Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn announced the appointment of Nicholas Sulzer as manager of the Tuscarora State Park Complex, Schuylkill County.

Sulzer is the former assistant manager at Hickory Run State Park, Carbon County.

“Nicholas brings excellent public relations and administrative skills to his Tuscarora post after his assignment at one of our busiest state parks in northeastern Pennsylvania,” Dunn said. “Taking over the reins of two parks that draw more than 313,000 people a year, he is committed to making park visits even more rewarding and enjoyable.”

Sulzer will oversee Tuscarora’s 1,716 acres, including the 96-acre Tuscarora Lake, and neighboring Locust Lake, with 1,144 acres and a 52-acre waterway.

Set in a deeply wooded valley, Tuscarora State Park is at the southern end of Pennsylvania’s anthracite coal region.

Nestled against Locust Mountain, the park offers visitors wildlife viewing, fishing, hunting and other recreation.

Neighboring Locust Lake State Park is especially popular with campers.

“I look forward to the opportunities that await at Tuscarora and Locust Lake,” Sulzer said. “I am excited to continue working to protect the state’s vital resources and recreational opportunities close to the area where I grew up.”

Sulzer succeeds Tarah Brugger, who was named manager at Promised Land State Park in Pike County.

The new park manager began his Bureau of State Parks career working as a laborer at Hickory Run State Park, and later as a DCNR ranger at Tobyhanna State Park, Monroe County.

He entered the bureau’s manager trainee program in 2014, working out of the Region 2 office in Butler County.

His most recent assignment was the assistant manager post at Hickory Run.

A native of Lehighton, Sulzer, 30, holds a bachelor’s degree with honors from Misericordia University, where he majored in biology and minored in chemistry.

For more information on the Tuscarora State Park Complex, call 1-888-PA-PARKS, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, or visit the DCNR website.