Connecticut
Governor Lamont Announces New Initiative To Promote Outdoor Recreation Economy
Press Releases
01/11/2024
Governor Lamont Announces New Initiative To Promote Outdoor Recreation Economy
State Seeking To Expand Park Services and Amenities Through Partnerships With the Private Sector
(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont today announced the establishment of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s (DEEP) Office of Outdoor Industry and Experiences, which seeks to grow Connecticut’s outdoor recreation economy by creating partnerships with the private sector. Coinciding with establishing this new office, DEEP is launching a request for information (RFI) as an initial step to expand services and amenities in state parks through partnerships with businesses, nonprofits, and other private sector entities.
The first task for this new office will be to facilitate the RFI process to establish partnerships with organizations that share our values for both conservation and outdoor recreation, and ultimately result in enhanced outdoor experiences in state parks.
Governor Lamont and DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes made the announcement at the Mohawk Mountain Ski Area in West Cornwall, a family-operated outdoor recreation business currently operating through a partnership with Connecticut State Parks.
“Connecticut’s state parks are among the best in the country and provide the setting for many memorable outdoor recreation experiences,” Governor Lamont said. “Our private partners help facilitate those experiences, whether it be a great day of skiing at Mohawk, tubing with family and friends on the Farmington River, or taking a ride on the Essex Steam Train. There are so many wonderful ways to experience the outdoors in our state, and with this new office and RFI, we look forward to discovering new ways to play in the outdoors in our beautiful state.”
Demand for outdoor recreation has spiked since the COVID-19 pandemic, with state park visitation increasing from just under 10 million in 2019, to an estimated 17 million in 2022. DEEP has embraced these higher visitor levels and the opportunities to connect park visitors with other Connecticut tourist destinations, with the launch of a new, interactive state parks website, ctparks.com. Connecticut’s $4.6 billion outdoor recreation economy also has demonstrated robust growth each year since the pandemic, expanding by 20% in 2021 and then by another 11% in 2022. This is the second largest in New England, supporting almost 46,000 jobs.
Thanks to the Passport to the Parks program, DEEP is able to maintain parks services and operations without charging Connecticut residents a fee to park at popular park destinations. The recent increase in public demand for outdoor recreation at state parks coincides with a historic investment in state park facilities and services. Since 2022, the Lamont administration and the legislature have committed $80 million in capital investments as part of the Restore CT State Parks initiative. This initiative is funding repairs and improvements at more than 40 park locations, from renovations of Heublein Tower at Talcott Mountain State Park in Simsbury, to site improvements at Gillette Castle State Park in East Haddam.
Against this backdrop of increased visitation, a growing outdoor economy, and a once-in-a-generation level of capital investment in park facilities, DEEP is launching a RFI to solicit ideas and concepts from strategic partners – businesses, nonprofits, and other interested stakeholders – about new or expanded partnerships DEEP could pursue to elevate the outdoor recreation experience in state parks, create new tourism destinations, and provide equitable access to the outdoors.
“Through this new office and initiative, we are elevating the outdoor recreation experience in our parks, creating new tourism destinations, and building on the Lamont administration’s commitment to providing equitable access to the outdoors,” Commissioner Dykes said. “I encourage private sector organizations who share our values for both outdoor recreation and conservation to submit partnership concepts. We’re eager to hear ideas from nonprofits and businesses about ways they could partner with us to provide expanded services and amenities for state park visitors, that reflect our values for both outdoor recreation and natural resource conservation. We want to hear from our visitors about the kinds of experiences you’d like to see result from these partnerships.”
“The initial steps established by DEEP’s RFI are bold, smart, and innovative,” Anthony Anthony, Connecticut’s chief marketing officer, said. “These kinds of partnerships with the private sector have long been encouraged by the Lamont administration, and this one in particular will build sustainable development of the tourism industry. More importantly, it will expand access to our state parks, which are some of Connecticut’s finest and most visited tourist destinations. It’s a win-win for everyone — tourists and residents alike, private industry, and our economy.”
This RFI will seek to add to DEEP’s successful partnerships, which includes canoe and kayak rentals through Clarke Outdoors at Burr Pond State Park; the Essex Steam Train, an iconic regional tourism destination in Connecticut Valley Railroad State Park; Farmington River Tubing, which provides a safe, enjoyable experience in Satan’s Kingdom State Park; and the Mohawk Mountain Ski Area.
Businesses, nonprofits, and individuals are invited to apply to the RFI, which can be found on the website for DEEP’s Office of Outdoor Industry and Experiences at portal.ct.gov/DEEP-parks-partnerships.
The RFI seeks to:
- Elevate outdoor recreation and visitor experiences: DEEP is interested in exploring partnerships to provide services that elevate the public’s experience in Connecticut State Parks. Potential services could include boat or bike rentals, events, locally sourced farmers’ markets held in parks, guided experiences, “glamping,” rafting or tubing, skiing, biking, marinas or boat shares, food and beverage, and other outdoor recreation partnerships concepts.
- Expand tourism destinations: State parks are one of Connecticut’s largest tourism attractions, and DEEP seeks to build on our success through partnerships that expand sustainable tourism opportunities and support local economic development.
- Provide equitable and sustainable access to the outdoors: DEEP seeks to establish partnerships that provide all visitors with equitable opportunities to participate in outdoor recreation experiences, such as universal, adaptive, and ADA-compliant equipment rental, experiences, and education.
“With today’s announcement of the new Office of Outdoor Industry and Experiences, Governor Lamont is demonstrating great leadership in recognizing the relationship between outdoor recreation and public health, economic development, and state competitiveness,” Chris Perkins, vice president of programs for Outdoor Recreation Roundtable, said. “Connecticut is joining 20 other states around the country who have created dedicated offices and positions to advance the outdoor recreation economy. At a time when the outdoor recreation economy has reached $1.1 trillion in economic impact nationwide and $4.6 billion in Connecticut, we couldn’t be more excited to support the new office’s work.”
“We’re thrilled to support Governor Lamont’s vision for the future of outdoor recreation here in Connecticut,” Neil Johnson, store manager for REI Co-op in Milford, said. The outdoor retailer has three locations in the state and operates a wide range of educational experiences and programs. “Whether you prefer to explore the waters of the Long Island Sound or traipse our extensive segment of the Appalachian Trail, the $4.6 billion outdoor recreation industry provides health, economic and social benefits to everyone in our state. We look forward to working with this new office as we strive to make time outside more accessible for all.”
“Excited is an understatement,” Mick Ferraro, secretary of the Connecticut Outdoor Recreation Alliance, said. “The new Office of Outdoor Industry and Experiences will be a game-changer for promoting outdoor recreation in Connecticut and embodies Governor Lamont’s initiative to ‘Make It Here.’ With outdoor recreation contributing more than $1 trillion to the U.S. economy, this office is poised to impact the health of our state in a multitude of ways. We look forward to collaborating with the new office to continue increasing outdoor recreation opportunities, supporting economic development, and stewarding Connecticut’s natural resources.”
“I applaud DEEP for their innovation in establishing an office of Outdoor Industry and Experiences to partner with the private sector to enhance outdoor recreation in state parks,” Ryan Snide, president of Friends of Connecticut State Parks, said. “I encourage our various Friends groups to consider and share the RFI with the organizations that they think would be best fit for their local state parks.”
To learn more about the new Office of Outdoor Industry or to submit a proposal through the RFI, visit portal.ct.gov/DEEP-parks-partnerships.
- Twitter: @CTDEEPNews
- Facebook: DEEP on Facebook
Contact
DEEP Communications
DEEP.communications@ct.gov
860-424-3110
Multiple roads in East Windsor were closed for several hours as crews fought an early morning barn fire.
According to the Broad Brook Fire Department, a large barn fire broke out a 365 North Road around 1:30 Friday morning.
Mutual aid from multiple towns are assisting at the scene.
The fire department had route 140 shut down between Harrington Rd and the old Herb Holden Trucking on Broad Brook Rd. closed due to hydrant lines across the street. Main St at Wesley Rd was also blocked.
The fire was knocked down and roads reopened around 5 a.m.
After years of uncertainty regarding the future of the Connecticut hospitals owned by bankrupt operator Prospect Medical Holdings, two of the three facilities could have a new owner by the end of the year.
On Tuesday, Hartford HealthCare, one of Connecticut’s largest health systems, presented its case to the state’s Office of Health Strategy to purchase Manchester Memorial and Rockville General Hospitals. Under the new expedited approval timeline for hospitals in bankruptcy, state officials must issue a decision by Dec. 30.
During the public hearing, Hartford HealthCare CEO Jeffrey Flaks said the health system plans to bring all its expertise, resources and capabilities to Manchester, Rockville and the surrounding towns.
“The robust apparatus of Hartford HealthCare will be brought to these communities to make health care better. That’s why I’m so confident that we have this very unique opportunity to dramatically improve health care that will be here for generations going forward,” Flaks said.
Hartford HealthCare will spend $86.1 million to purchase the facilities and pledged to invest an additional $225.7 million towards capital improvements, like facility and IT upgrades, over the next three years.
Hartford HealthCare also plans to recruit new physicians to the Manchester and Rockville communities, as well as expand access to specialty care, like oncology, inpatient rehabilitation and vascular and orthopedic surgical services, according to the application submitted to the state.
If approved, the deal would serve as the first step towards concluding a lengthy search to find new buyers for Prospect’s Connecticut hospitals — a process that often seemed on the brink of failure.
In 2022, Prospect signed a deal to sell its three Connecticut hospitals — Manchester Memorial, Rockville General and Waterbury — to Yale New Haven Health for $435 million. But the deal was mired in setbacks and litigation.
In August 2023, a cyberattack crippled operations at Prospect’s facilities around the country. In 2024, Yale New Haven Health and Prospect Medical sued and countersued each other over the true value of the hospitals. In January 2025, Prospect filed for bankruptcy and, by the following month, Yale officials said a deal appeared “impossible.”
In September, Yale agreed to pay $45 million to Prospect to end all disputes over the hospitals’ sale.
Hartford HealthCare stepped in and its acquisitions of the Manchester and Rockville facilities could be finalized by the end of the year. Connecticut’s flagship academic medical institution, UConn Health, seems poised to acquire Waterbury Hospital. A judge for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Northern Texas approved the UConn deal earlier this week, and now the transaction must obtain state approval.
It’s a speedy transition for the three hospitals, whose ownership had languished in uncertainty for years.
While the Yale deal was pending, Lamont and OHS received broad criticism for the lengthy approval process. That led state legislators to approve a measure earlier this year that allows for an expedited timeline for the acquisition of hospitals that have filed for bankruptcy.
Under the emergency certificate of need timeline, OHS must issue a final decision within 60 days from when the application is deemed complete.
In an emailed statement, Lamont’s spokesperson Rob Blanchard said OHS “met all statutory timelines in the Yale-Prospect [certificate of need review]” and that the legal disputes between the two companies illustrate the transaction’s complexity.
“Yale’s decision to file suit against Prospect less than two months after the agreed settlement raised clear concerns about the parties’ readiness to close the deal. The disputes that prolonged the CON process are now evident in the lawsuit, countersuit, and resulting $45 million settlement,” Blanchard stated in emailed comments.
Erosion of services at Rockville
Despite the promise of new ownership for Prospect’s Connecticut hospitals, the formerly private equity-backed operator will leave a lasting imprint on the state’s hospital system — perhaps most notably in the erosion of services at Rockville General.
When Prospect acquired Eastern Connecticut Health Network, which includes Manchester Memorial and Rockville General Hospitals, both facilities were full-service acute care hospitals. Today, Rockville — which serves a geographic region that’s largely rural — functions as a satellite campus of Manchester, with only an emergency room and behavioral health unit.
A spokesperson for Prospect did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication.
Rep. Tammy Nuccio, R-Tolland, lays the blame for the diminishment of the hospital directly with the state.
“That’s OHS’s failure,” Nuccio said. “They allowed this to happen.”
A 2023 investigation by The Connecticut Mirror found that Prospect began cutting services during the early days of the pandemic, eventually shuttering most of Rockville’s inpatient units without obtaining the required state approvals. Records and employee testimony submitted to the state show that officials were aware of the unauthorized cuts going back as far as 2021.
In February 2022, OHS fined Prospect for some of the service cuts at Rockville, but the operator appealed the penalty. The agency ultimately found it did not have substantial evidence to penalize Prospect, and waived the fine.
In October 2024, OHS launched another investigation into the service cuts. In May of this year, Connecticut officials reached a settlement with Prospect Medical Holdings. OHS fined the operator $300,000, but the agreement also allowed Prospect to shutter all services at Rockville aside from the emergency room and behavioral health, officially making the facility a satellite campus of Manchester.
At the time, then-OHS commissioner Deidre Gifford issued a statement saying the agreement “protects critical resources” for patients and families in the area.
“The agreement also holds the Prospect applicants accountable to the community, requiring public notice of past terminations and development of a strategic plan for the consolidated hospital. The plan must be developed with community input and presented to the community in a public forum,” Gifford’s statement read.
Hartford HealthCare has said as of now they don’t expect service cuts at either Manchester or Rockville. But Nuccio said she’s suspicious based on the company’s history with Windham Hospital, which HHC acquired in 2009.
In 2015, Hartford HealthCare announced the conversion of Windham’s critical care unit to what’s known as a progressive care unit, which can’t handle the same complexity of care. Most recently, the company received strong pushback from the local community over the system’s decision to shutter Windham’s labor and delivery unit, which stopped performing births in 2020.
During the hearing on Tuesday, executives with HHC stated that the system improves the quality of care at all of the hospitals that join its system and that they are proud of the work done with former acquisitions. The company’s certificate of need application states that HHC invested hundreds of millions of dollars in facilities it acquired in the past, resulting in drastically improved quality of care for patients.
Tina Varona, a spokesperson for Hartford HealthCare, declined to make Flaks available for an interview after he testified in Tuesday’s hearing, saying he had to leave immediately.
“We are unable to comment outside of the testimony at this time due to the NDA and pending regulatory review,” Varona stated in an email follow-up after the hearing.
Following Tuesday’s hearing, Attorney General William Tong issued a statement saying he expected Hartford HealthCare to maintain services, including labor and delivery, intensive care and behavioral health. But he called on OHS to hold Hartford HealthCare to its promises.
“Expectations must be matched by accountability: Absent other legal impediments, I would urge the Office of Health Strategy to seek firm commitments to continue these vital services,” Tong said.
Vernon mayor Dan Champagne shared Nuccio’s sentiments in holding the state accountable for what happened to Rockville Hospital, particularly for how long officials took to approve the failed 2022 deal with Yale. But, he said, he’s grateful Rockville has not suffered the same fate as Prospect hospitals in Pennsylvania, which had to close because they couldn’t find a viable buyer.
Champagne said he understands skepticism of what an acquisition by a big hospital system could mean for Manchester and Rockville. But for him, Hartford HealthCare’s bid will guard against the most damaging result: closure of the hospitals and the flight of medical professionals from the communities.
“There are a lot of people who say, ‘big systems can sometimes lead to increased prices or closure of services,’” Champagne said. “We need to go back to what we’re facing here. I’m watching other hospital systems close from Prospect. We have an opportunity to keep this open. That’s the most important thing.”
HARTFORD, Conn. (WFSB) – As e-bikes top many teenagers’ holiday wish lists, Connecticut police are reminding parents about new state laws that went into effect October 1 that classify some models as motor vehicles requiring a driver’s license.
More than a million e-bikes were sold in the United States last year, and the devices continue growing in popularity among teenagers and older adults who want to stay active.
“So many kids are buying e-bikes or getting them as gifts, and they can be very powerful,” Chief Joshua Bernegger of the Watertown Police Department said.
The new Connecticut law creates three different classes of e-bikes based on speed and power. All riders must wear helmets regardless of the class.
If the e-bike’s motor is less than 750 watts, there is no age restriction and riders only need to wear a helmet. However, if the motor is 750 watts or more, Connecticut no longer considers it an e-bike but classifies it as a “motor driven cycle.” These require riders to be at least 16 years old and have a driver’s license.
E-bikes with top speeds exceeding 28 miles per hour are not classified as e-bikes under state law.
Bernegger said the new laws address rising safety concerns about e-bike accidents.
“We’ve been seeing a lot of serious accidents in CT over the past year,” Bernegger said. “The number of fatal accidents involving bicycles has risen more than 300% over the prior year, and our emergency rooms are seeing dramatic increase in significant injuries for children and adolescents riding e-bikes.”
The police chief said some e-bikes may be too powerful for young teenagers to handle safely.
“It’s often more of a bike than a young teen, 13, 14, 15-years-old can really handle,” Bernegger said.
Eric Otero, lead salesman at Bikers Edge in Bristol, said e-bikes have transformed his sales floor in recent years.
“Teenagers are kind of taking over the streets on them,” Otero said. “I get calls everyday about them.”
Otero said he sells a couple e-bikes each week, usually to teenagers eager to ride on city streets.
Bernegger advised parents to research their purchases carefully, especially when buying online.
“It’s often more of a bike than a young teen, 13, 14, 15 years old, can really handle,” Bernegger said.
The new law includes specific penalties for violations. Riding without a helmet results in a $90 fine. Riding a modified e-bike costs $100. Riding a motor driven cycle under age 16 or without a driver’s license can result in the bike being impounded.
Otero advised parents to act quickly if they plan to purchase an e-bike for the holidays.
“I’d call now because they’re going faster than you think,” Otero said.
Copyright 2025 WFSB. All rights reserved.
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