Sereno: Budget cuts could freeze Columbia upkeep

The Columbia Area Advisory Council met Wednesday night and learned from the State Parks district superintendent of cuts facing Columbia State Historic Park.

As part of a plan to trim the state budget by $14 million, state parks will receive less funding and officials have been told to cut expenses, Vince Sereno, Calaveras Sector Superintendent for State Parks, told members of the Advisory Council, a local liaison group established by the state.
 

There is reduced funding for maintenance and equipment, Sereno said. So if something breaks under his budget, it will not be repaired, he said.

Many parks in California are cutting hours, opening later in the season, or closing portions of campgrounds. Such is the case at Calaveras Big Trees State Park and Indian Grinding Rock.

School group programs and tours will be reduced and restrooms will be closed or partially closed statewide, Sereno told the council attendants.

In Columbia, Sereno warned them of seeing plastic on roofs this winter if shingles aren’t in the budget. There is also no budget for seasonal employees, save for two funded by the Friends of Columbia.

Portions of restrooms will be blocked off and Sereno has begun winterizing buildings in the park.

Sereno told the council he will monitor the park’s expenses monthly and that employees are affected by three furlough days a month. Energy use in the park will also be monitored, he said.

When Sereno asked the council if they had any ideas on how to make cuts or savings, council Chairwoman Janice Nelson replied, “There’s no way I can see to cut ... We’re almost to the bone.”

Nelson suggested trying to draw revenue into the park by making concession contracts longer and more agreeable to the business owner.

“The terms of rentals in this town aren’t as viable as other communities,” Nelson said.    

Columbia-area business owner Hart Drobish said they had become “prisoners of our bureaucracy.”

Residents expressed regret that simple ways to save money, like having an area mechanic donate work on a vehicle or piece of equipment or independent volunteers weed eating around the park, would not be possible because of a web of bureaucratic approval.

Sereno told citizens he understood their concerns but that he is charged with carrying out the laws, and recommended they contact their elected officials.

At the end of the update on the future of the park, Nelson concluded, “We’re disappointed that there’s no money in the park except bare bones.”

“The good news is, we’re still open and trying to make it work,” Sereno said.

Also during the meeting Betsy Harden, executive director of Habitat for Humanity of Tuolumne County gave a brief presentation of the recently acquired Parrotts Ferry Village, a planned 36-unit duplex townhome community.

Jim Beaty also gave a brief talk on ideas for a proposed Pedro Y beautification plan and urged members to send letters to County Public Works Director Peter Rei.