News Release »
| Beverly Eaves Perdue, Governor | Dee Freeman, Secretary |
| N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources |  |
| Release: Immediate | Contact: Charlie Peek | |
| Date: 2009-10-27 | Phone: (919) 715-8709 |
Fort Macon to Dedicate New Coastal Education and Visitor Center
RALEIGH -- A new 22,547-square-foot coastal education and visitor center at Fort Macon State Park in Carteret County will be formally dedicated Oct. 31 by the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation.
The 1 p.m. ceremony is open to the public and marks an important milestone in the history of North Carolina's second-oldest state park.
Similar in function to visitor centers built at 18 state parks and state recreation areas since 1994, the Fort Macon facility is devoted to environmental education about North Carolina's fragile coastal ecology, offering 4,000 square feet of exhibit space, a teaching auditorium and conference room along with administrative offices.
Fort Macon has a unique place in North Carolina and in the state parks system, and this facility will nicely complement the fort itself in presenting both the natural resource and cultural history of our prized coastal environment, said Lewis Ledford, director of the division. It will also be a tremendous asset in managing more than a million visitors who enjoy the state park each year.
The coastal education and visitor center was designed to meet sustainability standards of the U.S. Green Building Council through its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. It offers features such as rainwater collection and low-flow water systems, recycled construction materials and preferred parking for alternative fuel vehicles.
The brick-and-block facility designed by Hobbs Architecture of Pittsboro and built by general contractor Daniels & Daniels Construction Co. of Goldsboro reflects the style of the 183-year-old fort, which was fully restored from 1999-2003. The project represents an investment of $8.2 million from the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund, the principal funding source for state park capital projects and land acquisition.
The project has had strong support from Friends of Fort Macon, a nonprofit group instrumental in upgrading many of the fort's exhibits and in managing a volunteer program to conduct fort tours.
Fort Macon became the second North Carolina state park in 1924 and the first to conduct regular operations as a state park. It encompasses 424 acres and recorded visitation in 2008 of 1.1 million.
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