Crescent Beach State Park
Crescent Beach State Park is state-operated, public recreation area on the Atlantic Ocean in Cape Elizabeth, Maine, United States. The state park features a mile-long, crescent-shaped beach for swimming and sunbathing, fishing, sea kayaking, and trails for hiking and cross-country skiing.[3]
Crescent Beach State Park | |
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IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape) | |
Location in Maine | |
Location | Cape Elizabeth, Cumberland, Maine, United States |
Coordinates | 43°33′53″N 70°13′41″W[1] |
Area | 242 acres (98 ha)[2] |
Elevation | 7 ft (2.1 m)[1] |
Established | 1966[3] |
Operator | Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry |
Website | Crescent Beach State Park |
Geology
The park's 1.4-km pocket beach is subject to erosion from wind and water. Measurable erosion seen in 2005 and 2007 also occurred at the smaller, adjoining pocket beach known as Kettle Beach.[4]
In the news
The state has leased 100 acres of the park from The Sprague Corporation (owned by the privately held Black Point Corporation)[5] since 1961. In 2013, the state's lease was extended for five years at a cost of $500,000. Under the original 50-year lease, the state paid $1 per year for use of the land, an amount that increased to $10,000 annually with a series of one-year lease extensions that began in 2011. The state has expressed interest in purchasing the entire property, one of the largest revenue-generating parks in Maine, when the current lease expires in 2018.[6] In 2012, the Maine State Employees Association (MSEA) protested the possible privatization of the park by Governor Paul LePage's administration, saying privatization would endanger the entire public park system.[7]
References
- "Crescent Beach State Park". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey.
- "Outdoors in Maine: State Parks, Public Lands, and Historic Sites" (PDF). Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry. Retrieved December 7, 2015.
- "Crescent Beach State Park". Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry. Retrieved July 29, 2014.
- Slovinsky, Peter A. (March 2009). "Coastal Erosion at Crescent Beach State Park". Maine Geological Survey. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
- "About Us". Black Point Corporation. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved December 7, 2015.
- Graff, Will (March 8, 2013). "Lease signed, state now eyes buying Crescent Beach in Cape Elizabeth". The Forecaster. Falmouth, Maine. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
- Graff, Will (August 9, 2012). "Crescent Beach negotiations not improving; state employee union launches petition". The Forecaster. Falmouth, Maine. Retrieved December 7, 2015.
External links
- Crescent Beach State Park Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry