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Nominate Colorado's Next State Park
Nominate Colorado's Next State Park
​​​​​​​​​​​Boy fishing at Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area State Park
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Where in Colorado might CPW look to expand Colorado's state park system?

Colorado’s remarkable landscapes are drawing more and more people to the outdoors. Colorado Parks and Wildlife wants to provide more opportunities to enjoy our natural resources by exploring sites for future state parks. Do you know of a location that could be that next special place? Help CPW by nominating that site!


To Nominate a Site

The public is invited to propose sites for CPW to consider as we explore the potential for new state parks. These sites will be evaluated based on Future State Parks Criteria that were developed in 2019 with input from partner organizations and the public. See below for the criteria, nomination instructions, and a CPW parks criteria story map to help with this process. 

To nominate a site, you will need to:

  1. Review the criteria provided below. 
  2. Review the nomination instructions.
  3. Complete this nomination form.
For questions, please email CPW’s Policy and Planning section at:
dnr_cpw_planning@state.co.us.


Future State Parks Criteria

CPW's vision is that Colorado’s state parks connect people to natural wonders. Every state park should offer a unique place to experience Colorado and live life outside. To accomplish this vision, future Colorado state parks will support a system of state parks that:


Provides outstanding nature-based recreation. Everyone regardless of age, abilities or interest, is connected to Colorado's diverse landscapes. Exceptional nature-based recreation provides for visitor education and enjoyment.
                                                                     
Conserves natural resources. Large natural areas conserve resources and sensitive habitats. They also allow for sustainable outdoor recreation. Connections to conserved public and private lands advance landscape-scale conservation.

Meets Colorado’s needs. Attention is given to locations that will benefit from new outdoor recreation opportunities and resource conservation. Factors include distance to population centers, visitation demand, and ease of access. Future state parks are innovative, offer a range of amenities and experiences, and provide for evolving outdoor recreation interests. Colorado’s state parks system can adapt to changes in society, the environment and technology.

Provides community value. Future state parks engage nearby communities. Local economies and quality of life improve by having a state park. The benefits of Colorado’s state park system are available to everyone with attention to being inclusive and accessible.

Supports a financially sustainable system. Looking into the future and park system-wide, new state parks are financially practical, considering acquisition, development, operations and management.​​​​




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Future State Parks Criteria Story Map

To help inform potential new sites for state parks, CPW created this story map to visualize the Future State Parks Criteria across Colorado through a series of interactive maps. 

Each tab in the map series represents one of the criteria. In each map, you can zoom and pan across Colorado. Some maps are more interactive, allowing data layers to be turned on and off. These interactive maps are marked with instructions for turning layers off or viewing legends.  

Explore this mapping tool to view potential state parks through the lens of each criteria. For example, when considering if a property addresses the criteria, meets Colorado’s needs, you might look at the population map and ask, “How far is the proposed site from population centers?” Use the maps, criteria, and questions such as these to help build the narrative component of your nomination. 

Note that this mapping tool and the data layers provided are not exhaustive. There are other sources of relevant information which may help you build your proposal. 

For more information and resources to help identify, evaluate and propose potential nominations, please contact your local CPW office.