Underfunded, understaffed, over-regulated

It all comes down to money. Funding woes are the culprit with the declining conditions at the Noblett Lake recreation area outside of Willow Springs -- so explained United States Forest Service District Ranger Cody Lunsford last Thursday afternoon. A crowd of nearly twenty concerned locals gathered at Pizza Americana to demand answers and suggest solutions. 

 

Led by former U.S. Congressman, Missouri State Treasurer, and Willow Springs native Wendell Bailey, the citizens had a list of six goals. They want mowing done to the water’s edge, removal and management of the moss/vegetation growing in the water, repair of the shelter house built in 1936, repair of signage on surrounding roadways, repair of potholes on paved roads nearby, and removal of the treetops on the ground at the site. 

 

Lunsford’s primary message is that the Forest Service’s function is not recreation, but timber management. As such, their budgets are focused on managing timber, not on maintaining the recreational areas under their purview. Modern regulations on timber harvesting means that the Forest Service is not selling as much timber as they would have done in the decades when these facilities were created. 

“There is no maintenance budget,” Lunsford said.

 

Moreover, the Forest Service operates strictly on a contracting model for labor and projects. This means if contract bids come in too high for their budget, the projects go undone. 

 

As for the shelter house that was a CCC project, it’s scheduled to be torn down next year. The building is unsafe and cannot be sufficiently barricaded to keep vagrants out.

 

There is no longer a dock in the lake. It was the subject of continual vandalism, frequently cut loose to drift in the water. The Forest Service gave it away to another recreation area. 

 

“I know it’s not what you want to hear,” Lunsford said. 

 

Of the many goals and hopes for the recreation area discussed, mowing is one that can be achieved, said Recreation Specialist Trey Hall. 

 

“Mowing up to the lake is something we can address,” he said. 

 

Committed citizen action will be the key to saving the Noblett Lake recreation area.

 

“If you want to fundraise, put together a proposal, I’ll get you a number, but there’s no money for maintenance,” Lunsford said. “It’s not a promise, but it’s not a no.”