Malloy wisely avoids a Chris Christie debacle
Whatever your opinion of Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy as the state struggles with a financial crisis that has forced it to cut the hours of some parks, beaches and campgrounds, at least he hasn't been as stupid, arrogant and, frankly, unphotogenic as New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, whose unflattering picture taken from an airplane during the Fourth of July weekend showed him relaxing with family and friends on an otherwise deserted beach that he had ordered closed because of that state's budget standoff.
Christie then compounded his insolence by unapologetically telling a reporter that he was entitled to lounge on the beach because of its proximity to the governor's summer mansion.
“That's just the way it goes,” he said. “Run for governor, and you can have a residence.”
Anyway, Gov. Malloy evidently knows better than to pitch a tent at Devil's Hopyard State Park in East Haddam or Green Falls in Voluntown, where campgrounds have had to close while he and the legislature battle over a state deficit that has soared to $5 billion.
Elsewhere in Connecticut, as the Hartford Courant recently reported, the state has saved money by shutting down a handful of other campgrounds, reducing the number of lifeguard shifts, and trimming maintenance at parks and beaches. These austerity measures have prompted some complaints from unhappy campers, nervous swimmers and those disgusted by debris left uncollected by cleanup crews, but, by and large, the impact of the budget impasse on state recreation areas has been minimal.
It would be a lot less if some people weren't slobs and learned to pick up their trash. Better yet, as many parks and beaches do, eliminate garbage cans entirely and force people to carry out everything they carry in.
Unlike Gov. Christie, Gov. Malloy wisely did not decide to kick the public off such beaches as Rocky Neck in East Lyme and Hammonasset in Madison on one of the busiest, hottest weekends of the year, not just because such a mean-spirited move would provoke howls of protests from Stamford to Stonington but because the state collects tens of thousands of dollars in beach admission fees.
I understand the game politicians often play when they want more money: threaten to close popular attractions and curtail favorite programs. Advocates of these attractions and programs then race to drum up public support with petition drives and protests until, finally, either a compromise is reached, or everybody winds up unhappy (and out of office).
This tedious charade could be avoided with regard to state beaches,
parks and campgrounds if Connecticut lawmakers approved an additional $10 fee on car registrations or re-registrations. This proposal now under consideration would help offset the estimated $15 million it takes the state run its parks and forests.
In exchange, residents would receive a “state park passport” granting them free admission. Some 8-9 million people now visit Connecticut parks every year.
Ten bucks a year is a small price to pay to go for a swim, take a hike, or simply commune with nature. You spend more than that for a movie ticket and bag of popcorn.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt said it best when he reflected on the value of such recreational retreats. Though he was referring to national parks, he could just as well have made the same observation about state and municipal parks:
"There is nothing so American as our … parks .... The fundamental idea behind the parks ... is that the country belongs to the people, that it is in process of making for the enrichment of the lives of all of us."