Whereas: both the North Carolina Governor’s and Wake County Board of Commissioners’ “stay at home” orders allow for visits to public natural spaces;

Whereas: exposure to natural spaces is known to boost the immune system and provide many other physical and mental health benefits;

Whereas: William B. Umstead State Park, at 5,599 acres, is Raleigh’s and Wake County’s largest public natural space;

Whereas: the recent closure of William B. Umstead State Park due to "continued crowding that does not adhere to social distancing guidelines*" is diverting a significant number of people to the much smaller county and city parks**, causing those parks to in turn become crowded;

Whereas: crowding at the county and city parks will no doubt result in their subsequent closure, leaving many of us with little or no access to natural spaces, therefore negatively impacting our physical and mental health in this time of crisis;

Therefore: we the undersigned patrons of William B. Umstead State Park do hereby demand that access to said park-- OUR PARK, our public natural space, be fully restored forthwith.

* The math: William B. Umstead State Park is spacious enough for over TWO MILLION PEOPLE to fit at any given time, with each enjoying a comfortable 6-foot radius of "social distance."

** More math: William B. Umstead State Park is roomy enough to hold the combined land of Raleigh's Lake Johnson Nature Park and Cary's Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve ELEVEN TIMES!