Non-profit Continues to Honor History and Connections
Canalway Partners is celebrating 40 years of making connections throughout Northeast Ohio. Incorporated on March 13, 1985 as North Cuyahoga Corridor, Inc, Canalway Partners was founded by a group of community-minded explorers who looked to the past to create a better future for the Cuyahoga River Valley.
The founding group of hikers and historians saw potential in establishing a north-south greenspace following the historic path of the Ohio & Erie Canal. They saw the industrial valley of the Cuyahoga River as a potential connector, despite its reputation as a dividing line between east and west in Cuyahoga County. The incorporation of Canalway Partners led to a comprehensive four-county focus on reclaiming a north-south corridor of the canal for recreation, historic preservation, and the connection of canal communities.
Canalway Partners commissioned the first study on the feasibility and impact of a north-south connective corridor and made it a reality. Canalway acted as the lead agent in Cuyahoga County for the creation of one of the country’s earliest National Heritage Areas, the Ohio & Erie Canalway National Heritage Area.
The Ohio & Erie Canalway National Heritage Area runs along the first 110 miles of the historic canal route. It was designated by Congress in 1996 and is managed in part by Canalway Partners. The National Heritage Area celebrates the significance of the Ohio & Erie Canal and its legacy to the region and nation. Since its designation, the National Heritage Area has leveraged more than $355 million in federal, state, local and private investments throughout the region.
Today, Canalway Partners is best known for its work envisioning and fundraising for the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail in Cuyahoga County, which was completed in 2022.
“Throughout our 40 year history, Canalway has been able to act as the flexible element when working with governments and corporations, while also being the consistent partner holding fast to the vision for projects like the Towpath Trail as governmental leadership and priorities have shifted,” Mera Cardenas, executive director of Canalway Partners. “We have worked with 40 years of elected officials to communicate the important history of the Ohio & Erie Canal and ensure its impact will be recognized in the Towpath Trail and Canal Basin Park.”
Over the course of 40 years, Canalway has brought more than 20,515 runners to the Towpath Trail, removed more than 1.55 million pounds of trash during 35 years of RiverSweep, assisted in the transformation of 400 acres of underutilized property into public trails and greenspaces, helped form 23 historic districts in Cleveland, and worked with more than 99 community partners to elevate Cleveland’s history and recreational assets.
Canalway Partners continues to celebrate the industrial valley and innovative history with events including the 36 year-old RiverSweep litter cleanup, The Towpath Trilogy race series, Cleveland History Days, and River Rally, a summer festival that connects people to the Cuyahoga River.
With an ongoing focus on canal history, Canalway is also the lead advocate for the development of Canal Basin Park, the historic site where the 1832 Ohio & Erie Canal met the Cuyahoga River. Today, the 22-acre greenspace is the northern terminus of the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail in downtown Cleveland. The new schematic designs for the park were approved in January 2025 and will transform the space into an interpretive park that honors the location’s important history, connects the community to the Cuyahoga River and trail network, and creates a cohesive greenspace for community use.
Canalway will celebrate the 40-year anniversary throughout 2025 with a series of blog posts, a fundraising campaign, and activations at annual events.