A $1,000 reward is being offered for information leading to recovery of this historic sign to The Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite National Park/NPS
A $1,000 reward is being offered for the recovery of a sign that for 86 years had welcomed guests to The Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite National Park before vanishing a few days before the National Park Service renamed the hotel rather than accept terms offered by DNC Parks & Resorts at Yosemite for use of the trademarked hotel name.
While the sign, according to Yosemite officials, was considered part of a National Historic Landmark, it likely gained even more value as a result of the ongoing trademark battle in the park.
The battle was mounted last year shortly after DNC Parks & Resorts lost the lucrative lodging and dining concessions contract at Yosemite to Aramark Leisure subsidiary Yosemite Hospitality, LLC.
Delaware North, DNC Parks & Resort's parent company, has been publicly pilloried for demanding to be paid for trademarks it holds to the names of iconic lodges and properties in Yosemite. While it offered to assign those trademarks to Yosemite Hospitality until a court could determine the fair value Delaware North should be paid for those trademarks, Aramark declined that offer.
In mid-January, Yosemite officials, looking to avoid a costly trademark fight with DNC Parks & Resorts at Yosemite, announced that they would change the names of iconic lodges in the park. The Ahwahnee Hotel would be known going forward as the Majestic Yosemite Hotel, Yosemite Lodge at the Falls would become Yosemite Valley Lodge, Curry Village would become Half Dome Village, Wawona Hotel would become Big Trees Lodge, and Badger Pass Ski Area would become: Yosemite Ski & Snowboard Area.
DNC Parks & Resorts officials quickly fired back, charging the Park Service with "using the beloved names of places in Yosemite National Park as a bargaining chip in a legal dispute between DNCY and the NPS involving basic contract rights."
Yosemite officials said they had no option but to change the names with the transition in concessionaires.
Someone evidently thought it they would claim a piece of park history by swiping the historic sign. On February 28, the Park Service opened its investigation to find the sign.
Though more than a month has passed since it was taken, the reward "is being offered for information to help us recover the sign," says Scott Gediman, Yosemite's public information officer for Yosemite National Park.
If you have information about the theft of this significant piece of Yosemite history, you can contact the Park Service via the following avenues:
* Call US Park Ranger Matthew Phillipson at 209-372-0246
* Call the Park Service's Investigative Service's Branch Tip Line at 888-653-0009
* Email the ISB at [email protected]
* Send ISB a Message on Facebook
More background on this dispute can be found in these stories:
* National Park Service Places $3.5 Million Value On Intellectual Property At Yosemite National Park
* U.S. Code Might Allow National Park Service To Ignore Trademarks Of Lodge Names
* Delaware North Companies Sues United States Over Loss Of Yosemite National Park Contract
* New Yosemite Concessionaire Signs Contract, Trademarks Up In The Air
* Government Calls Delaware North's Property Claims At Yosemite National Park "Wildly Inflated"
* DNC Says National Park Service "Flip-Flops" On Trademark Issues
* Yosemite National Park To Change Historic Lodge Names To Avoid Trademark Fight
* Petition Drive To Keep Historic Names In Yosemite National Park Gaining Momentum
* As The Trademark Turns: Delaware North Amends Yosemite Lawsuit
Comments
I would bet a $100 that the sign resides with Delaware North since they own the rights to the name "The Ahwahnee".
If NPS had only accepted the offer from Delaware North to use the "intellectual property" until the lawsuit was resolved this would be a non-issue and the American Taxpayer would not have to provide more $$ to change all of the names. Is it better better for NPS to continue to spend countless millions on litigation that to resolve the $12B maintenance backlog. Bravo Superintendent Mr. Jonathan Jarvis and lobbyist brother Destry Jarvis another job well done!