News Release

Secretary Zinke and Colorado Senator Gardner Announce more than $50 Million for National Parks Infrastructure

The Alluvial Fan Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park is one of the many deferred maintenance projects that will benefit from the Centennial Challenge Program.

NPS Photo

News Release Date: July 24, 2017

Contact: Jeremy Barnum, National Park Service, 202-230-2088

Contact: Department of the Interior Press Office

(Press Release originally distribted by the Department of the Interior Press Office)

NPS Centennial Challenge Program is Matching $20 Million in Congressional Funding with $33 Million from Partner Organizations to Support Maintenance Projects at National Park

WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke and Colorado Senator Cory Gardner announced today that the National Park Service is teaming up with partners across the nation to distribute nearly $50 million in high priority maintenance and infrastructure projects at 42 parks in 29 states. Congress provided $20 million for the projects as part of the Centennial Challenge program which will be matched by $33 million from more than 50 park partners to improve trails, restore buildings, and increase visitor access to parks.

Secretary Zinke and Senator Gardner made the announcement while visiting Rocky Mountain National Park, which will receive $200,000 in federal funds matched by $200,000 from the Rocky Mountain Conservancy to reduce deferred maintenance on the Alluvial Fan Trail.

“Our national parks span twelve time zones and attract more than 330 million visitors every year. Some locations, like Rocky Mountain National Park, attract millions of visitors alone. This puts an incredible stress on the aging infrastructure at our parks and thanks to Centennial Grants and the generosity of public-private partners, we are able to distribute funds to rebuild our parks,” said Secretary Zinke. “Using public-private partnerships to help address the deferred maintenance backlog remains a priority for the Department and the Trump Administration. Park infrastructure includes trails, signage, restrooms, lodges, roads, bridges and waterlines. These funds will help us continue to provide a world-class experience to visitors and ensure that these amazing places are around for future generations.”

“Today, I stood alongside Secretary Zinke as he announced critical funding grants for Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park,” said Senator Cory Gardner. “We must continue to be good stewards of our National Parks and protect these treasures for future generations. I want to thank Secretary Zinke for highlighting a crown jewel of Colorado’s public lands, Rocky Mountain National Park, and the dedicated Park employees that care for this land every day.”

“Many of the national parks that Americans treasure today would simply not exist without the strong partnerships and philanthropy that have benefited the national park idea for over a century,” said Acting National Park Service Director Michael T. Reynolds. “The Centennial Challenge program continues that proud tradition by matching dollars from Congress with generous donations from dedicated partners to make high-impact improvements in parks.”

Examples of the more than 50 projects the Centennial Challenge program will fund this year using partner donations and federal matching funds include:

• Centennial Challenge funds will complement a donation announced last year from philanthropist David M. Rubenstein to the National Park Foundation that will repair and restore the Lincoln Memorial in addition to expanding educational resources and public access.
• Funding from Yellowstone Forever will improve overlooks along the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.
• Friends of Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park will restore heavily used frontcountry trails in the park.
• The Gettysburg Foundation will help create a multi-use trail at Gettysburg National Military Park that will connect the visitor center to a historic farm that was used as a field hospital during the battle.
• Friends of Saguaro National Park, the Western National Park Association, and G. Arthur Jansson are teaming up to create an accessible outdoor classroom space at Saguaro National Park.

Since 2015 the National Park Service has leveraged over $45 million in funding from congress through the Centennial Challenge program to attract more than $77 million from partner organizations to support over hundreds of projects across the country that have improved visitor services and strengthened partnerships to reinvigorate national parks.

For a complete list of centennial challenge projects and partners please visit http://www.nps.gov/subjects/centennial/nps-centennial-challenge-projects.htm.
 

Park Name	State	Project Title	Federal $	Partner $	Partner
Acadia NP	ME	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Multiple Park Trails	192,286	259,112	Friends of Acadia
Andersonville NHS	GA	Reduce Deferred Maintenance by Replacing Park Signage	73,071	73,071	Friends of Andersonville
Antietam NB	MD	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Historic Piper Farm	6,000	6,490	Save Historic Antietam Foundation
Apostle Islands NL	WI	Reduce Deferred Maintenance at Raspberry Light Station	3,657	3,657	Friends of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore
Badlands NP	SD	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Bison Fence	475,000	475,000	National Park Foundation, World Wildlife Fund
Biscayne NP	FL	Reduce Deferred Maintenance at Elliott Key Visitor Center and Replace Park Signage	166,475	170,790	Florida National Parks Association
Blue Ridge Parkway	NC, VA	Reduce Deferred Maintenance at Humpback Rocks Farm, Sharp Top Shelter, and Moses Cone Estate	303,149	308,880	Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation
Blue Ridge Parkway	NC, VA	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Historic Mabry Mill and Groundhog Mountain Structures	62,863	76,791	National Park Foundation, Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation
Chesapeake & Ohio Canal NHP	MD	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Swain's Lockhouse	100,000	108,160	C&O Canal Trust, Friends of Historic Great Falls Tavern, C&O Canal Association
Chickamauga & Chattanooga NMP	GA, TN	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Moccasin Bend Orientation Plaza and Park Trails	143,773	287,546	Friends of Moccasin Bend
Cuyahoga Valley NP	OH	Provide Orientation and Interpretation at Visitor Contact Station	1,492,333	1,492,333	Conservancy for Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Delaware Water Gap NRA	NJ, PA	Reduce Deferred Maintenance through Replacment of Deteriorating Non-Code Compliant Cabins	1,429,066	1,429,066	Pocono Environmental Education Center
Denali NP & Pres	AK	Support Research for Three Long-Distance Migration Birds, the Gray-cheeked Thrush, Swainson’s Thrush, and Hermit Thrush	23,800	23,800	Alaska Geographic, Denali Education Center
Dry Tortugas NP	FL	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Traverse Magazines at Fort Jefferson	237,637	548,316	HTR Foundation through South Florida NP Trust
Everglades NP	FL	Reduce Deferred Maintenance by Repurposing Deteriorating Facility into Visitor Center - Planning and Design	720,000	800,000	South Florida National Park Trust, Everglades Association
Federal Hall NMem	NY	Restore and Illuminate the Wall Street Facade at Federal Hall	189,280	300,000	National Parks of New York Harbor Conservancy
Gettysburg NMP	PA	Install a Multi-Use Trail to Connect the George Spangler Farm with the Museum and Visitor Center	394,271	459,837	Gettysburg Foundation
Glacier NP	MT	Prevent Aquatic Invasive Species Infestations through Inspections	60,000	60,000	Glacier National Park Conservancy
Golden Gate NRA	CA	Reduce Deferred Maintenance at Fort Cronkhite	628,912	644,635	NatureBridge
Grand Teton NP	WY	Reduce Deferred Maintenance in South Jenny Lake Visitor Use Area	757,356	1,267,202	Grand Teton National Park Foundation
Great Smoky Mountains NP	NC, TN	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Rainbow Falls Trails and Historic Structures	124,945	312,711	Friends of Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Great Smoky Mountains NP	NC, TN	Conduct Natural Resource Projects including Native Species Re-introductions and Forest Pest Control	72,000	169,182	Friends of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Great Smoky Mountains Association
Great Smoky Mountains NP	NC, TN	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on the Palmer House Museum and Replace Exhibits	38,470	38,470	Great Smoky Mountains Association
Great Smoky Mountains NP	NC, TN	Conduct Research and Natural Resource Projects on Wildlife Such as Elk, Black Bears, and Exotic Wild Hogs	18,600	55,744	Friends of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Great Smoky Mountains Association, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
Hawaii Volcanoes NP	HI	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on and Kilauea Hale	15,600	15,600	Friends of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park
Kalaupapa NHP	HI	Reduce Deferred Maintenance at the Bayview Complex and Pali Trail Overlook	52,173	52,425	Pacific Historic Parks
Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP	VT	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Park Trails and Replace Park Signage	45,448	53,617	Woodstock Foundation
Mount Rainier NP	WA	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on multiple park trails	24,878	24,878	Washington's National Park Fund
Mount Rainier NP	WA	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on the Wonderland Trail	89,427	89,427	National Park Foundation
Multiple	Multiple	Complete Deferred Maintenance Projects at Multiple Parks	850,000	850,000	National Park Foundation
National Capital Parks-East	DC	Reduce Deferred Maintenance at Carter G Woodson Home National Historic Site - Planning and Design	425,000	425,000	National Park Foundation and other donors
National Mall & Memorial Parks	DC	Reduce Deferred Maintenance at Lincoln Memorial and Redesign the Unused Spaces Beneath the Memorial into a Multi-Use Service Area	4,840,000	16,000,000	National Park Foundation
National Mall & Memorial Parks	DC	Reduce Deferred Maintenance at Belmont-Paul Women's Equality National Monument	650,000	650,000	National Park Foundation
National Mall & Memorial Parks	DC	Reduce Deferred Maintenance at West Potomac Park	15,000	16,224	Trust for the National Mall
National Mall & Memorial Parks	DC	Reduce Deferred Maintenance Near Mt. Vernon Triangle	10,000	10,816	Downtown Business Improvement District
Ocmulgee NM	SC	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on the River Trail and Improve Accessibility	75,000	75,000	NewTown Macon, Georgia Department of Transportation
Padre Island NS	TX	Protect Sea Turtle Population through Beach Patrols and Nest Recovery	30,000	30,000	Multiple Donors
Pullman NM	IL	Document and Archive Oral History Recordings	3,750	3,750	National Park Foundation
Pullman NM	IL	Develop Junior Ranger Program	15,850	15,850	National Park Foundation
Rock Creek Park	DC	Construct Regenerative Stormwater Conveyance	320,000	320,000	Dumbarton Oaks Park Conservancy
Rock Creek Park	DC	Restore Woodland Area along Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway	17,846	71,240	Rock Creek Conservancy
Rock Creek Park	DC	Reduce Deferred Maintenance in Chevy Chase Circle	16,368	17,705	Friends of Chevy Chase Circle
Rocky Mountain NP	CO	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Alluvial Fan Trail	200,000	200,000	Rocky Mountain Conservancy
Saguaro NP	AZ	Create Accessible Outdoor Classroom Space	107,323	108,300	Friends of Saguaro National Park, Western National Park Association, G. Arthur Jansson
Sleeping Bear Dunes NL	MI	Construct Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail	561,000	561,000	Traverse Area Recreation and Transportation Trails, Inc. and Michigan Department of Transportation
Tallgrass Prairie NPres	KS	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Multiple Park Trails	121,935	135,223	National Park Foundation
Thomas Edison NHP	NJ	Repair Historic Line Shafts in the Heavy Machine Shop	9,999	9,999	Friends of Thomas Edison NHP
Thomas Edison NHP	NJ	Improve Accessibility, Preservation and Educational Use of Edison Archives 1926-1931	49,999	56,746	Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Tule Lake Unit	CA	Support Programming for Students to Participate in the Tule Lake Pilgrimage	62,556	130,000	Tule Lake Committee
War in the Pacific NHP	GU	Implement Reef Ranger Summer Camp	7,500	7,500	Pacific Historic Parks
Whiskeytown NRA	CA	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Multiple Park Trails	15,260	15,260	Friends of Whiskeytown
Yellowstone NP	ID, MT, WY	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Trails, Retaining Walls, and Overlooks	2,416,320	2,416,300	Yellowstone Forever
Yellowstone NP	ID, MT, WY	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Stephens Creek Bison Facility	150,342	154,669	Yellowstone Forever
Yosemite NP	CA	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Lower and Multiple Backcountry Trails	264,002	294,065	Yosemite Conservancy, California Conservation Corp
Zion NP	UT	Reduce Deferred Maintenance on Lower and Middle Emerald Pools Trails	346,337	348,240	National Park Foundation, Zion National Park Foundation

 

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