Laurie Provincial Park, outside Dartmouth, will be closed this summer while it undergoes a multimillion-dollar upgrade.

The park on Grand Lake has 71 campsites and a small beach with a rocky shoreline. In 40 years, it has never had a facelift.

"It's still one of the last campgrounds we have without what we call a comfort station, which is a central washroom that has showers and flush toilets," said Harold Carroll, director of parks and recreation for the Department of Natural Resources.

There will still be around the same number of campsites, but they will be bigger and redistributed throughout the 26-hectare park. Besides new washroom facilities, there will be new attractions for day visitors, such as an amphitheatre.

"And a couple of look-offs," said Carroll, "that would provide people a really good opportunity to enjoy Grand Lake but not necessarily be sitting on a rock."

Carroll said the redevelopment should boost numbers at the park. Laurie park is fully booked at the height of summer, but it's in the low to middle range in terms of visitors when compared to Nova Scotia's other provincial parks, he said.

The upgrade is expected to cost about $2.6 million. Construction is scheduled to start in June and take up to 10 months to complete.

A public information session on the redevelopment plans will be held in Grand Lake on Thursday.