLING WERE REMOVED.
6
Jonathan B. Howes,
chairman of the Parks and Rec-reation
Trust Fund Authority for
10 years, was presented a Lifetime
Achievement Award from North
Carolina State University’s De-partment
of Parks, Recreation
and Tourism Management.
Howes was presented the
award ��� along with a keepsake
clock – at the authority’s May
meeting in Raleigh.
Doug Wellman, head of
the department, said that beyond
Howes’ service as an administra-tor
at UNC-Chapel Hill and his
tenure as secretary of the N.C.
Department of Environment,
Health and Natural Resources,
his commitment to the success of
the trust fund was an overriding
contribution.
During his chairman-ship,
the trust fund has awarded
487 grants to local governments
worth $92 million, and the state
parks system has flourished
with new land acquisitions and
improved facilities.
“This is a gift that keeps
on giving,” Wellman said.
Howes’ “statesmanship”
helped create the trust fund and
gave it direction, furthered coop-eration
with other state conserva-tion
funds and spread knowledge
of the state parks system, in part
by holding trust fund meetings in
the parks, Wellman said.
The university has be-stowed
12 such lifetime achieve-ment
awards.
Howes said that he shares
the recognition with the staff of
the Division of Parks and Recre-ation,
which administers the trust
fund.
“In the end, what this rep-resents
– and it’s fi tting that this
is a clock – is the timeless qual-ity
of this work we’re doing for
generations to come,” he said.
Governor Jim Hunt ap-pointed
Howes as a cabinet
secretary in 1993. He had been
serving at UNC at Chapel Hill as
director of the Center for Urban
and Regional Studies and as a
research professor.
Before joining the uni-versity
in 1970, Howes held top
policy positions in the U.S. Urban
Policy Center, the Department
of Housing and Urban Develop-ment
and the Housing and Home
Finance Agency.
He also served as mayor
of Chapel Hill, president of the
League of Municipalities and
chairman of the Triangle J Coun-cil
of Governments.
HOWES HONORED FOR ACHIEVEMENTS
HOWES, LEFT, GETS A STANDING OVATION FROM DOUG WELLMAN AND
MEMBERS OF THE PARKS AND RECREATION TRUST FUND AUTHORITY.
Among 34 local grants
approved by the Parks and Rec-reation
Trust Fund Authority in
May was the fi rst one dedicated to
the Mountains-to-Sea Trail.
Alamance County was
awarded $400,000 to acquire
property in the trail corridor and
will use donated property as a
match for the trust fund grant.
The trust fund author-ity
earlier set aside $8.5 million
in certifi cates of participation
(similar to bonds) to purchase
tracts along the route of the trail.
Those funds will be targeted at
other tracts in Alamance County
and elsewhere to help place criti-cal
links in the 1,000-mile trail
corridor.
The 34 grants for local
parks and recreation projects
total $12.8 million. In this year’s
funding cycle, the authority
received 89 grant applications
requesting more than $27 mil-lion.
Thirty percent of the trust
fund is set aside for the grant pro-gram,
which has supported $122
million in projects since 1995.
The awards represent
approximately three quarters
of the 2007-08 revenues for the
program, and the authority will
consider more applications at its
July meeting.
Eighteen of the success-ful
grant applications were
for the maximum amount of
$500,000.
The projects included
an array of recreation amenities
such as athletic fi elds, swimming
pools, playgrounds, walking trails
and greenways, fi shing ponds and
piers, community centers and
TRAIL PROJECT AMONG PARTF GRANTS
CONTINUED ON PAGE 9
7
The Department of Envi-ronment
and Natural Resources
used Earth Day as an occasion
to begin moving some earth for
a new Green Square offi ce and
research center in downtown
Raleigh. A groundbreaking cer-emony
drew about 400 people.
The complex will eventu-ally
house the headquarters staff
of the state parks system along
with other DENR divisions.
Three dilapidated govern-ment
buildings on Jones Street
just west of the Legislative Build-ing
were demolished to make way
for the $104 million complex that
will explore state-of-the-art tech-nology
in green building design.
To begin, rubble from
the demolished buildings will be
reused in the foundation.
Along with the 172,000-
square-foot offi ce building for
DENR employees, the complex
will include an 80,000-square-foot
Nature Research Center to
augment the existing N.C. Mu-seum
of Natural Sciences across
the street.
Joe Hackney, Speaker of
the House, told the crowd at the
groundbreaking that the project
refl ects the state’s commitment to
tackling environmental issues.
“A building is never just
a building,” Hackney said. “This
is further evidence that we here
in North Carolina take environ-mental
issues and energy issues
seriously and we’re willing to take
our time and money to solve some
of the serious issues of the day.”
The Nature Research
Center will expand on the mission
of the natural sciences museum,
said Director Betsy Bennett. Its
centerpiece will be a four-story,
multimedia presentation area
called the Daily Planet that will
describe how scientifi c research
in the state meshes with research
around the world.
The center will also house
hands-on laboratories and an as-tronomy
platform where visitors
can get a taste of research tech-niques,
as well as a conference
center where visiting scientifi c
Earth Day 2008 lasted at
least a week in North Carolina’s
state parks, with more than half
the parks scheduling special ac-tivities,
hikes and projects from
April 19-26.
At Medoc Mountain,
Ranger Nicole Crider organized
kids and adults to build a butterfl y
garden using shrubs and trees
donated by local plant nurseries
and garden centers. It’s part of
the park’s new outdoor exhibits
that demonstrate how to attract
wildlife to backyards.
The garden will be used
for ranger-led programs on but-terfl
ies and attracting wildlife.
Visitors can walk a small trail
through the garden to get an up-close
look at some of nature’s
most beautiful and interesting
creatures.
Several parks teamed with
local school systems and other
agencies to host large groups of
experts can lecture.
“In the Museum of Natu-ral
Sciences, we’re really focusing
on what we know about North
Carolina’s environment,” Bennett
said. “In the nature center, we’re
focusing on how we know what
GROUND BROKEN FOR GREEN SQUARE
PARKS HONOR EARTH DAY
students who arrived en masse
to study environmental themes.
Jones Lake held its second
annual Environmental Days for
all fi fth graders in the county. And
at Cliffs of the Neuse, about 250
sixth graders arrived on a sunny
Friday as part of Earth Week in
cooperation with the Goldsboro
Parks and Recreation Depart-ment.
At Kerr Lake, a similar
event is called an Eco Meet and
takes the form of an environ-mental
education competition
for middle and high school teams
from a six-county area. Catego-ries
include aquatics, hydrology,
forestry, herpetology, interpreta-tion,
endangered species, wildlife
and soil science.
Eno River rangers pre-sented
activities from their En-vironmental
Education Learning
Experience with visitors sloshing
CONTINUED ON PAGE 9
HOUSE SPEAKER JOE HACKNEY SPEAKS AT GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONY.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 12
8
HOW THEY COMPARE...
ECONOMIC STUDY CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
parks to local communities and the state is even
greater than we realized.”
In 2007, state parks reported record-level
visitation of 13.4 million. That represents more
than three times the combined attendance for
the Carolina Panthers, Lowe’s Motor Speedway
events and Atlantic Coast Conference basketball
games within North Carolina.
The study was conducted by Recreation
Resources Service of the Department of Parks,
Recreation and Tourism Management at NCSU.
Researchers visited each of the 14 parks
three to fi ve times during the year on weekdays
and weekends. They interviewed 2,164 park visi-tors
to determine a percentage of tourist visitors.
The data was then analyzed with IMPLAN model-ing
software, an industry standard for economic
impact research.
State parks vary in size, style and personal-ity.
So, researchers chose parks that represent a
broad cross-section of the parks system, including
some with high day-use attendance, such as Jock-ey’s
Ridge and Hammocks Beach state parks and
Fort Fisher State Recreation Area, as well as those
popular for weekend camping trips, such as Stone
Mountain and Hanging Rock state parks. Large
and small parks, as well as those in urban and
rural communities, were included in the study.
The researchers noted that estimates of
annual economic impact are conservative because
of the narrow focus of the study. Local residents
visiting the state parks and so-called “casual”
visitors who traveled primarily for other reasons
were not surveyed.
The study found that the percentage of
tourist – non-local, primary purpose – visitors
varies widely at different types of parks, from 17
percent at Eno River State Park to 75 percent at
Merchants Millpond State Park.
Analysis of the research shows that the
state parks make a considerable economic con-tribution
directly to the communities through
operations budgets and jobs.
The direct impact of the 14 parks was $15
million in sales, $10 million in personal income
and 256.9 full-time equivalent jobs. Park capital
projects were not included. Nor were park fees,
THE AVERAGE GROUP...
...HAS 3.14 VISITORS
...STAYS 1.73 DAYS
...SPENDS $127.98
CONTINUED ON PAGE 9
% of
Tourists
Annual
Tourist
Expenditures
Impact on
Sales
Impact on
Residents'
Income
Jobs
Created
Return on
$1 State
Investment
Eno River 17 $797,152 $1,737,180 $907,352 29.6 $1.80
Fort Fisher 45 $14,503,877 $20,067,545 $7,936,204 390.8 $25.10
Fort Macon 24 $12,105,587 $16,414,170 $6,676,332 326.4 $13.80
Gorges 45 $2,533,239 $3,718,748 $1,458,457 71 $5.80
Hammocks Beach 45 $1,587,542 $2,672,836 $1,275,456 57.9 $2.50
Hanging Rock 30 $1,355,572 $2,303,204 $1,171,648 46.7 $2.80
Jockey's Ridge 25 $10,760,645 $14,255,921 $5,860,588 259 $15.00
Jordan Lake 25 $2,874,796 $4,868,070 $2,246,721 80.2 $1.90
Kerr Lake 63 $12,824,320 $17,569,214 $7,863,741 374.6 $5.80
Merchants Millpond 75 $1,399,088 $1,729,870 $806,072 47.7 $2.20
Morrow Mountain 69 $1,897,707 $3,155,349 $1,531,637 71.5 $4.00
Mount Mitchell 52 $8,875,126 $11,221,959 $4,702,632 236.8 $10.20
Pilot Mountain 59 $2,103,968 $3,302,216 $1,510,488 73.1 $3.60
Stone Mountain 66 $3,071,178 $4,554,523 $2,022,825 94.2 $4.50
9
such as for camping, since those revenues are
returned directly to the state’s general fund.
The study found that for each $1 invested
by the state on park operations, the return in
the local communities ranged from $1.80 at Eno
River State Park to $25.10 at Fort Fisher State
Recreation Area
When this park spending is combined
with the impact of tourist visitor spending, the
annual economic impact ranged from $1.73 mil-lion
at Eno River State Park, which had visitation
in 2007 of 341,646, to $20 million at Fort Fisher,
where 2007 visitation was 834,544.
CASE STUDIES CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
at Eno River State Park to 75 percent at Mer-chants
Millpond State Park.
At Hanging Rock, the percentage is 30
percent, or 99,441 of the 329,520 visitors in
2004, the year of the study’s focus.
The remainder live in Stokes County (62
percent) or traveled to the area for other reasons
(8 percent).
Those key “tourist” visitors spent an esti-mated
$1.35 million, primarily on auto expenses,
groceries, lodging and dining out.
Add to that the park’s operating budget
for that year of $616,920, and you begin to get a
overall picture of the park’s economic impact in
Stokes County.
The combined total impact on sales and on
local residents’ income was estimated at $3.47 mil-lion.
About $57,580 in sales tax was generated.
Moreover, all of this represents 46.7 jobs
in the county.
Another intriguing statistic was the “lever-age
of state dollars,” in other words the rate of
return that counties get for the state’s investment
in the park.
Each $1 that the state invests in Hanging
Rock earns $2.80 for the local economy.
For the 14 parks surveyed, the rate of re-turn
ranged from $1.80 at Eno River to $25.10 at
Fort Fisher.
And what did all these folks enjoy doing at
Hanging Rock? The top activities were hiking (73
percent), camping (45 percent) and picnicking
(55 percent).
ECONOMIC STUDY
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8
through the waters to learn about water bugs, water
fl ow and pH balance.
Both Jordan Lake and Crowders Mountain
took an Earth Day opportunity to engage volunteers
in cleaning up the environment.
“Operation Clean a Crag” at Crowders
Mountain targeted the peak of the mountain itself
and Kings Pinnacle, while at Jordan Lake, litter was
collected on a one-mile section of road that bisects
the park.
Pettigrew State Park staff combined Earth
Day and Arbor Day into a work day to plant an
arboretum of native woody plants at the park.
Along with the usual hikes to observe fl ora
and fauna, some parks also planned indoor activities
such as environmentally-themed movies shown in
the visitor centers at Lake Waccamaw and South
Mountains.
picnic shelters.
More than $2.7 million will be spent on
park land acquisition.
In the past two years, the trails staff of
the state parks system has been refi ning plans
for piedmont corridors of the Mountains-to-Sea
Trail, a designated unit of the parks system.
Along with the tracts in Alamance Coun-ty,
it’s hoped that funding through certifi cates
of participation will spur trail development in
Guilford, Orange and Johnston counties. In each
case, local governments have been aggressive in
creating local trail plans that could mesh with the
Mountains-to-Sea Trail.
The plan is for the state to purchase the
land and partner with local governments to man-age
it as part of the trail.
Alamance County has been among the
most active, hiring a trail development coordina-tor
and becoming a strong partner in trail devel-opment
along the Haw River corridor.
The trust fund grant would help develop
the trail along the river between Glencoe Mills
and the Town of Haw River.
TRUST FUND CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6
EARTH DAY CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7
10
Rangers at Lake Waccamaw State Park
are boning up on their paleontology since 4,000-
year-old bones began turning up in the bed of the
shallow lake.
Researchers from the N.C. Museum of
Natural Sciences and divers from the Underwa-ter
Archaeology Branch began in May recovering
skull fragments of a Pleistocene-era whale from a
limestone outcrop in the lake.
The 20-foot-long creature is likely a mem-ber
of the baleen family, a class of whales that in-cludes
today’s humpback and right whale species.
“Why we think this is important is that
it looks like it’s largely in one piece, which is
very rare for skulls found in North Carolina,”
researcher Vince Schneider told the Wilmington
Star-News. “You never know what it could lead
to, and that’s part of the fun.”
Chris Helms, the park superintendent, is
hopeful the skull could eventually be displayed in
SKULL-DIGGERY
EXPLORING WACCAMAW TOP TO BOTTOM
the park’s exhibit hall, adding an intriguing facet
to the natural and cultural history on display.
Schneider and others weren’t surprised
at the discovery of whale fossils nearly 50 miles
from the ocean. Only a few thousand years ago,
much of eastern North Carolina was covered by
the ocean, adding another twist to the mystery of
how the state’s chain of bay lakes was formed.
The fossils could shed light on the prehis-toric
animal life forms that roamed in and near
the saltwater, coast and marshes of North Caro-lina
long before humans arrived, Schneider said.
The limestone deposit that runs through
the Lake Waccamaw area has already yielded fos-sils
of prehistoric horses and giant sloths, some
of which are on display at a forestry museum in
Whiteville.
The whale’s skull was literally stumbled
upon last summer by Cathy Neilson, a park
neighbor, when she was wading the shallow water
in front of her family home. She reached into the
lakebed and pulled loose a fossil.
That prompted Helms and Charles Zidar,
the state parks system exhibits curator, to investi-gate
further and seek Schneider’s help.
The state divers, under the direction of
Richard Lawrence, usually spend their time on
shipwrecks and other human debris. They were
invaluable partners in the recovery effort, devis-ing
a vacuum system for removing silt and peck-ing
away enough limestone to lift three skull
pieces, the largest about the size of a engine
block.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 11
VINCE SCHNEIDER, LEFT, OF THE MUSEUM AND DIVER
RICHARD LAWRENCE WITH A SKULL FRAGMENT.
DIVERS WITH THE
UNDERWATER ARCHAE-OLOGY
BRANCH USE A
VACUUM TO REMOVE
SILT FROM THE DIG SITE
IN WAIST-DEEP WATER.
11
The mountains and the coast are exciting
places to visit, but for a birder, some of the best
sightings are sometimes right in the backyard.
That’s one reason sponsoring agencies
and birders are excited about the opening in May
of the Piedmont Region of the North Carolina
Birding Trail. Of the 103 sites listed on the trail,
29 are managed by the state parks system.
“The piedmont is where most of the
people are and it’s important to have the trail
here,” said Chris Canfi eld, executive director of
Audubon North Carolina. “Communities are go-ing
to see the benefi t of this and are going to be
motivated to support conservation.”
It was nearly one year ago that the Coastal
Region Birding Trail was inaugurated at Ham-mocks
Beach State Park featuring 102 sites where
birders can build a travel itinerary to add to their
life lists of species.
A consortium of state agencies and con-servation
groups views the birding trail as a way
to promote ecotourism and build a conservation
ethic close to home. It was a natural outgrowth of
Audubon’s designation of “important bird areas”
in the state worthy of special efforts to protect
critical habitat.
The joint effort includes Audubon, the
state parks system, the N.C. Wildlife Resources
Commission, N.C. Cooperative Extension, N.C.
Sea Grant and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Wildlife Resources committed a trail
coordinator position, and Salinda Daley took over
from an Audubon volunteer to work fulltime on
the effort.
She has already begun work on a moun-
Those were taken back to the museum to
further separate the fossils from limestone that
encases them, a process likely to take months.
Schneider said that it’s diffi cult to tell yet
how much of the whale remains in the lakebed or
what else it might yield, and researchers hope to
return later this year.
The fossil site is in waist-high water,
which makes recovery relatively easy, but also
makes the site accessible to amateur fossil-hunt-ers.
Through the media, Helms reminded people
that fossils in the lake are state property and
tain region trail.
Both the coastal and piedmont trails have
come with an extensive web presence (ncbirding-trail.
org) and a glossy guide that offers details on
the amenities of each birding site and what spe-cies
might be spotted there.
“This project is another good reason to
come and energize yourself with nature and get
back into state and local parks,” Lewis Ledford,
director of the state parks system, told a group at
the trail’s grand opening celebration at Durant
Nature Park in Raleigh.
The birding trail is a good fi t for state
parks, Ledford said. Many state parks are al-ready
designated as important bird areas and the
system’s natural resource management team has
been aggressive in protecting habitats and docu-menting
species.
Dozens of the trail’s “species of special
interest” have already been documented in the
parks.
Birders attracted by the trail project are
an important constituency for the state parks
system and its partners and are desirable visitors
for local communities, Ledford said.
“Natural resources are like economic en-gines
in our state, and we need to make sure we
protect those resources.”
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service main-tains
that birding is the fastest growing outdoor
activity by some measures. Americans have spent
nearly $32 billion in recent years watching wild-life.
Fred Harris, director of the Wildlife Re-sources
Commission, said the trail is important in
the larger context of promoting wildlife conserva-tion
in the state and a critical element in getting the
urban populace “out where the pavement ends.”
PIEDMONT BIRDING TRAIL OPENS
FALLS LAKE RANGER BRIAN BOCKHAHN MANS A
BOOTH AT THE BIRDING TRAIL OPENING.
WACCAMAW
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10
12
Billy Totten completed
a 30-year career as a state park
ranger, superintendent and
district superintendent in May,
joining his colleagues for a
picnic and offering a summary
observation.
“Our mission is and al-ways
has been unique,” he said.
“There is no other job like this.”
The farewell event was
held at Jordan Lake State Rec-reation
Area where Totten was
superintendent for 14 years.
Changes in the state
parks system have been dra-matic,
and the pace of change
has increased in recent years,
he said.
“The outward appear-ance
(of the parks) has changed
dramatically over the decades.
What doesn’t change is your
inward commitment to state
parks and to the people of North
Carolina,” he told colleagues.
Totten is a native of
Durham who began working in
the parks as a seasonal natural-ist
and a youth volunteer coor-dinator
in the 1970s. He earned
a bachelor’s degree in parks,
conservation and recreation
from East Carolina University
in 1979 and worked briefl y for
the City of Greenville.
From 1980 to 1990, he
was a ranger at Stone Moun-tain
and Lake Norman state
parks before being promoted to
a superintendent’s position at
Jordan Lake. He was promoted
to district superintendent in
August 2004.
Totten is a medical fi rst
responder, holds advanced law
enforcement certifi cation and
earned the division’s distin-guished
service award.
He was also among the
fi rst park superintendents to
achieve environmental educa-tion
certifi cation.
He guided the park at
Jordan Lake through a period
of tremendous growth. Annual
visitation began topping one
million as more than 1,000
campsites regularly fi lled to
capacity on weekends and the
permanent staff grew to more
than 30.
Both Adrian O’Neal,
east district superintendent and
Greg Schneider, former Jordan
Lake superintendent and now
chief of operations, credited
Totten with convincing them to
spend their careers in the state
parks.
“He’s been a big part of
a lot of our careers,” said West
District Superintendent Tom
Jackson.
Lewis Ledford, director
of the state parks, told Totten,
“There’s no estimate that can
be made of the value of quality
work that good people do, and
you’ve completed a wonderful
career.”
TOTTEN COMPLETES STATE PARKS CAREER
RETIRING NORTH DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT BILLY TOTTEN SAYS
GOODBYE TO HIS COLLEAGUES DURING A RETIREMENT PICNIC EVENT.
we know.”
Bennett said there is re-search
going on in North Carolina
that is having an effect around the
world, and the public would like
to know about that.
U.S. Rep. Brad Miller said
the concept is “totally cool.”
“We need to have a place
where children can learn that sci-ence
is neat, fascinating and that
there’s a sense of wonder about
it,” Miller said.
The complex will have
environmentally friendly features
such as a green roof that will
absorb stormwater and windows
designed to enhance natural light-ing
and reduce energy costs.
Bill Ross, secretary of the
department, said, “One of the
good things about launching this
on Earth Day is that it gives us a
chance to lead by example toward
a green and productive future.”
The aim is to present
North Carolina’s premier sustain-able
project, said John Atkins of
O’Brien/Atkins, the architectural
design fi rm.
GREEN SQUARE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7
13
Seven new state park rangers received commis-sions
as law enforcement offi cers at a special ceremony
March 26 at William B. Umstead State Park.
Superior Court Judge John R. Jolly, Jr. swore
in the seven as Special Peace Offi cers.
Commissions went to: Christopher Ernest Ca-bral
at Goose Creek State Park; Kevin Joseph Bischof
at Jordan Lake State Recreation Area; Michael Rob-ert
Eisch at South Mountains State Park; Nora Jean
McGrath at Lake James State Park; Matthew Herbert
Mutel at Mount Mitchell State Park; Kelly Kathleen
Ondek at William B. Umstead State Park; and, Krista
Sue Yantis at Morrow Mountain State Park.
Receiving a commission as a Special Peace
Offi cer at the end of 17-week basic law enforcement
training is generally regarded as the last formal step
before a ranger takes on full duties in a unit of the
state parks system.
During the training period prior to commis-sioning,
a ranger is assimilated into the park and
begins assuming duties in resource management
and visitor service.
Jolly told the group that when presiding in
court, he was always impressed with the dedication,
work ethic and integrity of all the law enforcement
offi cers in the state.
“It’s a very heartwarming and comforting
thing as a citizen to see that,” Jolly said. “We as
citizens should be proud – and, I hope we know to
be proud – of the jobs you’re undertaking.”
Lewis Ledford, director of the state parks sys-tem,
noted that the system is in a period of transition
with many senior rangers and park superintendents
eligible for retirement. Also, the demographic of
park visitors is changing. Many of them are older
and more urban-oriented, he said.
But, the heritage of service in the state parks
is a very important one to maintain, Ledford said. “I
hope you’ll continue to develop competencies and
continue to keep that passion for what the parks
system is all about.”
Greg Schneider, chief of operations, said
that among the class of new rangers, Mutel from
Mount Mitchell State Park won the academic award
for his class, and Bischof of Jordan Lake captured
a driving award.
Schneider said that the commissions come
with the responsibility of controlling people’s be-havior
and that responsibility is added to those
concerned with natural resource protection and
environmental education.
Shane Freeman, a veteran ranger at Jones
Lake State Park, has been named superintendent
of the park in Bladen County. Freeman succeeds
Shederick Mole, who became su-perintendent
at Jordan Lake State
Recreation Area earlier this year.
A superintendent is the chief
of operations and administration at
a state park or state recreation area
with wide-ranging responsibilities
for staffi ng, training, law enforce-ment,
visitor services, natural resource protection
and environmental education.
Freeman came to Jones Lake as a ranger in
October 2006. He is a native of Robeson County
and served in a military policy company with the
U.S. Army Reserve. He is a 2003 graduate of the
University of North Carolina-Pembroke with a
bachelor’s degree in recreation management and
administration. He worked as a seasonal employee
at Jones Lake and Hanging Rock state parks.
Freeman joined the state parks system full
time in 2003 as a ranger at South Mountains State
Park and later worked at Lake Waccamaw State
Park. He is a certifi ed environmental educator and
holds intermediate law enforcement certifi cation.
“Shane has broad experience in the state
parks system as well as a thorough knowledge of
southeastern North Carolina and the bay lakes re-gion,”
said Lewis Ledford, director of the state parks
system. “He is an excellent choice as superintendent
of one of our oldest state parks. With a new visitor
center and related facilities, it also remains one of
our most popular with the local community.”
Freeman said, “I have worked at Jones Lake
SEVEN NEW RANGERS COMMISSIONED
FREEMAN PROMOTED AT JONES LAKE
CONTINUED ON PAGE 14
JUDGE JOLLY ADMINISTERS THE OATH OF OFFICE.
14
Angelia Allcox, a 12-year veteran of the state
parks system, has been promoted to south district
superintendent. She succeeds Greg
Schneider, who became chief of
operations in January.
As one of four district su-perintendents,
Allcox will be re-sponsible
for operations, resource
management, environmental
education, law enforcement, safety
and facility maintenance for 10 state parks from
Morrow Mountain in Stanly County to Fort Fisher
State Recreation Area on the southeast coast.
“Angelia has energy and enthusiasm as well
as broad experience as a ranger, park superintendent
and law enforcement specialist. Those are qualities
we look for in such a key leadership position,” said
Lewis Ledford, director of the division.
Allcox grew up in Durham County and
graduated from UNC-Wilmington in 1995 with a
bachelor’s degree in natural resource management
and commercial recreation. After working as a sea-sonal
employee at Falls Lake State Recreation Area,
she was hired as a ranger there in 1996.
She was promoted to superintendent at
Singletary Lake State Park in 2000, with administra-tive
oversight for White and Bay Tree state lakes.
In 2006, she became a law enforcement
specialist for the division.
She holds advanced law enforcement cer-tifi
cation, is a fi rearms instructor for the division
and a prescribed burn boss. She is a certifi ed en-vironmental
educator and open-water diver and
volunteers as a public safety diver.
“After living and working in Bladen County
for almost six years, I feel like I’m coming home to
the south district,” Allcox said.
“I’m excited, but humbled, that I’ve been
given this challenging opportunity. This region has
some of the most unique, beautiful and inspiring
natural resources in the nation, and I look forward
to working closely with citizens, advocacy groups
and park staffs as we work to preserve and protect
our state’s natural heritage.”
Jeff Owen has been promoted to superinten-dent
at Fort Fisher State Recreation Area. He suc-ceeds
Matt Windsor, who became
superintendent at Pilot Mountain
State Park earlier this year.
A superintendent is the
chief of operations and admin-istration
at a state park or state
recreation area with wide-ranging
responsibilities for staffi ng, train-ing,
law enforcement, visitor services, natural re-source
protection and environmental education.
Owen has been a ranger at the state recre-ation
area since July 2007 primarily as a waterfront
supervisor. A native of Germanton in Forsyth
County, he graduated from UNC-Wilmington in
2002 with a bachelor’s degree in parks and recre-ation
management. While in college, he worked at
the Fort Fisher State Historic Site as an interpretive
specialist.
Owen joined the state parks system in March
2003 as a ranger at Cliffs of the Neuse State Park
in Wayne County. He is a certifi ed environmental
educator.
“Fort Fisher is one of our busiest state park
units, and Jeff’s experience and enthusiasm will be
valuable as we continue to balance intensive rec-reation
demands at the park with protection of its
important natural resources and rare species,” said
Lewis Ledford, director of the state parks system.
Owen said, “I am excited about the op-portunity
to lead Fort Fisher. I look forward to
continued work with the staff as we embrace the
challenge of providing quality outdoor recreation
and protecting some of the state’s most unique
natural resources.”
Fort Fisher State Recreation Area encom-passes
287 acres and its staff has management re-sponsibilities
for about eight miles of undeveloped
beach within the park and in the adjoining Bald
Head Island State Natural area. The park recorded
834,544 visits in 2007.
in a variety of capacities and I look forward to work-ing
with the exceptional staff in my new capacity, to
protect and enhance the unique natural resources
found at the park.”
Jones Lake State Park was created in 1939
and encompasses 2,208 acres. The park recorded
69,974 visits in 2007.
ALLCOX TO LEAD SOUTH DISTRICT
OWEN PROMOTED AT FORT FISHER
FREEMAN CONTINUED FROM PAGE 13
15
NORTH CAROLINA STATE PARKS
MONTHLY ATTENDANCE REPORT
MARCH, 2008
NC STATE March TOTAL YTD March TOTAL YTD % CHANGE
PARK 2008 Mar-08 2007 Mar-07 (2008/2007)
Mar 􀀁􀄠 YTD
Carolina Beach 36,790 83,930 34,358 83,762 7% 􀀁􀄠 0%
Cliffs of the Neuse 8,671 23,543 11,110 23,533 -22% 􀀁􀄠 0%
Crowders Mountain 41,152 93,674 40,426 90,118 2% 􀀁􀄠 4%
Dismal Swamp 1,419 1,419 0 0 -100% 􀀁􀄠 -100%
Eno River including
Occoneechee Mountain
Falls Lake 52,782 81,688 60,530 82,956 -13% 􀀁􀄠 -2%
Fort Fisher 32,372 63,224 35,875 82,645 -10% 􀀁􀄠 -23%
Fort Macon 82,822 168,922 76,256 162,444 9% 􀀁􀄠 4%
Goose Creek 12,254 30,562 11,726 30,578 5% 􀀁􀄠 -0%
Gorges 712 7,534 7,667 14,129 -91% 􀀁􀄠 -47%
Hammocks Beach 8,424 17,403 7,332 16,551 15% 􀀁􀄠 5%
Haw River 2,474 4,828 3,475 5,792 -29% 􀀁􀄠 -17%
Hanging Rock 28,458 58,408 28,762 61,866 -1% 􀀁􀄠 -6%
Jones Lake 6,555 15,557 2,615 6,841 151% 􀀁􀄠 127%
Jordan Lake 28,410 70,447 48,862 85,514 -42% 􀀁􀄠 -18%
Jockey's Ridge 85,638 122,834 74,112 136,579 16% 􀀁􀄠 -10%
Kerr Lake 67,636 136,304 56,512 108,800 20% 􀀁􀄠 25%
Lake James 23,081 46,043 24,660 52,063 -6% 􀀁􀄠 -12%
Lake Norman 40,062 96,219 40,242 86,883 -0% 􀀁􀄠 11%
Lake Waccamaw 6,258 15,692 7,155 13,495 -13% 􀀁􀄠 16%
Lumber River 6,804 17,556 6,980 15,944 -3% 􀀁􀄠 10%
Merchants Millpond 20,696 45,184 11,448 31,060 81% 􀀁􀄠 45%
Medoc Mountain 4,124 8,704 3,790 8,058 9% 􀀁􀄠 8%
Mount Mitchell 3,250 6,228 8,269 11,701 -61% 􀀁􀄠 -47%
Morrow Mountain 29,642 63,260 29,992 63,180 -1% 􀀁􀄠 0%
New River including
Mount Jefferson
Pettigrew 7,903 16,837 6,170 13,244 28% 􀀁􀄠 27%
Pilot Mountain N/A N/A 32,160 68,871 -100% 􀀁􀄠 -53%
Raven Rock 11,974 26,724 10,192 22,256 17% 􀀁􀄠 20%
Singletary Lake 2,284 6,284 2,069 5,486 10% 􀀁􀄠 15%
South Mountains 13,633 33,878 16,223 39,355 -16% 􀀁􀄠 -14%
Stone Mountain 27,764 59,840 34,116 72,916 -19% 􀀁􀄠 -18%
Weymouth Woods 4,557 13,456 4,558 12,959 -0% 􀀁􀄠 4%
William B. Umstead 66,162 143,622 56,331 130,787 17% 􀀁􀄠 10%
SYSTEMWIDE TOTAL 827,420 1,753,594 841,772 1,751,958 -2% 􀀁􀄠 0%
5% 􀀁􀄠 10%
12,524 27,881 13,552 29,382 -8% 􀀁􀄠 -5%
35,907 90,216 34,247 82,210
The attendance chart on Page 15 of the April
2008 Steward was in error regarding reported atten-dance
for 2007 and for December 2007 at Jordan Lake
State Recreation Area. The correct attendance at the
CORRECTION
park for that month was 26,361 and the total atten-dance
in 2007 was 1,190,973. A corrected attendance
chart is on the division’s web site (www.ncparks.gov)
under The Steward.
SAFETY ZONE
Our Mission Remains...
to protect North Carolina’s natural diversity;
to provide and promote outdoor recreation
opportunities throughout North Carolina;
to exemplify and encourage good stewardship
of North Carolina’s natural resources for all
citizens and visitors.
8,000 copies of this public document were printed
at a cost of $630.00 or $0.08 per copy.
The Steward
NC Division of Parks and Recreation
Public Information Offi ce
1615 MSC
Raleigh, NC 27699-1615
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