Hundreds of miles from Letchworth State Park south of Rochester and Hamlin Beach on Lake Ontario, President-elect Barack Obama and leading congressional Democrats are drafting plans to jump-start the American economy once the calendar turns to 2009.
State officials hope that the parks and the plans aren't as far apart as they might seem.
Ideas for stimulating the economy, taking shape in Washington and Chicago, where Obama's transition team is headquartered, are focusing on investments in infrastructure, specifically on projects that are ready to be built, not those in early development. The price tag for such a stimulus program is estimated between $500 billion and $700 billion.
State Parks Commissioner Carol Ash has a list of 50 "shovel-ready" projects she said will fit into national-level plans, ones that are through the design phase. They would create jobs and improve park infrastructure, she said.
And what about the economic crisis in Albany, where Gov. David Paterson is proposing cuts in state spending?
"I actually think we have a leg up," Ash said in a nod to federal-level discussions. "We have projects ready to go. We're in process. There is a momentum."
Last week in Philadelphia, Obama had his first meeting with governors to discuss what an economic stimulus plan should look like.
Under Ash, hired by then-Gov. Eliot Spitzer in 2007, the State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation has catalogued its most pressing needs in every one of its 178 parks and 35 historic sites, which host more than 55 million visitors a year. To correct deficiencies and make the properties safe, Ash is proposing investments of $650 million in work ranging from fixing pools to building new park police stations.
In 2008, the department spent $132 million, mostly in state funds. About $5.6 million was spent in the Genesee Region, which includes Monroe and the surrounding counties. Across the state, 150 projects were initiated.
The department sees the state's 2008 investment as a "down payment" on the rest of the projects, which it hopes to complete in yearly $100 million installments, though Ash said no specific amount has been requested for 2009.
The timing of the parks' request to continue the capital investment is simultaneous with a state fiscal crisis.
"Clearly the state is facing one of the most difficult fiscal challenges in its history," said Matt Anderson, a spokesman for the state Division of Budget.
Budget planners started their work for 2009-10 with a $12.5 billion deficit. Anderson declined to say anything about what Paterson's budget proposal for 2009-10, due Dec. 16, would hold for state parks.
Before the state's fiscal year begins April 1, lawmakers have to decide what to do about a $1.5 billion shortfall that emerged this year.
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/art ... /1002/NEWS
