Chesapeake National Recreation Area Letters of Support

The Chesapeake National Recreation Area will increase diverse public access to the Chesapeake Bay and strengthen the culture of stewardship across the region. Additionally, the CNRA will highlight the stories that often go untold – those of Indigenous peoples; free and enslaved Blacks; the role the Bay played in the earliest days of the Maryland and Virginia Colonies; the key part the Bay has played, and continues to play, in the region’s economy; and the story of watermen and -women who are essential to the economic success and health of the Bay region. Everyone who resides in the watershed has an important role in Bay conservation and culture.

The effort to establish a CNRA is supported by a wide array of over 100 stakeholders from local elected officials, to environmental and historical preservation organizations, to racial justice advocacy groups, to seafood and outdoor recreation businesses, and many more. The proposal has received letters of support from over 60 organizations, local government officials and agencies, and community leaders all of which can be found below:

  • Ad Hoc LLC letter of support here.
  • Annapolis Mayor Gavin Buckley letter of support here.
  • Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman letter of support here.
  • Anne Arundel Economic Development Corporation letter of support here.
  • Baltimore County Executive John “Johnny O” Olszewski, Jr. letter of support here.
  • Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott letter of support here.
  • Bay Paddle letter of support here.
  • Beach to Bay Heritage Area letter of support here.
  • Blacks of the Chesapeake Foundation letter of support here.
  • Brandywine Foundation letter of support here.
  • Cambridge Mayor Stephen Rideout letter of support here.
  • Calvert County Commissioners letter of support here.
  • Capital Region Land Conservancy letter of support here.
  • Charles County Board of Commissioners letter of support here.
  • Chesapeake Bay Foundation letter of support here.
  • Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum letter of support here.
  • Chesapeake Conservancy letter of support here.
  • Chesapeake Legal Alliance letter of support here.
  • Chestertown Mayor David Foster letter of support here.
  • Choose Clean Water Coalition letter of support here.
  • Coalition to Protect America's National Parks letter of support here.
  • Maryland State Delegate Dana Jones letter of support here.
  • DockShare letter of support here.
  • Easton Mayor Megan Cook letter of support here.
  • Former Governor Larry Hogan letter of support here.
  • Former Governor Ralph Northam letter of support here.
  • Fort Monroe Authroity letter of support here.
  • Frederick County Executive Jessica Fitzwater letter of support here.
  • Friends for Peirce Mill letter of support here.
  • Governor Wes Moore letter of support here.
  • Greater Salisbury Committee letter of support here.
  • Hispanic Access Foundation letter of support here.
  • Historic Annapolis letter of support here.
  • Howard County Executive Calvin Ball letter of support here.
  • James River Association letter of support here.
  • Jefferson County West Virginia Parks and Recreation letter of support here.
  • Latino Outdoors letter of support here.
  • Lower Susquehanna Heritage Greenway (LSHG) letter of support here.
  • Maryland League of Conservation Voters letter of support here.
  • Community leader Maya Alexander letter of support here.
  • Maryland Chamber of Commerce letter of support here.
  • Mobility is Freedom Fund letter of support here.
  • Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich letter of support here.
  • Morgan State Patuxent Environmental & Aquatic Research Laboratory (PEARL) letter of support here.
  • National Park Conservation Association letter of support here.
  • National Park Trust letter of support here.
  • Nature Forward letter of support here.
  • Northern Neck Planning District Commission letter of support here.
  • Park Institute of America letter of support here.
  • Potomac Conservancy letter of support here.
  • Potomac Riverkeeper Network letter of support here.
  • Preservation Maryland letter of support here.
  • Preservation Virginia letter of support here.
  • Rappahannock Tribe Chief Anne Richardson letter of support here.
  • REI letter of support here.
  • Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce letter of support here.
  • Salisbury Councilwoman Megan Outten letter of support here.
  • Salisbury University letter of support here.
  • Scharle Outdoor Rec letter of support here.
  • Maryland State Senator Sarah Elfreth letter of support here.
  • Shenandoah National Park Trust letter of support here.
  • ShoreRivers letter of support here.
  • Somerset County Economic Development letter of support here.
  • Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project (SERCAP) letter of support here. 
  • Surfrider Annapolis letter of support here.
  • Surfrider Ocean City and VA letter of support here.
  • Susquehannock Wildlife Society, Inc. letter of support here.
  • Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse USLHS letter of support here.
  • Trust for Public Land letter of support here.
  • University of Maryland Eastern Shore letter of support here.
  • Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) letter of support here.
  • Washington College letter of support here.
  • Waterkeepers Chesapeake letter of support here.
  • Watermark letter of support here.