• Flowers And Plants
• GPS Marine Electronics
• canopies
• Night Vision Equipment

HOME

2/7/2007

VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF GAME AND INLAND FISHERIES PARTNERS WITH FRANKLIN COUNTY TO DEVELOP FULLY ACCESSIBLE FISHING PIER AT SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE COMMUNITY PARK

Scruggs, VA — The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) announced today that it will be using up to $80,000 of Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration funds to help Franklin County complete construction of a fully accessible fishing pier at Smith Mountain Lake Community Park. The 100 ft. long pier will be the only publicly accessible fishing pier on the southern side of Smith Mountain Lake. The pier's location along the main channel of the Roanoke River will allow for anglers to pursue striped bass, largemouth bass, catfish, and panfish.

The County has already provided $45,000 to match the Sport Fish Restoration funds. This match was made possible through the volunteer donation of time and labor by Dillon Dock Construction, AEP, Red Valley Excavating, Rockydale Quarries, and F&B Construction.

"Building this park continues to be a truly community-based activity. On behalf of the Board of Supervisors, I would like to extend our thanks to the volunteers who helped get this project moving forward. We are especially grateful to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries for providing the funds necessary to complete the fishing pier. Their support of this project will expand the joys of SML fishing to the next generation of anglers," said Russ Johnson, Gills Creek Supervisor.

"The Department is always looking to partner with local agencies and private partners to improve fishing opportunities throughout Virginia," said VDGIF Director Carlton Courter. "The Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration funds are an excellent way to maximize funds and benefit anglers."

The Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration program is an outstanding example of a "user pays - user benefits" program. In this case, anglers are the users; every time they buy fishing tackle or motorboat fuel, federal taxes from these purchases are deposited in a special Federal fund and each year these funds are apportioned back to state fishery agencies for sport fishery restoration, boating access, and fishing facilities projects. The benefits provided by these projects to users completes the cycle between "user pays - user benefits." This new fully accessible pier on Smith Mountain Lake will be a significant addition to the long list of VDGIF's partnerships that create improved shoreline fishing opportunities.

Smith Mountain Lake Community Park is a 37-acre site located in the Scruggs Community within the Park Place Development. The land is owned by the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation and leased to Franklin County. The park is scheduled to re-open for public use in May 2007. Facilities that will open, in addition to the fully accessible fishing pier, include a 1.5 mile hiking trail, a comfort station, the park road, a parking lot that can accommodate 20 vehicles, and the Rocky Mount and Smith Mountain Lake Rotary Clubs Playground.

# # #