North Rim Bright Angel Peninsula Developed Area: Cultural Landscape Report, Grand Canyon National Park, National Park Service

John Milner Associates, contractor

This following constitutes a Cultural Landscape Report (CLR) that has been prepared by John Milner Associates, Inc. (JMA), formerly the Charlottesville, Virginia office of OCULUS, to further the National Park Service’s (NPS) goals of better understanding and managing the North Rim Developed Area landscape. This CLR begins by addressing the physical development and existing character of the landscape as it has evolved since American explorers and settlers arrived at the Bright Angel Peninsula. This information is presented in two chapters: a landscape physical history that documents the North Rim Developed Area from 1848 until 2002, and a documentation of 2002 existing landscape conditions. The CLR then provides a preliminary statement of significance, a comparative analysis of existing and historic conditions, an evaluation of the landscape’s integrity, and a treatment plan that proposes long-term management strategies for the park’s cultural, historic, and natural resources. The need for this CLR arose from the identification of proposed projects that could potentially alter the existing landscape and its associated cultural and historic resources. These projects are identified in the Grand Canyon National Park’s (GRCA) 1995 General Management Plan (GMP), current Resource Management Plan, Environmental Assessments, and scoping letters prepared by the park. These issues are described in more detail in Chapter V, Treatment. The overall vision for the North Rim—as stated in the 1995 GMP— is to “provide a low-key, uncrowded atmosphere that offers visitors opportunities to be intimately involved with the environment.” The GMP discusses threats to this vision that include lack of facilities to meet the demands of an increasing number of visitors, excessive vehicular traffic on the Peninsula creating pollution and parking problems, lack of maintenance facilities to provide administrative and emergency services, and the need to provide diverse and accessible recreational opportunities. To address these threats, the NPS has proposed several projects in the North Rim Developed Area. These projects include a new Wildland Fire/Emergency Services Building, new or upgraded trail systems, additional or reconfigured parking lots, and a new Administration Building. In light of these proposed projects, the purpose of this CLR is to provide a landscape history for the entire project area; to document and evaluate the significance, integrity, and condition of existing cultural landscape characteristics, including the identification and description of contributing, supporting, and non-contributing landscape characteristics; and to develop a preservation strategy for the long-term management of the cultural landscape which will focus on treatment recommendations and design guidance that respond to future development at specific project areas within the North Rim Developed Area. The information within this CLR will be used by the NPS in the development of appropriate proposed actions for the North Rim Developed Area and during the NEPA/106 process to aid with the determination of effects on the cultural landscape.

North Rim Bright Angel Peninsula Developed Area: Cultural Landscape Report, Grand Canyon National Park, National Park Service

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