A councilwoman today said if the state closes Fremont Peak and the historic park, it "could be the end of San Juan."
San Juan Bautista Councilwoman Maggie Bilich called the San Juan Bautista State Historic Park, in particular, one of the three "bringers" in the city that, as she put it, attract many of the visitors to town.
She believes it is "equal" in value to the city's draw as the Mission. Along with El Teatro Campesino, she said the attractions make up "The Big 3" for tourism there.
"If they do that to our park or to Fremont Peak or anywhere else here, we're going to have to take away the keys from the businesses and throw them in the ocean," Bilich said.
The state has proposed to close Fremont Peak and the historic park - which includes an array of storied buildings - along with 218 other parks in California to help reduce the deficit while cutting $144 million off the books. Opponents of the closures have argued, meanwhile, that state leaders pushing the proposal aren't considering the economic gains of the parks to businesses and government coffers.
Bilich noted how San Juan, which depends heavily on tourism revenue, already has been suffering immensely due to the poor economy, pointing out the city has to "have a festival to have a lot of people come" there.
Bilich said she has contacted Assemblywoman Anna Caballero, D-Salinas, about discussing the matter. She also said a protest of some kind is possible.
"This could be the end of San Juan if we don't work on it," she said.
Kollin Kosmicki Kollin Kosmicki is editor of the Free Lance and Pinnacle. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 337 or editor@freelancenews.com.
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