I think that might be a target for theft and I'm no too fond of the volunteer system. Why allow free riders? Personally I'd rather see everyone pitch in, have some sort of permit system in place. Some places have divers wear a bracelet or have a tag affixed to the BC showing they paid the park fee. Even $5/day would generate a good deal of income in the high season and it's not much to pay for diving the park when all else is considered. Frequent divers like drbill could get an annual pass for $30 or so, or there could be an exemption in the ordinance for certain categories like island residents, scientific divers, instructors teaching classes, etc.I know this will probably go over like a lead ballon especially when considering all the other costs and how folks feel about that...
But if there was a donation box sitting around the park to help SCICo defray the upkeep costs of the park, would you give? We can discuss the costs and value of diving in Catalina all day yet it's a personal choice to dive there. You either do or don't. I personally think it can be a fantastic place to dive - one of many fantastic places to dive in the state. Definitely there's room for improvement and while we can probably argue about the costs all day, I'm glad that it's an option. A "Casino Point" fund raiser may not be a bad idea.