Arizona adding first new national park in 6 years

COCHISE COUNTY, Ariz. (CBS, KYMA) - For the first time in six years, a new national park has been named, and it’s right here in Cochise County.

Chiricahua National Park is the 64th site to earn that designation, a title the community says could be a game changer.

After more than 30 years, Arizona is adding another national park to its roster, this time, in Cochise County.

On Tuesday afternoon, President Donald Trump signed the Chiricahua national park act into law, a milestone Willcox Mayor Greg Hancock says has been years in the making.

The 102-year-old monument saw roughly 70,000 visitors last year.

For context, that’s about the same number of people that visit the Grand Canyon in a single week.

But U.S. Secretary of the Interior, Doug Burgum, says he expects that to change with the park’s new designation.

National parks in Arizona brought in $2.4 billion in revenue last year.

That’s why Secretary Burgum believes Willcox will see an influx of tourism and economic investment as people from across the country flock to its newest park.

He says those investments will be matched with funding from the national park service.

Despite the park service having billions of dollars in deferred maintenance projects, Secretary Burgum says they’re focused on making up those costs through public and private investments.

Secretary Burgum says their first order of business will be rebranding signage to reflect the park’s new name.

After that, they’ll focus on installing new water systems and other maintenance projects within the park.