Beltzville State Park is undergoing a change in leadership, following a year of record attendance.

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources announced a new park manager for the park this week.

Ben Monk was previously an assistant park manager at Ohiopyle State Park.

“I’m looking forward to working alongside the Beltzville staff to continue to protect and promote the park’s wide range of important resources,” Monk said.

Monk replaces Alma Holmes, who left for a position at French Creek State Park after four years at Beltzville.

DCNR Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn said Monk’s experience will benefit Beltzville’s visitors.

“Ben honed a combination of keen administrative skills and field experience at Ohiopyle, among our busiest and most popular state parks,” said Dunn, “and these qualifications can only enhance the experience at Beltzville for its increasingly large number of park visitors.”

Most of Pennsylvania’s 121 state parks, including Beltzville, saw record attendance during summer 2020. The state park system as a whole saw a 22 percent increase in visitors over the previous year.

The increased popularity at Beltzville highlighted issues with the large crowds at the park which have existed for several years.

On multiple weekends this summer parking areas reached capacity - which was capped at 75 percent due to the pandemic. Visitors parked illegally along Pohopoco Drive.

In July, state Rep. Doyle Heffley called for DCNR to limit Beltzville’s day-use areas to Pennsylvania residents only, citing concerns about potential spikes in COVID-19 cases.

“We have a lot more people traveling to the state parks with the COVID-19 restrictions, the governor encouraging people to get outside, and it’s compounding the issues that have always been there,” Heffley said.

The larger crowds from the pandemic only added to existing frustration among many local residents who are concerned about parking, garbage and overuse.

Heffley has previously introduced legislation which would allow state parks to charge entrance and parking fees to help manage crowds. Pennsylvania is one of eight states that do not charge some kind of state park entrance fee.

In 2018 researchers from Penn State University started a study into overcrowding at Beltzville. While it was delayed by the pandemic, the study is still underway, DCNR officials said.

DCNR manages the 2,972-acre Beltzville State Park, including the 949-acre lake on behalf of its owner, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The Army Corps built the dam and lake for flood control along the Lehigh and Delaware rivers.

Monk is the fourth manager at Beltzville since 2013. Before Holmes, the park was managed by Devin Buzard, who replaced Kevin Koflanovich.

Monk, 37, is a native of Fayette County, a graduate of California University of Pennsylvania, and a U.S. Army veteran serving in a military police unit who was deployed in Operation Iraqi Freedom.