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Park district passed on Fowler's Mill opportunity
(by Joseph Koziol Jr. - August 04, 2010)
Park district passed on Fowler's Mill opportunity
By JOSEPH KOZIOL JR.
The Geauga County Park District had first dibs on Fowler's Mill Golf Course in Munson but decided against the deal because it has too many irons in the fire.
"After further discussions regarding the (park) board's concerns about involvement in other current projects and financial commitments, on April 29, 2010, (park Director) Tom Curtin notified Chris Knopf and Ohio EPA that the consensus of the Geauga Park District board of park commissioners was to withdraw completely from the WRRSP application," the park district said in a news release. WRRSP is the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency's water resource restoration sponsorship program.
The park district said it was approached in January by Mr. Knopf, of Blue Green Solutions, about the prospective sale of the golf course, which encompasses 458 acres, including 1.2 miles of the Chagrin River, a designated state scenic river.
The EPA was making $5.042 million available to the park district for the purchase of the $5.5 million property. That grant now has been offered to Munson officials, who have begun to consider the merits of taking ownership of the property.
The deal made sense with the park district's Rookery park practically across the street, spokeswoman Paige Hosier said. "It was important to the water quality of the Rookery," she said.
The property, which had been assessed by the district's biologist, Paul Pira, was a bounty of water resources. "The property contains over four miles of rivers and tributaries on the main branch of the Chagrin River," the park district said.
Ms. Hosier said the property also contains 33.8 acres of wetlands and lies upstream from the park's district's Rookery property. The Rookery is important habitat for endangered species such as the spotted and Blandings turtles, she said.
Much of the assessment conducted by Mr. Pira was used in the application to the state for the grant, the park district said.
The district came close to closing the deal.
"At the March 9 park board meeting, the park board authorized the executive directior to negotiate for land in Munson Township," the park district said. "On March 30, 2010, Tom Curtin signed an 'intent to enter into WRRSP sponsorship agreement' in order to meet the April 1 deadline for application.
It was a non-binding agreement that allowed the park disrtrict to pull out of the deal at a later time, if needed, the park district said.
The park district also said that Mr. Knopf was discussing the project concurrently with Munson officials about partnering with the park district on the deal.
Then, at the end of April, the reservations expressed by park board members were weiged against the benefits of acquiring the land, and the park board withdrew.
Ms. Hosier said the park district decided against taking on one more project during a time when the district was involved with several development projects at existing or new parks.
Among the projects the park district is involved in are the development of Observatory Park in Montville Township, improvments and restoration at Orchard Hills in Chester Township, opening of Chickagami Park in Parkman Township and exploring possible improvements to the historic Union Chapel in Newbury Township.
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