Boston Township

NOTE: This article was published December 2009 originally and
is reprinted with the permission of the West Side Leader. By Amy Anderson, Randy Bergdorf and Gerald Ritch Editor’s note: In honor of the West Side Leader’s 25th anniversary, we asked the Boston Board of Trustees to submit a guest column about how Boston has changed in 25 years. Trustees Amy Anderson, Randy Bergdorf and Gerald Ritch responded with the column below. For Boston Township, the last 25 years have been a period of rebuilding. Boston Township has found itself faced with a town hall closed by the state fire marshal, township roads in need of major capital improvements and a grim financial outlook caused by an ever-dwindling tax base. Each of those issues has been dealt with during the last 25 years.

After studies by architectural professionals and a vote by the citizens to spend $350,000 from the Roush inheritance tax on a restoration, the Boston Township Hall was restored through the joint efforts of the Boston Township trustees and the not-for-profit Boston Township Hall Committee Inc. The goal of getting the 1887 schoolhouse and its 1920 addition back into productive use has remained central to the trustees and the committee. Today this complex of buildings houses Boston Township offices, the Cuyahoga Valley Historical Museum and professional offices suites. In addition, there are rooms available for parties and community events. This restoration could not have been accomplished without many foundation and governmental grants and the generous donation of money and time from the community.

Twenty-five years ago, Boston Township’s roads were in need of some major capital improvements and one road, Oak Hill, was closed entirely because of a landslide. Faced with a lack of road money, township trustees seriously began to contemplate the permanent closure of other roads. After a thorough study of the situation by the Cuyahoga Valley Communities Council in 1992, the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area (now called the Cuyahoga Valley National Park) sought and received special legislation to fund capital improvements on roads serving park facilities. This federal road money has paid for resurfacing projects, guardrail installation, drainage improvements and the removal of streetlights no longer needed after the homes that they were installed to illuminate had been removed. In addition, an application for funding through the state’s Issue II program allowed Oak Hill Road to reopen.

In 1984, the land acquisition program of the National Park Service was very active. In addition to the loss of residents, community continuity and a sustainable tax base, the township was replete with boarded up houses, which often invited arsonists. While the federal government has purchased 65 percent of Boston Township, when the additional acreage of prior nontaxable land is included, fully 85 percent of Boston Township pays no property taxes. In order to make up for some of this lost tax base, Boston Township and the city of Cuyahoga Falls successfully negotiated a Joint Economic Development District (JEDD) in 2006. Because the JEDD overlaps the township’s business corridor, the township has been able to collect income taxes on those who work at businesses in the JEDD area. Cuyahoga Falls receives 60 percent of the income tax and Boston Township receives 40 percent. In exchange for this arrangement, Cuyahoga Falls has agreed not to annex any additional township land and will eventually provide city water to the area.

While Boston Township’s financial situation has not been entirely resolved, there is great promise on the horizon.

Last updated September 15, 2026