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Green Space as an Economic Asset August 1, 2003 @ 8:30 PM on WVIZ This is the time of year when many of us like to get out and enjoy the beauty of the Metroparks, or hop on a bike and hit the trails of the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area. Well the next time you're strolling through the Emerald Necklace, consider this: natural amenities not only improve our quality of life. They actually help stimulate economic growth by helping to make our region the kind of place where people want to live and work. And it isn't just large, countywide park systems that have an impact. Even small green spaces can make a difference. Making Change correspondent Cynthia Barnes reports on how economic revitalization can begin right in your own back yard. 
John Zangerle Avon Lake Resident My neighbors are the herd of deer and the wooded, red-headed woodpeckers and the red fox. They’re nice neighbors, but the deer do eat the plants (laughter) Cynthia Barnes That’s a price John It’s a small price to pay for having them in the area. Cynthia Barnes Nature has been John Zangerele’s next-door neighbor for nearly five years. And he wants it to stay that way. So he’s decided to get involved to help preserve the natural landscape he loves. Zangerele has joined with his neighbors to launch the “Save the Woods Project,” whose goal is to preserve nature in Avon Lake. Many of the members on the Save the Woods Committee remember this area when it was nothing but trees. But several homes have since replaced nature. Committee members were determined to make sure that nature was not lost.” Jan Van Wagner Save the Woods Spokesperson It just holds a lot of memories, and it’s a very special, very special place. CB Jan Van Wagner is the spokesperson Save the Woods. In early February, she and the committee began gathering more than five thousand signatures from residents who wanted to save the woods from further development. Jan Van Wagner “We went to the supermarket the day after our press conference and had a traffic jam in the supermarket saying Where’s the woods thing? We want to sign the woods thing. It was the desire of the people who had seen a beautiful, green community be developed. And we said No, this is enough.” CB With help from the Trust for Public Land, a non-profit land conservation organization, Save the Woods has purchased 70 acres near Highway 83, south of Avon Lake High School, for 2-point-2 million dollars. In addition… the group itself raised almost nine thousand dollars by holding fundraisers. The goal is to purchase the other 100 acres of lots that are scattered throughout the property. That will cost another three to four million dollars. Kopf Builders sold the 70 acres to the group. Wolfe Tone, Project Mgr Trust for Public Land He sold this property for a lot less than it was worth to him, a lot less. I think what he wanted to do is leave his mark in the community and say this property is important to Avon Lake. CB And natural properties like this are important not just to the residents of Avon Lake, but to all of Northeast Ohio. In today’s marketplace, where regions compete to attract talented workers and innovative businesses, green space has become an economic asset. So by working together on a project they care about, the members of Save the Woods are actually having a positive impact on our regional economy. In addition, by working together with partners like the Trust for Public Land, the Lorain County Metro Parks, and the City of Avon Lake… this grass roots organization may actually have the opportunity to help extend the city’s bike path near Belle Road Park… another natural amenity that makes Northeast Ohio a more attractive place to live and work. It just goes to show that a small group of dedicated people can have a big impact on our region. Mayor Rob Berner Avon Lake Government really is the people. It’s the people who are signing the signatures. It’s the people who want to see these things happen, so government’s responsibility is to support what the needs and the desires of the people are. CB The Moralett family has been living here for six years. Their property borders woods that will be a part of the Save the Woods project. Zailett Moralett Avon Lake Resident We’re really happy, really happty that the project of Save the Woods is here now. Jan Van Wagner I remember playing the woods. I remember taking trees that had been struck by lightning and they became our fort, our hiding place, our refuge.” CB Now for years to come, these woods will continue to be a refuge for residents, and a natural economic asset for all of Northeast Ohio. In Avon Lake, for Making Change, I’m Cynthia Barnes. Resources:
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