TUSAYAN, Ariz., Oct. 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- There is going to be a protest at the gates of the Grand Canyon as businesses in Northern Arizona and the people who work there suffer because the federal government has turned down offers of financial assistance from South Rim business owners, the State of Arizona, and the adjacent town of Tusayan to partially open the Grand Canyon during the government shutdown as was done in 1995.

The protesters will gather at 1pm Arizona time (4pm Eastern Time) October 8thin the ADOT right-of-way just south of the Grand Canyon National Park South Rim entrance gates. (In front of where the old Moqui Lodge was.)

The Town of Tusayan voted to appropriate more than $200,000 and businesses in the town have pledged another $150,000 to fund a partial opening of the Grand Canyon National Park during the government shutdown. The economic loss caused by closing the Canyon has created huge losses for businesses in northern Arizona.

On October 4th, Arizona Senators John McCain and Jeff Flake wrote a letter to the Secretary of the Interior requesting that the department reconsider its refusal to use non-federal funds to operate the Canyon as was done during a government shutdown in 1995. The letter states in part: "We fail to understand why the Department and the NPS would dismiss the efforts of Arizonans trying to proactively address this situation."

Governor Brewer, House Speaker Andy Tobin, and Senate President Andy Biggs also wrote President Obama asking the administration to allow the use of non-federal funds to operate the Canyon.

Red Feather Properties, which has been serving tourists in northern Arizona for nearly a century, initiated the idea and pledged the first $25,000.

Who: South Rim residents and business leadersWhat: Protest at the Grand CanyonWhen: Tuesday October 8 at 1pm (4pm Eastern time)Where: ADOT right-of-way next to the South Rim Boundary of the Grand Canyon National Park

Red Feather Properties owns and operates the Red Feather Lodge in Tusayan and owns a number of commercial properties in Tusayan and has been serving tourists in Northern Arizona for nearly a century. Tusayan is adjacent to the South Rim bordering the Grand Canyon National Park.

SOURCE Red Feather Properties