Democrats of the Red Rocks President Angela LeFevre, left, and Keep Sedona Beautiful Past President Barbara Litrell, right, welcome Arizona Congressional Dist. 1 Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick to the Sedona Community Fair Sept. 19.

Arizona Congressional Dist. 1 Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick [D-Ariz.] announced Saturday, Sept. 19, she will champion National Scenic Area legislation to lock up roughly 160,000 acres of U.S. Forest Service land surrounding Sedona.

Kirkpatrick said she paid careful attention to the wishes of constituents in the area who wrote to encourage her.

The purpose of the law would be to protect land situated next to Sedona in the Coconino National Forest from ever being traded to developers.

Kirkpatrick told a crowd at the Sedona Community Fair Saturday her first step will be to develop draft language for the bill, which she will then distribute to community members and interested stake-holders for further review and discussion.

Kirkpatrick may be able to build on NSA legislation already in circulation, she said.

“Good legislation comes from bringing the policy to the people and the people to the policy,” Kirkpatrick said. “This process will help us make sure that the final bill reflects the thoughts and ideas of folks here.

“I am very excited about taking this step and I look forward to working with the community to make progress on this important project,” Kirkpatrick said.

The NSA proposal picked up steam earlier this year after the Democrats of the Red Rocks declared it one of its top priorities.

“The struggle for the designation has been going on for years,” said Angela LeFevre, Democrats of the Red Rocks president. “I would like to give sincere thanks to those at Keep Sedona Beautiful who have given so much of their time and energy to this cause.”

LeFevre presented Kirkpatrick with a large, framed photograph of Cathedral Rock for her office in Washington, D.C., in recognition of Kirkpatrick’s decision to take up the NSA bill.

“This wonderful photograph of Cathedral Rock taken from red rock crossing is a true symbol of the aspirations of those who love this area and wish to protect it,” LeFevre said.

KSB and DORR provided the grassroots support that made it possible to advance the legislation, she said.

In mid-July, Kirkpatrick asked for input from local residents both in favor of and opposed to the project so that she could make a better-informed decision about what comes next.

DOOR then won the Arizona Democratic Party’s endorsement of the law Aug. 15, a move that probably helped influence Kirkpatrick’s decision, LeFevre said.

Many longtime NSA supporters were on hand for the announcement ceremony, including KSB President Stephen DeVol, KSB board member Bill Kusner, and Marlene Rayner, President of the Sierra Club Sedona Verde Valley Group,

Roughly 160,000 acres of national forest surrounding Sedona, the Village of Oak Creek, and Big Park are currently protected from land trades by Amendment 12, part of the government’s national forest management plan for the Coconino National Forest.

However, some local conservationists fear revisions to the current forest plan now underway could allow land trades in the future.

While Amendment 12 is a temporary form of protection, a National Scenic Area designation would make the policy of no land trades within the amendment 12 area permanent, advocates argue.