National parks are inevitably born in controversy – often fierce and emotional controversy having little, if anything, to do with the park idea. Seemingly wild and often unsubstantiated claims from both sides tend to get the spotlight. This confrontational stage seems to be a necessary prelude for getting beyond the rhetoric and moving on to a more reasoned debate on the merits of the idea itself.

The formation of an “Americans for a Maine Woods National Park” committee is an attempt to encourage that move. Far from being a group of celebrities trying to tell Maine how to preserve its environment and image, it is simply a statement of how that environment and image is seen, by a widely diverse group of Americans as a national treasure. To dismiss and characterize the list as “celebrities” is, hopefully, the last volley of that preliminary stage. Let’s begin to call them what they are, concerned citizens of our nation and this planet.

Each person on that list has a mental image of the Maine woods that is automatically linked to their personal image of the meaning of a national park. In that regard, they can be seen to cherish the Maine woods with much the same emotion, as does any Maine resident. To think that “National Park” or “Maine Woods” are emotionless concepts is unrealistic. Nevertheless, it is vital that the debate move on. The Americans’ call for an open and comprehensive feasibility study is ultimately an expression of deep-seated respect for both sides of the argument and for democratic processes. It is not reasonable to characterize the concerns of this diverse list of Americans in any other way.

We are confident that our views about the benefits of a Maine Woods National Park are shared by the diverse group of 110 that we co-chair. And, we are more than willing to see those beliefs tested on the anvil of a feasibility study and public discourse. The specifics of those beliefs include the following points:

The national park idea is an economic proposal. It could be a classic counter-cyclical move for Maine’s economy. It’s a way to truly diversify the economy rather than simply adding more industry. Opponents’ claims of low-paying service jobs conveniently forget that all economies have some low-paying service-connected jobs. What the opponents never mention is that no industry comes close to tourism in its opportunities for small business investments. Entrepreneurial investing is what this Country was built on – the chance to become your own boss.

The Maine woods image is an indelible icon throughout America. Maine is unbelievably fortunate to have a tourism image that is distinctive and natural at this point in our history. A Maine Woods national park is certainly one way of sustaining that image and its tourist drawing power long into the future. Just imagine what any other state would give to own that image outright.

The designation of a national park, by definition, means a place of national significance – in its landscape features and in its history. The Maine woods has it all – the last remaining large wilderness in the East and a legacy that includes Henry David Thoreau, Teddy Roosevelt, Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, Thomas Cole, Frederick Church, a host of famous landscape painters, photographers, writers, timber barons, and Maine family names that deserve to be immortalized in a piece of the Maine woods landscape.

Skepticism about the national park idea seems to revolve around the two issues of its proposed size and its suggested designation as a “park.” Both issues are premature at this stage. It’s a little difficult to realistically discuss either until we have a feasibility study with its specific recommendations. Maybe the feasibility study would suggest some other size and designation – perhaps a national recreation area; perhaps a whole new concept in parks with a Maine advisory board, and a charter that could be revoked if stewardship failed to be maintained at the desired level. There are currently 21 different classifications of units in the national park system. Surely we can collectively create one more, one that is best for Maine.

A Maine Woods National Park is not just environmental protection, it is the economic equivalent of value added to the already priceless drawing power of the Maine woods. A national park becomes a statement of pride in heritage, a focused destination for tourists, and a specific sense of place for that amorphous image of “Maine Woods.”

The Americans for A Maine Woods National Park is but one more voice, one more vision, for the future. However that vision is to take place, it will be fashioned, designated, managed and cherished right here in Maine. The idea is on the table – has been on the table for more than a decade; let’s move on and examine its merits.

Will LaPage and Roxanne Quimby are co-chairs of the group Americans for A Maine Woods National Park.