[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 119 (Wednesday, September 3, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1671]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  IN HONOR OF THE CALVERT COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS' RECEIPT OF A 
               2003 CHESAPEAKE BAY GATEWAYS NETWORK GRANT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. STENY H. HOYER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, September 3, 2003

  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Calvert County 
Board of Commissioners. The Calvert County Board of Commissioners 
received a 2003 Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network Grant to makeover 
exhibits at a Gateways Network regional information center.
  The Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network, which includes more than 120 
museums, state parks, wildlife refugees and other sites in five States 
and the District of Columbia, was created to enhance the experience of 
visitors to the Chesapeake Bay and its many roads, rivers and trails. 
Authorized by the Chesapeake Bay Initiative Act of 1998, the Gateways 
Network is coordinated by the National Park Service in partnership with 
the Chesapeake Bay Program.
  During the past four years, Gateways Network Grants have funded new 
maps, improved signs, and expanded trails that have made visits to 
parks, wildlife refuges and water trails even more exciting and 
enjoyable than they had previously been. These grants help enhance the 
public's ability to learn and enjoy the Chesapeake's stories and 
significance, explore its natural and cultural resources, and become 
involved in helping conserve and restore the Bay and its watershed. 
Through these projects and other Gateways Network efforts more and more 
people recognize the Chesapeake as a true national treasure.
  In 2003, the National Park Service is awarding $1,387,309 in grant 
funding, matched by over $2 million in partner contributions. Thirty-
two grants are being made to Gateways throughout the Bay watershed in 
Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The Calvert County Board 
of Commissioners is receiving a grant of $24,520 and $32,289 in partner 
contributions.
  The project proposed by the Calvert County Board of Commissioners 
will bring about a complete makeover of exhibits at the Solomons Island 
Visitor Center, a Gateways Network regional information center. Calvert 
County will design, produce and install a series of interpretive 
displays on both the inside and outside of the building. Presently the 
building presents basic information on visitor sites in Southern 
Maryland. The new elements will enable the center to orient people to 
particular Gateway sites in the region and introduce visitors to Bay 
themes and resources in Southern Maryland. Calvert County will 
contribute labor and funding to match the Gateways grant.
  Mr. Speaker, it is with the assistance and vision of organizations 
such as the Calvert County Board of Commissioners that the Chesapeake 
Bay and the entire region has become the treasure that we know it to be 
today. Mr. Speaker, please join me in congratulating the Calvert County 
Board of Commissioners on receiving this grant and wishing them the 
best of luck in completing their project.

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