The week of May 14-21 marks National Infrastructure Week, and I would like to call attention to the dire situation of the National Park Service, and the $11.3 billion deferred maintenance backlog that needs to be addressed.
As president of Pittsburgh North Regional Chamber and a leader in the business community, I know that so many parts of a community play into the climate for businesses, and our national parks are certainly a significant contributor to the local economies where they are located. They bring in patrons to local businesses that in turn sustain the larger regional economies.
Analysis recently commissioned by The Pew Charitable Trusts found that if the deferred maintenance backlog was fully addressed, more than 110,000 jobs could be created or supported nationwide, including 2,808 here in Pennsylvania. Those are jobs that would allow families to live and grow in our communities, while working to sustain our environment and cultural heritage sites.
Rebuilding our national parks is not just an investment in these important places, but also in people. Let’s get to work supporting these sites and the gateway communities that will benefit from employment and visitor spending. I hope that as Congress considers the various infrastructure needs of the country that the national parks are a definitive part of that conversation.
Jim Boltz, Cranberry Township