HomeMy WebLinkAboutBidwell Mansion - La MalfaBOARD OF SUPERVISORS
ADMINISTRATION CENTER
25 COUNTY CENTER DRIVE, SUITE 200 - OROVILLE, CALIFORNIA 959fi5
TELEPHONE: {530) 538-7224
June 28, 2011
The Honorable Doug LaMalfa
California State Senate
State Capitol, Room 3070
Sacramento, CA 94248
BILL CONNELLY
First District
LARRY WAHL
Second District
MAUREEN KIRK
Third District
STEVE LAMl3ERT
Fourth District, Chair
KIM K. YAMAGUCHI
Fifth District
Dear Senator LaMaifa,
On May 13, 2011, the California Department of Parks and Recreation announced that 70 state parks
will be shut down during the next fiscal year beginning on July 1. Among the 70 parks slated for closure
is the Bidwell Mansion State Historic Park here in Chico. On behalf of the Butte County Board of
Supervisors and the residents of Butte County, we strongly urge you to intervene in this matter and help
keep the Bidwell Mansion open for the enjoyment and benefit of the public.
As an expense-cutting measure put forth in response to California's current budget crisis, the
proposed closing of Bidwell Mansion cannot meet any rational cast-benefit analysis. Currently operating
with abare-bones staff that includes just onefull-time State Parks employee, Bidwell Mansion
nevertheless provides significant economic and educational benefits to Chico, Butte County, and the
surrounding northeastern region of California. Each year, an average of 37,000 visitors tour Bidwell
Mansion, with many coming to visit Chico from homes outside the Sacramento Valley and even beyond
the borders of the state. Last year proved no exception, with a grand total of 37,491 visitors in 2010.
For the schoolchildren of Northeastern California, the annual third-grade and fourth-grade field trips
to the historic Bidwell Mansion have, over the years, become a standard part of their social studies
education and, indeed, a veritable rite of passage, drawing children from as far away as Marysville, Yuba
City, Oroville, Nevada City, Herlong, Orland, and Corning. Last year, nearly 2,200 children from Chico,
Red Bluff, Redding, Paradise, and other local communities visited the mansion in order to learn more
about John and Annie Bidwell, the Maidu Indians, the California Gold Rush, and other fascinating
aspects of their wonderfully rich heritage as citizens of California.
Given its numerous important contributions to the economic and cultural well being of the local
region., the impending shutdown of Bidwell Mansion could be devastating to the area. The Butte County
Board of Supervisors urges you to make an especially strong effort on behalf of keeping Bidwell Mansion
State Historic Park open for all to enjoy.
Sincerely,
L~~~~~
Steve Lambert, Chair
Butte County Board of Supervisors
cc: Members, Butte County Board of Supervisors
Michael Magliari, Vice President, Bidwell Mansion Association