Estes Park businesses worry national park fee hikes will ripple to local economy

If entrance fees to Rocky Mountain National Park were to triple or more, as currently proposed, the ripples would reverberate beyond its gates — but how those repercussions would be felt is a question Estes Park business advocates are struggling to answer.

"In general, we think that dramatically increasing short-term pass fees will not likely benefit Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park, because so much of the revenue is derived from daily and weekly passes," Estes Park Economic Development Corporation President and CEO Jon Nicholas said. "We are uncertain but concerned that the proposal has not been thought out sufficiently."

Nicholas referred to the proposal as an experiment, one where he couldn't speculate on the outcome. But a concern that the fee increase would make people consider other options versus Rocky Mountain National Park — and, perhaps by extension, Estes Park — lingers in the business community there, he said.

Businesses are trying to predict how it would affect guests and their spending habits, he said. Commercial tour operations in particular are trying to decipher how those proposals would affect their businesses. It would at least quadruple their costs during the peak season.

A commercial tour of six or fewer seats currently has a $25 entrance fee; the proposal would increase that to $160 during peak seasons. For tours of 26-plus capacity, it would go from $200 to $900 during peak seasons, with a new 57-plus rating that would cost $1,200.

"The concerns (from commercial operators) range from, 'We'll take them somewhere else, outside the national park,' to 'I don't know if I can continue my business,'" Nicholas said.

More:State attorneys general bash plan to hike national park fees

Visit Estes Park President and CEO Elizabeth Fogarty wrote in an email that her group supports a "reasonable" increase to those fees because they've been stagnant for many years. But when it comes to individual park fees, she worries it would cut into the most profitable season for businesses in the area.

She expects visitation to the park to naturally settle in coming years, now that centennial celebrations for the park itself, the National Park Service and the town of Estes Park have passed. She noted that park visitation has already dropped by almost half-a-percent year-to-date through September.

"Our hope is that if there will be national park entrance fee increases, they will be smaller percentage increases and incremental over time," Fogarty wrote, adding that Visit Estes Park supports efforts to raise money for staffing and infrastructure needs in the park — but doing so without pricing out people seeking to bask in nature.

Colorado's national parks alone are facing a $227 million backlog in deferred maintenance. Nationally, it's more than $11 billion. But Estes Park Mayor Todd Jirsa warned the rate hikes would be a "fraction" of the needed revenue, encourage people to buy national passes that may not directly help Rocky Mountain National Park and potentially "severely damage the economic health of the surrounding communities."

Related:Rocky national park fees could triple during peak season

U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colorado, who urged the extension of the public comment period on the Department of Interior's proposed fee increases, also raised concerns about pricing people out. 

The comment period has been extended through Dec. 22. More than 65,000 comments on the proposal have already been received, according to the National Park Service.

Gardner wrote that he appreciates the attempt to pay for a backlog of deferred maintenance but worried it would make trips unaffordable for some. He added that commercial operators and business owners who would be potentially affected would need more time to weigh the proposal.

U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, writing to Secretary of Interior Ryan Zinke to oppose the proposed fee hikes, noted the economic impact of parks like Rocky Mountain.

"Access to public lands drives Colorado’s outdoor economy,” Bennet wrote. “In 2016, more than 4.5 million visitors to (Rocky Mountain National Park) spent an estimated $298.7 million and supported over 4,000 local jobs. The proposed fee increase, however, would limit the ability of some families to make the trip to RMNP, harming small businesses and local economies.”

More:This trail wasn't supposed to exist. Now, RMNP wants to shut it down

U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, whose district includes Rocky Mountain National Park, also called for investing in "our national treasures" — but without pricing out families trying to enjoy nature.

“The proposed fee increase is outrageous and is a backdoor effort to cut us off from our public lands," Polis said in a statement. "I am pleased that the National Park Service is extending the deadline for the public to weigh in on the proposed fee changes, after all, our parks belong to each and every one of us, and we — as members of the public — deserve a say."

Public comment on the proposal can be submitted at ParkPlanning.NPS.gov/ProposedPeakSeasonFeeRates. 

Proposed fee changes

Fee increases would apply to peak seasons at 17 national parks. For Rocky Mountain National Park, that would be June through October. Increases are proposed to take effect starting June 1, 2018. Individual rates shown compare daily rates to new seven-day rates. The proposal removes one-day passes.

Individual rates

Private, non-commercial vehicle: $20 to $70

Motorcycle: $20 to $50

Pedestrian or bicycle: $10 to $30

Park-specific annual pass: $60 to $75

National pass: Unchanged at $80

Commercial tours

Six or fewer seats: $25 to $160

Seven to 15: $75 to $370

16 to 25: $100 to $600

26 to 56: $200 to $900

57-plus: $1,200 (This is a new category; previous commercial passes capped at 26-plus seats.)