GENEVA-ON-THE-LAKE,
OH -- Breaking new ground in more ways than one,
construction is underway on Ohio’s ninth and newest state park
lodge.
The new $16.7 million, county-financed facility at
Geneva State Park is the first park lodge in Ohio, and
perhaps in the nation, to be constructed and managed with local
funds on state-owned parkland. Governor Bob Taft, joining
Ashtabula County officials at groundbreaking ceremonies today,
hailed the state and local partnership as a promising prototype
for funding major improvements at other state parks in Ohio.
“As the first state park lodge in Ohio to be constructed and
managed with local funds, this represents an important new way
of doing business,” Taft said. “Through this unique state and
local partnership, Ashtabula County will achieve its goal of
building a family-oriented lodge and regional conference center
while Ohio adds a fine new amenity to its award-winning state
park system.”
Perched on a tree-lined bluff with a commanding view of Lake
Erie, the 109-room resort lodge will feature a full-service
restaurant and lounge, meeting space for groups as large as 350
and an indoor swimming pool to complement the park’s 300 yards
of sandy beach. Advance room reservations are already being
accepted, with the grand opening scheduled for spring 2004.
While the new facility will offer a level of service and
amenities similar to those found at Ohio’s eight existing state
park lodges, funding for its construction has come entirely from
local sources, bond financing issued by Ashtabula County
commissioners. The county will build, own and operate the lodge,
while the state will lease the site and market the lodge as part
of its state park resort system.
“Over the past 40 years, Ohio’s existing state park lodges
have been financed entirely with state funds, an approach that’s
unlikely to be repeated in the future due to tighter state
budgets and competing priorities,” said Sam Speck, director of
the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), which operates
Ohio’s state park system. “This partnership provides a
innovative new way to address these issues.”
Speck said that several Ohio communities have approached ODNR
in recent years about the possible development of lodges,
conference centers and other developments at nearby state parks.
“Our successful partnership with Ashtabula County gives other
communities an excellent model to follow, an example of what
might be possible in their own situations to connect state and
local resources for the benefit of all Ohioans,” he said.
“The new county-owned lodge at Geneva will be marketed by
ODNR as an integral part of our state park lodge system and will
be operated with the same standards of quality and service that
are hallmarks of our other lodges,” Speck said. "It will spur
economic development in the region, attract more visitors to
Ashtabula County, and provide additional recreational
opportunities for all Ohioans.”
Construction is the culmination of more than six years of
cooperative effort on the part of state and local officials to
develop a lodge and conference center at the park. This past
fall, Governor Taft, Speck and the Ashtabula County
Commissioners signed a formal land-lease agreement under which
the county will construct and operate the new lodge on 20 acres
in the park’s Chestnut Grove area. State officials will provide
input at each phase of the construction process to assure the
highest quality standards are met. The lease runs until January
2040, when the facility will revert to state ownership.
