Pineview - Federal vs State managed

[dubob]

There has been some talk on some of the Utah social media venues about converting Pineview Reservoir from a Federal Recreational area to a State Park.  There are even rumors indicating that the Musky Chapter 65 (Utah?) might be involved in circulating a petition to get signatures of those who would support such an effort.  I didn’t search hard to find that petition effort, but I didn’t find anything that would verify that it is a fact.  I would indeed support such an effort.
 
I talked with a Utah State Parks Deputy Director today and asked him if he had any knowledge of any Utah State effort to make Pineview a State Park.  He did not.  We had a very useful (to me) conversation about the process required to make such a thing happen.  The first thing that would have to happen would be for Utah to convince the Federal Agencies owning/managing Pineview (Reclamation & Forest Service) to agree to turning it over to the State.  Then the Utah contract with the Federal Government would have to be amended to add another property to the existing contract.  Feasibility studies would be required to ascertain environmental impacts and construction costs among other things.  Then funding would have to be authorized by the Utah legislature to pay for the construction which in all likelihood would require multiple phases over multiple years.  This process (if it even happens at all) is going to take a decade or more to complete.
 
At my age, if I live to be 100, I wouldn’t ever expect to recreate Pineview Reservoir as a State Park in my lifetime.  But show me the petition and I’ll sign it.  

[Bduck]