ROLE AND LEVEL OF GOVERNMENT
“The era of big government is over.”
Then-President Clinton’s pronouncement during
the 1996 State of the Union address capped a
20-year trend toward reduced Government size
and increased privatization of public services. The
Forest Service had been moving in that direction
for some time. In 1987, the National Recreation
Strategy emphasized “partnerships” and private
investment in national forest recreation
management. Since then, the number of entities
involved in providing recreation facilities and
services has exploded. Nonprofit organizations
have contributed to construction of recreation
and wildlife viewing facilities. About 50 percent
of the national forest campground capacity is
managed under concessionaire permits. The
Forest Service is also strongly considering a
program to encourage private investment, not
just for the operation but for the planning,
design, and construction of recreation facilities.
In short, the Forest Service is moving away
from direct development of projects to a position
of guidance, approval, and oversight. Our design
philosophies will face the realities posed by the
private sector’s cycles of investment and
amortization. Key considerations include
permanence versus short-term adaptability
and the use of prefabricated elements, as
previously discussed.