State of Oklahoma
House of Representatives

March 22, 2011

Our Parks Belong to the Public
An editorial by Representative Seneca Scott

Former President Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, “There is nothing so American as our national parks.... The fundamental idea behind the parks...is that the country belongs to the people.”

As a state legislator, I believe that we have an obligation to protect Oklahoma’s natural beauty, which is embodied in our state parks and a testament to our cultural and natural heritage.

Our Oklahoma land stretches across almost 70,000 square miles, and within these miles we have 46 state parks that have lakes, mountains, sand dunes, or forests in which we can all hike, bike, fish or just enjoy the natural beauty of our great state. Our public parks are for the benefit and inspiration of all, and as such must be permanently safeguarded.

However, the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department recently made a unilateral decision to close seven of our state parks on August 15thof this year. Citing budget cuts as the reason for these closings, they determined, without input from the public and without an economic impact study, to close Adair State Park in Stillwell, Beaver Dunes Park in Beaver, Boggy Depot Park in Atoka, Brushy Lake Park in Sallisaw, Heavener Runestone Park in Heavener, Lake Eucha Park in Jay and Wah-Sha-She Park in Copan.

They did not petition the Legislature for funds to keep these parks open; they did not provide alternative actions or cost-cutting measures that could be implemented instead of closing these parks. Rather, they appear to have simply shrugged off the relevance of these parks to their communities and merely stated they hope local entities or tribal leaders will step forward to keep the parks open.

I am very concerned about these actions and the potential impact these closings will have on the welfare and quality of life of our citizens. In my childhood I played in parks and would often stare in awe at the beautiful work of our Creator; as a teenager and adult these sentiments grew to include a sense of state pride.

Oklahomans value having access to local recreation opportunities, and our parks are all the more needed during these difficult economic times when budgets are tight and vacation opportunities for working people are limited.

Our state parks belong to the people of Oklahoma, and as such are not just another tract of real estate in which the Tourism and Recreation Department can maintain or dismiss at their discretion.

I am not alone in my concerns, as fellow colleagues have spoken out against the actions of the Tourism and Recreation Department, most notably state Representative James Lockhart, D-Heavener, whose hometown may soon see the closure of Runestone Park. Rep. Lockhart has vocally opposed these closings as he states that tourism is big business in Eastern Oklahoma, and given the higher cost of traveling, parks are one of the only recreation options for our citizens to spend time with families on vacation. We both agree that closing our state parks is bad for economic development not just in Eastern Oklahoma but across the state.

Our state parks are for public use, and we must protect the beauty, dignity, and nobility of each and every one of them for the sake of all citizens and our future generations to come.

*Seneca Scott represents District 72 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives. He resides in Tulsa, Oklahoma.