December 30, 2009 Newsletter

The Vision

The Mill Creek Greenway Trail will physically transform the Mill Creek corridor and watershed, located in the geographic heart of Cincinnati and Hamilton County. This multi-objective program will help to eliminate blight; economically revitalize Mill Creek neighborhoods and communities; create jobs; stimulate the local economy; increase Mill Creek's visibility; regenerate the health of the river and its natural resources; and provide opportunities for bike commuting, people-powered short trips, multi-modal transportation, recreation, outdoor exercise, and environmental education.

To maximize the public use and value of this initiative, MCRP will integrate trail furnishings (e.g., bike racks, benches, picnic tables, fencing and signs) made from reused/recycled materials; incorporate green technologies (e.g., solar-powered or energy efficient lighting at trail heads, trail paving materials from shredded rubber tires and porous asphalt); install public art; and create physical exercise stations, in consultation with health organizations.

Greenway Projects in the First Ten Years (1999-2008)

Between 1997 and 1999, Mill Creek Restoration Project (MCRP) lead an intensive community-based planning process that culminated in the completion of the comprehensive Mill Creek Watershed Greenway Master Plan. Other major partners in this effort included the Hamilton County Department of Environmental Services, the Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati, the Mill Creek Watershed Council of Communities, and the Ohio/Kentucky/Indiana Regional Council of Governments.

Starting in 1999 with no money, MCRP has raised over $4 million from private donors, businesses, civic organizations, and local, state and federal sources to support initial implementation of the greenway plan. In 1999, the City of Cincinnati created the Mill Creek Greenway Program for its portion of the Mill Creek watershed and MCRP has served as the City's project manager since that time.

Over the past ten years, MCRP and its partners have completed fifteen ecological and engineering studies and a total of twenty-eight diverse Mill Creek Greenway projects, including five projects in the Mill Creek headwaters in Butler County, three in the Village of Woodlawn, and twenty in the City of Cincinnati. The studies have provided the scientific underpinning for greenway projects that include:

Planting Mill Creek Freedom Trees (Ohio native hardwood trees) along the river.
Restoration or regeneration of streambanks, wetlands, floodplain areas and wildlife habitat (on land and in the creek).
Development of the Laughing Brook wetland, public art and stormwater demonstration project that showcases sustainable design and practices.
Installation of rain gardens and reforestation at three Cincinnati Public Schools.
Construction of greenway trails.
Recruitment and training for thousands of students and community volunteers who have assisted with the Mill Creek fieldwork.

Completed FY 2009 Work

Constructing the first half mile of the 3.4 mile Queen City-South Mill Creek Greenway Trail that will follow along the river between Mitchell Avenue and the Mill Creek Road bridge in South Cumminsville. Major Phase 1 partners include the City of Cincinnati, Clean Ohio Trail Fund, The Greater Cincinnati Foundation, MCRP donors and volunteers, and the public property owner, the Mill Creek Valley Conservancy District.

Restoring and enhancing the Mill Creek Freedom Tree grove in Northside that adjoins the first segment of the Queen City-South Mill trail.

Students help restore the Northside Mill Creek Freedom Tree site, Fall 2009

(Click on maps and photos to enlarge)

Serving as a community adviser to the Metropolitan Sewer District for its development of the Caldwell-Seymour trail, located between Caldwell Park and Este Avenue.
Expanding and maintaining the rain gardens surrounding the Laughing Brook wetland and public art project in Salway Park, located across the street from the Spring Grove Cemetery.

Laughing Brook wetland and public art project at Salway Park, June 2009
Managing invasive and aggressive plant species (e.g., honeysuckle and wintercreeper) at the Caldwell Park streambank stabilization site, at the North Fairmount prairie habitat restoration site, and at the Salway Park native species nursery.

Floodplain Restoration at Caldwell Park 2008
Securing $500,000 from the Clean Ohio Trail Fund for the second phase of the Queen City-South Mill Creek trail to begin in early 2010. The State requires a cash match of 25% of the total cost for a Clean Ohio Trail project. This means MCRP must raise and spend $167,000 on design and construction expenses before it is eligible to receive the State grant in 2010. That's where our donors come in!

Greenway Work in 2010 and Beyond

Over the next two years, MCRP plans to complete the 3.4 mile Queen City-South Mill Creek Greenway Trail and to work as requested with the City of St. Bernard to link the community to the trail via the historic Miami-to-Erie Canal corridor. This high visibility trail will serve as a catalyst for creating the envisioned network of Mill Creek trails in Hamilton County.

Over the next five years, MCRP plans to complete a continuous 13.5 mile Greenway Trail from the Hamilton County Fairgrounds in Carthage to the Ohio River (please visit the MCRP website to see a map). From the confluence with the Ohio River, the Mill Creek trail will connect to the Central Riverfront Park and the Ohio River Trail.

And, in an exciting development this year, representatives from a number of Mill Creek suburban communities have been meeting to explore their mutual interest in connecting to each other and the Mill Creek Greenway Trail. The communities include Blue Ash, Glendale, Evendale, Reading and Sharonville. In addition, the Hamilton County Park District and the West Fork Mill Creek Sub-watershed communities of Woodlawn, Springfield Township and Wyoming are working to link Winton Woods Park, their communities, and the Mill Creek Greenway Trail together. MCRP will serve as an advisor and resource to all of these communities as needed and requested.

By New Year's Eve, 2019, look for the completion of at least twenty miles of Mill Creek Greenway Trails!

Students collect Mill Creek water samples, Summer 2009