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Chippewa Creek is a rapidly urbanizing watershed within the Cuyahoga River Area of Concern. The creek and its watershed serve as natural water management systems, but changes in land use can have negative effects on the functioning of this natural infrastructure.

Proper planning, restoration, and management of the watershed can address these impacts and insure that communities may benefit from growth while still being effective stewards of this important natural resource.

The Cuyahoga River Community Planning Organization (CRCPO) has received a grant from the Ohio Coastal Management Assistance Grants Program to develop a Chippewa Creek Watershed Management Plan. The Plan will assist the communities in the watershed – Brecksville, Broadview Heights and North Royalton – to manage development, restore and protect critical natural resources, and enhance economic competitiveness.

The planning process includes five tasks:

1. Organize the Chippewa Creek Watershed Planning Partnership (CCWPP), representing communities, organizations and agencies, whose purpose is to address and implement balanced growth strategies that protect and enhance the watershed and the communities in which it lies. Staffing the Partnership will include production of three newsletters to communicate the group’s activities to the greater communities.

2. Develop an inventory of data about the watershed’s physical characteristics, geography, biology,  geology and water quality so as to identify a baseline against which improvements can be measured.

3. Develop and agree upon selection and evaluation criteria and create a model for designating Priority Development Areas (PDAs) and Priority Conservation Areas (PCAs).

4. Identify Priority Areas for development and conservation using the criteria as well as measures of community preferences.

5. Complete the Chippewa Creek Watershed Management Plan, summarizing the Partnership’s findings, providing guidance to communities, and laying the groundwork for future actions. Such actions may include developing wetland and stream mitigation plans, and adopting effective Balanced Growth Initiative land management tools throughout the watershed.

At the end of the process, scheduled to be completed by September, 2007, the Partners will have received the tools, training and information necessary to lead their communities in balanced growth planning and effective stream stewardship.