One of WTSP's permanent park ranger positions will be moved to Anchorage; the change is aimed at focusing staffing where park use is highest.
The state’s Division of Parks and Recreation has reorganized the management structure of two of its largest parks. KDLG’s Dave Bendinger has more:
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Both the Chugach State Park outside of Anchorage and the Wood Tikchik State Park north of Dillingham will soon fall under one park superintendent. Parks Division Chief of Field Operations Claire LeClair says this change will affect the staffing at Wood Tikchik:
“There will be a year-round park ranger still stationed at Aleknagik, and at the end of this coming field season, we’re going to move the other park ranger from Aleknagik to Anchorage.”
Some will recall that Wood Tikchik was previously managed as an area under Chugach, with one permanent ranger position assigned in Aleknagik.
LeClair says this is one of several recent division changes, primarily in Chugach and Kenai/Prince William Sounds state park units. The goal is to provide better staffing at busier areas without having to hire anybody new. That’s because, like many state agencies, budgets in the park are tight.
We have a static budget. Just like the schools, there’s been no inflation proofing on the state parks budget, but our costs increase every year. So we’re doing our best to make sure that the resources we have are allocated in the right way in order to better address our workload.”
Ranger Bill Berkahn will stay as the permanent ranger based in Aleknagik. Ranger Alison Eskelin will move to Chugach. Eskelin is one of the parks division's few trained pilots, and the plane the park acquired last year will move with her. LeClair says that although the permanent staff will be reduced by one, Superintendent Tom Harrison will have flexibility to assign augments.
“Once this reorganization is in place, what you’ll basically have is six rangers working in Chugach/Southwest Area. One of those rangers will be assigned year-round at Wood Tikchik and the other rangers and staff at Chugach will have work assignments in Wood Tikchik.”
The change in personnel is expected to happen at the end of the 2014 summer season.