Public Invited to Help Shape Future of Mills-Norrie-Staatsburgh State Park and Historic Site complex

ALBANY, NY (05/18/2011)(readMedia)-- The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation invites the public to participate in developing a comprehensive master plan for Margaret Lewis Norrie, Ogden Mills & Ruth Livingston Mills Memorial State Park and Staatsburgh State Historic Site. A preliminary meeting to help define a long-term vision for the facilities will be held at 7 p.m. on Thursday, June 2, 2011 in the Taconic Regional Offices within the park complex in Staatsburg, New York.

At the meeting, State Parks staff will provide a brief overview of the planning effort and an introduction to all of the resources and uses of the park. The public is invited to provide suggestions on issues, impacts and considerations that should be addressed in the creation of a draft master plan and draft environmental impact statement. An up-to-date master plan will help determine the best recreational uses for the park, make the most of available resources, offer quality programs and protect the environment. An information packet is available at: http://www.nysparks.com/inside-our-agency/master-plans.aspx.

Written comments will be accepted until Friday, July 1, 2011. Please send them to:

Mills-Norrie.Plan@oprhp.state.ny.us, or

Elisabeth Draper

OPRHP Planning Bureau

Agency Building One

Empire State Plaza

Albany, NY 12238

Margaret Lewis Norrie State Park adjoins Ogden Mills and Ruth Livingston Mills Memorial State Park and together comprise more than 1,100 acres. Mills Memorial State Park is the home of Staatsburgh State Historic Site, an elegant 1895 Beaux Arts estate, and the Dinsmore Golf Course. A campground and marina are located within Norrie State Park. The numerous trails that thread through the grounds of both Mills and Norrie State Parks are ideal for walking, jogging, hiking, cycling, cross country skiing, and snow shoeing - treating visitors to fabulous views of the Hudson River which runs directly along the parks' western boundaries.

New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation oversees 178 state parks and 35 historic sites. For more information on any of these recreation areas, call 518-474-0456 or visit www.nysparks.com.