Star-Tribune Editorial Board

The process was flawed, but the decision is right.

Sylvan Pass should remain open in winter, according to an agreement reached between the National Park Service and officials from Cody, Park County and Wyoming. It's not a done deal until the recommendation is finalized by Mike Snyder, regional director of the Park Service in Denver, but there seems to be nothing to preclude the deal from being approved.

The agreement means a lot to Wyoming's tourism industry and local communities, which fought hard to keep access to Yellowstone open through Sylvan Pass. Despite a huge amount of local opposition during the public comment process, the Park Service had stubbornly kept its recommendation to close the pass in winter due to avalanche dangers.

Last winter Snyder decided to keep the pass open when avalanche conditions permitted safe travel. More importantly, he required Park Service officials and area representatives to meet to determine what avalanche control methods can be safely used in the future.

Signalling how important the state considered the negotiations, both Gov. Dave Freudenthal and Wyoming's congressional delegation became key players in the talks that began in January in Billings, Mont.

Unfortunately, the negotiations were held in private instead of open to the public, as they should have been. The Park Service insisted on the closed meeting so both sides could talk "frankly." Wyoming officials should have insisted the negotiations be open, but they caved in to the demand. That sets a bad precedent for future meetings with the Park Service and other federal agencies.

Still, the talks did lead to the agreement announced Tuesday, and the Park Service should be commended for finally listening to what local authorities maintained all along: that avalanches at Sylvan Pass can be successfully managed for a reasonable cost by the use of howitzers and explosives deployed by a helicopter crew.

After some initially ridiculous assertions by the Park Service about the costs of avalanche control, the decision ended up not costing Wyoming too much. Local and state officials agreed to seek one-time funding assistance to buy three oversnow vehicles costing a total of about $366,000. Federal grants may be available, in addition to local funding sources.

The agreement with the Park Service is a victory for everyone who fought for it, including the governor, our congressional delegation, city and county officials and the grassroots group Shut Out of Yellowstone.

As Freudenthal said, access to Yellowstone over Sylvan Pass is a key element of the Park County and Cody economies, and a significant asset to the state of Wyoming. Thanks to everyone who made it happen.