itizens bioregional plan for northeast ohio · 2012-09-18 · 2 ecocity cleveland bioregional plan...

EcoCity Cleveland JournalSpecial Issue

Vol. 6, Numbers 4-6Spring 1999

CITIZENS'BIOREGIONAL PLAN

FOR NORTHEAST OHIO

IDEAS AND TOOLS

"Life is like art. You have to draw the linesomewhere."

We've been thinking about that saying recently. Hereat EcoCity Cleveland we've been drawing a lot oflines. And we've been drawing the lines on maps,which can be a dangerous thing to do.

After all, maps do more than show us how to getfrom place to place. They describe how humanshave divided the land for various purposes. They tellus where our property begins and ends. They definethe boundaries of our communities and where ourchildren go to school. In many ways they are graphicrepresentations of our hopes and fears.

When you try to draw a new line on a map—whether for a new road, subdivision, shoppingcenter, or park—all kinds of interests can bedisturbed. People's expectations can be violated,communities can feel threatened, and propertyvalues can be altered. So you should be carefulabout drawing lines on maps.

On the other hand, it is inevitable that lines will

be drawn. If we don't draw lines for ourselves,someone will draw them for us. Therefore, if wecare about our homes and communities, we shouldbecome involved as citizens in drawing the mapsthat will shape our future. And, since many of theforces that affect land use occur at the regionalscale, we should join with citizens throughoutNortheast Ohio to plan, set priorities, and create aregional vision.

That is a motivating impulse behind ourCitizens' Bioregional Plan project. We believe thatmany citizens in the region are concerned aboutdevelopment patterns—particularly the sprawling,low-density development around the edges of themetropolitan area and the lack of redevelopment inolder urban areas. But citizens lack the data andtools to create alternative scenarios. Public planningagencies, while often sympathetic to the concerns,reflect the fragmented political structure of theregion and also have trouble taking a regionalperspective. So there is room for a nonprofit

organization such asEcoCity Cleveland to step inand play a role. This specialpublication summarizes theresults of our two-yearBioregional Plan project—an effort that involvedcitizens throughout theregion, raises questionsabout development patterns,and proposes positivealternatives. We hope that itwill inform the civicdialogue and inspire us all tobecome better stewards ofthe wonderful lands, waters,and communities ofNortheast Ohio.

ThanksThe development of ourBioregional Plan wassupported by generousgrants from the GeorgeGund Foundation,Cleveland Foundation,and Abington Foundation.Funding for this specialpublication came from theCyrus Eaton Foundation.Software for geographicinformation systems wasdonated by theEnvironmental SystemsResearch Institute (ESRI).And the U.S.Environmental ProtectionAgency supported thecreation of our Web site,which features interactive mapping capability.

We also thank the staff at Cleveland StateUniversity's Northern Ohio Data and InformationService, who assisted with data analysis, mapcreation, and Web site construction. Staff at localmetropark districts and planning agencies shareddata with us and participated on the project'stechnical advisory committee. And hundreds ofpeople across the region attended meetings to learnabout the project and offer their comments.

With all the help, we believe this report reflectsthe collective wisdom of some of the best minds inour region. It's been exciting to work with everyoneto draw new lines on our bioregional map.

—David Beach, Director—Bradley Flamm, Project Manager

Drawing lines InsideIntroduction ..................................... 2Bioregional maps

Land and water .......................... 6Outmigration patterns................ 8Shifting wealth ........................ 10Zoned for development ........... 12Transportation projects............ 14Lands at risk ............................ 16Town centers ........................... 18Outer Emerald Necklace.......... 20Rethinking the region .............. 22

Conclusion .................................... 24Summary of recommendations ...... 25Follow-up mapping ....................... 26Resources ...................................... 28

For more maps and information, checkout our Web site atwww.ecocleveland.org.

EcoCity Cleveland Bioregional Plan 1

H O M E A T E C O C I T Y

Grand River in Lake County Photo by Gary Meszaros

EcoCity Cleveland Bioregional Plan2

I N T R O D U C T I O N

While early surveyors in North America used a system ofmetes and bounds that divided the land along its naturalcontours, Gen. Moses Cleaveland's party laid down anartificial grid that divided the land into 5-mile by 5-milesquares. Each square was identified as a numbered"township" in a numbered "range." Initially, this work wascarried out only on land east of the Cuyahoga River, since atthis time the river marked the western boundary of the UnitedStates.

Cleaveland's party chose the grid system for severalreasons. The first was to divide the land equitably amongstthe stockholders of the Connecticut Land Company. Inaddition, the grid would facilitate the sale of the land to thegeneral public and provide long-term security of title for eachparcel.

The resulting checkerboard bore no relationshipwhatsoever to the natural features of the land. In some places,the rigid survey lines took the surveyors through denseswamps. Atwater writes: "On the 56th mile is a Cranberryswamp…so miry that it is dangerous to attempt and difficultto perform a passage through either by man or beast." Atother times, heavy underbrush obstructed their efforts. "Thebushes are Thorns, Plums, Crabapples, Hazelnut ... all unitedin their branches which very much hindered our progress."Only where the grid intersected Lake Erie and the CuyahogaRiver did it yield to the natural contours of the landscape.

Thus, while the grid system of surveying sped the transferof land, it was divorced from the features of the land. Byimposing a new logic on the natural landscape in theCuyahoga Bioregion, the surveyors launched a process thatwould increasingly distance human inhabitants from thenatural world around them. Responsibility for this separationlay not with the surveyors themselves, but rather with themind set of their culture as a whole, which maintained a viewof land ownership that contrasted sharply with that of theindigenous inhabitants.

—Benjamin Hitchings(from an essay about the 1796 land survey of the Western

Reserve in The Greater Cleveland Environment Book)

Surveying the wilderness

Change in the Western ReserveMap from 1826 of the Ohio Western Reserve and Fire Lands

This used to be one of the greatest countiesin the world for a great variety of game.

There were the Elk, Deer, Bear, Wolf,Panther, Wild Cat, Otter, Beaver,

Wollynigs, Porcupine, Raccoon, and agreat variety of small animals. Of the

feathered flock, there were Swans, Geese,Ducks, Turkeys, Bald Eagles, Grey Eagles,

Ravens, Buzzards, Crows, Owls, and agreat variety of small birds, that used to

make the forest ring with their sweet songs,as one happy family of the forest. And

where are they now? The white man hasthrown death and destruction among them,and they have all disappeared and gone to

return no more forever.—Christian Cackler,

Recollections of an Old SettlerPortage County, c. 1870

Western Reserve Historical Society

In recent years we've seen growing concerns aboutdevelopment patterns in Northeast Ohio. People arerealizing that they don't like what's happening totheir communities—both in the urban core and out inthe country.

Residents of older cities and suburbs are seeingthat the "growth" at the edges of metropolitan areasis often just outmigration from the urban core—acostly and destructive shell game of population andtax base that undermines the long-term investmentsociety has made in existing communities. Residentsof the new boom towns are finding that unmanagedgrowth often brings sudden demands for cityservices, higher taxes and the loss of the ruralcharacter that attracted them to the country in thefirst place. Environmentalists are understanding howthe way land is developed impacts air quality, water

quality, and energy use. Opinion polls are showingthat people see the wisdom of maintaining existingcommunities and preserving open space.

In sum, people are agreeing with the words ofRichard Moe of the National Trust for HistoricPreservation who says, "Development that destroyscommunities and the places people care about isn'tprogress. It's chaos."

Images for alternative futuresWhat people have a harder time seeing is how thingscould be different. They lack mental images of moredesirable patterns of land use. They have a hard timeimagining methods which could change developmentpatterns. Moreover, they lack a vision of the

Continued on the next pagebioregion—a landscape knitted together by natural


Americans initially moved tothe suburbs for privacy,mobility, security and homeownership. What we now haveis isolation, congestion, risingcrime, pollution andoverwhelming costs—coststhat ultimately must be paid bytaxpayers, businesses and theenvironment. This sprawlingpattern of growth at the edgesnow produces conditionswhich frustrate rather thanenhance daily life.

—Peter Calthorpe,architect and author of

The Next American Metropolis

Bioregional valuesThe Citizens' Bioregional Plan isdesigned to enhance our region'sability to guide development andcreate livable communities based onthese values:• Clean air and water• Access to nature• The ability to get from here to there• Safe, stable neighborhoods• Resources for future generations• A strong regional economy

Guiding principles• Promote understanding of theNortheast Ohio bioregion—the uniqueinterdependence of natural ecosystemsand human settlements in this place.• Involve citizens of the region inplanning for livable communities andan environmentally healthy future.• Revitalize the older cities of theregion and protect the rural characterof villages and towns.• Encourage pedestrian-friendlyneighborhoods by providing a varietyof housing types, mixing land usesand promoting transit.• Give residents of the region moretransportation choices and help themreduce their dependence on cars.• Conserve green spaces throughoutthe region, in both urban and ruralsettings.• Preserve farmland and strengthenthe agricultural economy.• Reduce long-term costs to taxpayersby building only the infrastructurecommunities can afford to maintain.• Offer a pro-development vision (butbe careful about where developmentoccurs and the form it takes).

A region at the crossroads


systems rather than a regiondivided by cities and counties.

The Citizens' Bioregional Planproject, which is summarized inthis publication, attempts toprovide some of these images. Itoffers conceptual maps to helppeople envision alternative landuse futures for the region. Themaps will help citizens think aboutquestions such as:

• What lands in our region arelikely to be developed in the nextdecade?

• Where might a regionalgreenbelt (an outer EmeraldNecklace) be created?

• Where should newdevelopment be concentrated topromote livable communities andmixed land uses?

• How could the buildingindustry's legitimate need forbuildable land be satisfied in themost sustainable manner possible?

• Where should transportationimprovements be focused to linktown centers and reducedependence on the automobile?

• How might sensitive naturalareas and open spaces bepreserved for future generationsand to protect the region'sbiological diversity?

• How can farming have aviable future in Northeast Ohio?

The Bioregional Plan seeks tomake these questions part of thepublic dialogue. It's an attempt topromote a wide-ranging discussionabout what it would mean to createa sustainable pattern of settlementin Northeast Ohio. It providescitizens with a positive vision towork towards, so they don't always

have to be NIMBYs opposingdevelopment. And it will helppublic officials think regionally.

Our processDuring the past two years the staffof EcoCity Cleveland developedthe plan through a process of GIS(geographic information system)analysis and citizen involvement.GIS allowed us to process vastamounts of data about land usetrends and then produce computer-generated maps of alternativescenarios. Most of the data camefrom local planning agencies, parkdistricts and universities. We hadhelp on technical mapping issuesfrom a technical advisorycommittee of local GIS expertsand from the Northern Ohio Dataand Information Service atCleveland State University'sCollege of Urban Affairs.

We presented preliminarymaps and concepts at 30 meetingsthroughout the region. Themeetings were hosted byenvironmental groups, land trusts,soil and water conservationdistricts, planning agencies andother organizations. Near the endof the process, we held four publicmeetings (in Cleveland, Akron,Elyria and Kirtland) to obtain finalcitizen comment on the draft plan.In all, nearly 1,000 peopleattended the meetings.

The completed plan will bepresented at a Citizens'Bioregional Congress to be held inCleveland on May 15, 1999.Citizens from around the regionwill be invited to attend to ratifythe plan, pledge to support itsimplementation, and generally

celebrate the bioregion.In the coming years, EcoCity

Cleveland will continue topromote the ideas contained in thisplan. We will develop newprojects to supportimplementation. And we will keepsupporting the civic dialogue withour publications and interactiveWeb site. We hope the Web sitewill become a particularly usefultool for citizens, as it will allowanyone with Internet connectionsto view and manipulate theBioregional Plan maps.

Sense of urgencyWe feel a sense of urgency aboutthe need to re-imagine NortheastOhio. We are on the verge of ahuge leap in the amount ofdeveloped land in the region, eventhough we are growing slowly inpopulation and employment. Ineffect, a relatively stablepopulation is consuming more andmore land per person. As a result,we are spreading out our assets,undermining the health of existingurban areas, destroying valuablefarmland and open space, andcreating intractable environmentalproblems.

Will we find more sustainableways to develop our communities?We can—if we imagine thealternatives and work together fora different future.

Punderson State Park Photo by Gary Meszaros

...[I]nstead of perceiving the landscape as a commodity to beexploited, landscapes should be perceived in the same way as worksof art and cherished and treated with respect. Integrating art and lifeimplies a reciprocal relationship with the land: that when we takesomething from the land, we must give something back.

—Philip Lewis, Tomorrow By Design


How to read the mapsThe maps on the following pages are presented in the order of anargument. They start by describing the natural features of the seven-county region (our study area). Then we present maps showing wheredevelopment trends are taking the region—including the outmigrationof population and the movement of wealth. Next come a zoning mapillustrating that almost the entire region is zoned for development anda transportation map showing how proposed highway projectsfacilitate sprawling development. The data about where we're going issummarized in a "lands at risk" map that shows where development islikely to take place in the next 20 years.

Then come the alternatives. We present a map of urban centers andtown centers where development should be encouraged. An OuterEmerald Necklace map presents an ambitious vision for open spaceprotection. And, finally, a composite map brings together ideas fordevelopment zones and preservation zones.

DisclaimerPlease keep in mind that the maps of future scenarios are conceptual.While they are based on good data and professional judgment, they arenot precise land use plans. We have merely identified areas ofopportunity in a general way. No map implies that any particularparcel of land will be bought or sold for development or public uses.

Study area: The Bioregional Plan focuses on Cuyahoga County and thesix surrounding counties—Lorain, Medina, Summit, Portage, Geauga,and Lake.

What's a bioregion?What if you couldn't use the geographical names and boundaries—cities, counties, states—which humans have imposed on the landscape to describe where you live? Well, you'd probablyhave to look at the landscape itself for a new way to describe your home. You might, forexample, say that you live near a river or a lake. Or you might live in an area characterized by abeech-maple forest or outcroppings of a certain erosion-resistant sandstone. Or the dominantfeature in your life might be an urban landscape of concrete and asphalt. In any case, you wouldhave to look about your home with fresh eyes and find new landmarks. And, ultimately, yournew way of defining your home territory—your new "address"— would tell a lot about what youvalue in your surroundings.

This creative act of redefining your home in terms of patterns in the landscape is the essenceof bioregionalism. A bioregion, or life-place, is a geographic area of interconnected naturalsystems and their characteristic watersheds, landforms, species and human cultures. It's a placethat "hangs together" in ecological and human terms. And it's typically small enough so that youcan know it deeply and learn how to care for the natural systems that support all life within it.As Kirkpatrick Sale says in his book Dwellers in the Land, the bioregion is the scale at which"human potential can match ecological reality."

Church in Kirtland

Brandywine Falls Photo by Gary Meszaros


M A P P I N G O U R F U T U R E

What: Map of river drainage basinsand land cover in the seven-county region,showing urban areas, forest cover,agricultural areas and water features. Notethe concentration of forest cover east ofCleveland and in the Cuyahoga Valley, aswell as the amount of farmland in Lorainand Medina counties.

Why: In a bioregional analysis it'simportant to start with the natural featuresof the landscape. We need to know whereour rivers flow, where are the best placesto grow food, what areas are best todevelop and what areas should be left fornature.

How: The land cover categories werederived by the Ohio Department of NaturalResources from a 1994 Landsat satelliteimage.

Map prepared by Northern Ohio Data and InformationService (NODIS)A member of the Ohio GIS-NetworkThe Urban Center, Levin College of Urban AffairsCleveland State University, 1998Data sources: 1994 Landsat TM (processed by Ohio

Department of Natural Resources), United StatesGeological Survey (USGS)

Land and water


To learn more about our home region herein Northeast Ohio, most of us refer to themaps that are readily available to us. Moreoften than not, those are road mapsdesigned to help us navigate the region bycar. With them, we can easily pick out thecity, township and county borders inNortheast Ohio, as well as the highwaysand roads that will get us from one place toanother.

But if we want to explore the bioregion,we need to look beyond those politicalboundaries and roads to see the underlyingnatural features. If we succeed, we'll see theboundaries between watersheds and the waythe Allegheny plateau to the east descendsto the lake and till plains to the west.Forested areas and farmland will revealthemselves, as will the protected greenspaces and the urbanized areas where mostof our region's residents live. Thinkingbioregionally, we'll be able to follow thosefeatures where they lead us, whether they'rebounded by municipal and county lines orthey meander through dozens of cities andtownships.

Our bioregional map includes fivemajor watersheds drained by the Black,Rocky, Cuyahoga, Chagrin and Grandrivers. The Mahoning and Tuscarawasrivers and smaller creeks (such as EuclidCreek and Doan Brook) also drain portionsof our region. These rivers and theirwatersheds vary widely in character fromthe heavily urban and industrial lowerCuyahoga to the state-designated "wild andscenic" Grand River. Protecting these riversand their adjacent wetlands and floodplainforests is one of our most importantbioregional tasks.

The bioregionfrom space

If enough people had spoken for

the river, we might have saved it.

If enough people had believed that

our scarred country was worth

defending, we might have dug in

our heels and fought. Our

attachments to the land were all

private. We had no shared lore, no

literature, no art to root us there, to

give us courage to help us stand

our ground. The only maps we had

were those issued by the state,

showing a maze of numbered lines

stretched over emptiness. The

Ohio landscape never showed up

on postcards or posters, never

unfurled like tapestry in films,

rarely filled even a paragraph in

books. There were no mountains

in that place, no waterfalls, no

rocky gorges, no vistas. It was a

country of low hills, cut over

woods, scoured fields, villages

that had lost their purpose, roads

that had lost their way.

—Scott Russell Sanders,Writing from the Center

(describing his childhood alongthe Mahoning River

in Northeast Ohio)

Silver Creek in Geauga County

Black River west branch falls in Elyria


What: Where people lived in theseven-county region in 1970 (green dots)and 1990 (red dots). The map shows thatpopulation spread out during the 20-yearperiod, even though the region'spopulation declined by about 200,000people.

Why: We need vivid pictures like thisto appreciate how Northeast Ohio hasexperienced sprawl without growth, awasteful process of land consumption andduplication of infrastructure.

How: Each dot on the map represents50 persons. The region had about 3million people in 1970 (green dots) andabout 2.8 million people in 1990 (reddots). By mapping the locations residentsfor the two different census years and thenoverlaying the results, you can see wherepopulation shifted.

Map prepared by Northern Ohio Data and InformationService (NODIS),A member of the Ohio GIS-NetworkThe Urban Center, Levin College of Urban AffairsCleveland State University, 1998Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau Population Statistics,

U.S. Census Bureau TIGER files, Ohio Departmentof Transportation (ODOT), Northeast OhioAreawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA)Population Projections

Outmigrationin the region


Moving outOhioans have become profligateconsumers of land. Metropolitan areas inOhio have been spreading outward into thesurrounding countryside at a rate five timesfaster than population growth. In NortheastOhio, Cleveland and Cuyahoga Countyhave seen declining populations (as haveAkron and Summit County) at the sametime that neighboring rural counties havebeen growing in population.

Some claim that this pattern ofoutmigration is simply the result ofpersonal preferences (i.e., the AmericanDream of a big house and yard in thesuburbs) and the workings of the freemarket. But a variety of public policies andsubsidies—such as tax abatements and thehighways that open up new land fordevelopment—facilitate the moves. Inother words, public policy helps to create aplaying field where it's easier to build onfarmland than to redevelop existing urbanareas.

In the next 20 years, these trends willcreate an extraordinary dilemma for theregion's central county. Cuyahoga Countywill be the first county in the state to buildout—to fully develop all its land. Then itwill have to ask the novel question: Whatnext? How does a county reorient itselffrom growth and development tomaintenance and redevelopment? Nocounty in Ohio has had to face thosequestions. And it's apparent that CuyahogaCounty can't face that future on its own. Itwill need help from the state—new statepolicies that redirect public investment toolder urban areas. One model for reform isthe Smart Growth program recentlyadopted in Maryland.

Population shifts1970 1980 1990

Cuyahoga 1,721,300 1,498,400 1,412,140Geauga 62,977 74,474 81,129Lake 197,200 212,801 215,499Lorain 256,843 274,909 271,126Medina 82,717 113,150 122,354Portage 125,868 135,856 142,585Summit 553,371 524,472 514,990TOTAL 3,000,276 2,834,062 2,759,823Source: U.S. Census

In 1996, officials of Cleveland'soldest suburbs formed the FirstSuburbs Consortium in an effortto preserve and protect maturecommunities across the state andto "level the playing field" inorder to achieve balanceddevelopment. The Consortium ishelping to organize a statewidecoalition to scrutinize, and thenredirect, public policies andpublic dollars in order to promotethe following goals:

• Major reinvestment in fullydeveloped communities and inexisting infrastructure (schools,bridges, sewers and roads);

• Revitalization of traditionalneighborhoods and their tax base;

• Enhanced quality of lifeand economic stability in ourmature communities;

• Preservation of farmlandand open space; and

• Protection of theenvironment.If Ohio is to be a strongcompetitor in the globaleconomy, it must achieve realgrowth rather than simplyrelocating existing businessesand duplicating expensiveinfrastructure.

—from a statement bythe First Suburbs Consortium

Moving to Lorain County

Brownfield site in Cleveland


What: Map showing that theoutmigration patterns in the region are alsopatterns of social stratification, as certainexclusive suburbs capture a greaterproportion of the region's tax base andwealthy households.

Why: Inequities in tax base make itmore difficult for older communities tomaintain themselves. As decline spreads,wealthier households move farther out fromthe urban cores of the region, leaving behindincreasing concentrations of poverty.Reversing these trends will require strongerefforts to redevelop older communities.

How: The 226 cities, villages andtownships of the seven-county regiondepend on growing tax bases to financepublic services, schools and infrastructure.A study by researchers at Cleveland StateUniversity's Housing Policy ResearchProgram mapped the status of tax basesacross the region and related change in taxbase to real estate development, populationmovement and public policy.

Analysis conducted and map prepared by the Housing PolicyResearch ProgramThe Urban Center -- Ohio GIS-NetworkMaxine Goodman Levin College of Urban AffairsCleveland State University, 1997(reformatted by EcoCity Cleveland, 1999)

Shifting wealth


Divided societyGreater Cleveland is famous for its EmeraldNecklace, the wonderful network of parksencircling the area. But another necklace—onewith troubling implications—has developed inrecent years. This is a necklace of suburbs that iscapturing much of the regional growth in tax baseand is leaving behind increasingly impoverishedurban core and rural areas. This band ofmigrating wealth shows up on the maps in deepblue. Researchers at Cleveland State Universityhave dubbed it the "Sapphire Necklace."

The Sapphire Necklace is a band of high taxbase cities, villages and townships that extendsnortheast-southwest between Lake and Medinacounties. In contrast, tax bases are weakest infully developed communities and in rural districtswhere little development has occurred. Thirty-twopercent of the region's residents live incommunities with the strongest tax bases, and 68percent live in communities with the weakest taxbases.

Among the troubling implications of thismap:

• The future of Cuyahoga County is at risk,as erosion of tax base moves from the inner cityand increasingly affects inner-ring suburbs.

• Long-established public policies andpractices (especially the construction of newhighways) have favored the development of newcommunities at the outer edges of urban areasover maintenance and redevelopment ofestablished, older communities. Unless thesepublic policies change, the region faces a futureof spreading decline, environmental degradation,and loss of farmland and natural areas.

• The fragmented political structure ofNortheast Ohio, which pits communities againstone another in the competition for tax base,prevents cooperation for balanced development.

Support for the maintenance and redevelopment of central cities, and now inner-ring suburbs, has simplynot been comparable to the underwriting of sprawl. Unbalanced investment promoted housing andeconomic growth in outlying areas to the detriment of older urban neighborhoods. That kind ofunbalanced investment did not provide people with fair choices if they wanted to remain in moreestablished neighborhoods. That pattern of unbalanced investment has brought us to an anomaloussituation in Northeast Ohio—we basically have flat regional population growth yet we spread out overmore and more land. We have sprawl without growth.

Does this well-established trend represent good stewardship of our valuable agricultural lands? Doesit lead to a cleaner environment? Does it strengthen the social fabric of our communities? Does it makecohesive, vibrant family life easier? Does it foster greater civic participation? Does it wisely utilize ourfiscal resources? Does it increase our economic competitiveness? Does it further a healthy appreciationof multicultural diversity? Does it better ground our young people in a rooted, meaningful sense ofidentity marked by solid values? Does it help break down the isolation of people by race, income andculture? Does it help bridge the widening gaps that separate rich, poor and middle class? Does it advancesocial justice and the common good? I don't think so.

—Cleveland Catholic Bishop Anthony Pilla

More of the region's wealth is moving out to the cornfields Jobs and tax base along I-271


What: Current zoning patternsthroughout Northeast Ohio (except SummitCounty, where a single county-wide map isnot available). The map shows that, apartfrom a few protected open spaces in theseven counties, essentially the entire regionis zoned for development, regardless ofwhether land is highly productive farmlandor harbors unique ecosystems.

Why: This pattern of zoning wasestablished by individual cities, villagesand townships without much regard to theregional implications. Nevertheless, this isthe de facto development plan for theregion.

How: The Northeast Ohio AreawideCoordinating Agency (NOACA) compiledthe zoning maps of all communitiesthroughout Lake, Geauga, Medina, Lorainand Cuyahoga counties, and the PortageCounty Regional Planning Commission didthe same for Portage County. Thoughzoning categories and terminology varywidely from place to place, the map to theright generalizes those categories into theseven seen here.

Map prepared by EcoCity Cleveland, 1999Data sources: Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating

Agency (NOACA), Northern Ohio Data andInformation Service (NODIS), Portage CountyRegional Planning Commission, U.S. Census BureauTIGER files

Zoned fordevelopment


Waitingfor housesPeople who move out to a newsubdivision "in the country" are oftensurprised and angry when the woods andfields behind their new house becomesyet another subdivision. They don't realizethat practically all of the countryside ofNortheast Ohio is zoned to allowdevelopment.

Much of this zoning was created in anad hoc manner by individual communitieswho never thought about whether theregion as a whole really needs all thatresidential land or another industrial parkout in the middle of Amish farm country.

It's pretty amazing to calculate whatwould happen if some of these placesfully developed according to their presentzoning. In Medina County, for example,all of the vacant land in townships(165,000 acres now used mostly foragriculture) is zoned for development. Ifthe current pace of building continues, allof this land will be completely developedby 2045. That would bring 47,000 newhomes and would eliminate farming in thecounty. The county's population woulddouble, and the number of students in theBuckeye, Black River, Cloverleaf, andHighland school districts would increase300 percent (projections from a study bythe Housing Policy Research Center atCleveland State University). Such growthwould create tremendous pressures forcostly new roads, schools, sewer systemsand other services. And it's not clearwhether residents really want their countyto change so drastically.

I went back to OhioBut my pretty countrysideHad been paved down the middleBy a government that had no pride.The farms of OhioHad been replaced by shopping mallsAnd Muzak filled the airFrom Seneca to Cuyahoga Falls.

— "My City was Gone"from the Pretenders' Learning to Crawl album Five-acre lot zoning

Two-acre lot zoning

One-acre lot zoning


What: The location of over $2 billion inhighway capacity additions planned or proposedto be constructed in Northeast Ohio during thenext two decades. The map shows that most suchadditions are located in suburban and rurallocations where they would increaseaccessibility, encouraging a new wave of low-density, auto-dependent land use. Commuter raillines currently under study could play a morebeneficial role, if designed to connect towncenters.

Why: It's difficult to plan for reinvesting incore urban communities and protecting valuablefarmland and open spaces if transportationinfrastructure investments encourage landspeculation and sprawling development at theedges of the metropolitan area. The impact oftwo billion dollars in transportation investmentswill be felt for decades to come.

How: Transportation planning agencies forthe seven-county region (NOACA and AMATS)have recently completed long-range plan updatesin which most of the projects on the map aredescribed. In addition, other projects have beenincluded because significant attention has beenpaid to them in the press: for example, proposalsfor new interchanges at I-90 and Lear/NagleRoad in Avon (Lorain County), US 422 andMunn Road in Auburn Township (GeaugaCounty), I-71 and Boston Road (on theCuyahoga/Medina County line) and on I-480 inIndependence (Cuyahoga County).

Map prepared by EcoCity Cleveland, 1999Data sources: Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency

(NOACA), Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation Study(AMATS), U.S. Census Bureau TIGER files

Transportationprojects


In the past 50 years most development in theUnited States has been oriented to theautomobile. It's been a spread-out, low-density form of development that has largelyignored other forms of transportation, suchas transit, biking and walking. As a result,our society has become increasinglydependent on the automobile—and we'resuffering from greater traffic congestion, airpollution and reliance on foreign oil. Inaddition, many people are realizing that theydon't like the "feel" of auto-orienteddevelopment. The ring road around the malljust doesn't give them the inviting, human-scale experience of a traditional Main Street.

The alternative to this automobile sprawlis transit-oriented development, whichclusters a mix of residential, retail, office,open space, and public uses in a walkableenvironment, making it convenient forresidents and employees to travel by transit,bicycle, foot, or car. Transit-orienteddevelopment follows a few basic principles:

• Areas within walking distance of lightrail or high frequency bus transit contain amix of moderate- to high-density residential,commercial and employment uses that createa place with a high degree of pedestrianactivity and a focal point for transit trips.

• Commercial and civic uses are placednext to transit stops so that a number oferrands can be done with only one stop.

• Multiple street connections fromneighborhoods to transit stops and local

commercial destinations are provided.• Design is for pedestrians and transit,

without excluding the auto.• Natural features are brought into the

urban area and connected to regional greenspaces.These principles can be applied both toexisting urban areas and to newlydeveloping areas. Across the country,communities are realizing that they bringmany benefits:

• Increased transportation choices andaccess, especially for those without cars(children, the elderly, people withdisabilities).

• Reduction of traffic congestion, airpollution, and energy consumption.

• Reduced need for costly roadwidenings.

• Revitalization of compact urbancommunities and reduction of sprawldevelopment.

• Increased ability to manage growth byplanning land use in relation to transit.

In the next 20 years Northeast Ohio isplanning to spend $2 billion on newhighway capacity, much of which willfacilitate continued low-density developmentand outmigration. How could we spend thatmoney in the region's existing town centersto promote redevelopment and a morebalanced transportation system?

Transportation for people or cars?

Rapid transit is a focal point for... stylish, high-density housing...

...and a pedestrian-friendly shopping area at Cleveland's Shaker Square


What: The map depicts areas alreadyurbanized (according to U.S. CensusBureau criteria), suburban and rural areasthat are developed at low densities, andareas that today are still largely rural, butare likely to become low-density suburbs by2020.

Why: To see where our currentpolicies and investment patterns are takingus. Understanding where low-densitygrowth is likely to occur during the next 21years is important as a wake-up call notonly for urban and suburban residentswhose communities are threatened withcontinued disinvestment, but for ruralresidents too who stand to see the ruralcharacter and natural resources of theircommunities diminished or destroyed.

How: Using population projections,proposals for extensions of sewer lines,zoning information, and planned andproposed highway capacity additions forthe period 1999 to 2020, EcoCity Clevelandidentified areas where development is notonly possible, but likely to occur.

Analysis conducted and map prepared by EcoCityCleveland, with technical assistance from the Northern OhioData and Information Service (NODIS), 1999.Data sources: Cleveland Metroparks Open Space Inventory,

from Ohio Capabilities Analysis Program (OCAP),ODNR; U.S. Census Bureau TIGER files; U.SCensus Bureau Population Statistics; Northeast OhioAreawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA); AkronMetropolitan Area Transportation Study (AMATS);Northern Ohio Data and Information Service(NODIS); Portage County Regional PlanningCommission

Lands at risk


The transitionfrom rural to developedDo you ever get the feeling that whenever you drive out tothe country the country is no longer there? Instead, you seethe farms and open space being gobbled up in huge chunksof low-density subdivisions and commercial strips.

Many of these areas are not included in the officialdefinition of the region's "urbanized areas" because theyfall below the Census Bureau's threshold of 1,000 peopleper square mile. But these areas look and feel developed,and they create many of the same environmental problems,traffic congestion, and service demands as more denselypopulated areas.

So, for our lands at risk of development map we chosea lower threshold of 250 people per square mile (roughlythe number of residents in an area with homes on five-acrelots). We projected what parts of the region would exceedthis threshold by 2020 (or meet one of several othercriteria related to the construction of sewers or highwayinterchanges). And we found it was a huge amount ofland—874 square miles, or about 30 percent of the region.Of that, about one third is already over the 250-persondensity threshold.

Thus, our region's developed area is set to balloonoutward in the next 20 years. It's going to be a dramaticchange.

Given the magnitude of the impacts, we would be wiseto ask about the long-term costs and the possiblealternatives.

The mentality of people whothink, "Let's move to this quaint,safe, small-town area and cutdown its trees and farms tobuild our subdivisions" isappalling. Get a grip, folks!With all the new people comingin, the small town will no longerbe small. What about workingtogether in our cities andsuburbs to make themwonderful and safe places inwhich to live? Then we won'tdestroy what little open spaceand small-town atmosphere wehave left.

—Robin Coyerfrom Broadview Heights, Ohio,letter in the December 29, 1997,

issue of Time magazine

When the land is cleared...

...and paved over...

...water quality is one of the casualties


What: Older cities and suburbs inNortheast Ohio—that reflect more compactand efficient patterns of land use. Most ofthe urban core communities identified on thismap were founded before the era ofwidespread automobile use. They offer a mixof land uses (residential, commercial, andwork places) and a variety of housing types.They offer easy access to destinations bytransit, bike, or foot. And they make cost-effective use of infrastructure. Smallerhistoric village centers in the region alsoshare these characteristics.

Why: These areas are the urban centersof the region. If maintained and redeveloped,they can offer attractive places to live for agrowing proportion of the households in theregion.

How: The Northeast Ohio AreawideCoordinating Agency identified the coreurban communities in Lake, Geauga,Medina, Lorain and Cuyahoga counties usingfive criteria: peak Census year forpopulation, population density, age ofhousing stock, density of street networks,and assessed real property value per capita.EcoCity Cleveland identified core urbancommunities in Summit and Portage countiesusing similar criteria.

Map prepared by EcoCity Cleveland, 1999Data sources: Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency

(NOACA), U.S. Census Bureau Population Statistics

Urban coresof the region


According to Census projections, the seven-county regionis expected to add about 75,000 households between 2000and 2020. At the same time, the homebuilding industrywill build about 210,000 new housing units if current ratescontinue. Most of those houses will be built on farmland inrural areas. Can we consider where else they might go?

Let's start by pointing out that there will be 135,000more new houses than new households, meaning that anumber of older homes could be abandoned in the region.What if we did a better job maintaining those older homesand communities or rebuilding on the sites of obsoletehousing? We might find that most of those 135,000housing units could be located where housing alreadyexists. With aggressive redevelopment strategies, let's saythat 100,000 units could be located in this way.

That leaves 35,000 plus the 75,000 new housingunits needed by the new households, a total of 110,000. Tofind new sites for these houses, we could again look at theinfill development potential of existing urban areas—creative ways to add attractive new housing to existingcommunities. For example, the City of Cleveland alonecould take 500 new units a year for total of 10,000 over 20years. If other core urban areas on the map at left absorbeda proportional amount, we might find room for 50,000

units. Done with good design and a mix of housing styles(single-family detached, condos, row houses, apartments),these units could contribute to the quality and diversity ofcore communities.

Out of the remaining 60,000 units, 30,000 might bedistributed in newer suburbs. The emphasis might be tointegrate housing in "edge city" employment centers aspart of a retrofit program to turn them into denser, mixed-use centers.

That would leave 30,000 houses to be built in thecountry. Smart development would cluster the units in"conservation subdivisions" near existing towns. Thatwould require the development of less than half of the landof conventional subdivisions.

If we could do all this, we could meet the futurehousing needs of our population with a diverse andaffordable supply of homes. We could keep builders busyconstructing new homes and rehabbing existing ones. Andwe could do nearly all of it within the existing developedarea of the region.

We don't have to bulldoze hundreds of thousands ofacres of countryside!

Where to put 210,000 homes?

Creative infill development in Cleveland Conservation subdivision at edge of the metro area


What: A proposal for creating a new,Outer Emerald Necklace in Northeast Ohiothat combines existing protected spaces (inmetroparks, conservation areas andrecreational and institutional lands), rivercorridors and floodplains, as well as rail andutility corridors that could provide trails andlinks between protected areas.

Why: It's time for a next-generationgreenbelt in the region to protect criticalnatural areas, provide recreationalopportunities, ensure better water quality andprevent damage from flooding in most of ourmajor river corridors, and create a bufferbetween rural areas and conservationdevelopment areas closer to the urban core.

How: Suggestions and proposals fromindividuals, land trusts, metroparks staff andplanning commission officials in the sevencounties of Northeast Ohio have beenincorporated in this map. The identifiedmetroparks, parks and conservation areasalready are protected; the connectionsbetween them were identified to protectwetlands, floodplains and habitat for wildlifeand provide recreational opportunities.

Map prepared by EcoCity Cleveland, with technical assistancefrom the Northern Ohio Data and Information Service(NODIS), 1999.Data sources: Cleveland Metroparks Open Space Inventory,

from Ohio Capabilities Analysis Program (OCAP),ODNR; United States Geological Survey (USGS); U.S.Census Bureau Population Statistics; Northeast OhioAreawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA)

An OuterEmerald Necklace


People probably thought that Cleveland parksengineer William Stinchcomb was crazywhen he began talking in 1905 about buyingup land in the country for future parks. Buttoday we are grateful for the foresight of earlypark planners like Stinchcomb. TheCleveland Metroparks' Emerald Necklace isone of the most important assets of NortheastOhio. It contributes to our quality of life incountless ways and enhances the image of theentire region.

In the 1970s, we were fortunate to protectmuch of the Cuyahoga Valley between Akronand Cleveland. Now, as we approach a newcentury, it's time to think about the next bigleap forward in open space protection—anOuter Emerald Necklace. Our region hasexpanded outward, and so must our vision ofprotected open space.

The metropark districts in the outlyingcounties have been working hard to acquirepark lands, but their current resources will notallow them to assemble a comprehensivegreenbelt before the land is gone.Development pressure is mounting. Landprices are rising. We need a major publicinvestment today to assure that we protect thebest natural areas—protect them for ourchildren, for environmental quality, and for

the survival of other species.The map at left shows the location of

some of the most significant areas. There area total of 212,480 acres in this proposedOuter Emerald Necklace. Of that, 53,837acres are already publicly protected, andanother 20,578 acres are publicly owned inthe Ravenna Arsenal. That leaves 138,065acres unprotected. If half of this land could beprotected through conservation easementsfrom private landowners, then about 69,000acres would have to be bought. At $10,000per acre (probably on the high side), the costwould be $690 million.

That sounds like a lot. But our region hasthe capacity to raise hundreds of millions ofdollars for worthwhile projects. An OuterEmerald Necklace would be one of the bestinvestments we could make.

An Outer Emerald Necklace could be acooperative initiative of the metroparkdistricts in the seven counties. It couldinclude a mosaic of public park lands andprivate lands protected with conservationeasements. The regional initiative also couldcreate dramatic improvements in urban parksand begin work on a lakefront greenway.

Emerald Necklace visionaryI want to suggest the advisability of ultimately establishing an outer system of parks andboulevards...Through the valleys of Rocky River on the west, and Chagrin River on the east,lie some of the finest stretches of natural park lands to be found in the northern part ofOhio. While all this is now entirely outside of the city, it will be but a short time before theywill be inside or very near the limits of a "Greater Cleveland" and it seems to me that suchfine stretches of natural parkway should be secured for the benefit of the entire publicbefore private enterprise or commercial industry places them beyond reach.

—William Stinchcomb, chief engineer of parks for the City of Cleveland,in 1905. Stinchcomb's bold vision eventually became

the Cleveland Metroparks' Emerald Necklace.

Open space: Now or never

Protecting high quality river corridors, such as the Grand,should be a regional priority Photo by Gary Meszaros

Public open space is an essential amenity


What: A composite, conceptual map ofthe Bioregional Plan's vision for NortheastOhio. It shows recommended zones forurban cores, edge suburbs, conservationdevelopment areas, an Outer EmeraldNecklace, and rural preservation. The urbancores are connected by rail transit to reducedependence on the automobile.

Why: We need to reconceptualize theregion in terms of development prioritiesand land preservation opportunities thatcross county lines.

How: In a simple, graphic presentation,this map integrates our previous maps ofurban cores, Outer Emerald Necklace, andtransportation projects.

Map prepared by EcoCity Cleveland, 1999Data sources: U.S. Census Bureau Population Statistics;

U.S. Census Bureau TIGER files; Northeast OhioAreawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA); Bogart,W.T. and Ferry, W. (1997) Employment Centers inGreater Cleveland: Evidence of Evolution in a FormerlyMonocentric City. Manuscript, Department ofEconomics, Case Western Reserve University(submitted to the journal Urban Studies); ClevelandMetroparks Open Space Inventory, from OhioCapabilities Analysis Program (OCAP), ODNR

Rethinkingthe region


A bioregional perspective allows us to lookbeyond the constraints imposed by city andcounty boundaries. It allows us to see broadpatterns at the regional scale.

What are the underlying patterns ofNortheast Ohio? We see the region having thefollowing basic zones:

Urban cores: These are made up of theregion's historic cities and older suburbs. Theyare places that have been fully developed forsome time. They have relatively dense streetgrids and other infrastructure, walkableneighborhoods, and a healthy mix of housing,shopping and work places. They also may haveincreasing poverty rates and pressing needs forredevelopment. Maintaining the region'shistoric investment in these communities andpromoting urban livability should be a toppriority. Key programs for this zone includeaggressive brownfields cleanup and landassembly, infill development, housingmaintenance, historic preservation, urban parkimprovements, pedestrian and bicycleenhancements, streamlined permitting forredevelopment, and public schoolimprovements.

Edge suburbs: These are newercommunities, such as Strongsville and Mentor,within the region's urbanized area. Most arestill growing, and they are developing at lowerdensities than the urban cores. Housing,shopping and work places are widely separated,so it's hard to get around without a car. Keyprograms for this zone include development oftown centers with mixed land uses and higherdensity housing, redesign of streets to improvepedestrian environments, and redevelopment ofstrip malls and office parks to create betterpublic spaces and architectural character. Edgecity employment areas, such as Chagrin/I-271and Rockside/I-77, are prime areas to beredeveloped as mixed-use nodes of activity

where transit is a practical alternative to the car.Conservation development zone:

Communities in this zone are now rapidlydeveloping, typically at extremely low densitieswith houses on large lots. Much of the land isin townships, but some is also in historicWestern Reserve towns, such as Chardon,Oberlin and Hiram. If these communities are topreserve their rural character and small-towncharm, they need to develop less and developmore compactly. Key programs for this zoneinclude support for urban redevelopment toreduce pressure for rural development,reformed zoning and building codes to requirecompact and mixed-use development adjacentto existing towns, open space conservationrequirements for subdivisions that must belocated in rural locations, land trusts to protectland with conservation easements, right-to-farmlaws, and watershed protection programs.

Outer Emerald Necklace: This zonecontains river floodplains, wetlands, and othernatural areas that should be preserved for futuregenerations. Some of the land could beacquired by parks, but much of it could remainin private hands and be protected through asystem of conservation easements. Keyprograms for this zone include a regionalcampaign to raise funds for open spacepreservation and new public-privatepartnerships to reach out to landowners.

Rural preservation zone: This is what wereally mean by rural. Ideally, this area will seelittle development pressure, and a working,rural landscape will be preserved. New housingshould be located in existing rural towns andvillages, rather than located on frontage lotssplit from farm fields. Key programs for thiszone include new forms of agricultural zoningand programs to support family farms.

The loss of a forest or a farm is justified only if it is replacedby a village. To replace them with a subdivision or a shoppingcenter is not an even trade.

—Andres Duany,architect and leading proponent of the New Urbanism

Bioregional zoning

Redevelop the cities... ...retain the scale of small towns...

...and preserve the countryside


C O N C L U S I O N

A bold and positive visionWhy not go out on a limb? That's where the fruit is.

—Will Rogers

With our Citizens' Bioregional Plan we have attempted to lay out a bold andpositive vision for Northeast Ohio. We recognize that this vision represents amajor departure from business as usual. But we believe it's rooted in realpossibilities, future-oriented thinking, traditional community design, and thedesires of many citizens throughout the region.

Our plan is about improving our quality of life, being more economicallycompetitive as a metropolitan area, protecting our environment and ourhistoric investment in existing communities, and developing in sustainableways that save tax dollars in the long run.

It's also a pro-development vision. It describes where future developmentshould be actively encouraged and supported by public policy andinvestment. For we need to keep developing in Northeast Ohio. We need tokeep improving our communities.

But we are saying that new development does not have to entail thesprawling, geographic expansion of our urbanized area. We should focus ontaking care of our existing communities and protecting our countryside. If wedo this well, we can satisfy our housing needs and maintain the propertyvalues of most people in the region. And we can keep the building industrysupplied with good work for a long time to come.

A special opportunityIn a way, Northeast Ohio is fortunate. It hasn't sprawled nearly as much assome metropolitan areas in the country. So we have a special opportunity todo things right. We can keep our region manageable and livable.

But things must change—and change quickly. If low-densitydevelopment patterns continue for another generation, our urbanized areawill balloon outward. This expansion will impose tremendous costs on ourchildren.

Can we change? At EcoCity Cleveland, we've been encouraged by howthe public dialogue about regional development patterns has progressed inrecent years. Public awareness has grown. Many organizations are promotingchanges in state policies, land use planning, transportation investments, andregional cooperation.

Now is the time to reconceptualize Northeast Ohio. We can overcome thenarrow political boundaries that divide us and see the bioregion—a networkof healthy cities and town centers surrounded by open space and a workinglandscape of productive farms.

How you can helpThis bioregional plan is a work in progress—a dialogue with citizensthroughout the region. In the coming months, EcoCity Cleveland will befollowing up on the plan's recommendations, working with citizens' groupsin all seven counties, and educating elected officials.

Here's how you can help:• Endorse the plan personally and help us collect endorsements from

organizations. We will keep a running list of endorsers on our Web site.• Get involved in the land use planning for your community, and give

copies of the Bioregional Plan to your public officials. Tell them this iswhat you want for our region!

• Visit our Web site (www.ecocleveland.org) and experiment with ourbioregional maps.

• Keep sending us your comments and ideas (by mail, e-mail, orphone).

• Get to know the bioregion better, and think about how your ownactions impact your home territory.


Summary recommendationsThe Citizens' Bioregional Plan for Northeast Ohio recommends that we change ourthought and practice in the following ways:

• Adopt a new vocabulary to describe the region. The old vocabulary describes anold urban core competing against new suburbs and outer counties. The new vocabularydescribes a network of high density centers—urban cores, edge cities, Western Reservetowns—existing in balance with open space and rural areas.

• Maintain and redevelop existing cities and towns. Much of the region's newhousing construction could occur as infill development in existing urban areas or asconservation development subdivisions adjacent to town centers. Rural developmentprograms should enhance the viability of family farms.

• Begin a major campaign to preserve open space. Now is the time to create anOuter Emerald Necklace for the next generation. If we wait much longer, the land will begone. A parallel effort should work on improving urban parks and increasing publicaccess to Lake Erie.

• Change transportation priorities. Transportation investments should promotequality of life in existing urban areas by creating great public spaces that are notdominated by cars. The urban centers of the region should be efficiently linked byalternative modes of transportation, such as light rail.

• Create new partnerships at the regional level. These partnerships should includenot only citizens and organizations in Northeast Ohio, but also the State of Ohio, whichmust realign its policies to support urban redevelopment and open space protection.


Given the limited resources of a small, nonprofit organization,EcoCity Cleveland staff worked hard to make this BioregionalPlan as accurate and insightful as possible. But there were anumber of limitations to our analysis, many of which wereraised in our public review meetings:

• Old data: We had to rely on Census data from 1990.This probably makes our analysis conservative, since the paceof low-density development in rural areas seems to haveaccelerated since then. (In other words, things may be worsethan our maps indicate.) After the next Census in 2000 it willbe interesting to run the numbers again.

• Small region: For practical reasons our analysis wasconfined to seven counties, an area that does not include theentire bioregion. We would like to expand our coverage topick up all the Grand River and Vermilion River watersheds.And we need to look at how development pressure is buildingfarther out in the region, such as in Ashtabula and Waynecounties.

• Lands at risk: Our analysis could be refined with moredetailed information on land sales, building permits, andinfrastructure facilities plans.

• Forests: Large, intact areas of mature forest are ofcritical ecological importance in the region. Much of ourforested areas have already been developed or cleared forfarming, and much of the remainder is fragmented into smallwoodlots. Many native species of animals cannot survive insuch a fragmented landscape. Migratory songbirds, forinstance, need to nest deep in the woods to avoid predators.Our current open space map would protect forest lands alongstream corridors, but we'd like to refine our analysis to includeother areas where the large forest area still exist. Similarly, weneed to do more work to map important wetland resources.

• Farmland: We need a more sophisticated analysis of

farmland and soil quality so we can prioritize where to focusfarmland preservation efforts.

• Urban parks: Our analysis of open space and parks wasat a broad, regional scale, so it was impossible to map smallerurban parks. It's important not to overlook urban greenspace,since it contributes so much to quality of life in cities. We alsoneed to support plans to connect parks and open space withlinear trails and greenways.

• Lakefront access: We need a detailed, regional analysisof how to improve access to Lake Erie. It's a tragedy thatpublic access to our greatest natural resource is so limited.

• Industrial land: We would like to include an analysisof where new industrial development should be located.Presently, there are many scattered areas of industrially-zonedland throughout the region, as every community feels the needto have an industrial park for tax base. It's not clear whetherwe have the right kind of land in the right locations to permitsustainable economic growth while promoting reinvestment inexisting urban areas where jobs are needed.

• Impervious cover: One of the most serious impacts ofdevelopment is the creation of impervious surfaces (roads,parking lots, rooftops) that cause stormwater runoff problems.We need analyses of impervious cover for the watersheds ofevery stream and river.

• Transportation: We need a much finer analysis of whatkinds of transportation investments will improve quality of lifein each community.

Many of these tasks are technically complex and willrequire substantial resources. Ultimately, a detailedbioregional plan should be the work of our public planningagencies and a program of complete and meaningful publicinvolvement.

Uniqueness of placeIn the age of cheap energy wedid not pay much attention tolocality. Waste—call itecological incompetence—wassubsidized by cheap fossilenergy. But in the century ahead,powered by sunlight, we mustlearn how to rebuildcommunities and develop inways that preserve distinctivefeatures of landscape, localecology, and culture. We willneed "elegant solutionspredicated on the uniqueness ofplace," in John Todd's words.Elegance in this sense means:

• Architectural design thatfits the ecologies of particularplaces.

• Landscape design thatpreserves open spaces, pocketsof wilderness, wildlife corridors,biological diversity, andagricultural lands.

• Public policies thatpromote efficiency in the use ofmaterials and energy.

• Urban design thatenhances community cohesionand real prosperity.

• Economic accounting thatincludes all costs.

In the decades ahead therewards will go to theecologically competent whounderstand their places andregions.

—David Orr,professor of Environmental

Studiesat Oberlin College

Caveats and next steps for bioregional mapping


EcoCity Cleveland MissionEcoCity Cleveland is a nonprofit, tax-exempt, educational organization.

Through the publication of the EcoCity Cleveland Journal and other programs,it will stimulate ecological thinking about the Northeast Ohio region (CuyahogaBioregion), nurture an EcoCity Network among local groups working on urbanand environmental issues, and promote sustainable ways to meet basic human

needs for food, shelter, productive work and stable communities.

Board of TrusteesDavid Beach, Director, EcoCity ClevelandStuart Greenberg, Environmental Health WatchJudy Rawson, Shaker Heights City Council and First Suburbs ConsortiumRichard Shatten, Weatherhead School of Management, CWRUPhil Star, Center for Neighborhood Development, CSUChris Trepal, The Earth Day CoalitionCarl Wirtz, Hausser + Taylor

Advisory BoardMolly Bartlett, Silver Creek FarmThomas Bier, CSU Housing Policy Research ProgramJames Bissell, Cleveland Museum of Natural HistoryDiane Cameron, Natural Resources Defense CouncilAnne Chaka, Union of Concerned ScientistsEdith Chase, Ohio Coastal Resource Mgt. ProjectSandie Crawford, Tri-C Center for Environmental Education and TrainingLee DeAngelis, ConsultantJohn Debo, Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation AreaLois Epstein, Environmental Defense FundGeorge Espy, Seventh GenerationDavid Goss, Build Up Greater ClevelandChristine Hann, Cleveland Food Co-opSoren Hansen, Pennoni Associates of Ohio, EngineersRick Hawksley, Fuller Design Group and Northeast Ohio Land TrustCoalitionKim Hill, Sierra ClubMichael Johnstone, Minority Environmental Association and Envirospherics

ConsultingDavid Knapp, United Labor AgencySusan Lacy, WE-CAN!Craig Limpach, Wildlife biologistElaine Marsh, Friends of the Crooked RiverMikelann Ward Rensel, Cleveland Neighborhood Development Corp. NormanRobbins, CWRU Program for the EnvironmentKathleen Tark, City ArchitectureCarol Thaler, Cuyahoga County Planning CommissionJerome Walcott, Commission on Catholic Community Action

•EcoCity Cleveland

2841 Scarborough Road, Cleveland Heights, OH 44118Cuyahoga Bioregion

Telephone 216-932-3007 / Fax 216-932-6069E-mail address: [email protected]

Cover photo (bottom center) of Chagrin River by Gary Meszaros.

Bioregional Plan meetingsThe following organizations kindly hosted presentations of the draft Citizens' Bioregional Planbetween May 1998 and April 1999. (Listing here does not necessary imply endorsement of the finalplan or its recommendations.)

Black Brook AudubonCleveland State University, Center for Neighborhood DevelopmentCleveland State University College of Urban Affairs, class on regional sustainabilityCuyahoga County League of Women VotersCuyahoga County Soil and Water Conservation DistrictCuyahoga River Remedial Action Plan, Coordinating CommitteeCuyahoga River Remedial Action Plan, Yellow Brook groupGeauga County Soil and Water Conservation DistrictHeadwaters LandtrustHolden ArboretumInter-Community CoalitionKent Environmental CouncilLake County Farmland Conservation Task ForceLake County MetroparksLakewood/Rocky River Rotary ClubLakewood United Methodist ChurchLorain County Community College, Public Services InstituteLorain County Soil and Water Conservation DistrictMedina County Soil and Water Conservation DistrictMetroparks Serving Summit County, Seiberling NaturealmNortheast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency, Environmental Advisory CommitteeNortheast Ohio Four County Regional Planning and Development Organization (NEFCO)Northeast Ohio Land Trust CoalitionNortheast Ohio Regional AllianceOhio Environmental Protection Agency, Northeast District office staffOhio Environmental Protection Agency, Division of Surface WaterOhio Student Environmental Action CoalitionPLACE (Portage Land Association for Conservation and Education)Portage County Environmental RoundtablePortage County Soil and Water Conservation DistrictShaker Lakes Nature CenterSierra Club Northeast Ohio GroupSierra Club Portage Trails GroupTinkers Creek Land ConservancyWestern Reserve Resource Conservation and Development Council


R E S O U R C E S F R O M E C O C I T Y C L E V E L A N D

"Indispensable reading for those who want toknow what's really going on in the region or what

the headlines may be a decade from now."—David Orr, Oberlin College Environmental Studies Program

Subscribe now! The EcoCity Cleveland Journal will bringyou the ideas and information you need to create a moresustainable bioregion.

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Bioregion (be creative)

Get the owner's manualfor the bioregion!The Greater Cleveland Environment Book...• An introduction for the environmental novice.• A reference for serious activists.• A personal invitation to discover the bioregion.• An inspirational guide for everyone who cares about the future

of Northeast Ohio.

Available at bookstores or directly from EcoCity Cleveland.$14.95 cover price ($19 with sales tax and shipping)340 pages, trade paperback, illustratedISBN 0-9663999-0-0

Land trustsNortheast Ohio Land Trust Coalition, c/o Roger Gettig,

Holden Arboretum, 9500 Sperry Rd., Kirtland, OH44094, (440) 946-4400.

Audubon Society of Greater Cleveland, The ParkBuilding, 140 Public Square, Cleveland, OH 44114,(216) 861-5093.

Chagrin River Land Conservancy, PO Box 148,Chagrin Falls, OH 44022, (440) 247-0880.

Cleveland Museum of Natural History, 1 Wade Oval,Cleveland, OH 44106, (216) 231-4600.

Headwaters Landtrust, P.O. Box 171, Hiram, OH44234, (330) 569-7872.

Holden Arboretum, 9500 Sperry Rd., Kirtland, OH44094, (440) 946-4400.

Hudson Land Conservancy, P.O. Box 1381, Hudson,OH 44236, (330) 653-5649.

Lake County Land Conservancy, 5974 Hopkins Rd.,Mentor, OH 44060.

Medina County Land Conservancy, 3210 Trails LakeDr., Medina, OH 44256, (330) 666-1994.

The Nature Conservancy, Ohio Chapter, 1504 W. FirstAve., Columbus, OH 43212, (614-486-4194.

Portage Land Association for Conservation andEducation (PLACE), P.O. Box 3286, Kent, OH44240, (330) 678-8635.

Quail Hollow Land Conservancy, 13340 Congress LakeAve., Hartville, OH 44632. (330) 699-6213.

Revere Land Conservancy, 970 North Hametown Rd.,Akron, OH 44333, (330) 666-4246.

Tinkers Creek Land Conservancy, 9224 Darrow Rd.,Suite W271, Twinsburg, OH 44087, (440) 425-8793.

Waite Hill Conservancy, 9494 Smith Rd., Waite Hill,OH 44094.

Park districtsCleveland Metroparks, 4101 Fulton Parkway,

Cleveland, OH 44144, (216) 351-6300.Lake Metroparks, 11211 Spear Rd., Concord Twp., OH

44077, (800) 227-7275 or (440) 639-7275.Geauga Park District, 9420 Robinson Rd., Chardon,

OH 44024, (440) 285-2222, ext. 5420.Lorain County Metro Parks, 12882 Diagonal Rd.,

LaGrange, OH 44050, (800) LCM-PARK.Medina County Park District, 6364 Deerview Lane,

Medina, OH 44256, (330) 722-9364 or (330) 336-6657.

Portage County Park District, 449 S.Meridian St.,Ravenna, OH 44266, (330) 673-9404.

Metro Parks Serving Summit County, 975 Treaty LineRd., Akron, Ohio 44313, (330) 867-5511.

Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area, 15610Vaughn Rd., Brecksville, Ohio 44141, (440) 526-5256.

County planning commissionsCuyahoga County Planning Commission, 323 Lakeside

Ave. West, Suite 400, Cleveland, OH 44113, (216)443-3700.

Geauga County Planning Commission, CourthouseAnnex, 215 Main St., Chardon, OH 44024, (440)285-2222.

Lake County Planning Commission, 125 E. Erie St.,Painesville, OH 44077, (440) 350-2739.

Lorain County Planning Commission, 219 Court St.,Elyria, OH 44035, (440) 329-5544.

Medina County Planning Commission, 144 N.Broadway, Medina, OH 44256, (330) 723-3641.

Portage County Planning Commission, 128 NorthProspect, Ravenna, OH 44266, (330) 297-3613.

Summit County Planning Department, 175 S. Main St.,Rm. 207, Akron, OH 44308 , (330) 643-2551.

Other agencies and organizationsNortheast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency

(NOACA), 1299 Superior Ave., Cleveland, OH44114, (216) 241-2414.

Akron Metropolitan Area Transporation Study(AMATS), 806 Citicenter Building, 146 South HighSt., Akron, OH 44308, (330) 375-2436.

Northeast Ohio Four County Regional Planning &Development Organization (NEFCO), 969 CopleyRoad, Akron, OH 44320, (330) 836-5731.

Countryside Program, P.O. Box 24825, Lyndhurst, OH44124, 216) 691-1665.

First Suburbs Consortium, 40 Severance Circle,Cleveland Heights, OH 44118, (216) 291-2854.

NORA (Northeast Ohio Regional Alliance), c/oCitizens League Research Institute, 843 TerminalTower, 50 Public Square, Cleveland, OH 44113,(216) 241-5340.

2841 Scarborough RoadCleveland Heights, OH 44118

Cuyahoga Bioregion(216) 932-3007

www.ecocleveland.org

itizens bioregional plan for northeast ohio · 2012-09-18 · 2 ecocity cleveland bioregional plan...

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