California State Parks has begun construction on a $33 million campground at Fort Ord Dunes State Park.
The multi-year project aims to expand public camping opportunities and enhance coastal access along the Monterey Bay shoreline.
The new facility will include 43 traditional tent sites, 45 RV campsites, and 10 walk-in or bike-in sites, offering a variety of lodging options for outdoor enthusiasts.
In addition, the project will include a visitor center, a campfire center pavilion, and upgraded beach access features designed to support both recreational use and environmental stewardship.
“We are so excited to be breaking ground on the first new State Parks campground in Northern California in decades,” Dan Shaw, deputy district superintendent for Monterey District, said in a press release.
“This was a true team effort by State Parks staff and partners working closely together to get us to this point,” Shaw added.
The campground is being funded in large part by Proposition 84—the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006—which was designed to support vital park and water projects across California.
During construction, the Beach Range Road segment of the park’s recreation trail will be temporarily rerouted to a parallel path outside the park boundary.
Other trails and beach access areas will remain open to the public, and visitors are advised to observe construction signage and temporary fencing around the work zone.
Fort Ord Dunes State Park, which opened to the public in 2009, occupies land that once served as a major training site for the U.S. Army.
Known originally as Gigling Reservation, the site was renamed Camp Ord in 1933 and later became Fort Ord in 1940. The base trained more than 1.5 million troops through World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.