Camden County Approves $1.2M in Grants for Parks and Historic Sites
Twenty-seven parks will get $25,000 each, while 13 historic places received grants between $10,000 and $50,000.
Camden County officials gave out 40 grants worth $1.2 million. The money will help parks and old buildings across the county. Twenty-seven parks will get $25,000 each, while 13 historic places received grants between $10,000 and $50,000.
Commissioner Jeffrey Nash told people about the grants on Nov. 14. He works with the Camden County Open Space Preservation Trust Fund Advisory Board. Voters created this fund back in 1998 through a county-wide vote.
"These funds will enhance our recreational spaces and protect key historic sites, helping to make Camden County an even better place to work, live, and raise a family," Nash said in a press release. "Whether its playground upgrades, improvements to athletic fields, or preserving beloved landmarks, these grants ensure that both our green space and history endure for generations."
Parks will get new playgrounds. Some will fix their sports fields. Others plan to build pickleball courts. Laurel Springs Recreation Complex got money. So did 24th & Harrison Avenue Park in Camden City.
Old buildings and museums got bigger checks. Three places received $50,000 each: Battleship New Jersey Museum & Memorial, Camden Shipyard & Maritime Museum, and Johnson Cemetery. The Audubon Historical Society Museum only got $10,000 — the smallest amount given to any historic site.
Six more historic spots grabbed the full $50,000. Cord Mansion made the list. Macedonia African Methodist Episcopal Church did too. Marshall House Stabilization got funding, and so did Newton Meetinghouse and Pomona Hall, which belongs to the Camden County Historic Society.
Nash thinks the money will help towns keep their past alive while making spaces better for everyone who lives there. "I'm looking forward to seeing and visiting each of these individual spaces to see the positive changes to these community assets," Nash said in the same release.
Taking care of parks has become important for county leaders this year. Mayor Victor G. Carstarphen talked about parks during his May 2025 State of the City speech.
Micah Rasmussen runs the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics at Rider University. He told The Sun Papers that parks matter when cities try to grow. "I think this is all part of the consideration in Camden, as well as the idea that as the city is being reimagined, parks are an essential part of what makes any city great," Rasmussen said.
