Twenty Years of Cedar Hill State Park

Media Contact: Bryan Frazier, Texas State Parks, (512) 826-8703 icle__media__contact">Media Contact: Bryan Frazier, Texas State Parks, (512) 826-8703 bryan.frazier@tpwd.texas.gov

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Ribbon Cutting, Activities Mark 20 Years of Suburban State Park

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CEDAR HILL, TX—Cedar Hill State Park donned dozens of activities, vendor booths and a ribbon cutting ceremony on Saturday to commemorate 20 years of being Dallas-Fort Worth’s leading nature park destination.

Surrounded by more than 6 million people in what has grown into one of Texas’ largest metro areas, Cedar Hill State Park has endured to contrast the nearby urban environment along the shores of Joe Pool Reservoir in Dallas and Tarrant Counties, as a premier mountain biking, camping, birding and fishing hot spot.

“In this the fourth-largest metro area in the U.S., this park is the only place where people can experience the outdoors with this much area and land,” said Rob Franke, sixth-term mayor of Cedar Hill, TX. “No place else in DFW has the hills, trees and lakes like Cedar Hill. And the state parks are the best stewards of this natural beauty.”

Hundreds of visitors and campers enjoyed Saturday’s activities such as rock climbing, kayak and canoe tours on the lake, archery and kid fishing, a vintage baseball game, mountain bike trail tours, park exhibits, food vendors and more.

The morning’s ribbon cutting also culminated more than $6 million in renovations and upgrades to Cedar Hill State Park, using appropriated money from previous bienniums, as part of a larger capital repair and improvement campaign at more than 40 state parks across Texas. Improvements at the park include adding full hookup 50 amp and sewer connections to 150 campsites, a new comfort station restroom, road resurfacing, upgrades to the solar heating system for campground shower facilities, and a federal grant to add solar power to operate the park’s headquarters building.

“I see this place kind of like what Central Park is to New York City,” said Mike Spradling, superintendent of Cedar Hill State Park and 35-year-veteran of the state park service. “Before long, we all know that this metro area is going to expand to fully surround the park, and we’ll represent some of the only green space for miles around. That’s why this park is so important.”

For more information, contact Cedar Hill State Park at (972) 291-3900, or visit the Web site at http://www.texasstateparks.org/. Or for information on state park camping reservations, contact the customer service center at (512) 389-8900.