Potomac Partnerships Report

Potomac Partnerships Report
National Park Service, National Capital Region,
June 25, 2002




NPS Partnerships Office Purpose: To find ways to use partnerships to help National Park Service (NPS) park and program managers, and community leaders meet National, State and local goals and objectives within the Potomac River watershed and metropolitan Washington region.

Park Partnerships

a. Greater Washington National Parks (GWNP) Fund: Attended the May 7 Greater Washington National Parks Fund Parks Council Meeting. Discussions included proposed Trustees, revenue from soda machines, collaboration with LL Bean Co., and icons for messaging.

On May 22 Nancy Sturm, Executive Director of the Greater Washington National Parks Fund and the National Park Foundation (NPF) and Fran Mainella Director of the National Park Service (NPS) accepted a cash donation to plant Cherry trees along the Potomac River near the Tidal Basin and East Potomac Park. The donation was arranged by Kurt Kumagai, Board Member of the National Cherry Blossom Festival and made by the five largest Sushi Companies in the metropolitan Washington Region.

Provided a proposal to the GWNP Fund for the development of a Film for the Greater Washington National Parks. The film is being developed for NPS, through the “Proud Partner Program”, by the Discovery Channel and will be completed by the end of 2002.

b. NCR Tree & Shrub Replacement Fund: Met with Nancy Sturm and David Crowley of NPF, and Rob DeFeo, Regional Horticulturist for NPS-NCR, to revise the donor guidelines for the NCR Tree & Shrub Replacement Fund. Nancy Sturm and NPF is assisting NPS create an endowment for tree and shrub replacement for all twelve of the Greater Washington National Parks.

c. National Park Foundation Collaboration: Met with Jill Nicoll, Hedrick Belin, Edie Gonzalez and Jackie Lowey of NPF to discuss non-NPS opportunities for securing federal government funding to support National Park projects, activities and park partners.

d. National Park Foundation Program Implementation: Participated on a National NPF Advisory Committee to help design an implementation strategy for the Foundation’s new program areas. The new strategy targets NPF assistance to NPS for education, interpretive services, volunteers, and outreach. The effort is intended to establish priority areas for fundraising assistance and link NPF’s program strategies to targeted outcomes. For additional information on the NPF program strategies contact the Foundation or this office.

e. Discovery Film: Participated in a teleconference call with representatives from the Discovery Channel about a film they will do for NPS and the Greater Washington National Parks Fund on the National Capital Region Parks. The film is in response to a proposal that NCR prepared with NPF last summer. The filming will be done in September and the film is expected to be completed by the end of December.

f. East Coast Partnerships Seminar: Nearly 300 persons participated in the May 22, 23 and 24 East Coast In-Park Partnership Seminar. Hosted by NPS-National Capital Region, park and park-partnership leaders from the Northeast, Southeast, National Capital, Inter Mountain, Pacific West, and Midwest Regions travel to the Channel Inn Hotel, selected sites within Greater Washington National Parks and the “Cherry Blossom River Boat” to share information on the art of partnering and fundraising.

The Seminar included remarks by NPS Director Mainella, a panel session of “Hill” appropriation staff leaders, a panel session with the Eastern NPS Regional Directors, remarks by NPS Deputy Director Murphy, public and private fundraising and partnership experts, and closing remarks by the Assistant Secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks Craig Manson. The Seminar activities included three case study field trips and four walking tours, a Park Partners Reception—attended by more than 225 persons, on the Potomac River.

The Seminar sessions were video-taped and will be available for partnership training in the future. Should you be interested in copies of the presentations contact this office.

The event was also used to sign an East Coast Partnership Agreement between the Southeast, Northeast and National Capital Regions and the National Partnership Office to continue to share information, collaborate and work together on selected projects and activities. A copy of the East Coast Partnership Agreement is attached. For further information about how your organization can join the East Coast Partnership contact Glenn Eugster at: glenn_eugster@nps.gov

e. Save the Jaeger Property: The appraisal of the Jaeger property is being re-examined, at the request of the owners, to make sure that it has established fair value for the property. NPS, the National Park Trust and local governments are seeking to match federal funds provided by Congress to acquire the property for parkland. The City of Greenbelt is preparing a land acquisition proposal for State of Maryland funds.

f. Arlington House Save America’s Treasures: Met with Superintendent Coleman of the George Washington Memorial Parkway, Dr. Talmadge Williams and ??? to discuss collaborative efforts related to the Arlington House and African American Heritage. NPS and private groups are working with the Greater Washington National Parks Fund to match a federal grant that was made for the Arlington House through the “Save America’s Treasure’s” initiative.

g. Green Infrastructure: The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) and NPS held a Green Infrastructure Forum on April 2 in Washington, DC. Bob Yaro, President of the Regional Plan Association of the NY-NJ-CT Region was the keynote speaker. Following Yaro’s remarks, which highlighted his region’s “Greensward Plan”, a panel of regional experts discussed green infrastructure activities in the metropolitan Washington area. David Burke of MD’s Department of Natural resources discussed their “Greenprint Program”; Todd Bolton of Fairfax County discussed their green infrastructure effort; and Sheila Hogan of Casey Tree Endowment and Mark Buscaino of the District of Columbia discussed local efforts to protect and maintain the City’s trees and tree cover.

NPS and COG have completed and formally approved a five-year Cooperative Agreement, to help support the Green Infrastructure project.

Discussed a collaborative effort with the Center for Neighborhood Technology and the Urban ????? that would focus on Government Accounting Standards for green infrastructure.

Met with Nanine Bilski, Executive Director of the America the Beautiful Fund to discuss a workshop in the fall focusing on community-lead “Freedom Gardens”.

Met with Anne Pearson of the Alliance for Community Education about collaborating on community-lead forums and workshops for the Green Infrastructure Demonstration project.

Discussed future green infrastructure workshops and forums with: Leslie Sauer from Andropogon Associates; Katrin Sholz-Barth of HOK; and Lee Epstein of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.


Plans for a second Green Infrastructure Forum, on Green Infrastructure Mapping, are underway. For additional information on the Green Infrastructure effort contact this office or Brian LeCouteur of COG at (202) 962-3393.

h. Sustainability Fair: The first annual NPS Sustainability Fair—“Sustaining America’s Special Places: Your Parks, Your Communities” was held on May 3-4, 2002 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. More than 1,000 persons attended the Fair, braving high winds and some Spring showers, to listen to twenty speakers and visit fifty exhibits on sustainable practices. Exhibits featured sustainability work going on in the Greater Washington national Parks and in Potomac River watershed communities. The Fair featured electric-hybrid vehicles, native plants, smart growth, youth education, non-vehicular transportation, green roofs, recycling, and green buildings.

Speakers included NPS Associate Director Dick Ring, Kateri Callahan of the Electric Vehicles Association of the Americas, Ron O’Brien of Sylvania, Don Edwards of Justice & Sustainability Associates, Brenda Richardson, Jim Shulman and Warren Flint of Sustainable DC, J.R. Pope of the West Virginia Department of Parks, Superintendent Adrienne Applewaithe Coleman of Rock Creek Park, ???? of the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay, and others.

Met with the NCR Sustainable Practices team on June 5 to discuss plans for the May 2-3, 2003 Sustainability Fair on the National Mall. A proposal for the 2003 Fair is being prepared for discussion with the Regional Director. For further information about sponsorship, exhibition space or attendance, contact this office.

g. NPS Partnership Council Meets in Washington, DC: The newly created NPS Partnerships Council met in Washington, DC on May 20-21 to develop a Charter, vision, and an action plan for the group and its activities. The purpose of the Council is to help NPS leaders guide and assist existing and future partnership activities. The Council includes representatives from the NPS National Partnerships Office, headquarter programs, regional offices, parks, Service Centers, and the National Park Foundation.

The Council Charter has been proposed to the NPS National Leadership Council, and the Director for approval. If approved, the Council will hold its next meeting on the West Coast on ???????. Additional meetings will be held by teleconference between now and the meeting in the fall.

The Council will be Co-Chaired, for the first year, by the National Partnership Office and the National Capital Region. The Intermountain Region will serve as the “back-up” Regional Office Co-Chair, for the first year, and Co-Chair the second year.

A summary of the Partnership Council Meeting is available from this office. For more information on the NPS Partnerships Council contact this office, or Chris Neiwold of the National Partnership Office; or Peggy Halderman of the Intermountain Regional Office.


h. NCR Park Superintendent’s Meeting: Briefed NCR Superintendents and Regional Office management on the status of partnership activities at the May 7-8, 2002 meeting in Hagerstown, MD. During the meeting the superintendents elected Superintendent Doug Faris of CHOH to serve as the NCR park representative on the NPS Partnership Council. Superintendent Briggs of PHNST is alternate.

i. General Accounting Office Research on Partnerships: Assisted NCR’s Concessions Office with a response to a request for information about park partner organizations


Potomac American Heritage River Initiative (AHRI)

a. Potomac River Day 2002: Plans are underway for the annual Potomac River Day celebration. The celebration will be held on July 27, 2002 at Piscataway Park in MD. This year’s event will include awards for local success, announcement of the new Potomac AHRI River Navigator, recognition of federal and non-federal accomplishments, as well as plans for the future.

b. 3rd Annual Nation’s River Bass Tournament Held: The Friend’s of the Potomac, and a variety of local governments, nonprofit organizations, corporations and private sportsmen’s groups held the 3rd Annual Nation’s River Bass Tournament on June 15. Hosted by the National Park Service’s George Washington Memorial Parkway and the regenerated Potomac River, this year’s event brought more than one hundred and fifty Bass-Masters, students from Delaware, and river conservation advocates together to celebrate and enjoy the benefits of state and federal clean water efforts.

The Friend’s held a reception at the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill on June 14 to kick-off this year’s event and closed the Tournament with an awards ceremony. Thirty-five boats with eight-one fishermen, students and advocates competed for an array of donated prizes. An employee of L.L. Bean, from their Tyson’s Corner store, won the prize for catching the largest Small mouth bass of the Tournament. All of the fish that were caught were released after the weigh-in.

Plans for next year’s Tournament are underway. For information about sponsorship of or participation in the 4th Annual Nation’s River Bass Tournament contact the Friends of the Potomac at (202)467-4000.

c. Friends of the Potomac to Hire Executive Director: The Board of the Friends of the Potomac continues to search to fill their vacant Executive Director position. The position is being advertised in the Washington Post’s employment section on Sunday June 23 and Job Site the following week. Interested individuals should contact the Friends office at (202) 467-4000 for further information.


d. River Navigator Search Completed: The Friends of the Potomac and the National park Service have selected a new Potomac AHRI River Navigator. The nominee is a federal employee with considerable experience in community-based partnerships and heritage. Arrangements are being made to detail the new Navigator to the NPS with an anticipated announcement to be made on July 27 at Potomac River Day.


e. Meeting with Friends Board Chair: Met with Lynn Brownley, newly elected Chair of the Board of the Friends of the Potomac on May 31 to discuss the Potomac AHRI and partnering with NPS. Discussions included space, the existing Cooperative and Task Agreements, the Youth Education Project, status of the River Navigator, and collaboration with CEQ and the AHRI Task Force.

h. Potomac Heritage Tourism Initiative: Discussions continue with the Potomac Heritage Partnership about a Cooperative Agreement focused on heritage tourism, the “Culture of Water Project”, and other Potomac watershed activities.

i. Potomac River Center: The General Services Administration (GSA) is working with NPS and the Friends of the Potomac to arrange for a new office for the Potomac River Center. Current space, held by NPS and being used by the Friends of the Potomac and their member organizations at 17th & K Street, NW, has been sold and will be used for another purpose and will be vacated in September 2002.

GSA has identified possible space for the Center in Northern Virginia.
NPS will work with Kevin Miller of the Friends Board to visit the Northern Virginia space, and if appropriate, develop an agreement for the new office.

Chesapeake Bay Program

a. Director’s Briefing on the Bay: Participated in a briefing for Director Mainella on NPS Chesapeake Bay activities.


Potomac Urban Watershed Management Exchange

a. US-German Exchange Held: A team of Potomac leaders, including Regional Hydrologist, Doug Curtis from NPS-NCR, Lynn Brownley from the Friends of the Potomac, Judy Noritake from The Wilderness Society, and Uwe Brandeis from the District of Columbia, visited Germany last week to study urban watershed "best management practices.

b. Lessons Learned Forum Planned: Met with Jayne Daly and Virginia Kasinki of the Glynwood Center to discuss the design of a “Lessons Learned Forum” to share and discuss the U.S.-Germany Exchange experience with the public and private leaders from the Potomac River watershed.

For further information on the US-Germany Potomac Exchange, or plans for the Lessons Learned Forum, contact Virginia Kasinski, Program Manager, Training & Support, Glynwood Center, PO Box 157, Cold Spring NY 10516. By telephone: 845 265-3338 Ext. 125. By e-mail: http://www.glynwood.org

Heritage Areas

a. National Trust Meeting: Presented a status report on National Heritage Areas, at the request of Brenda Barrett of the NPS National Heritage Areas Office, at a meeting organized by the National Trust and Maryland Trust for Historic Preservation in Annapolis, MD.


Miscellaneous Assistance

A variety of consultations and meetings were held during this period including:

May

· Discussions with City of Greenbelt, MD, National Park Trust, National Park Foundation, College Park Friends School, and NPS staff regarding efforts to acquire the Jaeger property at Greenbelt Park. · Met with Anne White of Friends of the Potomac to discuss nation’s River Bass Tournament, space for the Potomac River Center, Potomac River Day, the Youth Education Project and the Potomac Calendar. · Held discussions with Jeff Bernstein of the Department’s Solicitor’s Office regarding soda machine revenue generation. · Met with Director Mainella, Associate Director Stevenson and Chris Niewold of the NPS Partnerships Office on May 13 to discuss the NPS partnership Council. · Met with Kurt Kumagai, Board Member of the National Cherry Blossom Festival to discuss donations to the Greater Washington National Parks Fund. · Met with Allan Comp of the Office of Surface Mining to discuss the Potomac AHRI. · Met with Fran Eargle of EPA to discuss possible NCR involvement in the National Watershed Roundtable. · Discussion with Gail Hendrickson of the Electric Vehicles Association of the Americas about NPS feedback on the performance of the Ford “Think Vehicles”. • Discussions with Mary Costa, Monica Seyes, and Johanna White of GSA to discuss office space for the Friends of the Potomac. • Discussion with Tom Downs of Patton Boggs & Associates regarding a proposal for Fort Foote and the National Environmental Policy Institute. • Meeting with Sue Hansen and Bill Line of NPS regarding development of a Greater Washington national Parks display for an International Tourism Conference in London, England in November 2002.• Facilitated the May 28 St. Leonard, MD. Community Vision Meeting. • Meeting with Georgina Sanger of ????? regarding a proposal to create a Trust for the National Mall.



June

· Provided a status of partnership activities at monthly NCR Squad Meeting. · Discussed the proposed Trust for the National Mall with Ann Bowman Smith, Acting Superintendent of the White House Liaison, Arnold Goldstein, Superintendent of National Capital Parks-Central, Nancy Sturm, Executive Director of Greater Washington National Parks Fund, and NCR Regional Office leadership. · Provided a status report on partnership activities at the NCR General Staff Meeting on June 5. · Met with Harry Belin and Scott Gerloff of Potomac Heritage Partnership regarding the Potomac AHRI. · Discussed tracking and monitoring of the NPS partnership Council efforts with Associate Director Stevenson, Peggy Halderman of Inter Mountain region, Chris Niewold and Jennifer Mummart of the National partnership Office, and Ellen Cull, consultant to the Council. • Prepared a summary of a paper from a presentation at the Fall 2001 “Reconstructing Conservation Conference” for the NER Conservation Study Institute. · Met with Erik Meyers of the Environmental Law Institute regarding a fall field trip on Four Mile Run, Potomac River access and possible future collaboration. • Met with Fran Eargle of EPA to outline a possible approach for a National Watershed Roundtable Meeting. • Met with Hedrick Belin of the National Park Foundation regarding the Potomac AHRI. • Responded to a request from Amos Ilan, who is working for NER on the design of the World Trade Center Memorial, regarding visitor information. • Discussed with Deanna Wheeler possible assistance to the Nanjemoy Vision Project. • Discussed with Jeff Berstein of the Department’s Solicitor’s Office, his review of an agreement between NPS and the State of WV for possible transportation funds for Harpers Ferry. • Discussed a possible collaboration with the Northeast Region and Kronsport to secure hybrid electric vehicles for NPS park units.• Discussed with Brent O’Neill of NPS-GWMP a potential detail. • Participated, by teleconference call, in a Friends of the Potomac Board Meeting. • Participated in a telephone interview with Mary Means as part of an evaluation of the International Countryside Stewardship Exchange.



Upcoming Meetings & Events

June 2002
22-28 National Park Week
25 Teleconference call with friends of the Potomac regarding plans for Potomac River Day.
25 Meeting with the Greater Washington national Parks Fund Parks Council, Manassas, VA.
26 Meeting with Greater Washington National Park Fund Trustees.
27 Meeting with the Friends of the Potomac and America the Beautiful to inspect a potential location for the Potomac River Center.
28 Meeting with NCR leaders to discuss the proposed Trust for the National Mall.

July 2002
1 NCR Squad Meeting
1 Meeting with Janet Bearden and Warren Flint of Sustainable DC, Washington, DC
9 NCR Monitoring Workshop, Shepardstown, WV
16 The Wilderness Society Potomac River Meeting, Washington, DC
22, 23, 24 NPS Heritage Areas Meeting, Denver, CO
27 Potomac River Day, Piscataway National Park, Accokeek, MD

August 2002
14 National Park Foundation Program Strategy Advisory Committee Meeting

September 2002
13 Friends of the Potomac Board Meeting



Good & Reads

b Harnik, Peter, Inside City Parks, 2000, Urban Land Institute, Washington, D.C. 214 pp.


Something to CROW about:
a Nation’s River Bass Tournament: The 3rd Annual Nation’s River Bass Tournament was a great success on June 14. Thanks and a “tip-of-the-hat” to the Friends of the Potomac-—the leader of the effort, thirty-five sportsmen that made their boats, insights and expertise available, the private interests that contributed their money and time to hold the celebration, the Young Marines students that traveled from Dover, Delaware to participate, and the staff and management from the George Washington Memorial Parkway for hosting the event.

a Donation for Cherry Trees: A partnership between the Cherry Blossom Festival, the Greater Washington National Parks Fund, the National Park Service, and five major Sushi companies, has resulted in a donation to plant new Cherry trees along the Potomac River. The donation underscores the relationship, and importance, between trees, tourism, and the unique qualities that make up the Potomac River area.


For further information contact:

Glenn Eugster, Assistant Regional Director, Partnerships Office, NPS-NCR, 1100 Ohio Drive, SW, Room 350, Washington, DC 20242. By telephone call (202) 619-7492. By fax: (202) 619-7220. By e-mail: glenn_eugster@nps.gov



Partnerships Office JGE/NPS/NCR/DC/06/24/02