Dead Timber State Recreation Area receives redevelopment grant after damage from 2019 floods

Changes are coming to Dead Timber State Recreation Area next year, thanks to more than $600,000 in grants from Nebraska organizations.

Since floods ravaged Dead Timber SRA in March 2019, the primitive campsites at the 200-acre park north of Scribner have been out of commission.

Thanks to grants from the Nebraska Department of Economic Development and the Fremont-Dodge County Convention and Visitors Bureau, the campsites will be moved out of the floodplain next year.

Michelle Stryker with Nebraska Game and Parks said the funds will also go toward constructing a new restroom and rebuilding a WPA-era stone structure that was damaged from the floods.

Stryker said she hopes the redevelopment will drive up park attendance and provide an economic benefit to surrounding communities in Dodge County.

“This is huge for the Dead Timber area," she said. "Local visitors that come to this park have wanted us to do something for this park, because it's a jewel in the park system.”

After the design phase is completed, construction is expected to begin in Spring 2025.