Dam Community Alliance Pursues Interest in Leasing North Park from USACE
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Comal County commissioners are poised to decline the opportunity to lease North Park from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) at the request of Canyon Lake’s Dam Community Alliance (DCA), which wants to take over its operation.
The item is on the agenda for Thursday’s weekly meeting of the Commissioners Court.
“The opportunity has arisen for the DCA to take over the operations of the North Park for the Corps,” DCA’s board of directors said in a letter posted on MyComalCounty.com, the county’s website. “We are putting together a proposal to lease and operate North Park. We have studied the park and its potential and worked up a master plan for operating it and increasing its usage and accessibility to the community. We are excited about the potential of this severely underutilized jewel of Canyon Lake.”
DCA said it cannot pursue this option until it receives a definite no from the county. Guadalupe Blanco River Authority (GBRA), Water Oriented Recreation District of Comal County (WORD), and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) already have officially said they are uninterested in leasing North Park.
The county posted a draft letter to its agenda stating it has “no interest in pursuing a lease of North Park located at Canyon Lake.”
DCA is a nonprofit group of citizens spearheaded by Pct. 4 County Commissioner Jen Crownover that fundraises and partners with USACE to enhance Canyon Lake parks. It was formed in 2018 in response to the closing of the Canyon Lake Dam service road to pedestrian traffic, successfully reopening the road to the public a year later.
North Park is a primitive camping area located on the north side of Canyon Lake Dam on North Park Road. There are 19 campsites with no RV hookups, toilets, showers or boat ramps. The area is popular with scuba divers.
