17MB PDF - Association for Mexican Cave Studies

Editor's Note: The following proposal by Orion Knox, Jr. wassubmitted to the School of Architecture at the University ofTexas for approval. It outlines Orion's tentative plans fora required thesis necessary for the completion of a Bachelor'sdegree in Architecture.92PROPOSAL AND REGIONAL PLAN FOR THEPARQUE NACIONAL DE LA GRUTA DEL PALMITOMunicipio de Bustamante, Nuevo Le6n, Mexicoby Orion Knox, Jr.SCOPE:The scope of this project will be the planning in detail of anational park, including a regional plan, and all of the facilitiesrequired for the park's operation. The primary attraction in thepark will be the Gruta del Palmito, a very large cavern noted forits size and beauty. The park will also include other outstandingfeatures of the area, notably the rugged mountains and deserts whichare so characteristic of northeastern Mexico. Facilities which willbe designed for the park include a visitors' center complex at thecave, information stations at the park entrances, and facilities atpark camp grounds. The following topics, which include the purposesof a national park, a regional study of the site for geologic, geographicand cultural elements, a regional plan for the area and theprogram of the facilities to be prOVided in the park, are hereafterdiscussed.-- -PURPOSE OF A NATIONAL PARK:The primary objective of creating a national park is the protectionof animals, plants, and scenery to the maximum feasible extentsubject to compatible visitation. This means that while parks arefor people, they were created by the people in order to protect thenatural elements for their esthetic, scientific, and cultural values.The second objective, which must fall within the above framework,is to prOVide recreation for visitors to the park and surroundingarea. The type of recreation that will be prOVided will varyaccording to the characteristics of and elements located in theparks, but one objective which should be included in all such parksis the education of visitors to the natural values which the parkcontains. This can be accomplished through exhibits, programs, andgUided tours.Parks can be broken into three major categories: natural, historical,and recreational. A park can fall into anyone or possiblyall three of these categories, depending on the features it contains.The natural category may include those parks which exhibit outstandingnatural scenic beauty, unusual geologic phenomena, unusual biologicphenomena, or simply a wilderness area set aside for the enjoymentof future generations and for scientific stUdy. The historicalcategory includes areas and places which have significance due toevents which have occurred there. The recreational category is usuallyan integral part of the first two, to an extent ranging from asmall amount to being one of the prime reasons for the park. These