Cuyahoga County Greenspace Plan

Natural Corridors System

Greenspace Plan Introduction Greenspace Working Group Greenspace Plan Elements Greenprint Greenspace Plan Goals Existing Funding Sources

A main element of the greenspace plan for Cuyahoga County is a series of natural corridors which serve as an organizing framework for our county, linking communities to each other and to our environment. The corridors are centered on the water bodies and major hillsides of the County and the focus on them is important for a number of reasons.

• These hillsides and valleys are the location of some of the largest remaining concentrations of tree canopy in the County. Air filtration, erosion control, and improved water quality which these natural buffers offer benefits the overall quality of life in the area and reduces the need for more expensive man-made solutions.

• Many areas within these corridors provide important habitats for land and aquatic plants and animals. Connected habitats are better than disjointed habitats and larger habitats are better for ensuring the survival of a species than smaller areas. Ecoyststem are just that, systems. Ensuring these corridors can work as a system, and the relationships between plants, insects, animals, land and water function properly together will make for a healthier environment.

  Water is a basic component for supporting habitats.

• These corridors contain some of the most visually stimulating areas within the County and are also the location of much of our early history.

• The impacts and their benefits of these corridors are not limited to one community or the responsibility of one jurisdiction. These area follow natural boundaries and do not stop at political boundaries. Coordination among communities is needed in order to achieve the environmental, economic, cultural, community building and health benefits which can be achieved by placing special attention on these corridors.

The plan is based on the underlying geography of the area. The following map illustrates the Natural Corridor Concept:

Natural Corridor Concept

Major Spines
The concept envisions the three major river valleys of the Rocky, Cuyahoga and Chagrin Rivers, and the lakeshore of Lake Erie as the major spines of a countywide system. Each of these corridors has its own personality and development patterns. While it is not suggested that all

There are a number of creeks, such as the Mill Creek, which could be reclaimed as open space assets for urban neighborhoods in the County.

properties within these corridors should become parkland or preservation area, it is desirable that continuous public access routes be developed within these corridors including acquisition of important properties which protect environmentally sensitive sites or create linkages along the corridor. Along these corridors the creation of a series of special places of interest or activity should be developed. Development of such places will enhance and expand the experience for the public and will reinforce these areas as organizing elements of the community. These corridors should also be the focus of efforts to cleanup problem properties and ensure development which is both compatible with the protected open space and is of high design quality. A focused effort should be made to assist uses which will continue in these areas to develop business practices which are environmentally friendly.

 

Plan Elements

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