Fairlawn’s Rosemont Preserve project is getting a fresh shot of federal cash as the city races to turn the former Rosemont Country Club into a 66-acre passive nature preserve and regional flood-management system. The new $1.2 million infusion is slated to help pay for stream restoration, wetlands and public trails that are designed to shield downstream neighborhoods from flooding while opening up more public green space. Crews are already on site putting in stormwater features and the early bones of the trail network.
The funding was secured by U.S. Rep. Emilia Sykes through FY26 community project dollars, her office announced. In a press release, Rep. Sykes' Office said the $1.2 million is earmarked for stream restoration, wetland floodplain improvements and removal of both a low-head structure and a 10-foot dam to reopen fish passage. Officials say the work is intended to cut flooding and erosion risks for communities downstream, including Copley, Norton and Barberton.
The city describes the preserve as roughly 66 acres of passive open space carved out of the former country club property, with Bicentennial Park serving as the main trailhead and a small parking lot planned on South Cleveland Massillon Road, according to the City of Fairlawn. Plans call for trails, boardwalks, overlooks and art installations layered in with engineered stormwater retention and water-quality features. The city previously posted an engineer’s estimate of about $6.8 million and projected a two-year construction window after bids went out.
What the grant will fund
Local coverage says the preserve is expected to include a visitor center, solid-surface trails and livestreamed wildlife cameras, the “fish cams” and “eagle cams” that will be viewable both inside the center and online through the city’s Fairlawngig fiber-optic network. Streams and monitoring devices will be installed to track water quality as part of the restoration, and Bicentennial Park is expected to double as a small concert venue and trailhead once the work is in place. These details were reported by Cleveland.com.
Timeline and construction
Work tied to the larger Rosemont redevelopment is already hard to miss along Cleveland-Massillon Road, where new roads are taking shape and model homes are edging toward completion while the preserve area is reserved as open space. News 5 Cleveland reported that home construction and infrastructure work are moving ahead and that trail building and stormwater work linked to the preserve will ramp up this spring. City leaders say the preserve is being built at the same time as the rest of the Rosemont Greens project so that the open space is permanently protected.
City staff and officials estimate the total project cost at about $7.2 million, with various grants covering roughly half and the city financing the rest, according to Cleveland.com. The outlet also reports that the city has partnered with Cavanaugh Building Corporation on construction and that the new federal money is one of several funding layers aimed at stream restorations, wetland work and public-access amenities.
"We are so fortunate to have Congresswoman Sykes embrace our vision and support our goal for the Rosemont Preserve Project," Mayor Russell T. Sharnsky said in a statement to Rep. Sykes' Office. Officials say the planned restoration, including removal of a low-head structure and a 10-foot dam, restoration of thousands of feet of stream channel and creation of wetlands, is expected to improve fish passage, cut down erosion and lower flood risk for downstream neighborhoods. Service Director Ernie Staten has stressed both the environmental upside and the preserve’s role in the region’s stormwater management system.
The Rosemont work builds on earlier state support: Ohio’s H2Ohio program awarded roughly $913,807 for Phase 3 of a wetland project at the Rosemont tributary, providing additional money for water-quality improvements in the Schocalog Run watershed, the Akron Beacon Journal reported. That state funding, added to federal and local dollars, pushes the project closer to the city’s long-term goal of flood mitigation while creating a public natural area.
Neighbors are being warned to expect short-term closures and some construction noise as crews finish the core stormwater features. Bicentennial Park was temporarily closed for preserve work, and the city lists a March 5 reopening on its project updates page, according to the City of Fairlawn. Officials say the park will continue to serve as both a trailhead and a small concert venue once work wraps up, and they are urging residents to keep an eye on the city’s project page for the latest on schedules and access.
