DNR and Dane County Ink Joint Management Agreement for Capital Springs Centennial Park and Recreation Area

March 29, 2004
Dana White Quam, Parks & Recreation Specialist Fitchburg 608-275-3302 Sharyn Wisniewski, Dane County (608) 267-8823
County Executive

MADISON – Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk and state Department of Natural Resources Secretary Scott Hassett today announced they have signed an agreement to jointly manage Capital Springs Centennial State Park and Recreation Area. “Our partnership with Dane County is intended to enhance the available resources for each party, avoid duplicating services and serve as a model for future cooperative inter-jurisdictional and land management agreements,” said Hassett. Falk said, “This is an incredibly beautiful area, full of recreational opportunities. We’ve been working on this partnership for four years, and it has turned out great. Our Lake Farm Park and the Lussier Family Heritage Center are now part of a much larger park and recreation area for people to enjoy.” Capital Springs Centennial State Park, created in 2000 to celebrate the centennial anniversary of the Wisconsin State Park System, and Recreation Area “lies within 180 miles of 93 percent of the state’s population,” noted Mr. Hassett and so “provides recreational opportunities close to our major population centers.” Together, the State Park and Recreation Area encompasses 3,000 acres and stretches from Lake Waubesa along Nine Springs Creek to the Nevin Fish Hatchery on Fish Hatchery Road. The Capital City State Trail traverses the property. The State Park protects more than three-quarters of a mile of undeveloped Lake Waubesa shoreline and 326 land acres next to Lake Farm County Park and the Nine-Springs E-Way. The combined State and County lands between the Nevin Fish Hatchery, Upper Mud Lake and Lake Waubesa form the Recreation Area. Capital Springs Centennial State Park is also home to Dane County’s Lussier Family Heritage Center, a recently built brick and stone structure built with private donations, including $400,000 from the Lussier family of Madison. The Center was designed to interpret the human and natural heritage of Lake Farm Park, the Nine-Springs E-Way and the surrounding region. Currently hiking, bicycling, nature observation, fishing, hunting, picnicking, camping and a boat launch are available to the public at the State Park and Recreation Area. A Master Plan, which is ongoing, with input from the public, along with Dane County and DNR park planners, calls for: · Better access and parking along the Capital City State Trail. · Placing kiosks and pavilions at the Capital City State Trail’s access points, to offer users a place to take a break with seating, water, security phones, maps and interpretive panels explaining features and history along the trail. · Installing boardwalks through wetlands and springs, the park’s dominant landscape. · Erecting bridges over Nine Springs Creek to connect Capital City and E-Way trails to neighborhoods on the north side of Nine Springs Creek. # # #