Regional State Parks Receive Funds for Trail and Access Improvements

State parks in Rockland, Putnam, Westchester, and Orange counties will receive funding funding through the NY Parks 2020, according to an announcement by Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office. The governor’s office announced $1.3 million in funding for 17 projects around the state to improve and expand hiking trails and outdoor recreational access projects in state parks. The trails projects are part of the Governor’s commitment to improving parks and expanding access to outdoor recreation.

The projects include:

Goosepond Mountain State Park – $100,000 to improve the parking area and install directional signage in the undeveloped park.

Clarence Fahnestock Memorial State Park – $5,000 to replace degraded School Mountain Road bridges with structures suitable for equestrian use.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt State Park – $5,000 to improve the parking lot #5 to the pool area trail and install a bridge over the Crompond inlet stream.

Hudson Highlands State Park – $40,000 to restore a severely eroded section of the popular Washburn trail leading up to Bull Hill in the Preserve.

Rockland Lake State Park – $150,000 to replace a deteriorated 1,300-foot boardwalk trail at the Rockland Lake Nature Center.

Taconic and Palisades Region State Parks – $172,000 to continue the successful Backcounty Trails Program; a contract with the New York-New Jersey Trails Council to build new trails, and improve existing trails in State Parks in the region.

The Governor's NY Parks 2020 program is a multi-year commitment to leverage $900 million in private and public funding for State Parks from 2011 to 2020. The 2016-17 State Budget allocates $90 million toward this initiative. “These trails are pathways to the unparalleled natural beauty that exists in every corner of New York,” Governor Cuomo said. “With this funding, we will ensure they are remain well maintained and accessible for years to come and I encourage residents and visitors alike to take a trip and experience these natural treasures for themselves.”

In addition to NY Parks 2020, Governor Cuomo launched the Connect Kids to Parks program to enhance educational and recreational opportunities for schoolchildren and help promote parks and historic places in every corner of the state. New York will partner with the National Park Service to extend free State Park day-use entry to all fourth-grade students and their families in 2016, as well as create a grant program to help transport schoolchildren to outdoor recreation and environmental education programs at state parks and historic sites across New York.

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