#MIDDLEBURY #DEEP
Due to a General Fund budget cut of $10 million effective July 1, Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is reducing operating expenses by closing three campgrounds, reducing lifeguard staffing at state park beaches, ending the season earlier at some parks, reducing hours of operation for state park museums and nature centers, and cutting back on park maintenance. DEEP says this uses resources more efficiently and focuses on the days and times of greatest public use of park campgrounds, beaches, museums, and nature centers.
“Our plan is designed to reduce expenses while providing the highest quality outdoor recreation opportunities for the public and ensuring public safety,” said DEEP Commissioner Robert Klee. “By carefully analyzing how and when the public uses our state park system we will achieve the savings we need while keeping much of what we offer at our 109 parks open and available to the public.
“Through the efficiencies we have identified, this plan will eliminate about $1.8 million from the cost of operating the state park system and help our agency achieve the overall savings required by the state budget for the upcoming fiscal year,” Klee said. “We will begin to roll out adjustments in our days and hours of operations and in services soon after July 4. We will also continue our analysis of park operations to identify the potential for more savings – and expect to take additional cost-cutting steps in the spring of 2017.”
Now that the July 4 holiday weekend has passed, the following changes will be in place.
Campgrounds
Three campgrounds with the lowest rates of utilization will close: Devils Hopyard in East Haddam, Salt Rock in Baltic and Greens Falls in Voluntown.
All other state park and forest campgrounds will close after Labor Day – with the exception of the campgrounds at Hammonasset Beach and Rocky Neck State Parks, which will remain open through Columbus Day weekend.
Several campgrounds in the state park and forest system have traditionally remained open until the end of September, but the number of fall campers is small and can be accommodated at Hammonasset Beach and Rocky Neck.
DEEP will contact those with reservations at Devils Hopyard, Salt Rock or Greens Falls and offer them the opportunity to switch their reservations to another campground at no cost, or to receive a full refund.
State Park Beaches
All state park beaches will remain open. But lifeguard staffing will be adjusted.
Shoreline parks, Hammonasset, Rocky Neck, Sherwood Island, and Silver Sands, will go to five days a week coverage, Wednesday through Sunday, from seven days a week coverage.
Inland parks, Black Rock, Burr Pond, Indian Well, and Squantz Pond Parks, will go to three to five days a week coverage, including weekends, from seven days a week.
State Park Museums and Nature Centers
Days and operating hours for some state park museums and nature centers will be adjusted to focus on the times when the most people visit these sites:
- Dinosaur State Park – The museum grounds and trails will be closed on Mondays.
- Gillette Castle – Will be open Thursday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Labor Day, when it will close for the year instead of seven days a week through Columbus Day.
- Heublein Tower at Talcott Mountain State Park – Will be open Thursday through Sunday until Labor Day and is expected to move to a six-day-a-week schedule during peak fall foliage season. It has traditionally been open seven days a week in the fall.
- Putnam Memorial State Park – The visitors center will be open weekends only. It previously has been open seven days per week.
Other museums and smaller nature centers may have slightly changed hours as well.
State Park Maintenance
Park maintenance staff will reduced. The 70 full-time staff will not be laid off, but the 500 seasonal workers will be given fewer hours. At less-visited sites, the public will see less frequent lawn mowing and other maintenance work. The focus will be on maintenance and repairs that assure the health and safety of park visitors.
Commissioner Klee said, “As we move into the second part of the fiscal year, and next spring, there will likely be additional adjustments. In making these decisions, our focus will remain on serving the greatest number of people and protecting public safety.”
