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Wednesday, April 08, 2009
Going It Alone
By Raam Wong
Journal Northern Bureau
SANTA FE — Managers of Valles Caldera National Preserve are brainstorming for ways to become financially self-sufficient by 2015, when federal funding runs out.
Money-making ideas still under consideration include horseback rides and van tours, elk-permit auctions, luxurious safari-style camps and on-site lodges, including one featuring high-end accommodations.
Already rejected is a suggestion to offer "green burials" on the property.
The 2015 deadline for self-sufficiency was imposed by Congress when the federal government purchased the spectacular 89,000-acre property in the Jemez Mountains from ranching interests nine years ago.
Meeting the deadline could be a tall order for the Valles Caldera Trust, which in its short history has seen frequent staff turnover and complaints over a lack of public access.
A study released Monday concluded that millions of dollars worth of infrastructure improvements and new services would likely be needed if the preserve is going to pay its future bills without help from Washington.
Congress provides about $3.5 million in funding annually, but that number is expected to fall to zero by 2015. So, the trust is hurrying to get a long-term business plan in place.
"We've been paddling pretty hard," board member Ed Tinsley said last week.
From its inception, Valles Caldera has been viewed as an experiment in public lands management. The federal government purchased the former Baca Ranch for $101 million in 2000.
But the ranch wasn't brought in as a national park or as part of one of the government's other land-holding divisions, in part to deal with anti-federal-lands sentiment in Congress. It's been up to a board of trustees — not a federal agency — to ensure that the preserve becomes self-supporting and continues as a "working ranch."
The preserve's grazing program only began turning a small profit in recent years, while outdoor enthusiasts complain that it's difficult to get onto the breathtaking property, known for its meadows, streams, forests, volcanic domes and huge elk herds.
The report released Monday was written by ENTRIX Inc., an environmental consulting firm based in Vancouver, Wash. One of the report's main findings is that the preserve likely won't turn a profit until it vastly improves its infrastructure to accommodate larger crowds, overnight guests and more services.
It describes two alternative blueprints for the preserve to become self-sufficient in 2015.
The first alternative relies on developing a base of visitors who might come to the preserve for outdoor adventures during the day and stay in a developed campground or lodging at night.
ENTRIX proposes a nearly $12 million, 100-room lodge and restaurant with a nightly room rate of about $150.
A second, $11.9 million luxury lodge would have 20 rooms at a cost of between $550 and $730 per night. A concessionaire would likely operate the lodges.
In addition to developing new campgrounds, the report envisions luxurious, semi-permanent tent camps on the wildlife-rich caldera, so visitors can try "glamping" — glamorous or upscale camping that elsewhere includes furniture and catered meals.
The report estimates that some $22.5 million in congressional appropriations and private donations would be required over the next 10 years for the facilities and other improvements to be completed under the first alternative.
The other alternative requires about $17.5 million and focuses more on enhancing recreational opportunities, as well as new services and fundraising.
The report sees dollar signs in virtually every activity at the preserve, from canoe rentals to luxury equestrian camps. The report also raises the controversial idea of auctioning elk permits, and suggests creating flat-water fishing areas by partially damming a river. Van tours, film production and art galleries could also be in the mix.
"Green burials," which could have provided as much as 20 percent of the trust's annual revenue, according to the report, were rejected in response to American Indian cultural sensitivities.
The preserve is preparing an Environmental Impact Statement detailing what sorts of activities, public access and facilities could be developed on the property.
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