Agency ponders future of decrepit state parks

WATONGA — Aging and damaged structures in the state's park system have tourism officials weighing their options and looking for ways to modernize the state's lodges and parks.

It could take nearly $1 million to put the lodge at Roman Nose State Park back together, state tourism officials said

When repair work began at the lodge after it was damaged during a heavy August storm, crews found the aging state park lodge needed more work than originally thought.

In August, the state Tourism Department declared an emergency at the lodge near Watonga and began making repairs.

Officials estimated that initial repairs, which included removing water-damaged wood and mold from the hotel rooms, would cost $400,000.

Nearly five months later, 20 rooms are still unusable, and state officials are waiting for an engineer's report to see how much it will cost to fix the lodge, said Hardy Watkins, executive director of the Tourism Department.

"We're looking at the $1.2 million range,” Watkins said. "We started peeling back the layers and we found more than just surface damage. It wasn't just water damage; it was structural damage too.”

The Roman Nose State Park Lodge is built into a hillside. Erosion around the foundation of the lodge means more extensive structural repairs, Watkins said.

"We thought it was just rain damage, but when we realized the scope of the project we knew we needed to be working with an engineer,” Watkins said.

While the Tourism Department waits for cost estimates on repairs, almost half the rooms at the lodge are unusable and won't be ready when the busy summer travel season begins. Repairs won't be complete until fall, Watkins said.

On average, about 220,000 people have visited the park annually over the past four years, according to department figures.

"The campgrounds there are still terrific, and the cabins are very nice,” Watkins said.

Roman Nose, one of seven original state parks in Oklahoma, is just one of a handful of properties maintained by the Tourism Department that need a major cash infusion at a time when the state agency is scrambling for funds.

A recent internal audit showed that the department is up to $10 million over budget after errors in accounting were discovered.

Officials are also weighing their options for the Fountainhead Golf Course near Lake Eufaula State Park.

The golf course, which is on land leased to the state by the Army Corps of Engineers, needs a new irrigation system and greens need to be replaced, Watkins said.

Updating the irrigation system could cost nearly $800,000 and repairing the greens could cost another $500,000.

"We're looking at $1.3 million in corrective action there, when we've got dwindling rounds of play,” Watkins said. "It's an important area for us; it's important for us to maintain the lease, but we're going to have to discuss which way to go. We continue to assess the demands of today's traveler and use public lands for optimum use.”

Watkins says there is discussion about turning the golf course into a camping area for recreational vehicles.

"We're almost at a stress point in being able to meet those needs,” Watkins said.

Officials with the Tourism Department continue to assess aging properties in the state's network of properties across the state.

At Lake Texoma, state officials recently completed a sale of state park land to a private developer. The aging lodge at Lake Texoma State Park was closed in late 2006. At Lake Murray, the state has a lease with a private development to build a new hotel.

"A cookie-cutter solution is not going to work across the system,” Watkins<