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Amache planning process opens door for Colorado residents’ input
The National Park Service is seeking public ideas for preserving and interpreting Amache, the former World War II incarceration camp on Colorado’s Eastern Plains. Three meetings are scheduled in November, and written comments are due Dec. 3.
The National Park Service is asking survivors, descendants and the public to help shape plans for Amache National Historic Site, where thousands of Japanese Americans were forcibly incarcerated during World War II.
The agency is developing a general management plan for the site near Granada, on Colorado’s Eastern Plains. The plan will guide how the history is preserved and shared with visitors. More than 10,000 Japanese Americans were incarcerated at the camp, including people who had been forcibly removed from the West Coast.
“Public input is essential to shaping Amache’s future,” said Eric Leonard, superintendent of the National Park Service’s High Plains Group, in a statement. He encouraged survivors, descendants, partners and other members of the public to offer their perspectives on how the site’s stories should be presented.
The Park Service has scheduled three opportunities to participate:
- Nov. 6 at noon: Online; registration is required. - Nov. 9 at 6 p.m.: Granada Community Center, 105 South Main Street, Granada. - Nov. 12 at 6 p.m.: Tri-State/Denver Buddhist Temple, 1947 Lawrence Street, Denver.
Written comments can be submitted online through Dec. 3. Meeting registration and the comment form are available through the National Park Service’s planning website.
Amache’s preservation and interpretation will help determine how visitors encounter a history of wartime incarceration carried out by the U.S. government. The Park Service says public feedback will inform decisions about caring for the site and telling its stories.