DCNR to add three new state parks, likely in eastern Pennsylvania

The location of three new state parks, probably in eastern Pennsylvania, could be announced by the end of this year.

The Pennsylvania budget signed by Gov. Tom Wolf July 8 includes $56 million to create three additional state parks.

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“It’s a pretty exciting time,” Wesley Robinson, press secretary for the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, said in a telephone interview. The DCNR manages 121 state parks on 300,000 acres in Pennsylvania.

“We’re always looking for opportunities to expand, and it depends on where the need is and whether or not there’s funding," he said. "Once the funding was there, that sort of gave us an opportunity to look at some of the existing parks and look at some of the available land and make a move.”

Robinson said it’s too early to tell where the new parks will be located, but the DCNR is looking at places that fit in with the DCNR’s coverage area gaps in the east and central parts of the state.

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“It obviously depends on what’s available,” he said.

The parks will be the first additions to the DCNR system since 2005. That doesn’t include Washington Crossing State Park, which was transferred from the state Historical and Museum Commission in 2015.

"Our beautiful state parks are among the finest in the nation," Wolf tweeted when he approved the budget. "I'm proud that we secured funding in this year's budget to make this investment in our parks system."

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Infrastructure needs

The new parks will come at a time when the DCNR has documented the need for $1.4 billion in infrastructure repairs and improvements to its existing facilities.

“It’s a delicate balancing act to make sure we manage what is existing with what we would like to expand to,” Robinson said.

He said there are funding sources such as the federal American Rescue Plan and oil and gas lease funds that can be put toward some of the needed projects.

“We’re balancing out the funds and acting effectively,” he said about deciding where to spend the money. “Expanding or creating three new state parks doesn’t necessarily mean short-changing infrastructure; that’s just the way the funding works sometimes with an agency that large.”

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Overall, the DCNR received $673 million, which is a 9.6% increase over 2021-22. He said that includes $108.8 million from the American Rescue Plan for infrastucture improvements and $56 million from the Oil and Gas Lease Fund for the new state parks.

“We were pleased with what we got in our budget,” he said. It will also go toward improved visitor services, new staff, visitor contact efforts and safety, and climate change advocacy.

“As with any budget, you don’t get exactly what you want, but we were very pleased with what we got, and we’re pleased with the ability to tackle a lot of the needs we have as a department," Robinson said.

There’s an ongoing need to update the state's parks. Some parks have buildings that were constructed in the 1960s and 1970s that need to be replaced but which couldn’t be funded in the past.

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Robinson said it’s too early to identify which buildings or improvements projects will be funded through this budget year. “We definitely look forward to addressing those needs and letting everyone know what we’re going to be addressing as we make those plans," he said.

However, the budget addresses a fraction of the documented needed improvements. “We will keep pushing to fund the rest of those needs and address the most critical needs as soon as possible.”

Nonetheless, Robinson said about the budget, “It’s a great day for avid outdoorspeople, or just anyone who wants to check out a state park. If you are someone who goes to parks a lot and spends time outdoors, you can look forward to seeing some new amenities, and some new updates and upgrades at our parks.”

Brian Whipkey is the outdoors columnist for USA TODAY Network sites in Pennsylvania. Contact him at bwhipkey@gannett.com and sign up for our weekly Go Outdoors PA newsletter email on your website's homepage under your login name. Follow him on social media @whipkeyoutdoors.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: DCNR to add three new parks in eastern Pennsylvania