New York State Plans New $18 Million Nature Center At Jones Beach

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced today that a new Energy and Nature Education Center will be built at Jones Beach. The interactive facility will encourage visitors to be more environmentally conscious and smart energy users. In addition, the West End will be designated a Park Preservation Area to protect the marine coastal habitat there.

The $18 million center will be a public-private partnership with PSEGLI, LIPA, the New York Power Authority and private donors and the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

"The addition of the Energy and Nature Center highlights New York's progress in revitalizing historic Jones Beach State Park and our commitment to providing the very best recreation and tourism opportunities to both residents and visitors," Cuomo said. "This investment will continue to boost tourism across the region, while preserving our environment and encouraging visitors to support our State's outdoor resources."

The center will be designed to be entirely energy neutral, producing as much electricity as it consumers. There will be hands-on exhibits that will show visitors Long Island's various ecosystems, as well as teaching them how to use energy wisely, how to conserve water and create more sustainability. Featured exhibits will highlight how electricity is generated and distributed, how renewable power resources connect to the grid and the home, and how consumers can manage energy more efficiently to lower our carbon footprint.

The Energy and Nature Education Center will also provide modern space to expand and enhance the park's environmental education programs, including classroom space to instruct consumers in passive and renewable energy techniques.

In addition to the center, State Parks will also designate 218.5 acres of the Jones Beach State Park's West End as a Park Preservation Area. Park Preservation Areas recognize park lands that possess outstanding ecological values, including plant and animal life, that are unique or rare in the state. Designation as a Park Preservation Area maintains the ecological integrity of the area through the management of all unique, rare, threatened or endangered species of plants and animals; limiting development to appropriate passive recreation such as hiking, fishing and birding; and encouraging scientific research, study and public environmental education.

The designation makes Jones Beach's West End one of only 16 Park Preserves or Park Preservation Areas in the state park system. Exhibits and programs at the Jones Beach Energy and Nature Center will teach visitors what a Park Preservation Area is and how the designation benefits the park and its plant and animal life.

"With over six million visitors to Jones Beach each year, the Energy and Nature Center will provide an incredible opportunity to help people become better stewards of Long Island by better understanding the connections between energy and the environment," said Rose Harvey, the commissioner of State Parks.

Jones Beach currently serves approximately 10,000 visitors at its nature center at West End 1. The new Energy and Nature Education Center will be built at West End 2, replacing an existing building on site. Nature Center programs will be moved to the new facility. State Parks will present information on the project to the public as design proceeds.

Photo courtesy Gov. Cuomo's Office