NPS continues to seek public comment on proposed fees at campgrounds

Date: November 18, 2013
Contact: Jamie Fields, 304-465-6527

Glen Jean West Virginia,November 18, 2013– The New River Gorge National River continues to seek public comments on a proposal to charge fees of $5.00 per night for camping in the Army Camp Campground, Glade Creek Campground and Grandview Sandbar Campground, all located in the vicinity of Prince, WV. The comment period ends thisSunday, November 24, 2013. Please make your voice heard on this proposal because a decision on whether to charge fees will be based on your input.

Amenities at these campgrounds are limited: all campsites have a picnic table and fire ring, and drive-in sites have a tent pad. Each campground has several vault toilets. More information on these campgrounds can be found at www.nps.gov/neri/planyourvisit/campgrounds.htm.

The proposed $5.00 per night rate is based on comparisons to rates and amenities in other similar campgrounds in Southern West Virginia. By law, this rate must be comparable, without undercutting, rates at campgrounds in the local area. Free camping will still be available at other primitive campgrounds and backcountry campsites in the park.

The reasoning behind this fee proposal is two-fold. First is the reality of declining budgets and increasing costs to maintain these facilities. Fee revenues will contribute to facility maintenance and improvements at these and other park campgrounds. Secondly, the nature of free campsites along the river often invites some of the criminal element into the park. By charging the fee, the NPS anticipates that, as has occurred in other NPS campgrounds that instituted a fee, the people who are largely responsible for the criminal issues, presumably being unwilling to pay, will be replaced by more family-oriented groups filling the campsites, allowing the park to offer the public a safer and more enjoyable visitor experience in and around the Army Camp, Glade Creek and Grandview Sandbar Campgrounds.

For more information and to submit comments on the proposed fees, please go to www.nps.gov/neri and from the links on the left side of the page, select "Management," then "Park Planning," then "Civic Engagement for Proposed New Fees at Army Camp, Glade Creek and Grandview Sandbar Campgrounds," then "Document List." Comments can be submitted online through this website, or may be submitted by mail to:

NPS – New River Gorge National River

Attn: Comment on Proposed Camping Fees

P.O. Box 246

Glen Jean, WV 25846-0246

Please submit comments online or by mail no later thanNovember 24, 2013.