Thurston Co ORV Park update

[Tod]

County gets serious about ORV Park
By Steven Friederich - Daily World Writer
Tuesday, May 10, 2005 10:53 AM PDT



MONTESANO - The county took "an exploratory first step" toward taking over operations of the Thurston-Grays Harbor ORV Sports Park, commissioners said Monday.

The park, east of McCleary, had been used to give dirt bike riders and four-wheel enthusiasts a place to play. It's been closed since November of 2001 after a lawsuit was filed over a death at the park.

Commissioners agreed to send a letter of interest to the state Interagency Committee for Outdoor Recreation and Thurston County commissioners Monday saying they are "interested in exploring the feasibility of Grays Harbor County acquiring and operating the Thurston County ORV Sports Park."

Commissioners have until October to reopen the park. In October, the state permit for the park expires, forcing the county to seek a new one and hold public hearings if they want to reopen it. Commissioners have said it is unlikely they would be able to get a new permit.

The letter doesn't mean the park would open immediately, if at all. "But it puts us out there saying, 'Don't shut it down for good until we have a chance to look at it,' " Commissioner Al Carter said. "We're serious about this. We want to run it if it's feasible."

The park is owned by Grays Harbor and Thurston counties, but Grays Harbor signed off on a plan giving Thurston County control of the park shortly after it was bought from a private party in the late 1970s. To reopen the park now, Grays Harbor County would have to take over operations.

Thurston County paid for operations with a combination of user fees and state grants. County Commissioners would like to do the same.

The park, which had 35,000 visitors the last year it was open, costs $250,000 a year to operate.



"We're at the first stages of doing the information gathering," Carter said. "I want to see the finances of it, I want to know how much it costs, I want to see how much the state is going to put in."

Last week, commissioners toured the ORV Park and, on Monday, they planned on touring the site again with a number of special interest groups, a staff member from the Thurston County Commission and Thurston County's deputy parks director.

Commission Chairman Bob Beerbower said the park has all of the foundations still in place to start it back up.

"There's some vandalism on the buildings and we still need to open the buildings up and take a look inside, but the park is in pretty good shape," he said.

Carter described the park as "a great big ol' empty place."

"It's got the track and everything you can see where it was a very viable project," Carter said. "The footprint for a great project is there if the funding is available. I don't want to start something that will last a year and not be funded. And it will not come out of the General Fund."

The state "collects an $18 fee for these motorcycles and four wheelers and stuff for a state license," Carter said. "I want to know where that money goes and if any of that money is available for us."

Beerbower said the letter is the direct result of "so many people asking us about (the ORV Park) so we just wanted to let people know we're looking at it."

 

[Kav]

:cool:

 

[schwen_66]

YEAH!! finally the ORV has a possibality about opening again! If it dose open you can bet that i'll be there on the first day!! :cool:

 

[15551]

whaaaat

this park better open or else ill be their the day before it opens so ill be the first 1 in i love the pro track it rocks

 

[Vern#119]

Help now

Send letters to Grays harbor county in support of this a few letters goes a long ways. Case in point MXGP delayed there emediate closer with the help of just over 100 letters , the county is even helping find a new area for the track.
Just think if the people at 1 MX race all wrote letters to Grays Harbor county it would be a done deal.

 

[Tod]

Fresh from the IAC today

Staff Preliminary Recommendation
IAC staff is planning to present Grays Harbor County's (GHC) funding request to the IAC Board at the September meeting along with a staff recommendation. That recommendation could include approval of up to $424,000 of NOVA ORV funds to GHC for:

· Short-term: a $59,000 Maintenance Grant needed to protect the nonconforming use status of the ORV park, and
· Long-term: Planning Phase - up to $15,000 for a Planning Grant needed to develop costs for development and maintenance funding needs: Implementation Phase - up to $350,000 for initial development and for maintenance funding to operate the facility for the 2006 and 2007 seasons.

The attached document includes background information, summarizes GHC's funding proposal, and discusses the IAC staff preliminary recommendation.

Public Comment
IAC would like to hear your thoughts and comments regarding the proposal to provide non-competitive NOVA funding to GHC. Please provide your written comments to Scott Chapman no later than September 12, 2005. Send comments to:

Scott Chapman
PO Box 40917
Olympia, WA 98504
ScottC@iac.wa.gov.
FAX (360) 902-3026

 

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The Proposal

September 2, 2005
TO: NOVA Advisory Committee Members and individuals with interest in the NOVA Program.
BY: D. Scott Chapman, Outdoor Grant Manager
SUBJECT: Grays Harbor County ORV Park Funding
Background
The Thurston County ORV Park is a 150-acre site located along State Highway 8, west of Olympia. Approximately 75 acres are located in Thurston County with the remaining 75 acres in Grays Harbor County (GHC). In 1977, the two counties acquired the property with funds from the Washington State All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) program, a predecessor to the NOVA Program. Since 1978, IAC granted Thurston County over $1,675,000 to develop and renovate the ORV park and over $2,700,000 to operate and maintain the facility. The Thurston County ORV park is one of three publicly owned NOVA Program supported ORV sport parks in Washington State and is the only facility located in western Washington. This facility had attendance of over 30,000 users and spectators during the 2002 season.

In November of 2002, the Thurston County Commissioners voted to close the Thurston County ORV Sports Park. IAC Policy and Washington Administrative Code (WAC), however, requires that Thurston County have prior IAC approval before closing an IAC funded facility. After two years of unsuccessful negotiations with Thurston County to reopen the park, IAC filed a Complaint for Declaratory Judgment (lawsuit) on November 19, 2004 in Thurston County Superior Court. A court date is currently set for early 2006.
This year, a budget proviso was included in Washington State’s operating budget for the 2005 - 2007 fiscal biennium1. The proviso allows Thurston County to discharge its contractual obligations with IAC for the development of the ORV Sports Park if by June 30, 2007:
1. It sells the land, facilities, and equipment on the open market and after deducting reasonable expenses, returns the funds to IAC; or

2. With the approval of the IAC, it gives the land, facilities, and equipment to a state or local agency to operate for ORV recreation. The proviso further stated that IAC, “may award a one-time noncompetitive grant to the agency for renovation and other capital improvements and for initial operating costs.”

On May 9, 2005, the GHC Commissioners sent a letter to IAC stating that they were interested in exploring the feasibility of taking over the operation and management of the ORV park. IAC staff has since met with the Commissioners on several occasions to discuss various issues related to reopening the facility. On August 24th, GHC submitted a formal request to IAC for NOVA ORV funding to reopen the park.

GHC’s Noncompetitive Funding Request
Short-term Proposal: GHC is very interested in protecting the nonconforming use status of the ORV park. With input from ORV user groups, GHC submitted a funding request for $59,000 for this purpose. The proposal indicated that it covers the minimum costs (salaries, utilities, supplies, insurance, fencing, etc.) needed to reopen the park for the one-month period and thereby protect the operational status. The facility would be open Friday – Sunday for the month of October providing camping, access to ORV trails in Capitol State Forest, and organized ORV track events.

Long-term Proposal: In addition to the $59,000 in short-term funding, GHC is seeking an additional $350,000 in non-competitive funding to renovate and maintain the facility for the first two years of operation. This would provide GHC the funding needed to hire staff, upgrade and renovate the facilities, pay insurance costs, purchase materials and supplies, maintain equipment, etc. They feel this additional funding is critical and that without this long-term commitment of funding, it would be futile to explore the short-term funding commitment.

It is important to note that the ORV park has been closed for almost three years and has received no annual maintenance during that time. Additionally, the facility has been vandalized on several occasions resulting in significant damage to the restrooms, gates, and concession stand. The GHC Commissioners have further stated that they will not put county general funds into the development or management of the facility. That means they would be depending upon IAC grants, ORV park revenues, and volunteer donations (labor, equipment, and materials) to operate and maintain the park. Prior to closing the park, Thurston County had been receiving approximately $100,000 a year from IAC to operate and maintain the park.

Staff Preliminary Discussion
Based on current zoning and land use laws, IAC staff recognizes that it would be extremely difficult and very expensive to establish a new ORV park in western Washington. The replacement value of the land and development could be well over five million dollars. Therefore, if providing an ORV sport park in western Washington is important to the ORV community, we feel the best investment of ORV funds would be to work with GHC to reopen the existing ORV facility.

The availability of NOVA ORV funds is an important factor in considering GHC’s proposal. In May, when staff first met with the GHC Commissioners, it appeared that any funding we would provide to the County would come at the expense of NOVA applicants that had applied for a competitive grant (more funds were being requested than we had available). However, it now appears that we have the funding capacity to fully fund all the NOVA ORV grants submitted through IAC’s competitive grant process and enough remaining to fund GHC’s request. Based on this availability of funds, IAC staff suggests the following funding proposal:

IAC Staff Funding Proposal
IAC Short-term Funding Proposal: In recognition of the importance of protecting the nonconforming use status of the facility, IAC staff supports providing GHC a noncompetitive grant for $59,000 to operate the facility for one month in order to maintain the existing nonconforming use status.

Pros and Cons for providing a short-term noncompetitive maintenance grant to Grays Harbor County includes:

Pros
• Protects the park’s nonconforming use status for either a public agency or private operator that may be interested in managing the facility for ORV recreation. • Requires a relatively small investment of NOVA ORV funds ($59,000 of the $1,660,000 available). • Provides twelve days of recreational use (camping, ORV competition, etc.) at the facility. • Proposal conforms to the provisions of the 2005 legislative budget proviso.

Cons
• Proposal was not reviewed, evaluated, and approved by the NOVA Advisory Committee through IAC’s regular competitive grant process. • Reduces the ORV funding available for projects that apply through the normal competitive grant cycle (excess funds could be held over for future funding cycles).

IAC Long-term Funding Proposal: If supported by the NOVA Advisory Committee and the ORV community in general, IAC staff would support fully funding GHC’s request. If approved, however, we would recommend that funding be provided in two phases: a planning phase and an implementation phase.

Planning Phase - Once the nonconforming use status of the facility is secured with a small maintenance grant, IAC staff would support providing GHC with up to $15,000 to complete the proposed NOVA planning project. The purpose for the planning grant is to insure the wise investment of NOVA ORV funds. IAC staff feels it is important to have GHC complete some minimum upfront planning. The information gained through such a planning project is needed before we can successfully enter into Project Agreements with GHC for development or maintenance grants. We see two goals for this planning project:
1) Complete a professional facility condition survey to accurately determine the true cost of renovating the facility to an acceptable public use standard; and
2) Complete a facility business plan to document how GHC plans to operate and manage the facility. Existing plans already prepared by Thurston County could provide much of the needed information.

Pros and cons for the Planning Phase includes:

Pros
• Completing a business plan for the facility is a smart “business” decision for ORV parks. • Planning dollars would be contingent on securing the nonconforming use status. • Provides additional capacity for GHC analysis without using county funds. • Requires a relatively small investment of NOVA ORV funds. • A professional condition survey will provide detailed cost estimates that can be used for preparing Project Agreements. • The Business Plan would give GHC planning eligibility that is required for the NOVA program by WAC 286-26-080. • Proposal conforms to the provisions of the 2005 legislative budget proviso.


Cons
• Requiring GHC to complete the business plan and conditions survey could delay GHC getting Project Agreements for maintenance and/or development funding. • Proposal was not reviewed, evaluated, and approved by the NOVA Advisory Committee through IAC’s regular competitive grant process.

 

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Proposal Continued:

Implementation Phase – Once GHC completes the above planning work; staff recommends the IAC Board give the Director the authority to provide up to an additional $350,000 for development and maintenance of the facility for the next two years. GHC would be required to submit detailed project applications that staff would use to develop Project Agreements.

Pros and cons for the Implementation Phase includes:

Pros
• Maintenance and development funding would not be provided until GHC completed condition survey and business plan. • Development grants will be based upon a professional condition survey. • Maintenance grants will be based upon an approved Business Plan. • Phasing the funding in two stages gives IAC and GHC additional time to discuss long-term contractual responsibilities. • May provide the opportunity for IAC staff to seek additional public input regarding proposed grants. • Proposal conforms to the provisions of the 2005 legislative budget proviso.

Cons
• Proposal was not reviewed, evaluated, and approved by the NOVA Advisory Committee through IAC’s regular competitive grant process • Reduces the ORV funding available for projects that apply through the normal competitive grant cycle (excess funds could be held over for future funding cycles). • GHC has stated that it does not intend to allocate any county general funds to the facility.

Necessary preliminary actions: Before IAC approves any or all of the non-competitive grants, there are several significant decisions and actions that need to take place:
1. IAC and the commissioners of both counties need to approve the transfer of all lands, related facilities, and equipment from Thurston County to GHC.
2. IAC and GHC need to agree on the future contractual responsibilities that would go with the transfer of the land, facilities, and equipment.
3. IAC and GHC need to agree on the contractual responsibilities that would accompany the approval of the proposed and future grant funds.
4. IAC and GHC need to agree on an “exit strategy” should it be decided that GHC is no longer able to operate the ORV park.

Staff Preliminary Recommendation
IAC staff is planning to present GHC’s funding request to the IAC Board at the September meeting along with a staff recommendation. That recommendation could include approval of up to $424,000 of NOVA ORV funds to GHC for:
• Short-term: a $59,000 Maintenance Grant needed to protect the nonconforming use status of the ORV park, and
• Long-term: Planning Phase - up to $15,000 for a Planning Grant needed to develop costs for development and maintenance funding needs: Implementation Phase - up to $350,000 for initial development and for maintenance funding to operate the facility for the 2006 and 2007 seasons.

Public Comment
IAC would like to hear your thoughts and comments regarding the proposal to provide non-competitive NOVA funding to GHC. Please provide your written comments to Scott Chapman no later than September 12, 2005. Send comments to:
Scott Chapman
PO Box 40917
Olympia, WA 98504
ScottC@iac.wa.gov.
FAX (360) 902-3026


SPECIAL NOTES

Nonconforming Use Status of the ORV Park:
The Thurston County ORV park is classified as a legal nonconforming use. This is a type of land use that is no longer allowed in the zoning district, but legally established uses can continue to operate. Based on Thurston County Code, a nonconforming use that has been discontinued will retain its ability to operate if the use is resumed within three years in the manner in which it previously operated. Thurston County’s interpretation of its code is that in order to maintain its legal operational status, the park needs to be reopened and host a variety of events for a minimum of one month prior to November 30, 2005. If the minimum use occurs, the ability to operate the park would be re-established and the park could lie dormant again for a period of three years before the nonconforming use status is lost.


$100,000 a year or $200,000 for two years is the maximum amount allowed under current IAC policy.

 

[MXP1MP]

Last news I hear now is Seattle motorcycle club Got the MX track opened for a practice weekend maybe race, Oct 22nd practice 23rd practice maybe race.

 

[dirty~d~]

I talked with the club president for the Seattle MC last night and he confirmed that October 22nd/23rd is an open house at the ORV park... TELL EVERYONE!! The park needs to prove that it can make money by the 1st of November if it is to stay open.

 

[vern#19]

Orv Is Reopening Fot Mx 10-22-05

Grays county has taken over the park,help is needed badly will post work party dates ASAP hopfully 9-25-05
SMC will be having a 2 day MX race 10-22-23-05
2000.00 pro +200% payback 125,250 only 10rider min.
plus much more.