White Clay Creek State Park offers scenic and recreational open space among 3,689 acres and nearly 40 miles of trails in northern Delaware.
The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control has adopted the White Clay Creek Master Plan after significant input from the public. The plan will provide a vision and a framework for White Clay Creek State Park for the next 10 years.
The master plan, created by DNREC’s Division of Parks and Recreation, includes 10 implementation strategies that group individual action items by theme or location. Top strategies include infrastructure improvements to the White Clay Creek Nature Center area to meet the demand of programs and relocation of the park office to the Maxwell House. Other strategies include development of partnerships to help with stewardship of the park, adaptive reuse of historic structures, protection and enhancement of ecology and natural resources, reconfiguration of some vehicular ingress/egress and parking areas, programming and signage, trails and camping. The division also created a calendar, which will be available publicly, with dates when Creek and Thompson Station road segments are open to vehicular traffic.
The public was integral in the creation and approval of the master plan. Signage, social media, emails, a kickoff event and press release were used to get the word out about the process. The division held four open houses and conducted an online survey to gather public input prior to drafting the plan. The division encouraged and maintained an open dialogue with park users and individuals interested in the park, held an open house on the preliminary draft master plan, and welcomed written and electronic comments. A final public meeting was held in August. More than 1,200 participants provided feedback through the process and all comments received were thoroughly evaluated for inclusion in the plan.
White Clay Creek State Park offers scenic and recreational open space among 3,689 acres and nearly 40 miles of trails in northern Delaware. The park is popular for hiking, bicycling, trail running and fishing, and includes accessible fishing docks, a disc golf course, a pavilion, bandshell, playground, agricultural concessionaires, public golf course, diverse natural areas, and is adjacent to the University of Delaware and City of Newark.
The park’s master plan can be viewed at www.destateparks.com/whiteclaymasterplan.
About DNREC
The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control protects and manages the state’s natural resources, protects public health, provides outdoor recreational opportunities and educates Delawareans about the environment. The DNREC Division of Parks and Recreation oversees more than 26,000 acres in 17 state parks and the Brandywine Zoo. For more information, visit the website and connect with @DelawareDNREC on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.
Media Contacts: Shauna McVey, shauna.mcvey@delaware.gov or Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov.
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