Press Releases
08/28/2020
CT State Parks to Re-institute Non-Resident Fee Collection
The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is re-instituting a parking fee collection process for non-resident visitors at what will eventually be up to 22 park locations with field-testing to start Monday. DEEP has not collected these fees this season, except at three of the four shoreline state beaches, due to COVID-19 prevention measures and staffing limitations.
Anyone in a Connecticut-registered vehicle can park free of charge at all CT State Parks and Forests year-round through the Passport to the Parks program.
The new system will require visitors arriving in vehicles registered outside of Connecticut to purchase a parking pass online or by phone when they arrive at the park. Signage at each park location (see sample below) will provide instructions on how to make their payment and complete the form to be placed on their vehicle’s dashboard to confirm fee payment.
The fee collection system will be tested at various locations throughout the week. Additional staff will be deployed to oversee initial implementation of this new system and assist visitors with its operation. Posted signage will make it clear where the new system is active during this implementation and assessment phase.
Park staff and DEEP Environmental Conservation officers will be able to view transaction logs to compare against parked vehicles. Failure to pay the required non-resident fee may result in a $75 ticket.
Below is a list of the 22 parks planned for this fee-collection system. This list is subject to change based on the system testing results. For most parks using this system the fee is $10 per day on weekdays and $15 per day for weekends and holidays. Squantz Pond and Silver Sands each require a fee of $15 per day on weekdays and $22 per day for weekends and holidays.
Non-resident visitors to shoreline state parks will continue to be charged at the entry ticket booths or by the new contactless system.
| State Parks | Weekends/Holidays Fee | Weekdays Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Bigelow Hollow | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Black Rock | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Bluff Point | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Burr Pond | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Chatfield Hollow | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Gardner Lake | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Gay City | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Hopeville | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Indian Well | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Kettletown | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Kent Falls | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Lake Waramaug | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Mount Tom | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Pattaconk Rec. Area | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Peoples | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Quaddick | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Silver Sands | $22.00 | $15.00 |
| Sleeping Giant | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Squantz Pond | $22.00 | $15.00 |
| Stratton Brook | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Talcott Mountain | $15.00 | $10.00 |
| Wadsworth Falls | $15.00 | $10.00 |
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Contact
DEEP Communications
DEEP.communications@ct.gov
860-424-3110