DCR OKs funds for beach signs

LYNN – Lynn Beach and the Nahant Beach Reservation will soon be the recipients of $15,000 in funds from the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) for new signs on King’s Beach and Long Beach.DCR Commissioner Richard K. Sullivan announced this week that a total of $1.25 million in matching funds is on its way for the improvement and enhancement of state parks and facilities.Allocated through the DCR’s Partnership Matching Funds Program, the money will support a total of 37 projects.DCR received a total of 44 applications for the funds, four of which were encouraged to reapply next year and three of which were declined.A few of the approved projects include buying and installing a flagpole for the visitors center in Lawrence Heritage State Park in Lawrence, commissioning murals designed and created by local students for the trail underpasses along the Nashua River Trail in Groton, and hiring a preservation consultant to prepare the National Register nomination for Wachusett Mountain in Princeton and Westminster.Under the program, DCR considers applications that will provide a match of non-state funds for capital projects in state parks.A project manager is then assigned to each approved project to oversee and implement it in close consultation with the partners making the contributions.Sullivan said DCR is reaching out to groups like the Friends of Lynn & Nahant Beach to increase collaboration with those who work diligently to support forests, parks, and beaches.In addition, Sullivan said he has hired a new director of partnerships, Conrad Crawford, whose job will be to reach out to Friends groups across the state, facilitate their efforts in state parks, and align those efforts with the mission of the DCR.For more information on the Partnerships Matching Funds program, or to receive an application for Fiscal Year 2009, call 617-626-4917.Applications are also available at www.mass.gov/dcr.