Save Armstrong Woods State Park!
Sonoma County's own Austin Creek and Armstrong Woods State Parks are threatened with closure by a new state budget bill that is now being considered by the State house of Representatives. The bill attempts to resolve California's 14 billion dollar deficit. If Governor Schwartzenegger's bill passes, Armstrong Woods, Austin Creek and a score of other State Parks will soon be closed. The bill calls for closure of 48 of California's State Parks. The parks would no longer be maintained, and they would be closed to public access. Worse still, If the parks are closed now, this could lead to a justification in the future for actually selling these irreplaceable resources. The proposed park closures would save only one tenth of one percent of the state's budget deficit.
These two State Parks, Austin Creek and Armstrong Woods, are both located near Guerneville, and are unique and precious to us here in Sonoma County. If you have ever strolled through Armstrong Woods, a cool oasis of huge first growth redwoods , if you have enjoyed a picnic in the shade of the giant trees on a hot Sonoma County day, marveled at the stunning views from bullfrog pond, hiked in the secluded valleys and climbed the wildflower dotted hillsides of the Austin Creek area, then now is the time to act. Act now to help save our beloved parks!
What you can do:
1) Forward this message to everyone you know who may be interested. Post it on all of your email groups and bulletin boards.
2) Send a Message to Each Representative.You can take action and help in this crisis by contacting your representative for the State Assembly and State Senate. To find out who they are and to contact them, go to this site:
https://www.leginfo.ca.gov/yourleg.html
and put in your home zip code. Click on the representative's name and that will take you to their official web page. Each page has a "Contact" link easily found on their page. This will take a little more time, but your comments won't look like a form letter.
3) Send a Message the Easy Way If you do not have the time to contact each representative personally, the California State Parks Foundation provides an easy way to take action. Just go to this site
https://ga3.org/campaign/KeepStateParksOpen
and fill in the information they request: . Please note that you must give out your email and home address, but not your telephone number. You can alter the prepared message to fit your concerns if you want. Also, unless you uncheck the boxes, you will receive information from this foundation.
For an article in the San Francisco Chronicle concerning these closures, go to:
https://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/artic.../MN5TUF5D3.DTL
The Sierra Club officially opposes these closures. To see their statement, go to
https://www.motherlode.sierraclub.or...erra/index.htm
Thank you all for your help in preventing the closure of our beloved Armstrong Woods!
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Amy Racina
Author: Angels in the Wilderness
ISBN: 0971088896
www.AngelsInTheWilderness.com
A 60-foot fall onto granite. Both legs shattered. Off-trail. Utterly alone in deep wilderness. Backpacker Amy Racina’s compelling memoir “Angels in the Wilderness” chronicles her terrifying true-life ordeal.