Home to America’s Newest National Park

Led by United States Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, a group of federal, state, and local dignitaries dedicated America’s newest national park—the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park—on November 7, 2011 at the Great Falls.

Over 300 people gathered to hear Secretary Salazar, United States Senators Bob Menendez and Frank Lautenberg, Congressman Bill Pascrell, National Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis, Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno and Paterson Mayor Jeff Jones commemorate the launch of the new National Park, the nation’s 397^th national park.   NJCDC CEO Bob Guarasci, appointed by Secretary Salazar as a member of the Park’s Advisory Commission, joined other Commissioners, including Hamilton Partnership for Paterson Founder Leonard Zax and Montclair State University President Susan Cole, in witnessing the historic festivities.

The crowd included over 50 enthusiastic Paterson teens assembled with signs that read “Paterson Pride is Alive” and “We Rise for Our Falls”.   Also in attendance were 100 fourth graders from the Community Charter School of Paterson.  The energy from the crowd was electric, as the day signified a new beginning for Paterson.

Paterson holds a rich history dating back to the 1700s when Alexander Hamiliton saw the beauty and power within the Great Falls.  Paterson stands today as the Nation’s first planned industrial city, with the Great Falls playing a central role. What once was the epicenter for manufacturers, engineers and inventors has now become a National Historical Park to honor Paterson’s significance in American history.

“Paterson is a place where our ancestors came to work!”  proclaimed Congressman Pascrell of NJ’s 8^th Congressional District and a native Patersonian. With the hopes of federal, state and local investment in the National Park, Patersonians are eager to see the Great Falls spur citywide economic development.

As one of the lead players every step of the way, NJCDC has been working with a number of individuals and organizations to ensure the success of the new park. For the past 3 years, park efforts have been integrated with NJCDC’s strategic neighborhood plan—from the hands-on environmental curriculum of Great Falls Youth Corps to a recent National Endowment of the Arts award.  NJCDC’s plan of building a more sustainable and revitalized area surrounding the Great Falls is closely linked with plans to create the national park.

NJCDC Founder & CEO Bob Guarasci is expressed gratitude to the federal, state and local government officials that made the new park possible, “Paterson is fortunate to have warriors like Congressman Pascrell and Senators Lautenberg and Menendez who represented the will of the people of Paterson within the halls of Congress. This victory would also not be possible without so many dedicated and committed individuals.   I am confident that if we continue to work together, we can bring in jobs, tourism and the investment necessary to restore Paterson to its illustrious past.”

NJCDC will be working very closely with the National Park Service over the next two years to create the Park’s General Management Plan, which lays out a vision and guides decision making to get there for the next 20 years.

“This is a watershed moment for Paterson.” Says Michael Powell, Vice President at NJCDC. “ Now that the Great Falls is the nation’s newest national park, we have a unique moment to synchronize revitalization efforts throughout the surrounding neighborhood, citywide, and for the entire region.  It’s also exciting because NJCDC is striving to ensure residents and ordinary citizens will be in the driver’s seat of this transformative moment.”

NJCDC will also be involved in public hearings regarding the park during the month of November, specifically on the 17^th, 18^th, and 19^th.  Anyone who is interested in attending is welcome to call NJCDC’s Manny Martinez at 973-413-1627 or mmartinez@njcdc.org.

View more National Park Dedication photos on Flickr.


View Northjersey.com video about the event.