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© Sarah Reingewirtz/Los Angeles Daily News/TNS
Children check out the Columbian mammoth in La Brea Tar Pits Museum’s new interactive and hands-on Mammoths and Mastodons exhibit in Los Angeles on Wednesday, December 19, 2018. Admission to the Tar Pits, George Page Museum and the Museum of Natural History is scheduled to go up. But the increase must be approved by the Board of Supervisors. A vote is expected on Tuesday, May 23, 2023.

Museum-goers who love nature, butterflies and giant mammoth fossils may have to fork over more cash to gain access to three Los Angeles County museums that are asking for a 20% hike in admission fees to help them pay for operating costs that rose due to inflation and higher usage.

The county’s Natural History Museum (NHM), La Brea Tar Pits and George C. Page Museum have floated a proposal before the county Board of Supervisors to raise adult general admission prices from $15 per person to $18. They are also asking for a bump in reduced rates for seniors, students and youth, ages 13 to 17, from $12 to $14. Tickets for children 3 to 12 are $7.

The fee hikes go before the supervisors on Tuesday, May 23 and will require three votes of the five supervisors for approval.

These museums, which feature popular exhibits from the Butterfly Pavilion at the Natural History Museum to fossils of saber-toothed cats and giant sloths dating to the Ice Age at the Tar Pits and Page Museum, will  collectively raise about $1.1 million in revenue if the new ticket prices are approved, according to a letter contained in a county report written by Lori  Bettison-Varga, president and director of the museums.

The revenue will be used to offset rising costs associated with educational programs and free admission for school field trips, maintenance of facilities and increases in employee wages and benefits, the letter stated.

Providing free admission to all school children, teachers, veterans and active military, has cut into the county museums’ operating budget. Before the March 2020 start of the COVID-19 pandemic, one-third of the Natural History Museum’s 1.3 million visitors got in for free. In 2022, the Exposition Park museum saw a jump in school field trips, and free admissions now account for about half, the letter said.

As the museums ramp up to handle more visitors, costs have risen, wrote Bettison-Varga. The Natural History Museum anticipates completing a welcome center and a commons that will be available to the general public without paid admission. These improvements are also adding to operating costs.

A survey of other museums both in the county, in California and outside of California, Bettison-Varga wrote, showed that the proposed admission fees are not out of line. The letter stated that ticket prices were last increased in 2015.

“The proposed fees are well within the range charged by similar institutions, and are among the lowest in the county,” she wrote.

For comparison, the survey found:

• The Autry Museum of the American West at Griffith Park raised the price of adult general admission on Jan. 1, from $14 to $16, a 14% increase.

• The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) raised adult general admission from $15 in 2017 to the current price of $25, a 67% increase. L.A. County adult residents are charged $20.

• At The Getty in Brentwood and the Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades, admission is free.

• The Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach raised adult general admission in the last few years. The survey said admission in 2017 was $29.95. The museum website indicates admission is $36.95. This represents a 24% increase.

Griffith Park has no admission fee, but some areas charge for parking. Admission to the Griffith Park Observatory is free, but the observatory astronomy show requires a separate ticket.

Griffith Park was donated to the city of Los Angeles by Colonel Griffith J. Griffith who required as part of the donation that the park would always be free to enter. Two attempts by the Los Angeles City Council to charge admission fees ultimately failed, explained Gerry Hans, president of Friends of Griffith Park.

In 1981, pay booths were installed at the park to collect $.50 on weekdays and $1.00 on weekends per car as a way to generate revenue for the city’s Recreation and Parks Department. That led to a lawsuit and protests. In 1984, the city removed the toll booths.

“During the time of the fee booths’ operation, many of the park’s concessions and venues were hurt financially with less people entering, including the LA Zoo, train rides, and pony rides. There were protests about double taxation, and toll booths were even vandalized,” Hans wrote in an emailed response.

In San Francisco, the city’s California Academy of Science in 2017 charged an adult general admission of $35.95. In 2023, the price of admission is $48.75, a 36% increase, the survey found.

Chicago’s Field Museum in 2017 charged $22.00 for general admission. In 2023, admission is $30.00, a 36% increase, the survey revealed.

©2023 MediaNews Group, Inc. Visit dailynews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

© Photo by John Eaton
A labyrinth on a nature trail at the Lafayette Community Garden and Outdoor Education Center.

LAMORINDA, CA — Patch reader John Eaton sent in this peaceful scene of a labyrinth on the nature trail at Lafayette Community Garden and Outdoor Education Center.

Thanks so much for sharing, John!

It’s Your Shot: Pictures You Take and We Share

Have you got the next incredible photo? If you have an awesome photo of nature, breathtaking scenery, kids caught being kids, a pet doing something funny or something unusual you happen to catch, we’d love to feature it on Patch. We’re looking for high-resolution images that reflect the beauty that is Lamorinda, and that show off your unique talents.

So, bring ’em on. No selfies. Not here.

Send your photos to [email protected]. In your email, please be sure to include information about when and where the shot was taken and any other details about what was going on.

The article Labyrinth In Nature: Lamorinda Photo Of The Day appeared first on Lamorinda Patch.

“Civilization exists by geological consent subject to change without notice.” This quote from historian Will Durant was a favorite saying of Madeleyne Bridge. It’s inscribed on a plaque mounted on a stone to the left of the bridge named in her memory at Heil Ranch. Maddie and her late husband Ray were hikers and Boulder environmental activists for many years.

Maddie’s Bridge over Plumely Creek was originally built in 1999 but was severely damaged “without notice” in the 2020 Calwood fire and had to be removed. The Longmont Open Space Department loaned Heil Ranch a strong, sturdy bridge that was placed upstream. Then, this spring Maddie’s Bridge was rebuilt and opened to the public in early May, and the loaner bridge was returned to Longmont.

Maddie’s Bridge (near the main parking and picnic area) serves as a gateway to two lovely trails — Lichen Loop and Grindstone Quarry — that are regenerating after the Calwood Fire. Charred ponderosa pines and invasive mullein bear stark witness to that fierce fire that burned 5,000 acres in five hours. Following the fire, most of Heil Ranch was closed to the public until last year while the Boulder County Open Space Department undertook extensive restoration. Throughout the forest you’ll notice many mesh “tree tubes” protecting ponderosa seedlings, many of which are now over a foot tall.

Almost three years have passed since the fire. Golden banners, yellow parsleys, blue chiming bells, and white locoweeds and sand lilies are reclaiming the scorched land, and greener-than-before grass covers the blackened soil. After crossing Maddie’s Bridge, the trail goes uphill a short distance and forks with the Lichen Loop heading straight and the Grindstone Quarry Trail branching to the right.

Going in a counter-clockwise direction, the 1.3- mile Lichen Loop continues uphill to the ponderosa forest before leveling out and then descending through flower-filled meadows. In the past we’ve encountered wild turkey flocks, mule deer herds, and Abert’s squirrels on this route. And, of course, there are multi-colored rocks covered with green, gold, orange, and chartreuse lichens. Be sure to take the short detour up to the old kiln where crushed limestone was converted to quicklime. The 1.4-mile Grindstone Quarry Trail heads up to a viewpoint of nearby ridges and of Bear Peak to the south before dropping to a meadow. As you traverse the meadow, watch for an unmarked spur to the left that leads to the quarry. Peter Haldi, an early postmaster for the town of Altona, established the
quarry in the early 1900s to provide grinding-wheel stones for sharpening metal tools.

From the quarry you can either retrace your route back, or you can continue down to a lower parking lot and connect to other trails. Or, you can spot a second car at the lower lot for a one-way, mostly downhill hike of about two miles. The network of trails at the Heil Ranch Open Space allows you to make various connections and longer loops. You can explore a variety of terrains and see historical sites, such as the Altona School. Check “Heil Valley Ranch trail map” online for ideas. Also, check online for trail closures, especially after all the recent rains. Bikes are allowed only on designated trails, and to protect wildlife, dogs are not permitted.

To reach Heil Ranch, take U.S 36. to Left Hand Canyon and turn west. In a short distance turn right onto Geer Canyon Road that goes to the Main Trailhead parking and picnic area.

Ruth Carol and Glenn Cushman are the authors of “Boulder Hiking Trails,” available from Amazon.

A Denver museum said it will close a section devoted to Native Americans because the decades-old exhibit is problematic and “reinforces harmful stereotypes.”

The Denver Museum of Nature & Science shared a letter shared with members that said the North American Indian Cultures Hall perpetuates a “white, dominant culture” and will be shuttered this summer.

The hall was created in the 1970s in collaboration with Indigenous representatives, the museum’s vice president of exhibitions wrote in the letter, according to 9News.

Even though Indigenous people helped create the hall, museum officials say it still fails to rise above “harmful stereotypes.”

“Despite collaboration with Indigenous representatives during its creation and ongoing efforts by curators, conservators, and others to update and improve various parts of the Hall, we acknowledge that it remains problematic,” the vice president, Liz Davis, wrote.

© Provided by New York Post

The Denver Museum of Nature & Science says will close its North American Indian Cultures Hall this summer.Denver Museum of Nature and Science

“We understand that the Hall reinforces harmful stereotypes and white, dominant culture.”

A description of the exhibit says visitors were able to view “authentic reconstructed dwellings, including an Inuit snow house, a Northwest Coast clan house, a Navajo hogan, and a Cheyenne tipi,” as well as craft weavings, baskets, beadwork and pottery.

Museum-goers were also able to listen to audio stories and view videos while wandering through the exhibit.

© Provided by New York Post

The Denver Museum of Nature & Science released a healing statement in collaboration with Indigenous consultants. Google Maps

“To acknowledge the harm we have caused, we have developed and agreed upon a healing statement in collaboration with Indigenous consultants, and with input and guidance from conversations with community members. The statement was crafted after taking into account the concerns expressed by the community, and in direct response to those concerns,” Davis said in the letter.

The healing statement has been installed at the start of the North American Indian Cultures exhibit hall, as well as online.

“Together with Indigenous community members, we will reimagine exhibition curation, collecting, programming and conservation practices with respect to Indigenous culture, heritage and belongings. We recognize that there is more work to be done, and we are committed to working with, and for, community members as we move forward in reimagining our practices,” the letter continued.

© Provided by New York Post

Some museum-goers welcomed the change, while others questioned why it was necessary.James Florio Photography / Denver Art Museum

The news was met with mixed feedback by Museum-goers online, leaving some wondering why the whole exhibit has to be scrapped instead of just re-imagined.

Others applauded the Museum, noting the news made them happy to hear.

“Will you reimagine this exhibit? I’ve always enjoyed looking at this exhibit because I loved the craftmanship of the textiles etc. I’d love to see this come back in a new and exciting way!” one Facebook user wrote.

Others questioned whether items inside the hall would be returned to Indigenous families or reservations.

“Has the museum considered returning the collections to the tribes to which they belong?” one person wrote.

© Provided by New York Post

It’s unclear when the exhibit will officially close. Denver Museum of Nature & Science

Some on social media lamented seeing a favorite museum attraction go, commenting under the Museum’s Facebook post, “I love this exhibit and am sad to see it go.” Others chimed in saying it was “fantastic news.”

While the hall will be closing at some point this summer, the museum has not said when a redesigned exhibit can be expected to be unveiled.