Current Projects
Friends of Medina County Parks focuses on providing funding for projects that create lasting and measurable positive impacts on Medina County Park District. Below are a few high-profile projects that will enhance and elevate Medina County parks for both current and future generations.
If you would like to learn more about how to contribute, please contact Development Coordinator Natalie Peacock at 330-722-9364 or npeacock@medinaco.org.
Learn more about this life-changing collaborative project.
Brown-Trump Homestead
In May 2022, Medina County Park District (MCPD) and its nonprofit partner, Friends of Medina County Parks, Inc. (FOTP), were chosen by executors of the Brown-Trump estate to become the stewards of a well-known but, perhaps, misunderstood ‘farm in the city’ on State Route 18. The property, which includes three houses—most notable of which is a Victorian-era home—plus several outbuildings, was owned by Mr. Edson J. Brown and Mr. Ross M. Trump, both prominent antique dealers.
Located at 4092 Medina Road next to Medina Hospital, the land is protected by a restrictive conservation easement, a legal document held by the Western Reserve Land Conservancy. Most of the property has to remain open space or be farmed. It cannot host walking trails or be used for any commercial purposes.
In 2023, MCPD entered into a ten-year lease with Hope Recovery Community (HRC), a Medina-based nonprofit that provides recovery housing for men with substance use disorder. The document’s execution was 11 months in the making, but it signified the unofficial start of the Brown-Trump Homestead—a unique collaborative partnership that established a first-of-its-kind recovery farm unlike anything else in the Midwest, perhaps even the country. HRC is dedicated to increasing sustained recovery by providing hope, support, advocacy, and resources to those impacted by addiction. The nonprofit receives funding from Medina County Mental Health and Recovery Board.
In place of rent, HRC is responsible for maintaining the residential house, which increased the organization’s housing program by nearly 43 percent. HRC leads agricultural programming on the grounds and also develops several workforce tracts for the residents of the house and local recovery community. In the first year of the farm, Feeding Medina County received more than 1,000 pounds of produce grown at the Brown-Trump Homestead.
Although the Brown-Trump Homestead is not open daily to the general public, there will be opportunities for special events and tours in the future. With funds from the estate, FOTP and MCPD are in the process of restoring the Victorian, which was built in 1874. Once restored, the large, historic brick home will include display space for the Medina County Historical Society as well as offices for FOTP and a meeting space for local nonprofits.
The third home on the property, a small cottage, is being renovated to serve as a much-needed volunteer center and classroom with help from the nonprofit Weymouth Preservation Society (WPS) in Medina Township. WPS asked MCPD to save the little building, built in the 1880s, and offered to coordinate all exterior repairs—from the roof and gutters to siding and windows for approximately $10,500. Additionally, HRC is completing the interior work, which includes the construction of a first-floor half bath, plaster repairs, painting, and more. FOTP will pay for the materials with funding from the estate.
Chippewa Lake Park
In 2021, Medina County Park District (MCPD) engaged OHM Advisors to help develop a master plan for the former Chippewa Lake Amusement Park that was purchased in June 2020. The site is located on the shores of Chippewa Lake, Ohio’s largest inland glacial lake. With public input acquired through meetings and surveys, OHM and MCPD designed a master plan to transform the site into a future public nature area. Both short and long-term improvement projects are included in the master plan. The Chippewa Lake Master Plan is located on the park district’s website at https://chippewalakeohio.com/.
Shotwell Gardens at Lake Medina
Medina County Park District (MCPD) is pleased to unveil a new master plan for Lake Medina that includes a third entrance to the park located at the corner of Foote and Weymouth roads in Medina Township. This future addition is made possible thanks to a generous donation of eight acres by the Shotwell family.
The Shotwell family is no stranger to the park district. In 2018, the family donated an adjacent 17.5 acres to protect the West Branch of the Rocky River. Becky Shotwell shared, “We are excited to help preserve and create a new area that will serve not only as an additional access to Lake Medina but also provide an exciting new place where friends can strum their guitars, a grandparent can identify a wildflower with a child, families can enjoy a tranquil picnic, or where a child can magically transform his/her imagination while climbing through a treehouse.”
Shotwell said Medina County Park District has provided her family with places for hikes, company picnics, meetings, celebrations, education, and more over the years. “We are honored to make this gift and feel fortunate to have a park district with the vision and leadership to preserve land and expand services for future generations,” she added.
In recognition of the family’s generosity, this new area will be called The Shotwell Gardens at Lake Medina. It will include an outdoor amphitheater, an indoor space for public programs, gardens featuring native plants, walking trails, treetop views, and more. The park district and the Shotwells worked with Environmental Design Group last year to develop the plan. Improvements that will provide access to the water for fishing and paddlecraft and a concept to turn the former pump house into an observation platform are also included in the master plan.
MCPD Director Nathan Eppink anticipates construction will take place in phases starting in 2025. “Visitors will be able to watch this site grow over several years.”
Lake Medina was created in the early 1960s when the city of Medina was looking for a way to supplement its water supply. In 2002, due to increasing demands for water usage as the city grew, an alternate water supply from Lake Erie was developed, and Lake Medina was no longer needed as a water supply. In 2003, MCPD secured a lease agreement with the city of Medina to turn the 103-acre lake into a county park.
Currently, Lake Medina can be accessed off State Route 18 as well as from Granger Road. The park boasts two hiking trails. The all-purpose 1.4 mile Greenway Trail is an asphalt path that follows willows and sycamores along the West Branch of the Rocky River and connects to the city of Medina’s paved trail along Reagan Parkway. The other 1.08 mile gravel trail is located along the top of the dam overlooking the lake. Lake Medina is an important water source for wildlife—particularly waterfowl, bald eagles, and osprey. From late February through the end of April each year, Lake Medina serves as a rest stop for migratory waterfowl such as loons, grebes, and a variety of ducks, geese, and swans.
Rivendell Nature Preserve
Medina County Park District (MCPD) is pleased to announce the largest gift of property in its 57-year history: 203 acres located in Westfield Center and Westfield Township. It was donated by Diane (Dedee) O’Neil in 2022. The property includes rich natural resources such as native wildflower meadows, beautiful woods, and a fishing pond. The preservation of this property is ecologically significant because it protects a portion of Camel Creek and a variety of flora and fauna.
Per the pledge agreement, MCPD will begin developing public access to the property no later than summer 2024. The district is working with O’Neil to finalize a concept plan.
O’Neil has appreciated the area since she and her late husband, Rory, who passed away in 2020, first moved there in the 1960s. “With a succession of Labradors who have insisted on daily walks, I’ve explored the fields and woods for years, always finding something that brightens my day—the first wildflowers in the spring, the sounds of the spring peepers, butterflies and bees on the flowers, the brilliant colors of the leaves in autumn, and the glittering crystals of ice on the trees after a winter storm,” O’Neil said. “With this gift of land to Medina County Park District, the woods and fields will be preserved for others to explore, and I hope they will find a favorite spot, something to brighten their days.”
With her donation, O’Neil has earned the right to name the property, according to MCPD Director Nathan Eppink. She chose Rivendell Nature Preserve. The name “Rivendell” is from J. R. R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. In the books, Rivendell is a place of peace and safety where guests are always welcome.
“In the years that we have owned the land,” O’Neil said, “we’ve welcomed scout troops, third-graders from Westfield Elementary School for annual field trips, and many others. Now, with the park ownership, Rivendell Nature Preserve will soon be open to all.”