Layoffs at Rocky Mountain National Park could impact Colorado town's local business, mayor fears
The mayor of the Northern Colorado town of Estes Park said he fears there could be economic impacts to his community if the Trump administration moves forward with layoffs to the National Park Service.
The Associated Press reported more than 1,000 employees of the National Park Service were facing layoffs as Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency continue to target places to cut federal spending.
Estes Park Mayor Gary Hall said layoffs at Rocky Mountain National Park would not only impact Estes Park residents who rely on the forest service for employment but also noted the layoffs could impact tourism to Estes Park.
"Some of those people (being laid off) are our neighbors. They live right here beside us. Their kids go to our school. It is a very personal thing," Hall told CBS News Colorado on Friday.
Hall said his community's businesses, from restaurants to lodging, rely heavily on tourism to RMNP. He said layoffs and cuts to park services could potentially result in fewer visitors wanting to come to the park.
"Estes Park is joined at the hip, heart, and soul of Rocky Mountain National Park," Hall said. "The health of Rocky Mountain National Park is the health of Estes Park to a great degree."
On Monday morning dozens of people gathered outside of RMNP to protest the proposed cuts to the forest service.
"We do expect it could have a real impact on the number of tourists who come to visit the park. And, that's not good news," Hall said.
Hall said one of his first concerns, away from the impacts of his constituents being impacted, was the potential of there being safety risks in the park to staff and visitors.
"It's a big park. There is a lot of area to cover," Hall said.
However, Hall said he spoke with the Estes Park police and firefighters and made sure they would be willing to go into the park to assist in emergencies if needed.
"They will go where and when they need to to help, even in search and rescue cases," Hall said.
CBS News Colorado reached out to Rocky Mountain National Park staff seeking further information and interview for this report. A spokesperson for the park deferred comment to the National Park Service which did not reply before this article was published.
Hall said this is a confusing time for many people and he is hoping to get more answers and stability for his community.
"We're still waiting for stability and settling," Hall said.
Hall said he has been in contact with Colorado congressional leadership and is also sending a letter to the secretary of the interior to advocate for all jobs at RMNP to be reinstated.
"It's very much changing hour by hour and day by day, so we really have to get to some settled point," Hall said.