Air Quality Closes Dorchester, Greenwood Park Beaches

If you had an evening swim planned at Dorchester Park or Greenwood Park, Broome County has a change to share. Both beaches are closing early today, July 16, because of poor air quality and reduced visibility in the area.

Dorchester and Greenwood Park Beach Closure Hours Today

County officials announced that the swimming beaches at Dorchester Park in the Town of Triangle and at Greenwood Park in the Town of Nanticoke will close at 4:30 p.m. The decision came from Parks, Recreation and Youth Services as a precaution while air conditions remain poor across the region.

Air Quality Health Risks and Sensitive Groups

The county is urging residents to limit how long they spend outdoors today, and that guidance matters most for certain people. Children, older adults, and anyone with a respiratory or heart condition face a higher risk when air quality drops, and officials want families to factor that in before spending hours outside.

History and Amenities of Dorchester and Greenwood Parks

Dorchester Park sits on land tied to one of the region's biggest infrastructure projects. The park grew up alongside the Whitney Point Reservoir, a 1,200-acre lake formed when the Army Corps of Engineers built a 95-foot dam on the Otselic River between 1938 and 1942 for flood control. These days, the county-run park offers a guarded beach, boat rentals, a two-mile trail into the Village of Whitney Point, and enough winter activity to keep the Almost Annual Crappie Derby going strong.

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Greenwood Park holds its own piece of local history as the oldest county-owned park in Broome County, dating back to 1961. Spread across 439 acres in the Town of Nanticoke, a town first settled in 1793 and formally established in 1831, the park centers on a 25-acre spring-fed lake that has drawn campers, swimmers, and anglers for generations.