Vision
The Patapsco Valley State Park Master Plan is a stakeholder-led effort to create a more resilient Patapsco Valley State Park that protects its natural and cultural resources, adapts to increasing flood and climate risks, improves visitor safety and access, and provides sustainable recreational opportunities for future generations.
Request for Proposals
Center for Watershed Protection is soliciting proposals from qualified multidisciplinary firms and/or consulting teams for the development of a concept-level Master Plan for the State of Maryland's Patapsco Valley State Park.
To be considered as eligible, respondents providing a submission must be properly licensed in the State of Maryland to practice planning, engineering, and landscape architecture. Firms and/or teams must demonstrate experience in master planning, and project teams should include planning, landscape engineering, landscape architecture, and historical and cultural resource expertise.
Center for Watershed Protection requests that interested parties respond to the solicitation by 5:00 PM ET on Tuesday, November 3, 2026.
Project Background
Patapsco Valley State Park extends along 32 miles of the Patapsco River, encompassing 16,043 acres and five developed recreational areas. The park is nationally known for its trail and recreational opportunities and scenery, with over 200 miles of trails for hikers, bicyclists, and horseback riders, including 5 miles of adaptive trails.
The Patapsco Valley State Park Master Plan will establish a strategic “roadmap” to help the park plan for future park investments and conservation, while acknowledging a changing climate. Rebuilding native ecosystems and enhancing park infrastructure will provide more opportunities for recreational activities and a resilient park to explore and play in. A resilient environment means a happier and healthier park!
This project will develop a master plan to serve as a roadmap and guide investment over the next 25 years, ensuring that Patapsco Valley State Park (PVSP) continues to evolve with the changing community needs so it may serve future generations.
IMPROVE
Park Infrastructure & Adaptability
RESTORE
Park Ecology & Wildlife Communities
CONNECT
Diverse Communities & User Groups to Park Resources
ENHANCE
Visitor Services & Relations
Ensuring that all park facilities, infrastructure, and elements will be sustainable, resilient, and efficient to maintain and repair particularly in areas prone to flooding, while continuing to provide green places for recreation and maintaining healthy ecological habitats.
Ensuring that the contributions of natural resources are explicitly recognized and valued, and that maintaining their health is a primary objective.
Ensuring fairness and equity in providing for the services, health, and safety needs of all citizens and groups.
Ensuring public awareness about park ecological communities and places to safely recreate, and building a strong foundation of funding and staffing resources that the park’s workforce of managers, rangers, and emergency services can successfully draw from to support infrastructure and programming improvements.
This project is supported by a grant from the Great Maryland Outdoors Act.
Why Patapsco Valley State Park?
Patapsco Valley State Park showcases to many first-time state park visitors Maryland’s natural recreation opportunities and river valley geographic features. The Park also provides a green respite and recreational access to many residents living within the more urban areas of the Baltimore Metropolitan Region. Because the Park is centrally located within one of the largest metropolitan areas of the State and integral to multiple communities and park users, preserving features of and access to the Park is key!
Photo Credit: Sunshine Whispers
Photo Credit: Friends of Patapsco Valley State Park
What is a Master Plan?
A master plan is a long-term, comprehensive framework for assessing current conditions, anticipating future needs, and directing park investments and initiatives. The previous master plan for Patapsco Valley State Park, completed in the late 1970s, responded to severe flooding and destruction caused by Tropical Storm Agnes in 1972. This new plan will lay out recommendations and associated investments that will ensure the park's natural resources and amenities are preserved for future generations.
What is Climate Resilience?
Climate change is impacting Maryland's parks, where park lands are experiencing increasing and worsening storms, flooding, high heat days, and wildfires. Patapsco Valley State Park continues to experience extreme flooding along the Patapsco River, which threatens trails, bridges, historic structures, public safety, and park facilities.
Climate resilience refers to a community’s ability to anticipate, prepare for, respond to, and recover from climate-related hazardous events and changing conditions. This master planning effort will identify climate resilience strategies that will preserve Patapsco’s treasured places and prepare the park to withstand future climate events.
Photo Credit: Friends of Patapsco Valley State Park
Project Timeline
NOV. 2026
Planning Firm Selected
How can you play a role in this process?
DEC. 2026 - FEB. 2027
Data Collection & Assessment
Citizen engagement and involvement is vital to the planning process for the Patapsco Valley State Park Master Plan.
Currently, you can participate in the Planning Process by:
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Filling out the Contact Form to receive project updates and announcements for upcoming project events.
This website will be updated with additional opportunities for public involvement throughout the course of the planning process.
JAN. 2027
Public Meetings - Park Visioning
FEB. - SEPT. 2027
Concept Development
SEPT. 2027
Public Meeting -
Concept Development
DEC. 2027
Final Master Plan Completed
Resources
The links below provide information about past and ongoing planning efforts within PVSP.
Other Ongoing Projects
Adjacent to PVSP
Previous Patapsco River Valley Master Plans
Climate Resilience Information and Links
Patapsco Valley Information
and Literature
Partners
The Patapsco Valley State Park Master Plan is led by the Maryland Park Service, working alongside a team of expert consultants, stakeholders, and park advocates.
Lead State Agency & Unit
Project Management Team
DNR has partnered with the Center for Watershed Protection (CWP) and EnviroCollab (EC) to help manage the development of the Master Plan and the construction of up to 2 projects. CWP will serve as the project manager and EC will lead the stakeholder engagement.
Contact Us
Would you like to be involved and/or contacted about Patapsco Valley State Park Master Plan community events? Please fill out the contact form below!
