Editor’s Note
##Photo by David Sites
What Do You Think About the Chesapeake National Recreation Area?
A
llow me to be the first person in this dwindling year of 2022 to use the words “media” and “hopeful” in the same sentence… What a hopeful media event I attended this week! In the past couple of years, dedicated SpinSheet readers have read in these pages about the concept of creating some form of National Park on the Chesapeake. Thanks to Senator Chris Van Hollen, Senator Ben Cardin, Congressman John Sarbanes, and a mighty working group of lawmakers, state entities, and non-profits, the Chesapeake National Recreation Area (CNRA) is moving closer to becoming a reality. This, to me, is fantastic news. On November 14, members of the media and working group gathered in the sunshine at the Burtis House next to City Dock Annapolis to announce the release of a draft of the legislation for public comment—that means you, SpinSheet readers. First, let me explain why I believe in this concept. It’s not new. The idea of creating some sort of National Park status to protect and enhance recreational 12 December 2022 SpinSheet.com
By Molly Winans
opportunities on our nation’s largest estuary has brewed since the 1980s. I can’t see how it would do anything but elevate our recreational experience on our beloved Bay. In Congressman Sarbanes’s words this project “will direct more resources to the Bay, improve public access, and promote environmental stewardship.” I appreciate how the proposal outlines what it will not do. In short, the CNRA will not change your fishing, boating, or safety regulations; acquire your property (unless you voluntarily sell or donate it); or impose regulations on your waterfront property. The CRNA does aim to increase diverse access to the Chesapeake. Senator Van Hollen’s office noted: “[It] will highlight the stories that often go untold—those of Indigenous peoples; free and enslaved Blacks; the role the Bay played in the earliest days of the Maryland and Virginia Colonies; the key part the Bay has played, and continues to play, in the region’s economy; and the story of watermen and -women…”
The first sites within the CNRA would be Burtis House, Whitehall Manor, Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse, and the North Beach of Fort Monroe. More would be added in time. Through the draft of legislation, the National Park Service (NPS) will be permitted to acquire (by voluntary sales or donations) or partner with those four sites. Whether this idea makes you shrug, sing, or bristle, let your voice be heard. Find the CRNA map, fact sheet, guiding principles, discussion draft, proposed sites’ background, and form for public comment at vanhollen.senate. gov/cnra. The CNRA working group will accept public comments on the proposal through February 12, 2023. As regional sailors, you have a unique perspective on the Bay. Please share it with lawmakers to make it a better place.