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Feb. 21, 2018
Contact: Debbie Jensen, 517-284-6105
DNR seeks public input on Watkins Lake State Park and County Preserve draft general management plan
Public welcome to attend March 7 meeting in Brooklyn or send comments via email
 The Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission are seeking public input on a new draft general management plan for Watkins Lake State Park and County Preserve, located in both Jackson and Washtenaw counties. The DNR and county officials will host a public meeting Wednesday, March 7, 6 to 8 p.m. in the banquet room of the Super 8 Hotel, 419 S. Main St. in Brooklyn, Michigan.
The general management plan will be used to define a long-range planning and management strategy that protects the resources of the park, while addressing recreation and education needs and opportunities. Public and stakeholder input is a critical component of the planning process.
A link to the draft general management plan and additional information on the DNR’s management planning process can be found at www.michigan.gov/parkmanagementplans.
The March 7 meeting will begin with a short overview of the draft plan followed by an open house during which the public is invited to review the planning materials, provide comments and talk to DNR and Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission staff. Comments also may be sent via email through March 20 to Debbie Jensen, DNR park management plan administrator, at jensend1@michigan.gov.
 The park is jointly owned and managed by the DNR and Washtenaw County. It is the first state park in Michigan to be jointly managed with a county recreation agency. Designated in August 2016 as Michigan’s 103rd state park, the park straddles the border of Washtenaw and Jackson counties, located between the cities of Ann Arbor and Jackson. The draft plan proposes that a portion of the land in Jackson County be open to hunting.
The 1,122-acre property is a popular watchable-wildlife destination and features beautiful rolling land covered in a mixture of open meadow, mixed hardwoods, low wetland areas, open water and the property's most prominent natural feature, Watkins Lake. The park currently offers hiking, picnicking, fishing and bird-watching, with a small parking area provided off Arnold Road. The property also includes a 4.5-mile former rail corridor that traverses the property from east to west, linking state and county parcels. This corridor has the potential to be developed into a nonmotorized, multiuse trail, with the possibility of connecting the villages of Manchester and Brooklyn in the future.
For more information about the public meeting or the proposed plan, contact Debbie Jensen at 517-284-6105 (TTY/TDD711 Michigan Relay Center for the hearing impaired) or jensend1@michigan.gov. Anyone with disabilities who needs accommodations for the meeting should contact Jensen at least five business days before the meeting.
/Editor's note: Accompanying photos are available below for download. Suggested caption information follows.
The public is invited to share feedback on the draft general management plan for Michigan's newest state park, Watkins Lake State Park and County Preserve, at the March 7 public meeting or through comments made via email./
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is committed to the conservation, protection, management, use and enjoyment of the state’s natural and cultural resources for current and future generations. For more information, go to www.michigan.gov/dnr.
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