Niagara Falls, Allegany and Letchworth state parks are the cash cows for the regional parks

system, but they do not make up for the losses at smaller counterparts.

Seventeen of the 23 state parks in the region lose money, which helps explain why some have

been caught in the cross hairs during the state budget crisis.

The disparity between those making money and those needing subsidies has become acute as

the state teeters on the brink of financial doom.

Gov. David A. Paterson has announced plans to close at least six parks in the region, part

of a larger plan to shut at least 55 parks and historic sites across the state.

As they fight to keep the parks open, supporters emphasize two points: Parks mean more to

state residents than just numbers, and the savings involved in closings — $11 million

across the state — is a trifle compared with the state's $9.2 billion budget deficit.

"In the big picture, it's such a small amount of money it's pathetic," said Kateri Ewing, a

neighbor and supporter of Knox Farm State Park in the Town of Aurora, which is scheduled to

close. "If you look at the budget that they're trying to balance, it's like throwing one speck

of dirt in a 6-foot grave."

Western New York is in an unusual position, with three flagship parks that draw a large

number of visitors and generate cash for the state.

Niagara Falls State Park in Niagara Falls, probably the system's most profitable, turned a

$2.8 million profit in the state fiscal year that ended March 31, 2009, as the result of the

Cave of the Winds, parking fees and other concessions. The park, which brought in $10.6

million in revenue that year, generates more money than any other in the system in most years.

Chart: State parks that make money, lose money

BuffaloNews.com Live: Park supporters rally around Knox Farm

Camping, cabin rentals and entrance fees helped generate a $482,731 operating profit that

year at Allegany State Park, near Salamanca, the state's largest park.

Letchworth, in Livingston and Wyoming counties, shows the fine line between profitability

and losses. Operating expenses outstripped revenue for two years in a row before the park

generated a $175,370 profit in the 2009 state fiscal year, the latest year for which figures

are available. The figures do not include capital costs.

But these moneymakers are not enough to make up for the parks that cost money to run.

Three big-name parks — Artpark in Lewiston, Fort Niagara in Porter and Beaver Island

on Grand Island — are the most costly in the region to operate.

State funding for the agency's budget has been "dead straight" since 1994, when adjusted

for inflation, said Eileen Larrabee, a state parks spokeswoman. The state, meanwhile, has

added 26 parks, bringing its total to 178, she noted.

"The numbers were bound to break at some point," she said.

Collectively, the 23 state parks in Western New York took in $19.65 million in fiscal 2009,

according to data from the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

Operating those parks cost $20.78 million, a difference of $1.12 million.

Paterson looks to narrow that gap. He plans to close Knox Farm, Woodlawn Beach in Hamburg,

Long Point on Chautauqua Lake in Ellery and Joseph Davis in Lewiston, plus Wilson-Tuscarora in

Wilson and Oak Orchard State Marine Park near Point Breeze, both on Lake Ontario. Other parks,

including Artpark and Evangola in Evans and Brant, are on a potential second list of closures.

State legislators have vowed to find a plan to keep the parks open, but Parks Commissioner

Carol Ash warned last week that a deal has to be reached by early May to prepare for the

summer season.

Signs of closures already are visible and are likely to become more pronounced as spring

moves to summer.

Parks that normally would have reopened remain closed. Restrooms and a gift shop remain

locked at Knox Farm. The entrance to Joseph Davis remains blocked. No signs of spring

preparation work are visible at Woodlawn Beach.

The state stopped taking reservations at parks on Paterson's closure list and has offered

refunds at others where services could be reduced.

The parks situation will become "super critical" within three weeks if the state fails to

prepare for the summer season by hiring seasonal staff, said Robin Dropkin, executive director

of Parks & Trails New York.

"Parks, to me, are part of the infrastructure of the state and are part of the benefits

that citizens of New York get from their taxes," Dropkin said. "Nobody asks if the roads make

money, if the police make money, if the schools make money."

In the last three years, Larrabee said, the agency ended contracts with the Student

Conservation Association, canceled the Parks Police Academy, stopped its senior Green Thumb

program and took other steps to curb administrative expenses.

Then, in February, came the closing list.

"This is the last thing that we wanted to get to, which was the point that we are actually

closing parks," Larrabee said. "But we got to this point where we could not close this gap."

Since then, protests have erupted across the state.

"There is a political will that only occurs when parks are threatened to close," said Al

Caccese, executive director of Audubon New York and a former state parks administrator.

"People love their parks. ... When you give them a list of parks they're going to close, they

go nuts."

The Western New York parks scheduled to close are not the ones that cost the most to

maintain.

Oak Orchard, a boat launch in Orleans County, had an operating loss of $7,539 in fiscal

2009. At seven other parks in Western New York, by comparison, expenses exceeded revenues by

more than $300,000.

Three parks that cost the state the most money — Artpark, Fort Niagara and Beaver

Island — also are among the most popular. Only Artpark made the secondary list of parks

that would close if the Legislature rejects a Paterson plan to tap into a capital projects

fund to help pay for park operating costs.

Artpark costs the state about $1 million a year in maintenance and other expenses.

The park ran an even higher deficit before Artpark & Company agreed to operate its programs

in 1997, said George Osborne, president of the nonprofit group.

Artpark & Company raises money through parking, food and beverage sales, and donations to

offset the cost of programs, which include a popular free Tuesday in the Park concert series.

Closing the park, Osborne warned, would be a significant "liability," since artists already

have been booked for summer shows.

"We understand the crisis that the state's facing," Osborne said. "We've taken our hits,

and we're doing everything we can to try to keep Artpark operating on as little money as

possible."

The state also has an operating agreement with the nonprofit Old Fort Niagara Association

to run programs and operate the historic fort. But in fiscal 2009, the cost of maintaining the

adjacent Fort Niagara State Park — a sprawling park with 18 soccer fields, two boat

launches and a pool — exceeded revenues by $640,254.

At Beaver Island, the range of facilities — which include a marina, sandy beach, golf

course and the Buckhorn Island nature preserve — are heavily used and expensive to run,

said Mark W. Thomas, state parks Western District director.

Paterson's plan would not spare the system's cash cows.

Interpretive programs might be reduced at Niagara Falls and Letchworth. At Allegany, which

had 1.5 million visitors in fiscal 2009, recreation programs might be reduced, and the Quaker

Area beach might close, among other cutbacks.

"We're running a system of parks, and some parks generate more revenue than their expenses,

and some do not," Thomas said. "It just depends on the nature of the parks. There's no

one-size-fits-all when it comes to the region."