Construction will be starting soon – Water access is closing on Oct 17, impacts to trail access:
Reservoir Park Construction Getting Underway!
After many years of community input, stakeholder feedback, careful planning and design, construction for Reservoir Park is finally underway! Reservoir Park will be situated on the southeast side of Beaverdam Reservoir. The park is being funded and constructed under a partnership between Loudoun Water, which owns and maintains the 300-acre reservoir as a source of drinking water for Loudoun County residents and NOVA Parks, a regional park authority in Northern Virginia.
The innovative park design includes an entrance road, parking lot, welcome center, restroom building, crew facility, boat rental facility, several pavilions, trails, waterfront boardwalks, a bridge, plantings, site utilities, educational exhibits, and various other site features — all designed with source water protection in mind.
With the project starting, there will be new rules for public access. Beginning October 1, reservoir water levels will be drawn down to facilitate construction. To ensure the safety of park users, water access will be closed beginning on Monday, October 17. Fishing, boating, paddling or other water activities will not be permitted. Once construction activities allow for the reservoir to refill naturally, and the water reaches a safe level, access will be re-opened sometime in third quarter of 2023. This timeline is based on various conditions and is not definitive.
During construction, NOVA Parks will continue to manage public access of the surrounding property. Trails near the southeast portion of the reservoir will be closed during construction. Restricted areas will be well-marked for visitor safety by Meridian Construction Co., Inc.
At this stage, it is anticipated that substantial completion of Reservoir Park will be in the first quarter of 2024 and the park grand opening will take place in Spring/Summer 2024.
Park construction progress, announcements, and schedule updates will be posted on www.loudounwater.org and www.novaparks.com.
Together, Loudoun Water and NOVA Parks have developed Reservoir Park to promote the health and wellness of local citizens and visitors. Interpretive destinations will focus on their strong partnership, highlighting the connections between ecological health, human health, and recreation — as well as their mission to protect the national resources entrusted to their care.
If you are visiting to hike the 2.3-mile long Reservoir Trail, please park at Brambleton Community Park West (22389 Belmont Ridge Rd.) and access the trailhead as shown here. The community park trailhead has plenty of parking available. Please do not access trails or park in local neighborhoods.
It’s obvious that NoVa Parks has no clue on the impacts this closure will have on true sportsman/woman. In many communities, zero access until late 2023 wold never fly with the community that regularly access the water. It is also clear that outdoor enthusiasts have zero representation in the construction process. There are several compromises that could have been made to allow for limited access to the water. For example, building one temporary and fairly inexpensive launching dock to allow water access while water levels are low is a simple solution.
I agree David, completely closing access was a bit heavy handed. Leaving open the Reservoir road access point might have been a good compromise. -Dan
Do we have an update on this? There is conflicting information. The OG announcement stated “3rd quarter 2023” for re-opening, but as of March 11, 2023, the NOVA parks website states:
“To ensure the safety of park users, water access is now closed. Fishing, boating, paddling or other water activities are not permitted. Once construction activities allow for the reservoir to refill naturally and the water reaches a safe level, water access will be re-opened. This is anticipated to occur during the spring of 2023.”
Spring 2023 or 3rd quarter 2023? Which is it?
I am really excited to have this park in our community. Will there be a place to store kayaks or paddle boards for those who regularly go there? Obviously we would pay for that, and it would be a very helpful feature for this willing to pay for it.