Posted on 07/15/2019 10:51:41 PM PDT by ProtectOurFreedom
Yosemite National Parks great Ahwahnee Hotel has its name back.
The Ahwahnee was renamed the Majestic Yosemite Hotel after the parks former concessionaire filed a lawsuit against the National Park Service in September 2015, claiming ownership of some of the parks trade names and trademarks.
The Ahwahnee Hotel was named The Majestic Yosemite Hotel. The Wawona Hotel became Big Trees Lodge. Curry Village became Half Dome Village. And Badger Pass Ski Area was renamed Yosemite Ski & Snowboard Area.
As part of a $12 million settlement paid to the parks former concessionaire, names that had been changed during the lawsuit will revert to their original names.
We are very excited to restore these historic names to these properties that are so important to Yosemite and the American people, Yosemite National Park spokesman Scott Gediman told CNN Travel. The American people have been very supportive of the effort to restore these historic place names and this settlement agreement is a win for everybody.
(Excerpt) Read more at ktla.com ...
Just a bit of feel-good, happy news today.
And $12 million in taxpayer money goes to the former contractor?! What kind of scam did they pull to garner a $12 million payout?
Don’t blame the contractor. Blame the idiot bureaucrats who signed off on a contract giving the names to that concessionnaire in the beginning as part of the contract! Probably incompetent government lawyers reviewing the contract. Your government at work!!!
Ahwahnee & Curry Village, historic/iconic Yosemite!
Whos the idiot that allowed the changes?
No, why would he contractor think they gain ownership of the names? This is theft. And, yes, shame on the government for leaving ambiguity in the contract that enabled the theft.
Next, someone will charge these names are cultural appropriation or somehow derogatory and demand the park service change them.
Founder of Delaware North..the concessionaire, obviously ridiculously well off..
Heres what his Wikipedia page says:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremy_Jacobs
He is currently serving his second term on the U.S. Department of Commerce Travel and Tourism Advisory Board.[35] Members of the board are selected by the Secretary of Commerce and advise the Secretary on government policies and programs that affect the U.S. travel and tourism industry.
Wilbur aka Census Ross is current Secretary of Commerce
Also,
Jacobs has made substantial contributions to the presidential campaigns of George W. Bush, John Kerry, Mitt Romney, Hillary Clinton, Joe Lieberman, and John Edwards.
Well this was done under Zero’s watch!
That's what I thought had happened when I read the headline!
Aint nothing feel good or happy about being stupid enough to sign a contract that gave naming rights to a concessionaire
&12 million tax payer dollars. Geez
“Dont blame the contractor. Blame the idiot bureaucrats who signed off on a contract giving the names to that concessionnaire in the beginning as part of the contract! Probably incompetent government lawyers reviewing the contract. Your government at work!!!”
No different than the type of politicians who cut deals to allow toll road operators free reign over drivers.
Fresh, new and exciting ways to launder your graft....
Exactly! Apparently the government never filed copyrights to the names when it created them in the first place. Unbelievably stupid...er, maybe not.
I’m puzzled why the concessionaire took ownership rights to the names when the government originally created them (just guessing here).
Sounds an awful lot like extortion, doesn’t it? Even if some attorney “discovered” their client had the right to the names, what kind of person would assert it and thereby steal part of the soul of one of America’s National Parks? SCUM.
“why would he contractor think they gain ownership of the names? “
Wikipedia has a detailed explanation of the ownership of the intellectual property in Yosemite going back to the Curry family. It’s on the up-and-up.
Who paid the bureaucrats some $$$ years back, and how much, when they negotiated the contract giving the concessionaire ownership of the place names in the park?? Are we to believe the NPS negotiators were simply stupid??
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.