Total Restoration: From Golf Course to River Haven: How Valley View Became a Wildlife Paradise

The presence of the river chub fish is indicative of clean water. But the small minnow species was a rare sight in the Cuyahoga River on the Valley View Golf Club property when the Summit Metro Parks purchased it in 2016.

At the former golf course, there were about 18 species of fish inventoried, and 90 fish per kilometer was the lowest amount of abundance of fish. After a complete restoration to a natural habitat, that statistic — and the presence of river chubs — has dramatically increased. “Today, they’re one of the more dominant fish at the site,” says Mike Johnson, chief of conservation. “We’ve got about 31 species documented for this stretch of river, and the abundance of fish really shot up — our best site had over 800 fish per kilometer.”

A portion of the Metro Parks’ Valley View area opened in 2021, and the rest followed in 2024, with the full area drawing 136,316 visitors last year. The 200-acre property invites guests to hike its 1.1-mile Missing Link Trail or 1-mile Prather Trail, interact with the nature play area — which includes a tall slide — gaze at its towering 19-foot stainless-steel Don Drumm sculpture, rent out the restored historic Himelright Lodge, access the river, picnic in the new shelter with a fireplace and more.

Obtaining the land accomplishes a longtime goal: connecting Gorge, Cascade Valley and Sand Run metro parks, creating 1,800 continuous acres of green space. It took almost a century to realize this goal for the land, which was first identified as significant by Metro Parks master planners in 1925. “It really was the crown jewel,” says Johnson.

Starting as the Himelright dairy farm in the late 1800s, the property later became the ahead-of-its-time racially integrated Wheelock neighborhood from around the 1940s to ’70s. Beginning in the mid-‘50s, portions turned into the golf course.

Fueled by about $2.5 million in funding from the Clean Ohio Conservation Fund, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Great Lakes Commission Regional Partnership, the restoration started with workers taking the property down to soil.

The golf course lacked biodiversity, with only a bit over 100 species found there. Workers removed the non-native turf and non-native plants — such as 350 Norway spruce trees. Over two days, about 600 volunteers planted 120,000 native seeds and nuts, including red oak acorns, white oak acorns, native cherry seeds and walnuts.

Golf course management drained the wetlands and channelized and levied the Cuyahoga River, cutting off access to floodplains. The Metro Parks restored 40 acres of wetlands and about 3,300 linear feet of headwater — smaller streams that flow into the river. It also restored about 60 acres of floodplains. Workers formed wood structures and brought in large boulders to develop the river’s underwater habitat. Baby endangered lake sturgeon were released in the river last year and this year in partnership with the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Along the riparian corridor bordering the riverbanks, workers got the invasive Japanese knotwood under control and planted native bluestem grasses, Indian grasses, willows, maples and more.

Now, 180 acres have been restored to natural areas and 20 acres are recreational. The Metro Parks opened the canoe and kayak river put-in last year. “As soon as it opened, people were very excited to paddle the river again,” says Claire Merrick, marketing and public relations manager. “It’s gorgeous.” This year, the Metro Parks and the Cuyahoga Valley National Park are opening a takeout 6 miles downstream in the CVNP.

The nature play and picnic area is surrounded by a native garden, planted with help from the Akron Garden Club. Spot native cardinal flowers, milkweeds, asters, rattlesnake masters and more. “They were carefully planned so that it would be like a long-term fireworks display of color throughout the seasons,” says Merrick.

It only took a handful of years of conservation work for there to be about 800 species at the property, including common mergansers, softshell turtles, river otters and bald eagles. That number remains. Now thriving with scores of plants and wildlife, the spot’s natural beauty has been restored for all to bask in.

“It’s probably one of the best examples of an ecological restoration,” Johnson says, “that is merged with outdoor passive recreational use.” //KP

1134 Cuyahoga St., Akron, summitmetroparks.org