Virginia to add new state park: Sweet Run

Pond at Sweet Run State ParkImage courtesy of Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation

Virginia will be adding another state park, Sweet Run, and it will be located in Loudoun County.

The Dept. of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) announced it completed the acquisition of a 280-acre parcel that was formerly part of the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship preserve.

The preserve was owned by the Robert and Dee Leggett Foundation, which donated 604 acres to DCR in 2016. Then, two years later, Loudoun County provided funding to buy this second parcel. The land was transferred to Old Dominion Land Conservancy, a local land trust, intending for it to be donated to the state, and DCR's acceptance of the 280-acre addition was finalized on February 9, the agency's announcement explained.

“Loudoun County is proud to have provided the $2.9 million to purchase the property and donate it to the state to expand the acreage of the future park, which connects to the Appalachian Trail, complements the Harpers Ferry National Historic Park system and preserves western Loudoun,” said Caleb A. Kershner, the Loudoun County Catoctin District Supervisor in whose district the park is located.

Now, DCR will work on the master plan to develop the property into Sweet Run State Park. The agency said there will be an opportunity for public input on plans for the park’s design.

After Sweet Run is complete, the Blue Ridge Center for Environmental Stewardship (BRCES) will continue to manage the land.

Until the park is developed, “since there is no funding yet in the state budget for the site, the board will continue to depend on our visitors and friends for their generous donations to keep the trails open and the natural and historical resources protected,” said Dr. Gregory Miller, president of the board of directors for BRCEs in the DCR announcement.

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