How should Metroparks spend $8M to improve southern portion of Gordon Park?

Jul. 12, 2024

By Steven Litt, cleveland.com

 

Cleveland Metroparks, LAND Studio and the St. Clair Superior Development Corp. will hold the first large-scale public meeting focusing on how Metroparks and its partners should spend $8 million donated in 2023 by the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation. Registration for Tuesday’s meeting is requested. Details are available at: stclairsuperior.org/e/gordon-park-south-community-meeting-1/.

 

The money from Mandel is intended to bring near-term improvements to the southern portion of Gordon Park, which was severed from the northern half of the park, and Lake Erie, by construction of the Shoreway between the 1930s and the 1950s.

 

...

 

Metroparks expects to use information gathered from surrounding communities to shape new investments in the park starting next year. But the parks agency, which is leasing the space from the city, isn’t imposing top-down solutions.

 

https://www.cleveland.com/news/2024/07/how-should-metroparks-spend-8m-to-improve-southern-portion-of-gordon-park.html

CLEVELAND METROPARKS OPENS DISC GOLF COURSE IN BEDFORD RESERVATION

Posted: July 23, 2024

 

Cleveland Metroparks today announced the opening of Astorhurst Disc Golf Course in Bedford Reservation. The free 18-hole, par 65 course spans 10,494 total yards, and features amateur, professional and competition tee boxes. The course is the first-of-its-kind for Cleveland Metroparks, offering communities the opportunity to experience this growing sport.
 
Constructed in-house, Astorhurst Disc Golf Course utilizes rolling hills, elevation changes, and wooded areas that were features of the former Astorhurst Golf Course that is now a public park. Each hole begins with designated launch pads for tee shots and concludes with a common basket. The course is open daily during regular park hours and players must bring their own disc golf discs.
 
Protection of Astorhurst has helped to preserve a significant portion of Tinker's Creek and its associated headwater streams and floodplains. The 30-mile-long Tinker’s Creek is the largest tributary of the Cuyahoga River with a watershed spanning 4 counties and 24 communities, collecting water from nearly 100 square miles of land.

 

https://www.clevelandmetroparks.com/news-press/2024/july-2024/cleveland-metroparks-opens-disc-golf-course-in-bed

The article below is a bit different from the park projects I usually link to. The article covers a lot; from expansion in acreage of the park system, to increasing engagement and amenities, to improving connection to communities throughout the region. I've had the chance to meet Brian a couple times and he is very clearly genuine in his passion for the region and its parks system. I've seen some folks lament that there are too many competing interests in the region and not a unified vision with a coordinated effort to achieve that vision. The Metroparks is not one of those areas and that is, in part, due to Brian's leadership. There is a passing mention toward the end of support from West Creek Conservancy and Western Reserve Land Conservancy. These two organizations have greatly contributed to the continued growth of the Metroparks, and they have a broad base of community support themselves. 

 

Brian Zimmerman grows Cleveland Metroparks into its second century of stewardship

By: Brooke Bilyj

July 29, 2024

Not the kind of upgrades I like to see in our parks, but sadly likely a necessary step to keep people feeling safe and comfortable at Edgewater and so still visiting.

 

Cuyahoga prosecutor plans to spend $100,000 upgrading security cameras at Edgewater following June shooting

Published: Aug. 01, 2024

By Lucas Daprile, cleveland.com

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Authorities are installing new surveillance cameras at Edgewater Beach following a chaotic shootout earlier this summer at the popular park.

 

Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley said his office is planning to spend more than $100,000 on new cameras at the beach, though the dollar amount and type of equipment are still being decided upon.

 

...

 

Installing the new surveillance equipment is a top priority for Cleveland Metroparks Police Department, which is the lead agency in investigating the shooting, said the agency’s spokeswoman, Jacqueline Gerling.

 

https://www.cleveland.com/news/2024/08/cuyahoga-prosecutor-plans-to-spend-100000-upgrading-security-cameras-at-edgewater-following-june-shooting.html

2 hours ago, GISguy said:

Something to keep in mind, Metroparks are running a tight budget, obviously it's hard to forecast 10 years out, but they're anticipating a cash balance of ~$500k by 2032. They've had some (unanticipated) acquisitions in the past year that took their estimated 60M balance to 47M. If they're going to take on more projects grants are going to have to be the biggest piece of the pie (this is the route they're taking with CHEERS). 

 

https://special_district-cleveland-metroparks-oh-budget-book.cleargov.com/10704/fund-summaries/ten-year-financial-forecast 

 

Thanks for this! Good point, their cash balance has definitely been decreasing! Though if I am reading this correctly, forecast (intentionally) drastically underestimates grants and donations, which are often substantial, with 19 million just in donations last year. Largely as a result, actual revenue has exceeded budgeted revenue the last few years. In 2023 actual grants and donations were over 16 million higher than budgeted. The Metroparks have already nearly doubled their 2024 budgeted grants/donations with a single grant. Obviously grants and donations are not guaranteed, so it makes sense not to count on them, but in all likelihood revenue will be underestimated like it has been historically. 

 

All of that said, while I don't expect their "war chest" to decrease quite as rapidly as is predicted in the forecast, it has been going down the past few years, and it's likely that trend will continue, particularly if they continue their reservation expansion, which seems very likely.  

 

 

 

The Metroparks also could probably find property to sell if necessary.  Could probably be done very strategically to retain core parkland but split off properties at the periphery, such as on major roadways to provide buffers to traffic.

36 minutes ago, Foraker said:

The Metroparks also could probably find property to sell if necessary.  Could probably be done very strategically to retain core parkland but split off properties at the periphery, such as on major roadways to provide buffers to traffic.

 

I don't know this for certain, but I would expect that a lot of their land has permanent conservation easements on them that would make this difficult. 

2 hours ago, Luke_S said:

 

I don't know this for certain, but I would expect that a lot of their land has permanent conservation easements on them that would make this difficult. 

Maybe not land that they have purchased.  I don't know.  But I would think that some outlying portions of properties they own don't "fit" with the park it is attached to -- maybe the park really wanted another portion of a property and had to buy more than they needed to get it.  At any rate, it's all speculation.  Let's hope the Metroparks is never that desperate for funds.

Edited August 7, 2024Aug 7 by Foraker
Additional thought.

 

Two of the more significant purchases from the Metroparks over the past two months. 

 

"WCC [West Creek Conservancy] will acquire the Olson Property on January 8, 2025, for the purposes of extending the future West Creek Greenway north from West Ridgewood Drive to Grantwood Drive. The Olson Property is a missing link in this greenway corridor and future trail connection. WCC will purchase the Olson Property for $300,000"

 

 

It looks like this section of the South Chagrin reservation is being substantially built up into a much more significant park section. Curious to see what they do with the golf course, and if they end up seeking to expand this area further in the future.  

Just answering my own question above, and doing some more digging in the Hawthorne valley purchase. Here's a great Cleveland.com article. 

 

https://www.cleveland.com/metro/2022/10/cleveland-metroparks-to-buy-38m-golf-course-return-it-to-natural-state.html

 

"The park district plans to maintain the land as a scenic area that will serve as a habitat for plants and wildlife, Gerling said. Trails will be developed, linking with South Chagrin Reservation. A large pond will offer fishing opportunities for blue gill and bass."

 

 

Also if interest, there are two landfills near the southern end of this area. One of which the Metro Parks has already sought a Brownfield grant for, so a Brighton park situation is definitely possible at some point in the future. 

 

In 2024 the Metroparks is updating their reservation plans for Brecksville, Bedford, Hinckley and South Chagrin reservation. Draft plans and public comment is below.

 

https://www.clevelandmetroparks.com/about/planning-design/reservation-plan-updates

 

It's worth digging into the plans if your interested, and I encourage people to submit comments if they have thoughts. Below is an interesting proposal for Hinckley that is only possible due to a recent land acquisition. 

 

Here is a copy of the draft plan for the Esther & Nathan Rzepka Park the Metroparks is going to build out in South Chagrin Reservation. Sorry it's a bit grainy. The meeting to discuss and provide feedback is tonight from 5:30 to 7:00 if anyone is interested. Feedback can be provided at the link below. 

 

https://www.clevelandmetroparks.com/about/planning-design/reservation-plan-updates

 

Man l love the Metroparks. 

Garfield park pond renovation announced complete. 

 

 

https://www.cleveland.com/realestate-news/2024/10/massive-cleveland-metroparks-garfield-park-pond-restoration-complete-just-in-time-to-enjoy-the-fall-leaves-photo-gallery.html

they've been working on that for a while.  been eagerly waiting to see it

Cleveland Metroparks to create new park at Ohio 82 & Bennett Road in North Royalton

Published: Dec. 17, 2024

 

NORTH ROYALTON, Ohio -- Cleveland Metroparks will move forward with a plan to develop about 18 acres of parkland off the south side of Ohio 82 just west of Bennett Road.

 

...

 

City Council President Paul Marnecheck, in a recent email newsletter to residents, said the park development can proceed now that the city has finished building an all-purpose trail on Bennett.

 

That trail connects the 18 acres to Valley Parkway in the Metroparks’ Brecksville Reservation to the south.

 

https://www.cleveland.com/community/2024/12/cleveland-metroparks-to-create-new-park-at-ohio-82-bennett-road-in-north-royalton.html

12 minutes ago, Luke_S said:

Cleveland Metroparks to create new park at Ohio 82 & Bennett Road in North Royalton

Published: Dec. 17, 2024

 

NORTH ROYALTON, Ohio -- Cleveland Metroparks will move forward with a plan to develop about 18 acres of parkland off the south side of Ohio 82 just west of Bennett Road.

 

...

 

City Council President Paul Marnecheck, in a recent email newsletter to residents, said the park development can proceed now that the city has finished building an all-purpose trail on Bennett.

 

That trail connects the 18 acres to Valley Parkway in the Metroparks’ Brecksville Reservation to the south.

 

https://www.cleveland.com/community/2024/12/cleveland-metroparks-to-create-new-park-at-ohio-82-bennett-road-in-north-royalton.html

 

I'm usually pretty happy to see Metroparks expand, but I don't get the point of this one.  It's fully surrounded by private residences, isolated from the rest of the system, and doesn't seem to encompass any distinctive natural features.  Does one of the board members own an adjoining property or something?

17 minutes ago, X said:

 

I'm usually pretty happy to see Metroparks expand, but I don't get the point of this one.  It's fully surrounded by private residences, isolated from the rest of the system, and doesn't seem to encompass any distinctive natural features.  Does one of the board members own an adjoining property or something?

 

It is a bit of an odd one... My default is to assume value in preserving green space, but this seems like it may have been a better fit for North Royalton Parks & Rec to take on. 

 

If the Bennett Rd multi-use trail wasn't already complete I'd see the value in this being the impetus to creating another greenway connection.

To be fair, it sounds like the Metroparks owns the property and North Royalton residents pay taxes to support the system. Seems like an equitable way to support parks across the region assuming the expense is not outrageous?

Nothing major in this months board meeting agenda, added 18 acres to Hinckley, and some forward movement on Irishtown Bend and grants for Cheers. All good things. 

 

 

Their real estate report is a nice review of their acquisitions from last year though. 

 

 

Also I didn't realize how comparably recent most of Mill Creek Falls is. Beautiful area, could definitely use some strategic depth though... With bike trail developments hopefully this area will get a bit more love. 

 

Metroparks forecast: fewer federal dollars?

by Frank W. Lewis and Cleveland Documenters

March 27, 2025

 

Cleveland Metroparks have already lost at least one federal grant, and officials are worried about the status of another, according to CEO Brian Zimmerman’s presentation at the March 20 Board of Park Commissioners meeting.

 

...

 

The board agreed to apply for a grant from a federal agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), for the Cleveland Harbor Eastern Embayment Resilience Strategy (CHEERS).

 

...

 

In 2024, ILMS awarded Metroparks $237,120 for the Euclid Beach STEM Adventure Program Expansion. Metroparks signed a contract for the funds, “but there’s no agency to administer it,” Zimmerman said.

 

https://signalcleveland.org/cleveland-metroparks-forecast-more-golfers-fewer-dollars-march-board-meeting/

Edited March 27Mar 27 by Luke_S

On 3/24/2025 at 8:47 AM, Ethan said:

Also I didn't realize how comparably recent most of Mill Creek Falls is. Beautiful area, could definitely use some strategic depth though... With bike trail developments hopefully this area will get a bit more love. 

 

Mill Creek Watershed Partnership was absorbed by West Creek Conservancy some years back. The Mill Creek Watershed remains a strategic project area for West Creek, though most of the active projects are up stream. That said, I'm sure they're keeping an eye out for pieces they could connect to expand the park. 

On 3/27/2025 at 6:56 AM, Luke_S said:

 

Mill Creek Watershed Partnership was absorbed by West Creek Conservancy some years back. The Mill Creek Watershed remains a strategic project area for West Creek, though most of the active projects are up stream. That said, I'm sure they're keeping an eye out for pieces they could connect to expand the park. 

Garfield Park is due for it's reservation plan update this year, so that will be interesting to see what is highlighted in that plan. The previous 2015 report does flag the upstream mill creek area as a target for land protection. Though there are also some very interesting prospects downstream, mostly if they are willing to go the Brighton Park route, as there is a lot of former landfill space along the creek that could be used to loop into Bacci Park where there is already an existing trail dead ending in this direction. In the below picture, most of the light green is former landfill space. It's hard to make former landfills into anything other than park land (and it's not exactly easy to do that either) so I wouldn't be at all surprised if this eventually ends up as a big loop. 

 

 

On the mill creek falls area specifically the report calls for "open views and reconfigure area", "Add restrooms, picnic area, and play area", and improving bike pedestrian connections funneling into park. With the exception of the last point, there hasn't been much progress on the other two, but I'm guessing they are aiming to acquire some more land, primarily the houses north of Berman to facilitate these goals. My expectation is that the 2025 reservation plan update will echo these same ideas, but perhaps with more specificity and a greater focus on the Mill Creek Falls area as the lower portion of the park has recently been substantially updated. 

 

Rail to trail: Agreement paves way for 7-mile greenway across three Ohio counties

Published: Apr. 02, 2025

By Maura Zurick, cleveland.com

 

SOLON, Ohio -- A proposed 7-mile greenway trail connecting parts of Cuyahoga, Portage and Geauga counties took a major step forward this week.

 

The Open Space Institute (OSI), a national land conservation nonprofit, announced Tuesday (April 1) that it has reached a conditional agreement with Norfolk Southern Railway to purchase a dormant stretch of rail corridor.

 

The deal lays the groundwork for the future Headwaters Connector Trail, a multi-use, universally accessible greenway intended to link the Cleveland Metroparks Emerald Necklace Trail to the eastern Cuyahoga County suburbs.

 

https://www.cleveland.com/sunnews/2025/04/rail-to-trail-agreement-paves-way-for-seven-mile-greenway-across-three-ohio-counties.html

14 hours ago, Luke_S said:

Rail to trail: Agreement paves way for 7-mile greenway across three Ohio counties

Published: Apr. 02, 2025

By Maura Zurick, cleveland.com

 

SOLON, Ohio -- A proposed 7-mile greenway trail connecting parts of Cuyahoga, Portage and Geauga counties took a major step forward this week.

 

The Open Space Institute (OSI), a national land conservation nonprofit, announced Tuesday (April 1) that it has reached a conditional agreement with Norfolk Southern Railway to purchase a dormant stretch of rail corridor.

 

The deal lays the groundwork for the future Headwaters Connector Trail, a multi-use, universally accessible greenway intended to link the Cleveland Metroparks Emerald Necklace Trail to the eastern Cuyahoga County suburbs.

 

https://www.cleveland.com/sunnews/2025/04/rail-to-trail-agreement-paves-way-for-seven-mile-greenway-across-three-ohio-counties.html

This one sucks because that is a viable regional rail right of way. This is the line that hosted the last Cleveland commuter rail route (through Solon and Aurora to Youngstown) and is still active freight rail to Nestle in Solon. This is almost as bad as the Hudson to Cuyahoga Falls to Akron spur being abandoned (which is by far the best route for CLE-Akron-Canton regional rail). 
 

@KJP @neony

Yep. Use it or lose it.

In case anyone else was wondering where this is located. 

 

 

It looks like it will also come very close to another planned trail. So there's some nice synergy with existing and planned trails at least. 

 

 

422 is in both maps and can be used for place marking. It looks like these two trails get within .25 to .3 miles of each other. Good place to prioritize improved cycling infrastructure. 

2 hours ago, Boomerang_Brian said:

This one sucks because that is a viable regional rail right of way. This is the line that hosted the last Cleveland commuter rail route (through Solon and Aurora to Youngstown) and is still active freight rail to Nestle in Solon. This is almost as bad as the Hudson to Cuyahoga Falls to Akron spur being abandoned (which is by far the best route for CLE-Akron-Canton regional rail). 
 

@KJP @neony

We will have trails, but not trains. Disappointing but not surprising.

Cleveland Metroparks provided an update on the Hinkley Dam project last Wednesday (5/14). This summer will focus on dredging the lake and raising the lake's embankments by ~4 feet to increase the storage capacity of the lake from a 100-year flood and the probable maximum flood. Additionally, four bays will be created where sediment flowing into the lake can settle out, isolating the dredging areas in the future. The entire rehabilitation process will be completed by the summer of 2026.

Cleveland Metroparks gives updat...

Cleveland Metroparks gives update on Hinckley Lake dam re...

The Cleveland Metroparks provided an update for the Hinckley Lake dam rehabilitation during a community meeting at the Highland Library on Wednesday.

Cleveland Metroparks Unveils Major Improvements at Wallace Lake

Posted: June 04 , 2025

Cleveland Metroparks today officially unveiled major enhancements at Wallace Lake, located in Berea in Mill Stream Run Reservation, marking a significant transformation of one of Cleveland Metroparks most beloved recreational destinations. The project enhances accessibility, expands outdoor recreation opportunities, and offers guests new ways to enjoy Wallace Lake with the addition of the new Wallace Lake Grille and picnic garden. 

New amenities include the addition of a new pavilion, modern, ADA-accessible restroom facilities, improved beach access, expanded parking, new volleyball courts, and new community gathering spaces that will support year-round programming and events. The enhancements will support expanded outdoor education and recreation programming, as well as kayak rentals for visitors to explore the lake. 

https://www.clevelandmetroparks.com/news-press/2025/cleveland-metroparks-unveils-major-improvements-at-wallace-lake