If you're at all intererested in or passionate about our state park system and state-managed recreation areas, please note that the parks are scrambling to determine how to cut budgets by about $4-million prior to the end of their fiscal year....leaving just a few months to make major budget adjustments for this year, under orders from Governor Strickland.  So it's not just the schools that have been told that there's no money for any state funding increases, and decreases will be the new order of business.  The parks will have to likewise for 2009, but they'll at least a bit more time to figure out where and how to get along with significantly less.  In the case of the Hocking Hills Region parks, this news arrives as visitor registrations continue to rise...by approximately 20% from 2... 02/10/2008

The state of Ohio's Department of Natural Resources' purchase of conservation easements on thousands of acres in Vinton County begs the question of its impact on land values, local economies, and tourism. The simplest answer might be that the Hocking Hills Region is moving a bit further south and east.  The junction of Routes 93 and 56 will probably get busier, and we're likely to see much more use of less-known recreation spots such as Lake Hope State Park. It's been said that at least a part of the reason for the purchase is the increasing price for land in Hocking County.  When you find folks willing to pay upwards of $50,000 for a basic two-acre parcel in what are essentially log/wood vacation home "neighborhoods," something's certainly up.   Clients of ours bought and sold acreage ... 09/08/2007