Call to Order and Roll Call
The 3rd meeting of the Tourism and Development was held on Monday, September 28, 2015, at 1:00 PM, at Rough River Dam State Resort Park Lodge. Representative Rita Smart, Chair, called the meeting to order, and the secretary called the roll.
Present were:
Members: Senator Chris Girdler, Co-Chair; Representative Rita Smart, Co-Chair; Senators Carroll Gibson and Morgan McGarvey; Representatives James Kay, Jerry T. Miller, and Jill York.
Citizen Members: Carolyn Mounce, Eric Summe, Mary Quinn Ramer, and Prakash Maggan.
Guests: Senator Robert Stivers, Senate President; Michael Ricks, Manager, Rough River Dam State Resort Park; Bob Stewart, Secretary, Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet; Elaine Walker, Commissioner, Department of Parks; and Tim Pollard, Executive Director, Office of Finance.
LRC Staff: John Buckner, Lou DiBiase, and Ashlee McDonald.
Approval of Minutes
A motion to approve the August 26, 2015 minutes carried by voice vote.
Kentucky States Parks
Bob Stewart, Secretary of the Tourism, Arts, and Heritage Cabinet, welcomed the subcommittee and spoke about the economic impact of Kentucky State Parks. In 2014, the statewide economic impact of visitor spending in the Commonwealth was $13.1 billion with $890 million being attributed to Kentucky State Parks. Over the last 10 years, that number has declined due to years of underfunding the growing maintenance and capital construction needs of Kentucky’s State Parks system.
Elaine Walker, Commissioner, Department of Parks, explained that the most recent budget increase from the General Assembly helped with maintenance improvements and upgrades to facilities. The strategy for the future of the Department of Parks is concentrated on four key areas: technology, maintenance, infrastructure and staffing.
Tim Pollard, Executive Director, Office of Finance, gave an overview of the Six-Year Capital Plan. The Six-Year Capital Plan covers three biennia and is submitted every two years to the Legislative Research Commission’s Capital Planning Advisory Board. The Six-Year Capital Plan can be broken down into three categories: general maintenance, with a budget of $53.6 million, repair and replace infrastructure, with a budget of $137 million and facility improvements with a budget of $50.3 million, bringing the total for the Six-Year Capital Plan to $241 million.
In response to a question from Senator Stivers, Mr. Stewart explained that the Department of Parks has always implemented a six-year plan which is similar to the state’s road plan. The large dollar amounts are to repair the items that will last the parks the longest. Ms. Walker added that by not repairing these items, it has a negative impact on the number of visitors to the parks.
Responding to a question from Representative Smart, Mr. Stewart explained that it was financially feasible at this time to tap into surrounding county or city water, rather than build a new sewer treatment plant.
Mr. Stewart also answered another question from Representative Smart by explaining that using a search engine such as Google would make park reservations more accessible. He stated that the Department of Parks was simplifying the process by keeping reservations located on the State Park website.
In response to a question from Representative York, Ms. Walker explained that the connectivity issue was due to the system being overloaded with information and access. Representative York suggested using separate T-1 lines.
Responding to a question from Senator Gibson, Ms. Walker stated that the campgrounds at the state parks close after Halloween, since Halloween is typically a busy time. Senator Gibson recognized Friends of Rough River and its continued hard work.
In response to a question from Representative J. Miller, Ms. Walker explained that $53 million would be used for maintenance and equipment needs at resorts and lodges directly.
Responding to a question from Representative J. Miller, Ms. Walker stated she did not have the statistics for the visitor profile specific to state parks with her, but would get that information to the committee.
There being no further business before the committee, the meeting was adjourned at 2:30 p.m.