With little left to cut, the Colonial National Historical Park has announced it will reduce visitor services to satisfy the sequestration requirement to cut the budget by 5 percent.
The cuts include canceling the Pedal the Parkway cycling event scheduled for May, placing hiring freezes on any open positions and closing the Neck O’Land information facility near Historic Jamestowne that houses children’s programs.
For the park, the five percent sequestration cut amounts to $336,706 out of a budget of $6.7 million. The cuts must be absorbed in the seven months remaining in the federal fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30.
The park reduced its seasonal and permanent employee positions in 2011 and 2012, “which left few options to compensate for the 2013 budget reduction,” according to an NPS news release.
The reductions “were made with great consideration for the values for which the park was created,” wrote Michael Byrd, public affairs officer for the park. They include:
- Reductions to special events requiring staff support, and to Special Use Permits.
- Permitted activities, including weddings, have been eliminated.
- Pedal the Parkway, an annual cycling event on the Colonial Parkway, has been canceled. Other annual events might be affected.
- The hiring of permanent staff will be delayed, and fewer seasonal employees will be hired. Many other seasonal employees will work for a shorter season.
- The Neck O’Land information facility will be closed for the spring and summer, moving the Children in Nature program to the Jamestown Visitor Center. Fewer Ranger-led programs will be offered, and staffing will be reduced for the Nelson House, the Moore House and the Poor Potter exhibit in Yorktown. The Cannon Shop has been closed.
- Protection Rangers will focus their patrols on high-priority areas, including Yorktown, the Colonial Parkway and Jamestown.
- Maintenance efforts will be reduced, including mowing, trail maintenance, grounds and janitorial service. On the Parkway, trash pickup, road repairs and maintenance will be reduced.
Visitor centers at both Historic Jamestowne and Yorktown Battlefield are open daily from 9-5. Access to Historic Jamestowne is available daily from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. For more information, please call (757) 898-2410, or log on to www.nps.gov/colo.
