Our Voice: New national park requires donations

Establishing the Manhattan Project National Historical Park at Hanford is one of the most exciting endeavors our community has on the horizon.

Once it opens, national park officials estimate it initially will draw 100,000 tourists annually. That means we have to be sure the attraction is worth the trip for those traveling to see it.

Like all efforts such as this, in addition to enthusiasm, commitment and planning, it will take a considerable amount of money to do it right.

That’s where Tri-Citians, corporations in the community and others interested in the historical park can make a difference right away.

The Benton-Franklin River Heritage Foundation has been set up to take donations for the park until an official “friends of the park” group is established. The organization is administered by Visit Tri-Cities.

Kris Watkins, Visit Tri-Cities’ president and CEO, said 100 percent of any contribution made will go toward funding the new park because no administration fees are being charged.

The Benton-Franklin River Heritage Foundation was set up in 2002 as an interim fundraising tool to incubate projects. It has been used in the past to help start the Reach center and for Lewis and Clark bicentennial events.

Watkins said the “friends group” will be created after a permanent superintendent is named for the park. Until then, the foundation is providing a way to get some cash flowing now.

All along in the park’s planning process, it was expected that the community would contribute to it financially. Tracy Atkins, interim superintendent for the project, said national parks rely on a combination of federal money, fees and philanthropy.

Of course the fees can’t be collected yet, but it will help if donations start accruing now.

When a lot of people think about national parks, they think of unique land formations and waterfalls. But the U.S. National Park Service also oversees many parks and monuments that focus on preserving history.

The Whitman Mission near Walla Walla, for example, is operated by the National Park Service and provides an educational opportunity for travelers and hundreds of schoolchildren on field trips.

We have that similar potential for the park at Hanford. The creation of the nuclear bomb is controversial and surrounded by mixed emotions — and understandably so.

But the new park provides an opportunity to showcase the scientific accomplishments, the sacrifice and the historical context along with the devastating consequences caused by the development of the nuclear age.

So far, it appears those involved in the park’s creation are taking great care to try and accurately tell the story behind one of the greatest engineering achievements in the history of our country, and how it changed the world. A Scholars Forum of experts already has met to discuss initial plans for the massive project.

At Hanford, the B Reactor likely will be the focal point of the national park. The world’s first full-scale plutonium production reactor has been designated as a National Historic Landmark and public tours are already available there.

But the national park will be more than a tour of B Reactor. It will tell the story of science, secrecy, the workers and their lives, the decision to use the bomb, the consequences of that decision and peace efforts now.

And those are just a few talking points. There are so many more.

This is an important project for our community and for our nation’s history. It will take financial commitment to do it right, and we need to step up and help.

Anyone who wants to make a tax-deductible donation for the historical park can mail or deliver it to Visit Tri-Cities, Attn: Hanford Unit Fund, 7130 Grandridge Blvd., Suite B, Kennewick, WA 99336.

This story was originally published June 5, 2016 at 2:36 AM with the headline "Our Voice: New national park requires donations."