Board also approves Program Open Space Stateside funds for three land acquisitions
The Department of Natural Resources will add 15 acres to the Corcoran Environmental Study Area, a wooded area at Sandy Point State Park, with funds approved by the Board of Public Works. Maryland DNR photo.
The Board of Public Works today approved more than $9.3 million in grants from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to local governments and land trusts for outdoor facilities and land conservation in Baltimore City and Baltimore, Caroline, Carroll, Dorchester, Garrett, Harford, Montgomery, Prince George’s, Queen Anne’s, Talbot, Washington, and Worcester counties.
Nearly $3.3 million in Program Open Space – Local funding was approved for projects, including the replacement of the seawall bulkhead and boathouse at Piney Run Park in Carroll County, field improvements at Carroll County Sports Complex, and a new pavilion and picnic area at Melvin Miller Memorial Park in the Town of Hampstead.
Funds were also approved for playgrounds at Flying Point Park in Harford County and Casey Community Center in Gaithersburg. Montgomery County was also funded for a major renovation of Fox Chapel Neighborhood Park, including a playground, fitness equipment, sports courts, picnic shelters, walking loop, benches, improved parking, and signage.
An additional 12 projects were also funded through the Greenspace Equity Program, which is funded by the Maryland General Assembly and Gov. Moore’s FY2027 budget. More than $5 million from this program will facilitate the following projects:
- Bliss Meadows: Led by Backyard Basecamp Inc., this project includes renovating a fully accessible trail system, inclusive and interactive play spaces, yurt, and benches in Baltimore City.
- Gwynns Falls Leakin Park Trail at Hutton Ave Improvements: The Baltimore City Department of Recreation and Parks will create pedestrian connections from two major parking lots to the Carrie Murray Nature Center and Gwynns Falls Trail.
- Powhatan Farms Neighborhood Community Garden: Led by NeighborSpace of Baltimore County which will construct a community garden at Powhatan Park in Baltimore County.
- Sharp Road Community Park: The Town of Denton will construct a new dog park at Sharp Road Community Park in Caroline County.
- Town of Goldsboro Train Station Park: The town will develop an area surrounding its former train station into a park with an inclusive playground, native landscaping, and outdoor interpretive panels (Caroline County).
- Grantsville Inclusive Playground Replacement: The Town of Grantsville, Garrett County, will replace the existing playground with new inclusive equipment and safety surfacing consistent with National Playground Safety Standards and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
- Seat Pleasant Giving Garden: Seat Pleasant, Prince George’s County, will develop two adjoining lots into a giving garden.
- Queensbury Road Rain Garden Restoration and Greenspace Enhancement: The Town of Riverdale Park will restore and enhance an existing rain garden within publicly accessible greenspace along Queensbury Road to support native habitat and provide a more attractive and environmentally beneficial community space (Prince George’s County).
- Easton Crossing Greenspace: Led by Easton Crossing LLC, the project will create a publicly accessible greenspace including walkways and paths, bridge, Rails-to-Trail connection, landscaping, and irrigation (Talbot County).
- BAAM Campus Annex: Community Garden and Safety Town – Led by Building African American Minds (BAAM), this project is to construct a community garden with raised beds, pollinator gardens, benches, landscaping, and outdoor educational areas. The project will also include Safety Town, a paved area designed to replicate neighborhood streets and intersections for residents to practice safety skills while walking and biking (Talbot County).
- Marty Snook Park: Multimodal Trail and Parking : Washington County will construct a looped, multimodal paved trail at Marty Snook Park by creating a safe, dedicated pathway parallel to the main park access road.
- Newton Park Perimeter Trail: Worcester County will develop an approximate 1-mile passive walking trail at Newton Park.
In land conservation, $717,000 of Rural Legacy program funding was approved for The Conservation Fund to acquire a 422-acre permanent conservation easement in the Harriet Tubman Rural Legacy Area in Dorchester County. The easement will protect farmland, woodlands and wetlands, as well as 2,500 feet of stream buffers along a tributary of the Transquaking River in the Nanticoke River watershed. The preservation of this large tract of agricultural and forested land will also contribute to the sustainability of working lands for the local resource-based economy.
The Board also approved $365,000 in funding for a Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) Permanent Conservation Easement acquisition on 46.5 forested acres in Queen Anne’s County. This easement will protect more than 3,000 feet of stream buffers along tributaries to Southeast Creek, which flows into the Chester River. In addition, this land is also likely to provide habitat for Forest Interior Dwelling Species (FIDS) of birds, which require large tracts of forest to successfully nest.
In addition, the Board approved Program Open Space – Stateside funds of $852,849 for DNR land acquisition. An 87-acre property in Somerset County will be acquired to expand recreational hunting and provide habitat protection for migratory birds. In Anne Arundel County, 15 acres that adjoin the Corcoran Environmental Study Area in Sandy Point State Park will be acquired to expand that area of the park. The third project will add 81 acres to an approved conservation easement project in Garrett County. The easement will buffer the Savage River State Forest and Wildlands, protecting water quality and the watershed’s significant brook trout population.
More detailed information on these and other items is available in the Board of Public Works September 16, 2026 meeting agenda.
The three-member Board of Public Works is composed of Governor Wes Moore, Treasurer Dereck E. Davis and Comptroller Brooke E. Lierman.
Information about these Maryland recreation and land conservation programs, primarily funded with dedicated revenue from the state property transfer tax for these purposes, is below:
Program Open Space – Stateside preserves natural areas for public recreation and watershed and wildlife protection across Maryland through fee simple and conservation easement acquisitions. Fee simple acquisitions are managed by the department as state parks, forests, and wildlife and fisheries management areas.
Program Open Space – Local provides funding for county and municipal governments for the planning, acquisition, and development of recreational land or facilities. Funds are allocated annually to every county and Baltimore City and projects funded are determined by the local government. Established under the Department of Natural Resources in 1969, Program Open Space, along with other state land conservation programs, symbolizes Maryland’s long-term commitment to conserving our natural resources while providing exceptional outdoor recreation opportunities for all citizens.
The Greenspace Equity Program was established in 2023 through legislation to provide grants to eligible applicants for enhancing the public health and livability of overburdened and underserved communities by implementing projects to preserve, create, and improve public greenspace in overburdened and underserved communities.
The Rural Legacy Program, created in 1997, conserves large working landscapes across 36 locally designated areas throughout Maryland. The Rural Legacy Program, along with the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation, have earned the State of Maryland national recognition from the American Farmland Trust.
Since 2009, Maryland’s permanent easement option with the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) has acquired, from willing landowners, conservation easements that require continued maintenance of Conservation Reserve Program practices after the expiration of the federal contracts.
More news on funding approved for Program Open Space, Local Parks and Playgrounds Infrastructure, Community Parks and Playgrounds, Greenspace Equity, Rural Legacy, and Conservation Reserve Enhancement Permanent Easement programs is available on the Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ Land News webpage.
