Rep. Kelly Skidmore joins the Florida State Parks Foundation, Florida State Parks and the Friends of MacArthur Beach for a guided tour on Wednesday, July 11, 2024.
NORTH PALM BEACH, FLORIDA, UNITED STATES, July 19, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ — Representative Kelly Skidmore of Boca Raton, who serves the 92nd district of the Florida House of Representatives, last week visited John D. MacArthur Beach State Park in North Palm Beach as a guest of the Florida State Parks Foundation and the Florida Park Service.
Rep. Skidmore joined Florida State Parks Director Chuck Hatcher, Florida State Parks Foundation CEO Julia Gill Woodward and Friends of MacArthur Beach State Park CEO Veronica Frehm for an extensive tour through the park’s beachfront, trails, pavilions, playgrounds and recently renovated education center.
The tour also included a detailed look at the park’s sea turtle program, which is among the most robust in the southeast. John D. MacArthur Beach State Park is home to thousands of sea turtle nests each year and is one of 13 state parks to participate in the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Index Nesting Beach Survey.
“We had a fantastic day at MacArthur Beach learning about the amazing work being done here and in state parks across Florida,” Rep. Skidmore said. “MacArthur Beach is a gem in South Florida. It’s easy to see why our state parks are the best in the country.”
The only state park in Palm Beach County, MacArthur Beach was established in 1989 and today spans 438 acres between the Atlantic Ocean and the Lake Worth Lagoon. The park is home to 22 native animals and seven native plants designated as endangered or threatened.
In 2023, the park hosted more than 150,000 visitors, generated an estimated economic impact of $19.1 million and supported more than 250 local jobs.
Popular park experiences include swimming, paddling, hiking, diving and wildlife viewing.
Overall, Florida is home to 175 state parks, trails and historic sites and is the nation’s only four-time winner of the National Gold Medal for Excellence in Park and Recreation Management.
In 2023, Florida’s state parks combined to host more than 28 million visitors, generate $3.6 billion in estimated economic impact and support more than 50,000 jobs through park operations.
“It was a great honor to host Rep. Skidmore and share with her all of the many things that make our state parks special,” Woodward said. “Time and again, Florida’s state parks have shown themselves to be an incredible value with an unmatched return on investment, and that was apparent throughout this tour.”
###
The Florida State Parks Foundation, founded in 1993 as Friends of Florida State Parks and renamed in 2018, is a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation whose mission is to support and help sustain the Florida Park Service, its 175 award-winning parks and trails, local Friends groups and more than 20,000 park volunteers.
It does this through programs that preserve and protect state parks, educate visitors about the value of state parks, encourage community engagement and active use of state parks, and advocacy. All projects are completed through the Florida State Parks Foundation Services LLC, which is a limited liability company affiliate of the Foundation. The volunteer Board of Directors represents private and public sectors as well as local and statewide interests.
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park, Palm Beach County’s only state park, is situated on a barrier island between the Atlantic Ocean and the Lake Worth Lagoon. The Park is made up of 436 acres of pristine coastal land and contains four different communities or habitats including seven species of plants and 22 species of animals on the endangered or threatened list. For more information about MacArthur Beach State Park visit, macarthurbeach.org.
Tim Linafelt
Florida State Parks Foundation
+1 8505598914
email us here
