Advisory Committee Appointed for Elk Knob State Natural Area

RALEIGH --Seven area residents have been appointed to a citizens' park advisory committee for Elk Knob State Natural Area in Watauga and Ashe counties, according to the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation. The committee held an orientation meeting April 5 on the campus of Appalachian State University in Boone.

The committee members appointed by Lewis Ledford, director of the division, are: Curtis Smalling, mountain area biologist with Audubon North Carolina; Tommy Walsh, a conservation activist; Jay Wild, retired superintendent of New River State Park; Pat Beaver, professor of Appalachian studies at ASU; Stephen Poulos, director of the Watauga Parks and Recreation Department; Lisa Baldwin, a Watauga County teacher and business owner; and, Chuck Smith, director of the Goodnight Family Sustainable Development Program.

Each state park and state recreation area and several state natural areas have advisory committees, and their primary functions are to provide community feedback and make recommendations on state park development and management.

"This park advisory committee will play an important role in helping the state natural area connect with the community it serves, and it will act as a sounding board on all major decisions," said Larry Trivette, park superintendent of Elk Knob. "The advice and support of the members will be vital as we develop interim visitor facilities and continue land acquisition efforts in Watauga and Ashe counties."

Committee members are chosen to represent various elements of community life such as business, recreation, education and conservation.

Elk Knob State Natural Area was authorized as a unit of the state parks system in 2003, following a donation of land by The Nature Conservancy. It now covers more than 1,800 acres surrounding the headwaters of the North Fork of New River.