10/25/02

The 48-acre historical farm sits in the middle of the state's seventh-largest city, surrounded by subdivisions and shopping malls. Turn into the driveway from bustling Ridge Road, and you find yourself walking among farm animals, rolling hills and pastures.

Currently, the park is used as a meeting place for the Parma Area Historical Society, as well as a focal point for the society's gatherings.

But within a month or so, that will begin to change. The city of Parma is about to implement a $100,000 plan to upgrade the historical farmstead, which was a working farm until the Gibbs family sold it to the city in 1980, to an educational park with recreational facilities.

The city bought the farm through eminent domain 22 years ago because officials were concerned that the only remaining remnant of the city's farm history would be gobbled up by development. The goal was to create a "passive" recreational space, creating a quiet, relaxing venue for strolling or meeting people.

On the front of the property sits an 1848 barn, the 1855 Stearns family home, the 1920 Gibbs family home, a meeting cabin, a gift shop, gardens and farm animals, all of which is maintained by the Parma Area Historical Society. The houses are decorated and furnished to reflect the period.

The Stearns and Gibbs family homes both serve as farm museums and meeting places for the society.

In the past 20 years, not much else has happened down on the homestead. It gained a listing on the National Historic Register of Places in 1981, but the buildings themselves haven't had much more than a fresh coat of paint and a historical marker slapped on them.

Current redevelopment plans - put together by Schmidt Copeland Parker Stevens architects of Cleveland - include: a closed-loop gravel stone pathway, a pedestrian walkway from the parking lot, a new farm entrance, new fencing, landscape improvements, barn restoration and stream/wetlands restoration. A boardwalk will overlook the wetlands, and a bridge will take walkers over the drainage course.

The half-mile to three-quarter-mile gravel stone walkway is slated to be 8 feet wide. The original plan called for the figure-eight path to run along the border of the property, but the city decided to condense the pathway to the center of the property to ease concerns about abutting residences. The path will be for walkers only, with in-line skates, skateboards and bicycles prohibited.

In addition, a recently purchased two-acre lot at one end of the property will be converted to a parking lot, with its house becoming a visitor's center and library.

By May, the city hopes to plant wetland plants, similar to what was done at the West Creek Nature Preserve in Parma.

Officials have raised $100,000 from various state and federal sources for the changes, with another $25,000 pending. Parma City Council bought the extra lot and house for $133,000 in 2000.

"The natural landscape buffering has closed out the modern intrusions of the development around it," said Ward 5 Councilwoman Michelle Stys. "It's got rolling hills, meadows, wetlands, trees in the back, hardwood, chickens, goats, horses, ponies, rabbits, roosters."

Historical society president Ruth Fay said she's seen some of the plans for the property and is encouraged, but she said the society would like continued input into the plans, including a timeline for the improvements and reassurance that officials will maintain the historical integrity of an old-fashioned working farm.

"Developing this farm with trails is a passive park," Fay said. "You don't need to build ponds and shelters. The area is ideal for school groups. It can be a wonderful resource for the local and other school districts."

Gary Sefl, Parma's service director, said he hopes to see new fencing, a new parking lot and a walkway from the parking lot to the "focus area" of the farm done "before the snow flies."

Sefl, who wrote the original grant to buy the property in 1980, said the everyday duties and responsibilities of running a city got in the way of developing the land until recently.

"Priorities change. This is a city of 84,000 people," he said. "What's important now is the city has received the funding and is moving ahead. The farm is not closed off just to certain people. It's supposed to be open to everyone."

Stys has made it her personal mission to see Stearns Farm reach its fullest potential.

"I grew up across the street," she said. "I enjoyed coming over here as a child. It's a jewel in Ward 5. It's 48 acres of land - an oasis of green in a desert of asphalt."

Had the city not made a commitment to the Stearns Homestead's historic past, Sefl said, it could very well have become another subdivision.

"If you look back on history, look back at this before the period of construction, those are historic roots - not the bungalows built from 1951 to 1970," Sefl said. "That's why it's important to us. It shows an agricultural way of life."

Bonvissuto is a free-lance writer in Parma.