Proposal would bring Quartermaster Depot under local control

A new vision for Yuma Quartermaster Depot was proposed to the Yuma City Council that would return the historic attraction to local control and make it a true community park open at no charge to the public.
 
The proposal was presented by Charles Flynn, executive director of the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area, who oversees the city's efforts to redevelop the riverfront.
 
The idea came out of the uncertainty about the future of the park under Arizona State Parks, which has faced severe budget cutbacks. Originally slated for closure earlier this year, the Yuma landmark was spared, but the days of operation were cut back.
 
Flynn told the council he is concerned that reprieve may well be temporary in the face of the state's budget deficit, now projected to be close to $4 billion.
 
If the state decides to close the park, that would come just as the riverfront redevelopment is finally coming to fruition with the recent opening of the Hilton Garden Inn and companion Pivot Point Conference, he said.
 
"This is a critical component of riverfront development that is outside local control," he said. The park provides green space and a historic attraction as well as a venue for special events.
 
Used by the Army in the 19th century to house its supplies for Southwestern forts, the Quartermaster Depot, 201 N. 4th Ave., today contains exhibits related to the military history of the site as well as the Bureau of Reclamation's major irrigation projects in the Yuma area.
 
In recent years, the city has been providing up to $175,000 a year from revenue generated by the 2 percent hospitality tax to the operation of the park, Flynn said. That's 75 percent of the actual cost.
 
The plan is to request that the Arizona State Parks lease the park to the city for five years, making it a free-admission community park. It would be operated as a collaborative effort by the city, the Heritage Area and Yuma Visitors Bureau.
 
The city Parks and Recreation would provide landscape maintenance and invest no more in the park than it does now, using those funds to pay its own staff.
 
The Heritage Area would manage the historic resources and coordinate programming and special events such as concerts that potentially could generate revenue. It also would pledge to provide any funding above the $175,000, if needed.
 
The YVB would relocate its Yuma Visitors Center to the park, saving the cost of its current location while providing a draw to the park. Some 40,000 people a year go through the Yuma Visitors Center, people who might take some time to tour the park while they're there and perhaps decide to spend the night.
 
Currently, only about 11,000 people a year visit the park, making it the third most expensive park for the state to operate, according to Arizona State Parks.
 
"I'm very excited about this," Bob Ingram, YVB executive director, said of the proposal. "It's a perfect opportunity. I see it as a perfect fit to bring people to the beautiful park and its history."
 
Other advantages over the current visitors center location would be the parking and restrooms available at the park, he said.
 
Through local control, Flynn said, there would be the certainty the park would remain open.
 
"That's difficult when it's outside our control," he said. "I believe we can operate it as a benefit to the community."
 
In five years time, the arrangement could be revisited, he said. "We're just trying to deal with the situation as it is today."
 
With the recent passage of a measure to renew the hospitality tax for 15 years, the city is assured of having the revenue to fund the park, Flynn said. Making it free would be a nice benefit for the taxpayers.

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Joyce Lobeck can be reached at jlobeck@yumasun.com or 539-6853.