Proposed Fee Increase at Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area

Date: October 1, 2014
Contact: Mary Jay, 509-754-7889

The Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act allows federal land management agencies to utilize recreation fee funds to provide quality recreation experiences for hundreds of millions of visitors every year to some of America's most scenic, iconic, awe-inspiring, historical, and culturally rich lands and resources. Participating agencies use and leverage recreation fees to implement thousands of projects to enhance public safety, maintain recreation sites, provide eye-opening educational experiences, build informational wayside exhibits, fund interpretive programs, and offer a wide range of recreational and cultural opportunities.

The National Park Service is proposing increases to the camping and boating fees at Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area to take effect in the spring of 2015.The current fees were established in 1995. These fees have not been revised in relation to inflation and are now lower than the average of the area around the park.

The proposed camping fee for an individual campsite would increase from $10 per night to $18 per night. Group site use would increase from $53 per night to $55 per night for 1-25 people, from $78 per night to $80 per night for 26-50 people, and from $103 per night to $105 per night for 51-75 people.

The launch fee would increase from $6 to $8 per week. The reduced boat launch annual permit would change from the varying fee structure of $30 from January 1 through April 30, $40 from May 1 through September 30, and $20 from October 1 through December 31, to a single yearly fee of $45.

Federal regulations permit discounts for holders of America the Beautiful-The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Senior and Access passes. This includes nightly camping and weekly boat launch permit fees, but does not allow discounts on already discounted items such as yearly boat launch permits.

Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area is permitted to retain and utilize fees collected for improvements to visitor services. In recent years visitor fee dollars have been used to design and install wayside exhibits, replace picnic tables, improve and make accessible comfort stations, enlarge the Porcupine Bay and Kettle Falls boat launch parking lots, and to improve/repair and install new boat docks at launch sites. Planned projects include, but are not limited to, continued improvements to comfort stations, enlarging the parking lot at Fort Spokane boat launch, improving the Crescent Bay launch and day use areas, improving the Fort Spokane water system, interpretive planning and exhibits, and control of invasive species.

Your comments to the proposed changes are welcome and will be accepted until October 31, 2014. Comments can be mailed to: Superintendent, Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area, 1008 Crest Drive, Coulee Dam, Washington 99116.Comments can also be provided through our website at https://www.nps.gov/laro/parkmgmt/propsed-fee-increase.htm or https://www.facebook.com/ProposedFeeIncrease.

Public meetings will be held at the following locations from 6-8 PM for additional comment:

October 21 –Community Colleges of Spokane Colville Center, 985 South Elm St, Colville
October 22 –Lincoln County Public Works Building, 27234 SR 25 N, Davenport
October 23 –Coulee Dam City Hall, 300 Lincoln Avenue, Coulee Dam