Map of Protected Land

Map of Protected Land | Success Stories | Stewardship

Click on numbered RED dot for details on that property

. Gates Mills Land Conservancy Owned Properties  . Gates Mills Land Conservancy Conservation Easements  . Metroparks and Village Properties

The purpose of the Gates Mills Land Conservancy map is to depict the protected property in the Village of Gates Mills. Colors are used to show the land owned outright by the Conservancy, properties with Conservation Easements as well as the 306 acres owned by the Village and the 546 acres owned by the Cleveland Metroparks within the Village.

The Village and Metroparks land is SHADED TAN OR BEIGE on our map. The majority of this land is “protected”. Some village land is also protected by a Conservation Easement, including the “Polo Field” on Epping Road.

The parcels shaded GREEN are owned by the Gates Mills Land Conservancy. The Conservancy owns 20 different parcels of land ranging in size from 1.2 acres to 25 acres.

The parcels shaded in BLUE are protected with comprehensive conservation easements, still owned by Village citizens or the Village but limited to the extent of future development. There are 27 individual parcels of land ranging from a right of way of approximately 0.67 acres to 48.7 acres of wooded hillside.

Clearly, our residents and our Village Officials have had the courage and foresight to protect the natural, recreational and scenic resources of the Village and the Chagrin River Watershed. It is fair to say that in the realm of local land conservancies, the special synergy existing in Gates Mills is unparalleled in our nation.

Take a virtual tour of the Chagrin River Corridor and see the 10 Conservancy lands that have been protected to date. In turn, visit the hillsides and slopes on either side of the river described in locations 10 through 18. These hillside woodlands with their deep ravines have been a high priority for the Conservancy since its inception. Locations 41 and 42 were recently added. The Buckeye Trail stretches 1400 miles throughout Ohio and visits our Village on River Rd. between Wilson Mills and Cedar Roads. Members can be proud of the lands that have been preserved along its route. Click on map locations 19 to 24.

In any season, the Forests of our Valley are a toast to nature that should be enjoyed and should be preserved. Some examples of our protected woodlands are map locations 25 to 32.

The Gates Mills Land Conservancy commissioned Ms. Wendy Weirich, a Cleveland Metroparks naturalist, to conduct a habitat assessment of each of its owned properties. As noted in the map navigation instructions, on Conservancy owned parcels in green, you have the option of accessing the assessment by clicking on: "For a Full Habitat Assessment of this Property, Click here."

You may start the virtual tour by first "CRUISING DOWN THE RIVER"

1. "River Road South"- 2077 Chagrin River Road. Dr. & Mrs. Timothy Nice have placed a conservation easement on five acres of meadow on the east bank of the river.

2. "Wick Woods at River’s Edge"- Chagrin River Road between Berkshire Road and Beverly Lane. The Wick Family has donated 20 acres of forest and wetlands at the river's edge. Owned and kept free by the Wicks and Ernsts since 1908, the property features three stands of White Pine planted by three generations of Ernst/Wicks as well as wetlands over an underground lake, two equestrian trails, and open fields. Remnants of earlier use include apple trees planted as long ago as the 19th Century.

3. 1810 County Line Road- Philip and Mauri Artz have preserved much of their land by giving the Conservancy an easement on 16 acres overlooking the valley and the river.

4. "River Flood Plains"- Chagrin River Road south of Wilson Mills. The Conservancy, with neighborhood assistance, purchased 3.5 acres of wetland and wooded riverfront. This property is genuine river bottomland. This flat area by the river is typical of land directly along a river.

5. "Feller Curves"- Riverview Sub-Division. The Bob Feller Family made a gift of 4.5 acres of land on the east bank of the river, with no restrictions, protecting the land forever.

6. "River Lowlands"- Riverview Road. The Conservancy and a group of villagers including families on Riverview Road were able to purchase 2.77 acres of unique riverfront land. The property is a pocket of forest between two homes. It exists on a lovely turn in the river, creating a nice beach area with sun loving plants. There are significantly old beech and tulip trees on this site.

7. 506 Battles Road- Darhl Foreman and Erminie Bartelmez have placed a scenic easement on 15 acres of land extending from the east bank of the river all the way to Battles Rd.

8. "River Bend"- 7464 Saddleback Lane. A conservation easement, shared with the Western Reserve Land Conservancy, has been granted by Brent and Patrice Clapacs on 26 acres extending from the riverbank, east to Saddleback Lane.

9. "Northeast River Bank"- 7406 Rogers Road. At the north border of the Village, Dan and Rindy Collister have protected over one half mile of riverbank by conserving their 24 acres.

41. & 42. The Creech/Calamari Property- 7365 Bringham Road. This 2.6 acre parcel was gifted to the Land Conservancy by Ms. Jennifer Creech and Mr. Bob Calamari in December 2007. In addition, the adjacent 2.8 acre parcel was preserved by the granting of a conservation easement protected a beautiful portion of the River shore line where the Steelhead “hide”.

THE SLOPES OF GATES MILLS- Created by the river, protected for the future, the Land Conservancy has placed a high priority on these hillside woodlands.

10. 1987 Berkshire Road- Stretching above Berkshire Rd. are 7 acres on which Elizabeth Wade Sedgwick has given the Conservancy an easement stipulating that only one house may exist on this property.

11. "Smith Woods"- Woodstock Road. Shortly after the Conservancy was formed, Thelma Smith made a gift of 19 priceless acres of hillside with the restriction that it could never be broken into smaller parcels and built upon. This gift topped off her lifetime of service to the Village.

12. "Jones Ravine"- Berkshire Road. Extending east from the top of Berkshire Rd. are 6.5 acres of beautifully wild land. Once part of the property of Mrs. W.P. Jones, it was her gift to the Conservancy, a gift of both geological interest and natural beauty.

13. "Griesinger Point"- Old Mill Road and Berkshire Road. Bobby Griesinger, the sister of Mrs. Jones, contributed seven acres of adjacent land, which leads directly down the gorge and is part of “The Point” property. Again, this is land of priceless beauty.

14. "Mayfield Ravine"- Mayfield Road. Across the valley on the eastern rise of Mayfield Rd., a ravine of eleven scenic acres was purchased through generous gifts from neighboring property owners plus Conservancy funds.

15. Glen Echo Lane/Mayfield Road- Associated with the purchase of the Mayfield Ravine (#14), scenic easements were added to this beautiful tract by the Thomas Jeckering, Richard Shields, and Ron Leirvik families.

16. The Robert and Jane Clark Property- North side of Sherman Road east to beyond Chestnut Run. This is one of the larger single tracts of land that has been preserved by the Conservancy. This scenic easement granted to the Conservancy by Bob and Jane Clark on 48 acres affords a leafy vista for all who travel on Sherman Rd.

17. "River Oaks Slope"- 7600 River Oaks Trail. Central to this area of the valley is a 25-acre parcel which has been purchased by the Conservancy. The Trustees believe that this land, which climbs eastward from the end of River Oaks Trail, is most unique and a jewel in the Village’s emerald crown.

18. Village Trails- Wilson Mills Road. Crossing to the western valley slopes are 100 acres of hillside that the Conservancy tried to acquire in the early 1990’s. The land was lost to a developer, however. With a second effort, the Conservancy negotiated a scenic easement with the developer which resulted in more than 20 acres of hillside being preserved.

LET'S WALK THE BUCKEYE TRAIL

19. "Beecher’s Brook"- Wilson Mills Road at the Metroparks Trailhead.. In 2005, with the support of Cleveland Metroparks, Mayfield Village, our own Village and Clean Ohio Funds, the Conservancy purchased 10 pristine acres on the banks of Beecher’s Brook. This land, which provides a leafy welcome to the Buckeye Trail, was transferred to Metroparks and a perpetual conservation easement was placed upon it.

20. "River Road East"- SE Corner of River Road and Mayfield Road. This 6.6-acre parcel was purchased to preserve meadow, hillside, and wetland. The property is unique among the holdings of the Gates Mills Land Conservancy, in that it is field and not forest. The access to sunlight allows many flowers to grow, providing food for many insects and birds that require sun loving plants. The fields attract goldfinches, butterflies, some sparrows, swallows, and others that prefer the field habitat over the forest habitat.

21. Charles and Katherine Mlakar Property- 1249 Chagrin River Road. Immediately south of the 6.6 acre “River Road East” property there are 20 acres of land preserved by a conservation easement established by Chuck and Kay Mlakar in January 2000.

22. "River Road West"- 1200 Chagrin River Road. On the west side of River Rd. just south of Mayfield, the Conservancy owns approximately nine acres, which augment Village-owned river frontage. These combined properties provide habitat for all types of birds and other wildlife. This land is a unique example of river bottomland property.

23. Elizabeth K. Holmes Property- Chagrin River Road and Northeast corner of Beverly Lane. In June 2000, Betsy Holmes placed a scenic easement on 3.5 acres of woods and wetlands. Just across Beverly Lane the Trail passes the 20-acre Wick Family tract that was mentioned in our trip down the River.

24. "Southgate"- 2100 Chagrin River Road. Near the border with Hunting Valley, the Conservancy owns 3 acres of hillside, woods and wetlands strategically providing the Buckeye Trail a “green” exit from the Village.

25. Suffolk County Estates-Knoll Wood. These 17 acres were recently purchased through funding of the neighboring property owners, the Village, and the Conservancy. These woods will be preserved in perpetuity and are an enhancement to all the property in the area.

26. "Soltz Woods"- 6795 Gates Mills Blvd. Fourteen acres of undeveloped land was given to the Conservancy by Margery Soltz as its first gift of real estate. This wooded land through which the Cleveland and Eastern Railway once ran had been planned for housing development. The property hosts an interesting combination of trees associated with the red maple.

27. "Westgate"- Mayfield Road- NW Corner. On the West border of the Village across Mayfield Rd. from St. Francis Church is an acre of densely wooded land. This small property is a young maple forest. Red maple trees make up about 50% of this property and beech trees make up 30%.

28. "Woodstock Woods"- 1900 Woodstock Road. These 10 acres on Woodstock Road are a typical beech maple forest that make up about 90% of these woodlands. Some of these trees are well over 200 years old. This tract was acquired in exchange for 3.4 acres on Mayfield Rd. traded to the Village in 1999 under pending action of eminent domain.

29. "Epping-Beverly Lane Corner"- 1895 Epping Road. This forested property, purchased with an interest-free loan from the Wick family, shows signs of former farming use, both in the relative youth of many of its trees and also in the plenitude of Black Cherries, some of rather ancient vintage. Some large and stately Tulip trees also call it home.

30. "East Slopes"- County Line Road. On the east slopes overlooking the river are 2.5 acres of woods that delight the eye every autumn.

31. "Fox Hill Circle"- 1135 Fox Hill Drive. Six neighbors banded together and contributed $136,000 to buy 5.1 acres looking north over hilly woodlands. They then preserved the land by donating it to the Conservancy, which had contributed the balance of the funds required for the purchase.

32. "Sherman Woods"- South side of Sherman Rd. These 12 treed acres were originally destined for development. This purchase was made possible by gifts from neighboring landowners and augmented by Conservancy funds. Sherman woods is a sloping forest consisting mainly of sugar maple, elm and a variety of other forest trees.

AND THAT'S NOT ALL

33. Levenson Property- 331 Timberidge Trail. At the very north end of the Village, Dr. Myron Levenson granted the Conservancy a scenic easement on 5 acres of his land in memory of his wife Cyrille.

34. 329 Timberidge Trail- Adjacent to the Levenson property, Kevin and Laurie Riley have granted a similar easement on more than 7 acres of beautiful woodlands.

35 & 36. MacLaren Property- West Hill Drive. At the northern end of West Hill Drive is a unique area which was originally the 45-acre Kulas estate. David MacLaren purchased the land and after renovating the original mansion, he subdivided the surrounding property but placed scenic easements on 12 acres, thus limiting future development.

37. "Scovil Property"- 1139 West Hill Drive. Another conservation easement was granted on six acres of Alexander and Katharine Scovil’s West Hill property.

38. "Wick Homestead"- Another gift from the Wick Family is the conservation easement placed on 27 acres between Beverly Lane and Berkshire Road, held jointly with the Western Reserve Land Conservancy, limiting dwellings on this land to only the three now existing. This easement will protect a pond, hill tops, slopes and fields. This gift along with properties designated as #2 and #29 on our tour, brings to 53 the total acreage preserved thanks to the Wick Family.

39. Mayfield Rd.- There are slightly more than two acres on Mayfield Road that are governed by conservation restrictions. This parcel was traded by the Gates Mills Land Conservancy to the Village for Woodstock Woods #28 (see Woodstock Woods #28).

40. "The Polo Field"- Epping Road between Main Street and Sudbury/Foxboro Road. The Polo Field was donated to the Gates Mills Village in the mid 1930's by the Gates Mills Improvement Society to be used for equestrian events. The Village has in turn leased the land to the Chagrin Valley Hunt Club for equestrian activities. A Conservation Easement has been approved by Village Council that will ensure preservation in its natural state in perpetuity.