Transcripts

RACHEL REABE: On a sunny summer afternoon at Itasca State Park, the modest stream of water that marks the beginning of the Mississippi River is packed with people. Some take off their shoes and wade across the foot-deep river. Others carefully pick their way across the wet rocks which form the Mississippi's first bridge. Visitors from every state and many foreign countries will travel to Itasca this summer to see the Mississippi headwaters. Cathy Robinson of Slater, Iowa says this is her second trip.

CATHY ROBINSON: I was probably 11 or 12 years old when I saw it the last time. So it's been a long time. I thought it was wonderful, you know, the source of the Mississippi. So that's why we're back, so the kids could see it.

RACHEL REABE: Robinson lines up her three children in front of the tall post bearing the words, the Mighty Mississippi begins to flow on its winding way 2,552 miles to the Gulf of Mexico. 11-year-old Sam, eight-year-old Andrew, and six-year-old Abby try not to squint as they smile obediently into the camera.

CATHY ROBINSON: Ready? You guys look like you even like each other.

RACHEL REABE: The headwaters is just one of many attractions at Itasca. With restaurants, hotels, campgrounds, and an infrastructure to keep it all running, Itasca is more like a small town. Cathy Robinson and her kids are among the 5,000 daily visitors.

CATHY ROBINSON: When we were here as a little girl, I think the only thing that we came to see were the headwaters. And today we stopped, and we saw the Wegman Cabin and the Indian burial grounds, and what else did we stop and see? We picnicked in a shelter house. And we just really were impressed with everything that was here and how pretty it was.

RACHEL REABE: Despite appearances, Itasca and the entire Minnesota State Park System are struggling to maintain services and preserve their resources in the face of budgets that have not kept pace with inflation. Itasca Park Manager Mike Kovacovich says it's getting more and more difficult.

MIKE KOVACOVICH: We've been our own worst enemy, where we're able to cosmetically hide so many of the serious problems we face that the general public has no idea what shape we're in because everything appears to be good. I think we're probably coming to the point very soon where some real tough decisions have to be made, that we may have to either close certain parts of facilities and cut back in services.

RACHEL REABE: Although the State Park System is expecting a record number of visitors this year, they're also facing a record budget shortfall of $7 million. Only a third of the budget is generated from users' fees. The rest comes from the state coffers, and allocations in the last five years have not kept up with expenses. State Park Director Bill Morrissey says they've had to cut services and defer much needed maintenance.

BILL MORISSEY: So what we have tended to do is take our reductions in those areas that don't show up as much. They do come back to haunt us. Some have described it as kind of a ticking time bomb and that if you don't fix things, you can get by for a while. But eventually, you're going to have to either fix. And in some cases, now we have to completely replace some facilities.

RACHEL REABE: A third of the 1,600 buildings in the State Park System are on the National Register of Historic Places. Itasca is thought to have the largest collection of historic log structures in the country. But the buildings and others constructed in the '30s by the Civilian Conservation Corps are in desperate need of rehabilitation. The state legislature appropriated a record $8 million this year for capital improvements in state parks, but a $100 million is needed for rehabilitation and development

Wally Sunderland of Minnetonka is camping at Itasca park with his 11-year-old twin sons. He says Minnesota must make the park system a priority.

WALLY SUNDERLAND: I don't have enough superlatives for it, and I hope that the people in St. Paul realize what a treasure these parks are and provide the funding to maintain them and preserve them for my grandchildren and my great grandchildren and so forth because we're just a beautiful network of parks in this state. And once they're gone, they're gone. They won't come back, at least not in our lifetime.

RACHEL REABE: Itasca Park, with the headwaters and thousands of acres of huge old pine trees, is the grand old lady of Minnesota's Park System. Sprawling across 50m square miles, it's one of the largest parks and one of the most popular. Reservations for campsites and cabins during the summer are usually filled three months in advance. Visitors anxious to do what they could to support Itasca form the Itasca Park Citizens Association. Raleigh Bishop, a Park Rapids businessman, is the group's president.

RALEIGH BISHOP: The state and the employees of the parks can't do everything. I think the people in this area had better realize that they are going to need to do a lot more in the future for not only parks but trails also in order to ensure that they'll be there.

RACHEL REABE: About half of the state's 68 parks have active citizens groups. The Itasca Association has just completed a project to restore the original furnishings at Itasca's historic Douglas Lodge. They also provide a steady stream of volunteers who do everything from planting trees to leading nature walks. Itasca Park Director Mike Kovacovich says citizen supporters are also the most effective lobbyists for the State Park System.

MIKE KOVACOVICH: They elect the officials who make the decisions. And if those people relay the message that this is important to them and are vocal about it, the likelihood of adequate funding increases. The citizens have to take the lead.

RACHEL REABE: Kovacovich is convinced the future of the state parks is in the hands of Minnesotans. If they get involved and exert their influence, Kovacovich says the people can ensure the preservation of one of Minnesota's greatest resources. I'm Rachel Reabe for Main Street Radio.