BY: MICHAEL ACHTERLING (North Dakota Monitor)
Construction along part of Theodore Roosevelt National Park’s South Unit 48-mile scenic loop could be completed by November, if the weather cooperates, according to a senior National Park Service official.
In 2019, a 4-mile stretch of the scenic loop roadway slid down a steep embankment in the park’s South Unit due to erosion and the plans, funding and construction on the difficult terrain have taken about five years to finally approach the finish line.
Maureen McGee-Ballinger, deputy superintendent for Theodore Roosevelt National Park, said she thinks visitors are going to be happy with the result.
“It required some massive infrastructure which is why it’s taken a couple of years to complete,” McGee-Ballinger said. “If our weather holds out … there’s the potential it could be completed by this fall, by November.”
However, she added, if snow and colder temperatures come early this year, the scenic loop wouldn’t be completed until spring 2025.
“There was no patching it,” McGee-Ballinger said. “The entire piece of the road slid down the hill.”
After the road slide, she said, upon further inspection, an additional 2-mile section was deemed unstable and may have followed soon thereafter.
Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.) and Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) became two of 51 co-sponsors for the Restore Our Parks Act, which secured more than $47 million for road repairs and protections against future erosion on the scenic loop. The bill became part of the Great American Outdoors Act that was passed and enacted in 2020.
That bill authorized $1.9 billion annually for five years by the federal government to address a backlog of maintenance and repairs on federally-owned lands.
The Department of the Interior considered the measure the largest investment in public lands in U.S. history, according to the department’s website.
During a ceremony at the new Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library, Hoeven said
“The good news is that by the end of this year and certainly by the start of next year, you can make the loop,” Hoeven told more than 100 attendees during the event.
He also said the more than five years of planning, construction and engineering needed to restore and improve that more than 6-mile section of roadway has been impressive.
“You are going to be amazed at the structural engineering to build that six miles on the sides of gulches and hills that you can’t believe,” Hoeven said. “It is a marvel and you are really going to enjoy it.”
McGee-Ballinger said some of the other areas, including an overlook, along the scenic loop have also been improved as part of the project.
“We’ve made the parking area bigger,” she said “We’ve improved the guttering. We’ve improved the wall there.”
She continued: “People had a scenic vista originally, but now, it’s going to be pretty spectacular because you’ve got a much easier place to get in and out of.”
After touring the scenic loop construction area Wednesday, Cramer said in a statement that crews are making great progress on construction and he’s excited for the roadway to reopen to visitors.
“It maintains the integrity of the infrastructure, which keeps the traveling public safe and allows this spectacular place to be open to them,” Cramer said in a statement. “More importantly, it maintains the integrity of the natural beauty, which is what the traveling public is here to see.”
Maintenance and repair efforts are always continuing, McGee-Ballinger said, and the focus will shift to the park’s North Unit next.
“The North Unit road definitely has got some spaces that we have some similar issues with slumping and we will be working on that one next,” she said. She added the Park Service will be looking at replacing the North Unit’s trailer that serves as a visitor’s center with a permanent facility.
Additionally, Nancy Finley was named acting superintendent of Theodore Roosevelt National Park and replaced Angie Richman, who accepted a position in New Mexico.
Finley has worked for the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for 34 years and held previous chief of resources positions at Yellowstone National Park, Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Cape Cod National Seashore.
McGee-Ballinger said she expects the search for a permanent superintendent to take a few months and interested parties should check USAJOBS in coming weeks for more information.
Hoeven praised Finley for taking on the role of acting superintendent. He also said he believes she will be a great steward of the park and look after the wild horses.
In April, the Park Service announced it would suspend the relocation of the about 200 wild horses in the park.
“Just a little factoid and I’m sure it’s purely coincidence, (Finley) worked in North Carolina where, guess what, they have horses in the park and it works very well,” Hoeven said during the event at the presidential library. “I think she’s the right person to come out and work with us.”
