Prior to leaving for another national park, Superintendent of Gateway National Park’s Jamaica Bay Unit Lisa Eckert, left, imparts advice to the next superintendent, community organizations and area residents. (courtesy of Lisa Eckert)Changes are on the way for Jamaica Bay as its supervisor is leaving her position of three years on Aug. 18.
Wisconsin native Lisa Eckert worked at 11 national parks before coming to Queens in 2005 to fill the long-vacant position of superintendent of Gateway’s “most complex and complicated” unit, Jamaica Bay.
It’s also one of the most remarkable. “The diversity of the resources, not only natural, but historic, here at Jamaica Bay (is) really incredible,” Eckert said.
Being the first unit superintendent neither from New York nor from within Gateway, Eckert brought with her a “national perspective,” helping her to make accomplishments at the 6,000-acre unit.
A critical component of her job, Eckert noted, was leading and guiding the staff. She oversaw 60 year-round, permanent employees and some 140 seasonal staff members. “Leadership and accountability is one thing I’ve been able to provide,” she said, “especially with some consistency and managing tough issues.”
Equally as important as working with staff, Eckert believes building a good rapport with the community surrounding Jamaica Bay is essential to being successful and accomplishing goals. She has worked with community groups to create beach cleanups, educational boat and walking tours and others efforts to maintain, preserve and restore Jamaica Bay.
Eckert also helped employ a general management plan, set to launch in the fall in all of Gateway’s three units, that would generate better communication with the community, garner community interest and input, and disseminate information about the significance of Jamaica Bay.
“All of our jobs here should be to preserve and protect the park resources and to ensure that they’re here for future generations,” Eckert said, adding that a big part of this is educating the public and reminding people that Jamaica Bay is part of a national park.
It seems that has been a relatively easy part of the Eckert’s job. In her 26 years with the National Park Service, the superintendent — who applied competitively for and received a transfer to the Grand Canyon, where she will be the superintendent of a training program — has found that all national parks have one thing in common.
“There’s such passion and interest,” she said. “People really do care. I found that no matter where I’ve lived, I have some employees and ... park neighbors that do really care about the park.”
With an active community surrounding Jamaica Bay, there is no doubt that it will be monitored and cared for in Eckert’s absence. But some community members are worried that those tasks will be left solely up to them, depending on who the next superintendent will be.
Dorothy McCloskey, president of the Friends of Charles Park Committee — a group dedicated to maintaining and upgrading the park, which is part of the Jamaica Bay Unit — is concerned about being left out of the new superintendent selection process.
“The community wants to know what’s going on and to give our input,” McCloskey said. She and other community members have their own ideas, projects and goals for the Jamaica Bay unit that they want to share with Eckert’s successor. They also want to hear the successor’s thoughts and plans and work together to improve the condition of the bay.
Now is the best time to do so, Eckert said. With the general management initiative taking effect in a couple of months, community meetings will be scheduled and discussions will take place to guarantee that everyone has a chance to be heard. Collaboration with the public is as important to Gateway’s staff as it is for McCloskey and other area residents, according to Eckert.
It’s expected that the next superintendent will be kept busy after taking over the position. There are many exciting opportunities, according to Eckert, as well as projects needing completion, such as the general management plan and the $4.8 million rehabilitation of the Ryan Visitor Center in Brooklyn.
The next superintendent will also be responsible for carrying out budget changes Eckert and other Gateway staff are currently planning. All parks in the National Park Service are undergoing “core operations” in which they must develop plans for trimming costs. Gateway is getting close to implementing such a plan that will reduce the $24 million budget by $3 million.
But what Eckert would most like to see the next superintendent do is care for the staff “because the employees are critical resources,” she said. “I would love my successor to continue leading the staff and working with them as a wonderful team.”
