ASHLAND — The mission of the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District has expanded to include parks and recreation since its inception in 1933.
Ohio’s largest conservancy district, MWCD serves more than 2 million residents in an 18-county jurisdictional area, according to its website. It manages 57,000 acres for public use, comprised of 16,000 acres of water surface at 10 lakes and 41,000 acres of land.
Craig Butler, executive director and secretary of MWCD, said significant upgrades have been made within the past decade at each of its parks — including Charles Mill and Pleasant Hill lakes.
Butler said MWCD is approaching more than $350 million spent on upgrades throughout the district since 2014.
Both Charles Mill and Pleasant Hill span into Ashland and Richland counties.
A ribbon cutting ceremony and open house are planned for Aug. 1 at Charles Mill to celebrate the park’s new campground and Welcome Center, Butler told the Ashland County Board of Commissioners on June 18.
The new beach camp area opened June 18 and includes a basketball court, pickleball court, volleyball, destination playground, shower house, laundry facilities and renovated campsites, according to MWCD.
The project cost an estimated $7.3 million, according to previous Ashland Source reporting.
“Pleasant Hill also has significant upgrades with new beach amenities that are coming online soon and some new redevelopment at the parks,” Butler said. “We continue to have over 5 million visitors come to the parks pretty much every year and we offer (not just amenities), but camping and even beyond that.”
In a YouTube video posted by MWCD on June 11, Pete Novotny, chief of recreation for MWCD, said the beach amenities project includes a new restroom, changing areas, beach volleyball court, kayak launch ramp and a splash pad with LED lighting for “evening fun.”
A new activity area is also under construction near the beach, Novotny said. The area will allow for food trucks, live music and community events. Area E campground is also in the midst of significant construction.
Novotny said the area is being “completely renovated” with 101 new campsites, upgraded amenities and new restrooms. Area E is expected to reopen in spring 2027, he said.
Butler said MWCD’s “economic fortunes” changed in 2014.
MWCD owns about 60,000 acres, most of it along or near the I-77 corridor — which Butler described as the “oil and gas fairway” for development.
“At long discussion and really as something to protect ourselves, we did lease some of our ground for oil and gas development and continue to do so today,” the executive director said.
While MWCD is a political subdivision in Ohio, it receives no funding from the state and operates more like a business, Butler said.
“I’ve been here six yearsm and really the first thing that I did was say we can’t spend our oil and gas money on operations,” he said. “It needs to be invested in tangible things like upgrades at our parks.”
“This $350 million from our oil and gas operations has really allowed us to do some incredible things,” Butler said.
