‘Partners’ are key part in state’s land acquisitions at Funk Bottoms Wildlife Area
FUNK — All the dignitaries from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and the Ohio Division of Wildlife were on hand Tuesday morning for the dedication of several wildlife habitat projects and land acquisitions that will open more recreational opportunities for the sportsmen and women of Wayne, Holmes and Ashland counties, and beyond.
And the key theme that tied all the festivities together was the word “partners,” as the ODNR and DOW got plenty of help in making the morning possible.
“We really appreciate all our partners and we’re grateful for everything they are doing to make Ohio a better state,” said ODNR Director Mary Mertz at the day’s first dedication site, the new 27-acre East Funk Bottoms Restoration Project, which is just on the outskirts of the tiny burg of Funk.
Just around the corner on North Funk Road, two more ceremonies were held for the purchase of 130 acres on the east side of the road and 135 on the other, both purchased through land conservancy partners and eventually by the state once funding was approved. Those land purchases and habitat improvements are known as the Muddy Fork Restoration Project and West Funk Bottoms Project.
“These are key pieces that tie in the whole area,” said DOW District Three Wildlife Management Supervisor Scott Peters, noting that the Funk Bottoms Wildlife Area is now up to roughly 1,800 acres.
Wildlife viewing platform built by the boy scouts
The fourth destination of the event Tuesday was showing off the new wildlife viewing platform north of St. route 95, built by yet another ODNR partner, Shreve Boy Scout Troop 71. All told the price tag for the four projects totaled over $2 million, with funding and help from H2Ohio, The Wilderness Center, Western Reserve Land Conservancy, West Creek Conservancy, the Charles and Mary Mohler Fund, the Killbuck Valley chapter of Whitetails Unlimited, Pheasants Forever, Ashland County Parks, and the Northern Ohio chapter of the Woodcock Society.
Gov. Mike DeWine’s H2Ohio initiative played a key role in the land acquisitions and habitat restoration projects, as cleaning up Ohio’s water has always been big on his and the ODNR’s agenda.
“In 2019, Gov. DeWine first asked ‘how do we make clean water more accessible across the state?’” said Mertz. “At the ODNR, we asked, ‘how do we use natural resources to create clean water?’”
Using natural resources to clean water
Mertz noted that most of the H2Ohio projects have been clustered in the northwest portion of the state centering around algal bloom problems in Lake Erie, but have since expanded, now including such projects as Funk. “We’re not only cleaning water, but this also benefits wildlife,” she said.
All told, the state has completed 70 such projects, with another 100 scheduled.
Peters put it into layman’s terms as to what these parcels of land will mean to Ohioans.
“No. 1,” he said, “is public access. No. 2, these are all flooded places, you can’t build on it, so we’re putting it back to its natural habitat where it will filter the flooded water.”
“All these properties really fit the H2O blueprint,” said Derek Schafer, West Creek Conservancy Executive Director, whose company helped purchase the 135-acre Dream LLC property at auction, and also brokered another 40-acre parcel that borders the East Funk Bottoms Restoration Project, which will be turned over to the ODNR in the near future.
The $1.2 million Mohler Fund is managed by the Wayne County Community Foundation, and is set up for the Division of Wildlife to use money that is generated from the principal for land purchases in Wayne, Holmes and Ashland counties. Mohler money was used to help purchase the land on North Funk Road.
“Hopefully Charles and Mary are smiling down on us,” said Peters.
As for the East Funk Bottoms Restoration Project, that acquisition would not have been possible if not for the help of the Wilderness Center in Wilmot, which stepped in at the 12th hour and helped write a grant to complete the purchase of the property.
“When I met (Assistant Wildlife Management Supervisor) Bryan Kay here, right away I could see the value in it,” said Jeanne Gural, the Wilderness Center’s Executive Director. “Conservation, education and community is our mission and here someday we envision that viewing station over there to be filled with students and bird watchers. We’re thankful for the possibilities.”
And at the end of the day, maybe the happiest person in attendance was Dennis Solon, who manages both Funk Bottoms Wildlife Area and the Killbuck Marsh Wildlife Area for the Division of Wildlife.
“I’ve seen a change in the area,” said the veteran Solon. “The local people now are our friends and neighbors. They know what we’re doing and they know the benefit of it.
“This is a prime example of people coming together to get it done,” Solon continued. “Enjoy it. Enjoy everything in the Funk Bottoms Wildlife Area, because it’s yours.”
Outdoor correspondent Art Holden can be reached at letsplabal@yahoo.com
This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Funk Bottoms Wildlife area land acquisitions create opportunities
