LAKE COUNTY – A local, grassroots movement to get Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's attention and convince him not to close the county's two state parks is gaining steam, according to one of the campaign's organizers.

Clearlake Oaks resident Leona Butts, a Clear Lake State Park Interpretive Association board member, is devoted to fighting Schwarzenegger's proposal, which would close Clear Lake State Park, Anderson Marsh State Historic Park and 46 other parks around the state.

The petition drive began in January, within days of Schwarzenegger's announcement of the closure plan.

Butts said Thursday that her phone continues to ring with requests for more petition forms. In addition, she's receiving packs of petitions in the mail daily. People also come to Butts' home, bringing their completed petitions.

All of that started, she said, when she began circulating petitions with her return address at local meetings. She's also e-mailed hundreds of people about the effort.

Local businesses such as Umpqua Bank have petitions available for customers to sign, and Butts said they've forwarded her a stack of completed petitions as well.

Other places to find a petition include the Lake County Courthouse in Lakeport, the Lakeport Chamber of Commerce, Wild About Books in Clearlake and Watershed Books in Lakeport.

As of Wednesday, Butts had just under 1,500 signatures in hand, a number which doesn't count those gathered by some other groups around the county, such as the Sierra Club.

Butts said she hopes to gather several thousand signatures to help convince the governor to take his park closure proposal off the table.

 

For more information or an e-mailed petition, community members are invited to call Butts at 998-3027.

Petitions also can be downloaded at http://redwood.sierraclub/lake.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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