Wadsworth is pulling the plug on fishing at Brickyard Park for the foreseeable future, shutting down angling across the entire property while a major environmental cleanup plays out at the former brick manufacturing site.
The citywide timeout on fishing is meant to limit public exposure while consultants test and remove contaminated soil and other materials from the 205-acre parcel the city bought in 2023. Early environmental work has already flagged problem spots across the old industrial grounds.
City-contracted testing found asbestos in historic brick piles and elevated arsenic in soils, and consultants have recommended more sampling to nail down the full extent of contamination, according to the city's Limited Phase II Environmental Investigation. The report notes that some groundwater and surface water samples met applicable standards, but soil concentrations in several locations exceed direct-contact thresholds and call for targeted removal. City of Wadsworth records summarize those findings.
"I think we're prohibiting fishing in the entire park because of the unknowns," Director of Public Service Matt Hiscock told a city meeting, the paper reports. Cleveland.com reports that consultants also identified benzopyrene in parts of the property and that the cleanup plan calls for targeted removal of heavily contaminated areas and construction of a consolidation basin where some materials may be buried on-site.
How the cleanup will work
The environmental fix is not a simple scrape-and-haul job. Public bidding documents describe selective demolition, clearing and substantial earthwork to prepare the property for future park uses, including stripping and replacing topsoil in restored areas. Contractors must be licensed to handle asbestos and are required to follow erosion-control and topsoil-placement specifications laid out in the project manual. V3 Companies details those technical requirements along with performance deadlines and milestones for site restoration.
Timeline and public access
City officials told reporters they now expect remediation to reach substantial completion in mid-September and full completion by November 2026, with broader public use increasing in spring 2027, according to Cleveland.com. While heavy work continues, the site will stay closed to fishing and other public uses to limit exposure and to keep construction traffic in nearby neighborhoods under control.
What residents should expect
To keep future visitors from cutting through side streets once the park opens more fully, the city is building an access drive off Seville Road to funnel traffic directly into the property. Crews have already started stump removal and demolition staging as part of early site preparation.
Plans call for the northern 70 acres to be developed as an athletic complex, while the lower acreage will be restored as woods, ponds and trails. Renderings and public-meeting materials spell out that split between active and passive recreation areas. Residents can find maps, concept plans and contact information for project updates on the City of Wadsworth project page.
Funding and next steps
The city paid 1.95 million dollars for the 205-acre Brickyard parcel in 2023 and is using state brownfield funding and grants to cover much of the cleanup, local reporting says. Medina Gazette reports that the grant support will reduce the burden on local taxpayers as remediation and phased park construction move ahead through 2026 and into 2027.
