New Hampshire will soon be the home of the first whitewater park in New England. The massive make-over for downtown Franklin includes a park and camping area.

In a story on WCVB, they report that Mill City Park at Franklin Falls has been years in the making. The nonprofit will transform the downtown section of Franklin into the whitewater park, surrounded by walking and biking trails, camping and even an amphitheater.

“There’s about 300 whitewater parks in the country, there’s over 30 in Colorado alone, but there’s not one up here,” founder of Mill City Park Marty Parichand said.

Construction is set to begin on the park in July, with perpetual waves built into Winnipesaukee River for kayaking, boogie board and whitewater rafting year-round. The opening is scheduled for the end of September.

“We are re-inventing ourselves in the outdoor recreation community and the whitewater park is the anchor, but we have several other things going on,” Franklin City Manager Judie Milner said.

The project with break ground on 13 acres of city-owned land that will become a free community adventure park, featuring mountain biking and climbing.

Campsite and cabin rentals will help fund the park. Officials expect more than 160,000 visitors a year.

“This area around us is kind of on the outskirts of the Lakes Region and has been forgotten, so all of this area we’ll build back up,” Milner said.

For more information, go to: https://www.wcvb.com/article/whitewater-new-hampshire-mill-city-park/35991249