STAKEHOLDER NOTIFICATION & PUBLIC NOTICE

The land trust accreditation program recognizes land conservation organizations that meet national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever. The Gates Mills Land Conservancy is pleased to announce it is applying for renewal of accreditation. A public comment period is now open.

The Land Trust Accreditation Commission, an independent program of the Land Trust Alliance, conducts an extensive review of each applicant’s policies and programs. Although the Gates Mills Land Conservancy is small in comparison to many other land trusts, directors feel that adherence to national standards is a basic tenet of responsible, long-term land management. The Gates Mills Land Conservancy is a non-profit, local membership organization dedicated to preserving the natural, recreational and scenic resources of the Village by acquiring land or restricting development through restrictions or conservation easements either by gifts or purchases.   Since 1988, the GMLC has preserved nearly 750 acres in Gates Mills.

 The Commission invites public input and accepts signed, written comments on pending applications. Comments must relate to how the Gates Mills Land Conservancy complies with national quality standards. These standards address the ethical and technical operation of a land trust. For the full list of standards see http://www.landtrustaccreditation.org/help-and-resources/indicator-practices.

To learn more about the accreditation program and to submit a comment, visit www.landtrustaccreditation.org, or email your comment to info@landtrustaccreditation.org. Comments may also be faxed or mailed to the Land Trust Accreditation Commission, Attn: Public Comments: (fax) 518-587-3183; (mail) 36 Phila Street, Suite 2, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866.

Comments on the Gates Mills Land Conservancy’s application will be most useful by May 3, 2024. 

Protecting the Chagrin River Watershed with Habitat Development

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Experts like John Reinier are encouraging a lot more habitat development like Sherman Road. They call them “no mow’ areas, and are encouraging park managers to let areas go so that what they call “successional old field habitats”, develop in just a few years. Over time you get these great early successful habitats that are important for pollinators, birds and other small mammals. The land becomes a much healthier place.

“We are now starting to value these types of areas so much more than we used to, because we realized how important they are for a lot of insects, birds, and wildlife species that are on the decline. Even without seeding, the land will come in with goldenrod, then a lot of other native grasses, and naturally over time you'll get thousands of woody stems start to come in from a mature tree line.”

A large-scale tree planting took place at the Sherman Road Preserve a few years ago with a $60,000 grant. GMLC is letting a portion of the land revert to forest, by purposefully planting certain trees to direct a specific outcome. A large portion of the land is being mowed annually on a delayed basis, creating that habitat development that John Reinier suggests.

The Gates Mills Land Conservancy and the Cleveland Museum of Natural History next door are working to protect areas along the Chagrin River valley between the North and South Chagrin Reservation. “That work is so important”, John said, “because when you start to look at all those areas together, it starts to form a nice little patchwork of corridors for plants, animals and pollinators to move around it.”

Gates Mills is an integral part of the larger geographical landscape and a major contributor of the Chagrin River Watershed. As John Reinier stated, “When you look at Cuyahoga County and the eastern third here along Chagrin River Valley, it is one of the few places where there's a lot of green space left. Protecting these places is so important, and Conservation Easements are just one of the best tools to ensure that land stays natural into the future and doesn't become a subdivision with asphalt. From a watershed perspective, anytime that rain hits asphalt, it shoots off into pipes and causes all kinds of erosion issues

downstream. When you have rainfall here, it's a much more natural filtration process and water slowly makes its way to the Chagrin River. Conservation easements have been a great tool for protecting natural areas like this.”

The Sherman Road Preserve Enhances Science Curriculum

During 2020-21, several school districts approached Gates Mills Land Conservancy for permission to access the Sherman Road Preserve as part of their science curriculum for students. These schools included Hawken, University School and Westlake. These requests are in addition to our existing relationship with the Mayfield City School District for students of the environmental services program at Excel-TECC. Learn more.

GMLC Annual Meeting & Dinner

Tuesday, October 12, 2021, 5:45pm, at the Chagrin Valley Hunt Club. Check the upcoming Pink Sheet for more information.

GMLC Town Hall Meeting

Wednesday, September 8, 2021 at 6:00pm at the Community House, lower level.

Stakeholder Notification & Public Notice

The land trust accreditation program recognizes land conservation organizations that meet national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever. The Gates Mills Land Conservancy is pleased to announce it is applying for renewal of accreditation. A public comment period is now open.

The Land Trust Accreditation Commission, an independent program of the Land Trust Alliance, conducts an extensive review of each applicant’s policies and programs. Although the Gates Mills Land Conservancy is small in comparison to many other land trusts, directors feel that adherence to national standards is a basic tenet of responsible, long-term land management. The Gates Mills Land Conservancy is a non-profit, local membership organization dedicated to preserving the natural, recreational and scenic resources of the Village by acquiring land or restricting development through restrictions or conservation easements either by gifts or purchases.   Since 1988, the GMLC has preserved nearly 750 acres in Gates Mills.

The Commission invites public input and accepts signed, written comments on pending applications. Comments must relate to how the Gates Mills Land Conservancy complies with national quality standards. These standards address the ethical and technical operation of a land trust. For the full list of standards see http://www.landtrustaccreditation.org/help-and-resources/indicator-practices.

To learn more about the accreditation program and to submit a comment, visit www.landtrustaccreditation.org, or email your comment to info@landtrustaccreditation.org. Comments may also be faxed or mailed to the Land Trust Accreditation Commission, Attn: Public Comments: (fax) 518-587-3183; (mail) 36 Phila Street, Suite 2, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866.

Comments on the Gates Mills Land Conservancy’s application will be most useful by May 3, 2024. 

July/August 2016 Pink Sheet

SHERMAN ROAD PRESERVE UPDATES

NEW RESIDENTS - Sherman Road Preserve has thousands of new residents! A local father/son beekeeping team recently moved two honeybee hives to the preserve. Did you know that honeybees pollinate 80% of our flowering crops, which constitute one-third of everything we eat? In the past decade Colony Collapse Disorder has greatly diminished honeybee populations. You can help improve honeybee survival by avoiding applying pesticides during mid-day hours when honeybees are most likely to be out foraging for nectar and pollen, and by planting pollinator-friendly plants like red clover, foxglove, bee balm, and other native flowering plants. Learn more at www.ars.usda.gov.

STREAM RESTORATION - Near the eastern edge of the preserve is a channelized headwater stream of the Chagrin River. GMLC would like to see this stream and its riparian zone restored to a more natural state; we’re working with Chagrin River Watershed Partners (CRWP) in this effort. In June CRWP applied for a $50k grant from the U.S. Forest Service on our behalf. If we are awarded the grant, CRWP will lead the project. Invasive species will be removed and native trees, bushes, and shrubs will be planted along the banks. The Senior Watershed Manager at CRWP, Christina Znidarsic, will be the guest speaker at this year’s Annual Dinner and Member Meeting in September. Learn more about CRWP at their website, www.crwp.org.

 

June 2016 Pink Sheet

SHERMAN ROAD PRESERVE UPDATE

Ohio Prairie Nursery has begun the summer long process of preparing a five-acre area to be planted with native seeds this fall. The resulting meadow will provide habitat for a variety of pollinators including birds, bees, butterflies, and other insects for years to come.

Three bluebird houses were installed on the north side of the preserve in early May, and they’ve all attracted the attention of nesting birds! We’ll keep you posted on their progress. A big thank you to Linda and John Olejko and Dave Butz for getting these installed!

RACE FOR THE GREEN

Not planning to run or walk in the Race for the Green but still want to get in on the race day fun? Be a volunteer! We need help with everything from packet pick up to clean up. Volunteers get a course side seat for cheering on race participants, an official Race for the Green t-shirt, and satisfaction from helping to raise funds for the Sherman Road Preserve.

For more information about all things race related, including volunteering and becoming a race sponsor, please visit www.gatesmillslandconservancy.org/events/race or send us an email at gmlc44040@gmail.com

SAVE THE DATES!

September 21 - Annual Dinner and Member Meeting

October 1 - Race for the Green 5k run & and 1 mi walk

October 21 - Community Club chili cook-off joint fundraiser with GMLC and the Garden Club to benefit the Sherman Road Preserve