An effort to improve infrastructure at Connecticut state parks and forests has gotten a $30 million boost. The funding includes funding for areas seriously damaged by August flooding.
This is in addition to $70 million already allocated by the state from the American Rescue Plan Act. The Restore CT Parks Initiative is meant to catch up on the backlog of needed repairs across 110 parks and 32 forests.
Funding has also gone toward “historical and cultural” updates at places like Gillette Castle in East Haddam, Fort Trumbull in New London and Heublein Tower in Simsbury.
The latest round of funding includes $3 million to address public safety concerns at parks hit hardest by August’s flash flood. That includes Kettletown and Southford Falls state parks in Southbury and Larkin Trail, which spans Southbury, Middlebury, Naugatuck and Oxford.
The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection maintains the park system. Jenny Dickson with the wildlife division spoke with WSHU as her team assessed the damage shortly after the storm.
"It may take us months before we can see what trees might have come down, brooks washed out," Dickson said. "The same goes for our state forests. Obviously, they cover hundreds of acres in some cases, so that's an ongoing process over the next several months."
She said accessibility was proving to be the biggest issue.
"So it's limiting people's ability to watch wildlife or hunt. Hunting season is coming up, and there are areas that we probably won't be open to certain kinds of things," Dickson said.
Approximately 17 million people visit Connecticut’s state parks each year.
