After close call, Louisiana state parks can dust off welcome mat thanks to Deepwater Horizons settlement
Such is the serendipity of state budget drafting in
Just as it appeared the end was near, legislators and the Edwards administration agreed on a funding mechanism that ended the budget impasse and gave the parks
State parks received an additional
Last week, contractors were making the repairs to open two parks by
But it was a close-run thing, said
The budget that Gov.
"All the plans were to start shutting things down, and really, that was what I was preparing for up until the final vote," Reynolds said.
Half of the parks and all the historical sites would be closed. Half his employees -- 102 out of 199 -- would receive pink slips. The rest of the staff would be shuffled around to whatever he could keep open.
There were legal considerations and a question of regional balance, but basically the decision on what parks would be closed was based on how much money they cost. Only two pay for themselves, Fontainebleu near
The 68,435 visitors to
Flooding in 2016 caused the closure of four of the more lucrative parks, cutting into revenues by about
House Speaker Pro Tem Walt Leger III, D-
So, it all came down to one vote on a last-minute compromise forwarded by a cadre of Republican freshman House members led by Rep.
The compromise split the difference and set the sales tax rate at
The compromise needed 70 votes to pass.
Reynolds wasn't optimistic.
Having taken over from Edwards as the House Democratic minority leader and representing a northwest
Democratic Rep.
The politically popular
"If you have to pick between one of the critical services and state parks, which would you choose?" asked Rep.
He was one of the legislators who argued the state's economic health has been hurt by too much taxation. Lower taxes would stimulate growth and attract more businesses to the state. That's why he, and a significant number of
But the compromise passed on a vote of 74 to 24.
Reynolds said he walked away relieved at not having to lay off people.
The
The money was earmarked for recreation and the parks received
Five parks received money to build enhancements.
The combination of BP money and the state appropriation has allowed for long-delayed repairs. Chicot is working on a bath house.
The park has been closed since it flooded with chest-high water in
"It's not as a big a problem now. We've got a lot more people on the property," he said while walking up a reconstructed plank walkway to a campground bathhouse where contractors worked on plumbing and electricity. Tiles have been replaced and toilets sat on the floor ready to be installed.
"I didn't know this (park) was out here until I arrived here to work," said
An electrical problem, which would have electrocuted anyone standing in the wrong spot, has been fixed. A ruptured tank has been replaced and now the splash pad is fully operational.
Though insurance and flood restoration grants pay for much of the work, they don't cover everything, and repairs that would have taken six to eight weeks if the parks were fully funded have lingered for almost two years.
Until recently, repairs at the state parks had a DIY aspect, Furlow said. He'd do what he could. Occasionally, another park would send some personnel over for a day or two to replace boards. Administrative staff drove in from
They removed the planks from the picnic tables, kept the metal frame and installed new planks.
Eight of the cabins now have new furniture and appliances.
The only real issue is interior design. Furlow prefers to put one of the end tables next to the chair. His staff argues that the end tables should be on either side of the couch.
"I've been outvoted," he said.
The state is taking reservations and 21 nights already have been booked for the month starting
Prior to the flood, Lake Fausse Pointe's cabins generated several hundred thousand dollars a year for the state. The cabins had to be reserved long in advance -- about a year for holiday periods. This is one of the parks that made money.
Another group of cabins that sit over a cove were more heavily damaged and repairs will take more time. And the three trails will not be fully opened until the boardwalks are repaired.
Deer, black bears, bald eagles and other wildlife, which had been seen all over the park, haven't returned, possibly because of the poachers, but they will, Furlow said.
"It won't be fully open. But there'll be a lot here, and anything is better than nothing," Furlow said.
State Park Projects paid for with
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