From:


To: Mark Hohengasser
New York State Office of Parks Recreation and Historic Development
Empire State Plaza
Agency Building
Albany, NY 12238
Mark.hohengasser@oprhp.state.ny.us

Re.: Public Comment on revised Master Plan for Minnewaska State Park

Dear Sir,

(Insert your own introduction HERE)
I would like to make following points concerning the revised Master Plan for Minnewaska State Park (henceforth referred to as the Park.)

1. A default Master Plan policy that makes all areas in the Park open to access should implemented pending the development of a new Climbing Management Plan during the development of which each area can be reviewed on a case by case basis for suitability of long term operation as a climbing area.
2. The Peters’ Kill area is a model for successful cooperation between the climbing community and the Park. The Adopt-a-Crag event held at Peters’ Kill for several years has been a part of this cooperation. The cooperation exhibited here should be held up as a model for future cooperation as well.
3. Ice climbing, a separate sport from rock climbing, should also be considered for certain areas within the Park, to be treated under the same points as in Item 1.
4. The climbing community as represented by the GCC should be among the Master Plan committees and should be included in decision-making to the greatest extent possible.

Rock climbing is not only a recreational opportunity, but also enhances economic growth for the surrounding areas, as well as providing income for the Park itself. As for concerns about impact, climbers have proven themselves to be good stewards of the land. An example of this stewardship is provided by the activities of the Gunks Climbers Coalition (GCC) ---see http://www.gunksclimbers.org , where the GCC’s Mission, Vision, and Values statements can be read. The GCC has sponsored numerous work days as part of the Adopt-a-Crag Program by the National Advocacy group the Access Fund (www.accessfund.org). The GCC has worked on projects with the Mohonk Preserve and at the Skytop area of the Mohonk Mountain house. The GCC in a highway cleanup program on a portion of Route 44/55. In aggregate, the GCC programs represent a significant contribution to the community and to the land managers along the Shawangunk Ridge. The climbing community wishes for our voice to be heard accordingly when decisions are made regarding climbing access to areas along the Shawangunks.

In light of the very considerable further potential for climbing within the Park, the climbing community would be pleased to work with Park management to the greatest extent possible.

(insert your own CLOSING REMARKS HERE)


I thank you for your consideration.

Regards,



(SIGNATURE) (DATE)

Some editing is still in order. There are several typos and the grammar and compositon could use some tweaking, so here are my suggestions. I also added spaces between the points to increase emphasis on each (they lose impact bunched w/o spacing). It would also be good if the GCC had some estimate of how many hours (translated into $$$ using the state volunteer hourly wage) it has donated to the local land managers. Land managers really respect organizations that volunteer hours, but they need to have that effort expressed in terms of $$$.

Dear Sir,

(Insert your own introduction HERE)
I would like to make the following points concerning the revised Master Plan for Minnewaska State Park (henceforth referred to as the Park.)

1. A default Master Plan policy that provides access to all Park areas should be implemented pending the development of a new Climbing Management Plan in which each park area can be individually reviewed for suitability for long-term operation as a climbing area.

2. The Peters’ Kill area is a model for successful cooperation between the climbing community and the Park. The Adopt-a-Crag event, held at Peters’ Kill for several years, has been a part of this cooperation. The cooperation exhibited there should be extolled as a model for future cooperation.

3. Ice climbing, a separate sport from rock climbing, should also be considered for certain areas within the Park and addressed in the Master Plan.

4. The climbing community, as represented by the Gunks Climber's Coalition (GCC), should be among the Master Plan committee members and included in the decision process.

Rock climbing is not only a recreational opportunity, it enhances economic growth for the surrounding areas and provides income for the Park. Regarding impact concerns, climbers have proven to be good land stewards. An example of this stewardship is provided by the activities of the GCC (see http://www.gunksclimbers.org for the GCC’s Mission, Vision, and Values statements). The GCC has sponsored numerous work days as part of the Adopt-a-Crag Program by the Access Fund, a national advocacy group (www.accessfund.org). The GCC has worked on projects with the Mohonk Preserve, at the Skytop area of the Mohonk Mountain house, and in a highway cleanup program on a portion of Route 44/55. In aggregate, the GCC programs represent a significant contribution to the community and to the land managers along the Shawangunk Ridge. The climbing community wishes for our voice to be heard accordingly when decisions are made regarding climbing access to areas along the Shawangunks.

Considering the vast potential for climbing within the Park, the climbing community would be pleased to work with Park management to the greatest extent possible.

(insert your own CLOSING REMARKS HERE)


I thank you for your consideration.

Regards,



(SIGNATURE) (DATE)

good point about the $$. thinking about it, kinda hard to put a number on it. thinking about $50 k yearly? if we include all the hard hours put in by DW's trail crew.

see http://www.accessfund.org/display/page/AA/100 for the action alert!

this contains copy of the "scoping letter" which has a lot of content.