Walton’s Mill Park opened to the public in 1980 and is owned by the Town of Farmington. The Park is a special town property that gives visitors a place to explore and connect to history and nature. In 2018, voters in the Town of Farmington approved plans for the dam removal and park improvement work in partnership with Atlantic Salmon Federation. The park is closed temporarily for construction to improve public safety, recreation, and restore the river health. The park remodeling will be completed this July and reopened to public visitors in 2023. 

The Climate Change Observatory (CCO) photo monitoring site looks upstream on Temple Stream towards the dam area with the park on the right. The photos captured at this river restoration project, and integrated into the chronolog time lapse, shows the construction and restoration activity throughout 2022 and beyond. Upon re-opening of the park in 2023, visitors will be able to contribute photos at the CCO site that will instantly be integrated into the time lapse to help document and track changes in the Temple Stream restoration for years to come. 

Walton’s Mill Park 

The project was a community effort and completed in partnership with dedicated citizens who worked together to achieve the vision of the Walton’s Mill Park. The dam removal and park redevelopment were supported by the Town of Farmington, Atlantic Salmon Federation, NOAA Fisheries, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Maine Department of Marine Resources. Support was also provided by Maine Department of Environmental Protection, Farmington Water Department, Maine Natural Resources Conservation Program, the Land and Water Conservation Fund, Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund, Trout & Salmon Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, and several other private foundations.

The Town of Farmington, Atlantic Salmon Federation  and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are part of the Southern Maine Conservation Collaborative's Climate Change Observatory Network, a photo monitoring program designed to work with environmental organizations and communities to assist with the observation, measurement and documentation of long-term climate change trends and climate adaptation projects.  