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Thursday, September 3, 2026

Governor Announces Nearly $10 Million in Parks and Recreation Grants Awards Parks and Recreation Authority Selects 25 County, Municipality Recipients from Parks and Recreation Trust Fund

Raleigh
Sep 3, 2026

Today Governor Josh Stein announced more than $9.8 million in grants to fund 25 local parks and recreation projects across the state through the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund (PARTF). PARTF is administered by North Carolina State Parks, a division of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR).

“North Carolina’s natural beauty and outdoor recreation help make our state such a great place to live, work, and visit,” said Governor Josh Stein. “These investments will support local economies, help bring more visitors to our state, and improve North Carolinians’ health and quality of life.” 

Including the $4 million awarded through the Helene Recovery Fund earlier this year, PARTF has provided nearly $14 million in county and municipal grants this fiscal year. With local match requirements, those grants will leverage $43.5 million in funding for land acquisitions, new facilities, and renovations or improvements for parks and recreation facilities across North Carolina.  

The program’s total recurring funding is split across state parks and DuPont State Recreational Forest, local municipalities and counties, and public beach and coastal accesses. Local communities apply to PARTF to fund land acquisition, new recreation facilities, or improvements to existing parks. A maximum of $500,000 can be awarded to a single project, and the awardees must match funds dollar for dollar for the grant amount.  

“Our communities thrive when they are able to strengthen public health and improve quality of life for their residents,” said DNCR Secretary Pamela Cashwell. “These grants bring much-needed parks, trails, and recreational facilities and a chance for people to connect with their neighbors.” 

This year, PARTF considered 42 grant applications requesting a total of more than $15.5 million. Of those, 25 projects were funded at the full request, and one was offered partial funding. The Parks and Recreation Authority approved the grant recipients at its Aug. 28 meeting. 

This year's 24 grant recipients:

Applicant 

County 

Project Name 

Grant Amount 

Alamance County 

Alamance 

Alston Quarter 

$500,000 

Town of Brookford 

Catawba 

Brookford Community Park 

$193,031 

Town of Cornelius 

Mecklenburg 

Land Acquisition for Cornelius Park 

$500,000 

City of Creedmoor 

Granville 

Creedmoor Community Center 

$238,323 

Currituck County 

Currituck 

Community Park 

$500,000 

City of Dunn 

Harnett 

C.B. Codrington Park Improvements 

$500,000 

Town of Elon 

Alamance 

Skatepark at Beth Schmidt Park 

$362,500 

Town of Garysburg 

Northampton 

Fig and Poplar Park 

$339,225 

Town of Granite Falls 

Caldwell 

Shuford Recreation Expansion 

$371,950 

Town of Jefferson 

Ashe 

Foster-Tyson Park / Northern Peaks State Trailhead Upgrade 

$235,175 

Town of Long View 

Catawba 

Long View Recreation Center 

$187,425 

Macon County 

Macon 

Veterans’ Memorial Park 

$500,000 

Town of Mars Hill 

Madison 

Bone Camp Creek on Bailey Mountain 

$500,000 

Morehead City 

Carteret 

Spooner Creek Conservation Nature Park 

$500,000 

Town of Nashville 

Nash 

Stoney Creek Environmental Park 

$500,000 

City of New Bern 

Craven 

Martin Marietta Park 

$500,000 

Town of Newport 

Carteret 

Newport Community Park 

$390,000 

Town of Norwood 

Stanly 

Lake Tillery Park 

$294,325 

Pender County 

Pender 

Abbey Nature Preserve Trailhead 

$500,000 

City of Salisbury 

Rowan 

Salisbury Event Center 

$500,000 

Town of Sandyfield 

Columbus 

Sandyfield Park 

$197,146 

Stokes County 

Stokes 

Francisco Park 

$142,158 

Town of Wallace 

Duplin 

Farrior Park 

$356,131 

Town of Warsaw 

Duplin 

Warsaw Memorial Park 

$500,000 

Yadkin County 

Yadkin 

Yadkin Memorial Park 

$500,000 

Total: $9,807,389 

To see how the Stein Administration is investing in the state’s natural beauty in your county, check out the 100 Counties Strong dashboard

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