McCrory proposes to put all attractions under one roof

by Gareth McGrath, Wilmington Star-News, February 19, 2015.

The N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher and Carolina Beach State Park could soon be getting a new boss, but not everyone thinks that's necessarily a good idea.

Gov. Pat McCrory in his State of the State address proposed placing all of the state's attractions under one department.

"I will take additional actions to streamline our operations, not only because they save money, but because they make sense," McCrory said in his Feb. 4 speech to the General Assembly.

Currently, the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) oversees the state's aquariums, state parks and recreation areas while the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources manages the state's museums and other attractions, including the Battleship North Carolina.

The governor's proposal would move all of the state's attractions under Cultural Resources.

McCrory said the move would provide efficiencies and cost savings to the state's taxpayers and offer a better one-stop customer service experience for residents and visitors.

Don Van Der Vaart, head of DENR, and Susan Kluttz, secretary of Cultural Resources, issued a joint statement supporting the governor's proposal.

But any proposed move would mean a huge shift of staff and responsibilities away from DENR, with more than 1,000 state employees at dozens of sites across North Carolina on the move. The shift, in turn, would more than double the size of Cultural Resources.

Several current and former DENR employees declined to speak on the record about the governor's proposal. But a reoccurring concern was the potential loss of focus on environmental stewardship and education in favor of tourism promotion.

This is not the first time state officials have looked at combining tourism attraction services under one departmental umbrella. But a 2012 report by General Assembly staff found little redundancy in services and that cost savings would be minimal if services were consolidated.

Legislators ended up taking no action.

The governor would need General Assembly approval to reorganize the departments. State Rep. Ted Davis Jr., R-New Hanover, whose district includes Pleasure Island, said he hasn't heard any local feedback on McCrory's proposal. He added that he would like to see the pros and cons, including the financial ramifications, before weighing in on the idea.

The state's environmental agencies have been hit hard by the financial crisis last decade and tighter spending controls initiated by Republicans since they gained control of the legislature in 2012.

State appropriations to the aquariums division, for example, have dwindled from nearly $10.5 million in 2007 to just over $7 million for the 2014 fiscal year. Along with Fort Fisher, the state operates aquariums in Pine Knoll Shores and Manteo along with a pier in Nags Head.

So far there aren't many details of how any changes would take place or what efficiencies could be wrung out of combining back room functions of the two agencies.

Along with the Fort Fisher aquarium and Carolina Beach State Park, DENR manages Lake Waccamaw State Park in Columbus County and the Fort Fisher State Recreation Area in Southeastern North Carolina.

Cultural Resources oversees the Fort Fisher State Historic Site and Fort Anderson in Brunswick County along with the battleship.

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