GREENE – With another camping season underway, Cook Park in the Town of Greene is making improvements and bringing in new programming that park managers hope will draw more local interest in the county-owned campgrounds.
Since the late 60s, Cook Park has been a stomping ground for outdoor adventurists in the Chenango County area. With a total 45 camp sites and four miles of walking tails on 128 acres of land, “there are a lot of opportunities for outdoor recreational activities,” said Cook Park Manager Kyle Boeltz.
“Hopefully, changes this year will bring a larger crowd and possibly people who haven’t been here in the past,” Boeltz added. “What makes us unique is that we’re really a picturesque, smaller park. The community here has more a family feel to it. We have all the amenities of a larger park, but we’re smaller, closer to home, and we’re easier to access on a shorter period of time.”
Cook Park opened to campers on Memorial Day Weekend, kicking off a new season that’s scheduled full of new events, including educational exhibitions, competitions, outdoor family activities, and other recreational activities.
“This year, we’re using some of our funding to pay for larger events that the park hasn’t seen before,” said Julie Gates, Chenango County Buildings and Grounds Director. “A lot of folks return to the campgrounds for the season, and we’re finding that a lot of people dont’ know that Cook Park is there. That’s starting to change.”
Despite efforts of promoting it as a local tourist destination, Cook Park has always been a struggle for the county. Given its operating budget of nearly $46,000 per year and a revenue stream of just $29,000, there’s a gap that county officials are hoping can be closed with the recent implementation of a five-year plan.
“We’re going into the second year of our five-year plan,” Gates said. “We don’t have a large budget for the park, but we want to get back what we put into it – and every year, we’re getting closer to doing that.”
At the end of five years, Gates said the hope is to bring in-demand amenities to the park which include park-wide internet access, electric upgrades, and making alterations to the pond that suit the NYS Department of Health’s criteria to allow swimming.
Many upgrades have already been made as part of the plan, including new water lines to campsites, cosmetic enhancements around the park, and – with the help of BOCES students – the construction of a new lean-to. Gates said she has also purchased kayaks and a paddle boat that are now available to rent.
“We’ve made a lot of upgrades over the last couple years,” said Boeltz. “Our goal is to continue to make improvements that will hopefully bring in more people.”
A complete list of more than 20 events that are scheduled to take place at Cook Park now through Sept. 3 is available on the Cook Park page of the Chenango County website (www.co.chenango.ny.us), or by finding “Cook Park” on Facebook.