Project Summary
The Headwaters Connector Greenway project will preserve, restore and enhance an unused rail corridor spanning the City of Solon, Bainbridge Township, and the City of Aurora. The Headwaters Connector Greenway property is a 7.2-mile, approximately 100′-wide greenway corridor diagonally bisecting the majority of the city of Solon, running from Harper Road through residential neighborhoods, commercial areas and downtown Solon through to the Grantwood Golf Course, and then on through the southwest corner of Bainbridge Township and into the City of Aurora in Portage County. With funding from the Clean Ohio program and a significant investment from the City of Solon, the property has been acquired to ensure its accessibility to the public as a recreational greenway corridor, while preserving the ecological benefits and wildlife habitat provided by this linear, forested natural area.
The greenway corridor provides critical habitat connectivity for wildlife, functioning as a natural migratory pathway and providing foraging habitat for many wildlife species. The majority of the property comprises dense, vegetated buffers, extending an average of approximately 40 feet on either side of the former rail bed. These buffers support a mix of native hardwood tree species, including maple, dogwood, ash, aspen, oak and elm. One state endangered plant species – Northern bayberry (Myrica pennsylvanica) – and one potentially threatened plant species – Bush’s sedge (Carex bushii) – have also been found on the property. So far, at least 55 bird species have been identified within this forested wildlife corridor, including over 40 migratory or partially migratory species, as well as five state-listed bat species. Dark corridors like the Headwaters Connector Greenway are increasingly rare, but are essential to the continued conservation of various wildlife species including light-sensitive bats.
In addition to the project’s ecological benefit, the acquisition and permanent protection of the Headwaters Connector Greenway is a necessary first step to catalyze future development of public access infrastructure and a paved multi-use trail. The Headwaters Connector Greenway is identified in the award-winning 2021 Solon Connects Plan as the site of one of two key trail projects that are near-term priorities for the city, providing “a safe, scenic route for bikers, walkers, joggers and other forms of non-motorized, active transportation” and establishing connectivity between other trail systems. West Creek and the City of Solon will a work alongside regional partners to establish connectivity from the Headwaters Connector Greenway to various trail and greenway networks including the Cleveland Metroparks’ Emerald Necklace trail system, the Solon to Chagrin Falls trail system, the Headwaters Trail system in Portage County, and eventually the multi-state Industrial Heartland Trail Network.
Project Partners
The opportunity to preserve over seven miles of linear forested habitat with diverse vegetation and wildlife in the middle of an otherwise largely suburban landscape was extremely rare and time sensitive, with numerous potential environmental, recreational, and economic development benefits that drew support and interest from a large array of stakeholders. Key project partners include the City of Solon, who provided significant cash match to support acquisition of this keystone property, and the Open Space Institute Land Trust, who helped navigate negotiations with the previous landowner and rail operator, including ensuring that the remaining rail infrastructure would be removed as part of the land acquisition. Funding has been awarded by the Clean Ohio Green Space Conservation Program administered by the Ohio Public Works Commission. Additional project partners and supporters include the Cleveland Metroparks, Greater Cleveland Partnership, the Cleveland Foundation, Nestlé, Rails to Trails Conservancy, Bike Cleveland, the Village of Chagrin Falls, NOACA, Portage Park District, Geauga Park District, the City of Aurora, the Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation Study (AMATS), State Representative Demetriou, and State Representative Robinson.
Expected Outcomes and Benefits
The uniquely large width (approximately 60-70 feet wider than a typical rail corridor) and the location of this former rail corridor made the property highly desirable not only as a wildlife corridor and connector trail, but also a potential development opportunity or utility corridor. Absent the intervention of West Creek Conservancy and project partners, the property may likely have been acquired for utility corridor or energy transmission purposes, or fragmented and sold as numerous developable parcels. West Creek’s conservation of the property ensured that this vast length of open space will continue providing essential wildlife habitat and ecosystem services – including air quality and urban heat island mitigation benefits, aesthetic quality, and stormwater filtration services for the Cuyahoga and Chagrin River watersheds – while also establishing a publicly accessible greenway corridor anchoring numerous existing protected areas and public amenities.
The next step for the project is ecological restoration including invasive species treatment and reforestation to support succession of native forest habitat. Since West Creek’s initial acquisition, the property has been transferred to the City of Solon and the City of Aurora for long term ownership and management as a publicly accessible recreational trail and greenway. Future connectivity to multi-county and interstate trail networks will be pursued in collaboration with numerous regional partners.
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