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Alison Rose Majikes and Bryan Francis Riviello announce their engegement

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AAA: State, National average gas prices continue to rev up

<p>When I read about recent legislation to allow privately-owned lodges to be built and operated on state parks, it conjured up images of a Holiday Inn looming in the middle of Frances Slocum State Park.</p><p>Granted, the bill isn&#8217;t necessarily advocating the construction of hotels on our state parks, but it does allow for lodges to be built on state parks, by the private sector.</p><p>Some time ago when upgrades were made to Nescopeck State Park, I was leery. Paved roads, a state-of-the-art nature center, parking lots&#8230; it seemed like civilization would overtake the natural state of the park.</p><p>But it didn&#8217;t.</p><p>While I&#8217;m not thrilled about paved roads traversing the park, it has improved access and allowed, encouraged even, more people to enjoy the natural beauty of the park. All of the upgrades, in fact, were integrated into the natural setting of the park and any impact on nature was minimized.</p><p>At Nescopeck State Park, the upgrades worked.</p><p>But when we&#8217;re talking about constructing lodges, I&#8217;m not so sure the idea can blend in as easily.</p><p>In fact, I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s worth the risk to find out.</p><p>While state parks do offer certain amenities and the trappings of civilization are usually nearby, they also afford an escape.</p><p>Usually, just a short walk down a trail - or randomly into the woods for that matter, is all it takes for one to get away from it all and enjoy the &#8220;wildness&#8221; of a state park.</p><p>We need places where cell service is spotty, speeding cars can&#8217;t be heard, crowds don&#8217;t exist and commercialization - restaurants, roads and buildings, doesn&#8217;t hammer away at our senses. In state parks, one can find quiet, serenity and peace.</p><p>Those are things the almighty dollar can&#8217;t buy&#8230; or can it?</p><p>By allowing a third party to build a lodge in a state park, it&#8217;s essentially bringing the commercialism that we seek to escape into the natural world. If the bill progresses, supporters will likely contend that the lodges are beneficial because they will attract more people to state parks.</p><p>And I bet, as they try to paint a pretty picture of the notion, they&#8217;ll also tell us the lodges will &#8220;blend in&#8221; with nature and won&#8217;t be an eyesore.</p><p>That sounds nice, but if the lodge isn&#8217;t a cavity in a tree or a den under a rock, it&#8217;s not going to blend in. I don&#8217;t care how rustic it may be and if it&#8217;s made out of logs and stone, a lodge built by a private entity for the primary purpose of making a buck doesn&#8217;t belong in a state park.</p><p>And yes, while I do agree that lodges will likely attract more people to state parks, they won&#8217;t have the same effect as camping in a tent or sleeping in a small cabin. Those accommodations fit right in at a state park because they&#8217;re not built, or designed, as a place to hang out. One doesn&#8217;t spend all day sitting inside their tent or a tiny cabin. You sleep in a tent or cabin, and when morning comes you get outside and enjoy the natural world.</p><p>Lodges, at least the way I consider them, have an element of luxury to them. There are things to do at a lodge - reasons to stay inside if one chooses that option. At a state park, there shouldn&#8217;t be any reason to stay indoors and every reason to get outside.</p><p>Sure, the lodges that would be constructed on our state parks - if the bill passes, wouldn&#8217;t be like, or even look like, a Holiday Inn. But they would be a hotel just the same, and that&#8217;s why I&#8217;m checking out on that idea.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Venesky </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/web1_Venesky-1-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Venesky </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Tom Venesky</p><p>tvenesky@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Tom Venesky at 570-991-6395 or on Twitter @TLTomVenesky</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Outdoors with Tom Venesky: State parks fine without lodges