Let’s clear up Shipley confusion

Stephanie Pacheco

There seems to be conflicting information about the status of the

Shipley Nature Center. In the Huntington Beach City budget

presentation, the city says it has relinquished its responsibility

for the $117,000 operational costs for the center by allowing a

nonprofit group to run the center.

They are referring to the Friends of Shipley Nature Center, a

local group of a few dedicated volunteers that was started this year

to help the nature center. This group is just starting to gather

members and donations. The Friends of Shipley Nature Center are not

in a financial position to pay the salary for the full-time and

part-time employees currently staffing and leading tours for the

city, nor could they afford to pay for the operating costs to run the

center.

A master plan for the landscape restoration of the park is being

developed. This would restore native plants that support wildlife,

fill in large areas of the nature center that are now devoid of any

plant life except weeds and improve the nature trails. The city has

allocated $10,000 for some maintenance work by the California

Conservation Corps. But no money has been allocated by the city for

the $500,000 needed for labor, equipment, and materials over the next

few years to complete restoration, even with volunteers assisting.

There is no written agreement from the city that the center will

reopen or that restoration will be completed or even begun. The doors

will lock on Oct. 1, and the animals in the interpretive center will

be given away. A city employee must be on site in order for

volunteers to conduct tours and participate in restoration at this

time. For the Friends of Shipley Nature Center to keep the center

open full time, the city would have to hire an employee to supervise

them. To expect the volunteers to complete the restoration, lead the

tours and open the Interpretive Center is unrealistic.

The Friends of Shipley Nature Center will assist in restoration,

lead a few natural history tours -- for a cost -- and help raise

funds. To run the center, the nonprofit group would need enough

donations or an endowment that could pay for restoration and $117,000

yearly for operating costs. Unless someone wishes to set up an

endowment for this amount, our plans are to help the center in the

same way that the Friends of the Library help the library, but don’t

run the library.

We hope the city will shoulder its responsibility to restore and

operate this urban environmental education center. Each year 40,000

people enjoyed the center, including tours given for more than 9,000

children. The California Department of Education has shown “that

students in experiential environmental education programs learn

better, are better citizens, and transfer their learning to new

situations better.” Just shutting the doors without an adequate plan

in place to restore and reopen the area leaves the children and

community of Huntington Beach with no option but to merely look over

the fence of the nature center and wish things were different.

You can contact Friends of the Shipley Nature Center at

stephpac@socal.rr.com or call 963-1658 for more information.

* STEPHANIE PACHECO is a Fountain Valley resident and the

president of the Friends of Shipley Nature Center. To contribute to

“Sounding Off,” e-mail us at hbindy@latimes.com or fax us at (714)

965-7174.