State parks plan to be open over weekend

After being closed on Tuesday, state parks in La Paz County reopened Wednesday and they plan to remain open over the July 4 holiday weekend.

Spokespersons for Buckskin Mountain, River Island and Alamo Lake State Parks, John Guthrie said employees had been told to return to work Wednesday. There are no plans to close over the weekend, which is one of the busiest of the year for the parks.

"As far as I know, we'll be open," said Guthrie.

There had been some concern the parks may remain closed as the state legislature had not approved a budget as of late Wednesday night. According to published reports, the Arizona House approved the budget late in the evening and then sent it to the Senate. The Senate finished their work on it at approximately 3 a.m. Wednesday.

Gov. Jan Brewer's administration told state employees to report to work as scheduled on Wednesday morning.

In a press release, State Parks Executive Director Renee Bahl said the department is happy to be reopening the parks for the holiday weekend. She said the parks generate $266 million annually for rural communities.