Randy Dockendorf/P&D

Moving On

 

Steve Mietz, superintendent of the Missouri National Recreational River for the past three years, is leaving his post to become the new superintendent at Great Basin National Park in Baker, Nev. His replacement has not yet been named.

The superintendent of the Missouri National Recreational River for the past three years is taking a new position in Nevada.

Steve Mietz is set to become the superintendent at Great Basin National Park in Baker, Nev., beginning on April 22.

“The park features more than 77,000 acres of land and has a large mountain peak of around 13,000 feet,” he said. “Great Basin also has a limestone cave, which is a popular tourist attraction; bristlecone pines, which are more than 4,000 years old; and a variety of other natural resources that make the park unique.”

Mietz said one of the biggest differences between the two parks is that the National Park Service (NPS) owns the land of Great Basin.

“Here at the Missouri River, we work in partnership with a lot of groups, including state agencies and the Corps of Engineers, so the NPS doesn’t necessarily take the lead in all activities,” he said. “At Great Basin, we take the lead in most activities. We still will work in partnership with groups, but not as much as we do here.”

Mietz added that at the MNRR, there is some ambiguity with who’s in charge of what along the river.

“In most instances, we usually decide to work together,” he said. “With the new job, it’s more clear who will be in charge if there are problems or things that need to be resolved.”

Mietz came to this area from the southwest, and he said he is eager to return there.

“I’m really looking forward to getting back in that area and being near mountains,” he said. “However, I’ll miss a lot of good friends here and some of the partnerships we’ve made.”

Mietz’s replacement has not been named yet.

“With the sequester, we’ve been under a hiring freeze. However, we were able to get an exemption because of how critical this position is,” he said. “We will have an interim person until a permanent replacement is named.”

The goal is to have the permanent replacement hired and in place by the end of the summer, Mietz noted.

He added that it was a tough decision for him to leave Yankton.

“We’ve made a lot of great progress over the last three years that I’ve been here,” Mietz said. “We’ve enhanced our outreach efforts and have changed the attitudes about the perception of the NPS. We got a lot of work done, and it’s hard to leave some of the projects that are still being developed.”

However, he believes this is a good opportunity for him and his family and is looking forward to moving.

When he begins the job at Great Basin, there are a number of issues he’ll have to deal with.

“Water is a really important issue in Nevada, as are water rights issues,” Mietz said. “When I get there, the park will just be opening up for spring with a lot of operational things going on. I’ll try not to get in the way of people getting there jobs done.”

He added that the budget for the park must be figured out as well, and the sequester has led to smaller budgets for many national parks.

“I enjoyed working on the longest river in the country, and I’ll really miss working on such a mighty river,” Mietz said. “I’ll miss the people here a lot. People we’ve worked with have a lot of passion about the river and people here like working together to get things done. There were not a lot of egos that got in the way of us getting projects finished.”

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