We may see the rebirth of Carvers Creek State Park by early next year. Development at the park, which is in Spring Lake north of Fayetteville, has been halted since the dam burst during a flood and drained its centerpiece pond in 2016.
The state is to receive bids to repair the dam by February 7, and has estimated a price of $2 million, according to The Fayetteville Observer. Money for the project is to come from $5.7 million allocated to Carvers Creek development from the $2 billion Connect NC bond approved by voters in 2016. It included $75 million for 45 state parks sites.
The dam repair should begin early this summer and be finished in spring 2020, Katie Hall, spokesman for the Division of Parks and Recreation, told The Observer.
Originally, bond money was to go toward improvements in the Long Valley Farm portion of the park, which includes the Rockefeller mansion, a mill, and other historic buildings. That was put on hold when the lake was lost in September 2016.
“The dam and lake are major components of the scenic, historic and recreational features of the park,” Hall said. “The lake, combined with the restoration of the Rockefeller house, the mill, the pavilion, and the addition of roads, parking, and restrooms all funded by the bond will create a beautiful and enjoyable visitor experience.”
Above, looking across the millpond at Carvers Creek State Park toward the Rockefeller House in November 2013. Repairs of a dam breach that drained the pond in 2016 are to begin this summer.
- See our page about Carvers Creek State Park from November 2013.
Clearing storm debris, reconstructing parts of the dam, and constructing a spillway at the breach site will take precedent over picnic shelters, parking and other amenities originally to be built with bond money. They are to be built afterward.
In the meantime, N.C. State Parks and Recreation has been blazing 11 miles of new trails at the park, which will include four loop trails and a main trail, which will cross the new spillway at Carvers Creek, according to the division’s Facebook page.
Carvers Creek State Park opened in September 2013 with interim development facilities and a master plan that envisioned restoring the historic Rockefeller estate within its boundaries for educational purposes and establishing satellite areas eastward toward the Cape Fear River for camping and canoeing. There are currently about 1.75 miles worth of easy walking trails around the pond and the Rockefeller house, a picnic shelter and and a few other picnic tables, and staff members regularly lead walks, tours of the house and other programs at the park.
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