Morris County Park Commission
AbbreviationMCPC
Formation1956
Headquarters300 Mendham Road
Morris Township, New Jersey 07960
Websitewww.morrisparks.net

The Morris County Park Commission (MCPC) is a board of commissioners that manages parks, facilities, and historic sites in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.

It is the largest county park system in New Jersey.[1] Russel Myers was its first Secretary-Director and Director, serving the system from 1955 until 1983.[2]

The MCPC provides the public with more than 20,000 acres (8,100 ha) for recreational, leisure, and educational use.[3][4] As of May 2022, it operates 38 facilities including outdoor parks, trails, a marina, an ice skating arena, a horse stable, a historical farm and an operating mill.[3][4]

History

Arbor and flower garden at the Bamboo Brook Outdoor Education Center, managed by the Morris County Park Commission

Morris County likely followed in the footsteps of other local park commissions. For example, New York City's Central Park Commission was founded in 1856;[5] the Hudson County Park Commission was created in 1892;[6] and the Essex County Park Commission was created in 1895.[7]

Circa 1955, the Morris County Planning board recommended the creation of a Park Commission to the Morris County Board of Chosen Freeholders.[8] The goal of the commission was to provide attractive recreation areas, as well as aid traffic problems and protect limited water resources.[9] Passage of a voter referendum in 1956 formally established a Morris County Park Commission,[10][11] and this was reported upon in American City.[9] Its first leader was Secretary-Director Russel W. Myers, a landscape architect.[1][12][2] That year, the Garden Club of America announced an alliance with the Morris County Park Commission's mission of "acquiring land, preserving natural areas, [and] protecting watersheds and streams from pollution."[13]

In March 1958, the 350-acre (140 ha) Lewis Morris County Park in Morristown was the first park to be dedicated by the MCPC.[11] As of 2021, it has expanded to 2,196 acres (889 ha) with 22.1 miles (35.6 km) of trails.[2] The park alone includes "hiking, off-road biking, and equestrian trails[,] picnic areas[,] athletic fields, a dog park, group camping areas[,] sledding, snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing" and, in the summer, the Sunrise Lake Beach Club, a water obstacle course, a flume, paddleboat riding, and fishing.[2] The park was named for Lewis Morris, the first Governor of New Jersey (according to some sources) while it was part of Britain's Thirteen Colonies.[2]

Since 1962, the Morris County Park Commission developed buffer areas and programs to protect the Great Swamp from urban development.[14] The following, the Morris County Park Commission constructed a nature education center on part of the 556 acres (225 ha) of the Loantaka Brook Reservation.[14]

Circa 1973, Myers, a landscape architect and MCPC's Secretary-Director,[15] had weekly tea for years with Morristown farmer Caroline Foster. In 1973, they arranged for Foster to bequeath her farm estate to the MCPC.[16] In 1974, farmer Caroline Foster designated in her will that Fosterfields would be bequeathed to the MCPC for use as an educational farm and historic site.[17][18][19][20][21] Upon Foster's death in 1979, the Park Commission received the farm.[22][23]

In 1979, Myers announced that the commission was opposed to the proposed alignment of Interstate 287. This was due to the environmental detriment to the Sunset Valley Golf Course as well as noise and drainage issues created by the proposed road.[24]

In 1983, the Russell M. Myers Scholarship was established, named for the first Secretary-Director and later Director of the MCPC.[1][25][26]

In July 2020, WKXW and InsiderNJ reported that Morris County parks saw increased use after Governor Phil Murphy reopened parks during the COVID-19 pandemic.[27][28]

In 2019, the Morris County Park Commission announced their intention to create a recreational trail looping around the 700-acre (280 ha) Boonton Reservoir, a source of clean drinking water for over 300,000 people. Circa 2021, the Morris County Park Commission received the permit. The MCPC expects to break ground in the trail's creation in 2022.[29]

In 2021, the MCPC unanimously voted to authoriz improvements to Lewis Morris County Park in Harding Township. The area receiving improvements is dedicated to Russel Myers, titled the Russ Myers Recreation Area. The "halfmile ADA Accessible loop trail encircling the area...will have an 8’ wide paved surface, a picnic shelter with electricity to accommodate 200 people, landscaping for screening and beautification, and additional parking to accommodate increased capacity, including ADA parking." The estimated cost is $904,000.[2]

List of parks

Fosterfields Living Historical Farm, a historic site and open-air museum managed by the Morris County Park Commission

The below parks and historic sites are overseen by the Morris County Park Commission.[30][31]

Name Municipality
Bamboo Brook Outdoor Education Center[32] Chester Township
Central Park of Morris County Parsippany-Troy Hills
Columbia Trail[33] Long Valley
Cooper Gristmill Chester Township
Craigmeur Recreation Complex Rockaway Township
Cultural Center Morristown
Elizabeth D. Kay Environmental Center Chester Township
Fosterfields Living Historical Farm Morris Township
Frelinghuysen Arboretum[34] Morris Township
Great Swamp Outdoor Education Center[35] Chatham Township
Hedden County Park Randolph
Historic Speedwell Morristown
James Andrews Memorial County Park Randolph
Jonathan's Woods Denville Township
Lee's County Park Marina Mount Arlington
Lewis Morris County Park Morris Township
Loantaka Brook Reservation Morris Township
Mahlon Dickerson Reservation Jefferson
William G. Mennen Sports Arena Morris Township
Minnisink Reservation Jefferson Township
Mount Hope Historical County Park Wharton
Mount Paul Memorial County Park Chester/Mendham Townships
Old Troy County Park Parsippany-Troy Hills
Passaic River County Park Chatham Township
Pyramid Mountain Natural Historic Area Montville
Schooley's Mountain County Park Washington Township
Seaton Hackney Stables[36][37][38] Morris Township
Silas Condict County Park Kinnelon
Tourne County Park Denville
Traction Line Recreation Trail Morristown
Waughaw Mountain Kinnelon
West Morris Greenway/Hugh Force Park Wharton
Willowwood Arboretum Chester Township

Golf courses

Morris County is home to four golf courses that are open to the public and overseen by the MCPC, with each offering golf lessons and practice facilities.[39]

List of MCPC operated golf courses[40]
Golf Course Municipality Acreage Opening Year
Berkshire Valley Golf Course Oak Ridge 497 2004
Flanders Valley Golf Course Flanders 413 1964*/1974**
Pinch Brook Golf Course Florham Park 102 1985
Sunset Valley Golf Course Pompton Plains 217 1974

*Flanders Valley Golf Course 1 (White-to-Blue)

**Flanders Valley Golf Course 2 (Red-to-Gold)

References

  1. 1 2 3 Baer, Marilyn; Writer, Staff (2020-01-20). "Get green for keeping the planet green". Hudson Reporter. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 THE MORRIS COUNTY PARK COMMISSION DISTRIBUTION OF PARK COMMISSION JUNE 28, 2021 MEETING MINUTES
  3. 1 2 "An Important Message on Safety for Morris County Park Visitors". www.morriscountynj.gov. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  4. 1 2 "Parsippany's Dr. Lou Valori is Appointed to the Morris County Park's Commission". TAPinto. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  5. ↑ "New York City Parks Commissioners : NYC Parks". www.nycgovparks.org. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  6. ↑ "The old and the New - The Opposition and the Proposed Route" (PDF). The New York Times. August 12, 1873. Retrieved March 29, 2010.
  7. ↑ "Parks | Essex County Parks". essexcountyparks.org. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  8. ↑ Board, Morris County Planning (1957). A Preliminary Report on County Parks.
  9. 1 2 American city. 1956.
  10. ↑ Parks & Recreation. American Institute of Park Executives. 1957.
  11. 1 2 "About | Morris County Parks". www.morrisparks.net. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  12. ↑ Willowwood Timeline
  13. ↑ America, Garden Club of (1956). Bulletin.
  14. 1 2 Senate, United States Congress (1968). Hearings. U.S. Government Printing Office. pp. 40–41.
  15. ↑ Senate, United States Congress (1968). Hearings. U.S. Government Printing Office.
  16. ↑ Hoskins, Rebecca (2010). Caroline Foster and Fosterfields Living Historical Farm : a life and a legacy. Ralph Iacobelli, Morris County Park Commission. Morristown, N.J.: The Friends of Fosterfields Living Historical Farm and Cooper Gristmill. ISBN 978-0-615-39122-9. OCLC 709909049.
  17. ↑ Barbato, Joan (May 5, 1989). "Restoration of "Willows" completed, B1". Daily Record. Morristown, New Jersey. pp. B1. Archived from the original on April 15, 2022. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  18. ↑ Barbato, Joan (May 5, 1989). "Restoration of "Willows" complete, B4". Daily Record. Morristown, New Jersey. pp. B4. Archived from the original on April 15, 2022. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  19. ↑ Friends of Fosterfields: The Farm Archived July 23, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  20. ↑ Press, Independent (August 26, 2012). "Tour The Willows in Morristown". nj. Archived from the original on March 25, 2022. Retrieved 2022-03-24.
  21. ↑ "Fosterfields Living Historical Farm | Morris County Parks". www.morrisparks.net. Archived from the original on January 21, 2021. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  22. ↑ Nadzeika, Bonnie-Lynn (2012). Morristown. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7385-9280-0. Archived from the original on May 20, 2022. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
  23. ↑ "Fosterfields". www.usgenwebsites.org. Archived from the original on May 20, 2022. Retrieved 2022-05-16.
  24. ↑ I-287 Completion from US-202 in Montville to New York Thruway in Suffern, Bergen County: Environmental Impact Statement. 1982.
  25. ↑ "Morristown Students Can Apply for 2 Scholarships from The Land Conservancy of New Jersey". TAPinto. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  26. ↑ Cahill, Frank L. (2018-01-29). "Land Conservancy of New Jersey Renews Its Scholarship Program | Parsippany Focus". Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  27. ↑ Alex, Dan; Alex, erDan; er. "Morris County park closed after visitors leave it totally trashed". New Jersey 101.5. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  28. ↑ "COVID-19: Morris Parks Increased Use– Please Ensure Safety and Follow Rules". Insider NJ. 2020-03-26. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  29. ↑ Westhoven, William. "Recreation 7-mile loop trail around Boonton Reservoir a step closer to reality". Daily Record. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  30. ↑ "Parks | Morris County Parks". www.morrisparks.net. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  31. ↑ "Morris County Manual, 2012 ed" (PDF). Morris County Board of Chosen Freeholders. 2012. p. 70. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  32. ↑ Carrera, Helen Navas (2022-04-12). "19 New Jersey Arboretums and Botanical Gardens". New Jersey Digest Magazine. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  33. ↑ "Washington Twp. Mayor, Morris County Hashing Out Trail Issues". Mendham-Chester, NJ Patch. 2022-03-17. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  34. ↑ "9 Beautiful Gardens To Visit In The Garden State". TravelAwaits. 2022-05-24. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  35. ↑ "Morris Freeholders Meeting At Great Swamp In Chatham". Chatham, NJ Patch. 2016-10-19. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  36. ↑ "Home". Seaton Hackney Stables. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  37. ↑ Witt, Louise. "COVID-19 may close the barn doors, forever, at Seaton Hackney Stables in Morris Township | Morristown Green". Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  38. ↑ Caldwell, Dave (2016-01-06). "Morristown, N.J., Historic With a Lively Downtown". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  39. ↑ https://morriscountyedc.org/thrive/parks-and-recreation/
  40. ↑ https://www.morrisparks.net/golf/
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