Support is building in Washington County to shift ownership of a national historic landmark north of Stillwater to the National Park Service, but the park superintendent who would inherit the property said he doesn't have money to maintain it.

Christopher Stein, who oversees the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway, said he is not inclined under his current budget to support a drive by Friends of the St. Croix Boom Site to transfer the boom site to the Park Service.

"I don't think it's in the public interest," said Stein, who estimated that simply maintaining the site would cost $70,000 a year. "I'm trying to manage and maintain a park that's already strapped for resources."

The boom site, which operated until 1914, was a collection point for millions of white pine logs cut upriver and floated to sawmills in Stillwater. Timber floating down from logging areas was held in place by a long chain of logs, known as a "boom," until it could be organized and rafted to individual mills. The boom and other original structures were removed long ago, but Civilian Conservation Corps workers built a scenic overlook and a wayside rest at the site in the 1930s.

Marc Hugunin, a member of the Friends advocacy group, said a transfer of ownership makes sense because the land lies within National Park Service boundaries. He acknowledges that the Park Service doesn't have resources to maintain the boom site, much less improve it, but he said the friends group will seek funding in Congress.

The friends' current goal, he said, is to document public support for the move. The Washington County Commission and the Stillwater City Council voted resolutions in favor of the idea in recent weeks.

The boom site, along Hwy. 95 about five miles north of Stillwater, fell victim to state budget cuts in 2006. The Minnesota Department of Transportation, which then owned and maintained it, closed the site. After a public outcry, the site reopened in 2007 and the state Department of Natural Resources took control of it in 2008.

Hugunin said that DNR's management was considered temporary. Transferring the site to the Park Service is the only other alternative, he said.

"There's nobody else lining up and clamoring for that responsibility," he said.

One morning last week, hikers prowled trails below the wayside rest while others walked the sandy beach. The St. Croix River shimmered like a mirror below the steep, wooded banks, its water free of ripples except for waves from a passing boat.

Although beauty abounds, the site is showing its age. Picnic shelters were removed because they were deemed unsafe, invasive plants block views from the stone overlook, and restrooms are a half-century old.

Stein said if properly funded, the site would be a great place for an Park Service interpretive center that teaches the history of logging on the St. Croix. "For me to embrace that idea I would want to do more than just clean toilets," he said, and under his current budget even diverting resources to the boom site would mean less cleanup and maintenance elsewhere in the park.

"A lot of people think these things happen for free. They don't," said Stein, who took over the superintendent's job in St. Croix Falls, Wis., about a year ago. "We have other screaming needs at this park that I want to take on."

The park stretches 252 miles and includes 90,000 acres within its boundaries. Much of that land is under scenic easement or other agreements with landowners.

Hugunin said the friends group understands Park Service concerns but thinks the boom site could become a more attractive destination for people wanting to enjoy the river. If the Park Service took control, public comment could supply innovative new ideas for its use, he said.

Kevin Giles • 612-673-4432