KMSR slated to close; please read and participate
Published on December 12, 2009 | Print | Email | Tweet | Add to Facebook

The following is a message from Central NJ Council that was distributed via email to the Council eNewsletter:

We are sending you this special edition of the CNJC E-Scouter today because of a serious issue that has arisen affecting our camping operations. At its last meeting, the Council Executive Committee (consisting of the Key 3, the Vice Presidents and General Counsel) voted to send to the full Executive Board two motions, one to cease long-term camping (summer camp) within the Central New Jersey Council, and the other, to investigate the sale of Kittatinny Mountain Scout Reservation (KMSR). We are giving you a summary of the facts leading up to this decision, in order that you can submit your comments to the Executive Board prior to its December 17th meeting. (More on how to do this is discussed below.) At this meeting your comments will be considered while the Board will discuss and evaluate all options regarding future camping operations. Those options will include the recommended closing and sale of KMSR, moving summer camp operations to Yards Creek Scout Reservation as well as continuing present deficit camping operations.

There are three main reasons why we think these steps are necessary. They deal with:

  • Capital expenses;
  • Participation levels at camp;
  • Northeast Region / National Council findings, recommendations, and policies.
Capital expenses.
Recently, we have learned of two major problems at KMSR. The first, a potentially significant problem with leakage of the dam on Lake Ashroe, is currently being investigated by an engineering firm to assess the scope of the problem and the cost of repairs. The second is the failure of the septic system serving the new Comfort Station, the Health Lodge, and the Dining Hall. Currently, we are only able to make "band-aid" repairs, as the definitive repairs on these two items alone would require a major capital campaign, something that has been unsuccessful in this council in better economic times. We add these two items to an ever-expanding list of "capital needs" at KMSR, including replacement of the dining hall, replacement of the water tank, refurbishment of the health lodge, replacement of the Ranger's house, and a possible move by New Jersey to ban pit latrines. The cost of all of these items is well into the seven-figure range, which is out of our reach by all good estimates.

Participation levels at camp.
Since 2001, we have made significant capital improvements to KMSR in the hope of attracting new troops and campers to the camp, and have consistently made improvements to the quality of the program we offer. It has been our long-term goal to operate six weeks of camp with at least nine hundred boys in attendance. We came close to that goal in 2003 and 2008, but we have never reached that elusive goal dating back to the merger in 1999. An analysis of our Boy Scout Resident Camp attendance shows that, on average, only twelve percent of the Boy Scouts registered to the Central New Jersey Council camp at KMSR in a given summer, compared with an average of forty-four percent of CNJC Scouts camping at out-of-council camps. These poor participation levels have generated a deficit every year to the point where the council is actually subsidizing the camping operation, and as a result is operating at a deficit each year.

Northeast Region and National Council findings.
The Northeast Region, with the support of the National Council, recently conducted an in-depth study of camping operations throughout the region. As a result of that study, they developed a list of the fifteen traits of successful camps, dealing mainly with finances, attendance, and proximity of other councils' properties. A "no" answer to any one of the items was a "red flag" that something needed attention. We had nine "red flags" on the list. Their recommendations, which were accepted and approved at the November Regional Board meeting, were that the Area leadership could conditionally approve a camp if the council ran at a deficit and the camping operation was also at a deficit, and the council had more than 16,000 total available youth per unit-serving executive. If this continued for two years, the region could refuse the council's request to operate a summer camp. We have effectively failed these criteria for the past five years and do not foresee this changing in the near future.

For these reasons, it was decided that we would recommend the cessation of our summer camp operations at KMSR and investigate selling the property. We did not think the option of moving the summer camp to Yards Creek was a viable option, because it would also require an outlay of capital money to bring the camp up to minimal standards, and there was no guarantee that attendance would improve, thereby continuing the deficit operation. We actually considered recommending the sale of both properties, but decided that it was important to preserve one property for district events, weekend camping, training, etc. In all, we considered six different options for the camps, and found this to be in our best interest as a council.

So, when will this happen? If approved by the Executive Board, we are planning to put the changes into effect immediately. However, we still plan on operating KMSR for weekend camping through June 2010, and possibly later, depending on how quickly we can secure a buyer and go through all of the legal issues of a sale. For units that have reservations at KMSR for the summer of 2010, we have already taken steps to find alternate camp reservations for them for the weeks desired. Of course, that move would depend on the results of the vote as to whether we cease long-term camping now, after the 2010 season, or never.

We'd like to know what you, as volunteer Scouters think. We invite you to comment on the plan by one of the three following methods:
  • By mail to CNJC Executive Board, 2245 US Hwy 130 South, Suite 106, Dayton, NJ 08810-2420;
  • By fax to (609) 419-4186; or
  • By e-mail to cnjckey3@scouting.org
Please make sure that your comments are sent to be received by the close of business on December 15th; the comments will be tallied and distributed to the Executive Board members prior to their vote. Due to time constraints, only comments submitted in writing will be distributed to the Executive Board. We will not be able to include verbal comments in the tally and report. As always, we thank you for your service to Scouting and to the youth members of our council.

Yours in Scouting,

John K. Smith
Council President

Marc C. Richardson
Scout Executive

Gerard G. Case
Council Commissioner

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