Cedar Fair buys Sawmill Creek

HURON TWP. — Cedar Fair, Cedar Point's parent company, signed a deal Tuesday to purchase Sawmill Creek Resort, a reliable source told the Register.Sawmill Creek Lodge opened in September 1972 on Cleveland Road, near Sheldon Marsh State Nature Preserve, becoming one of the first places to establish year-round tourism to the area with its high-end resort and offerings.It boasts a 240-room hotel; an 18-hole golf course, heralded as one the best in the area; a convention center; shops; condominiums; restaurants; and a marina.For nearly two years, there has been repeated speculation that the resort was up for sale with Cedar Fair the supposed top contender to purchase it.Another resort company, however, was in contract to purchase Sawmill Creek, according to sources. The company even filed for a business license with the Ohio Secretary of State under the Sawmill Creek name in September 2018.But that deal appears to have fallen through, and Cedar Point is poised to take over the property. The source told the Register Cedar Fair's top priority after purchasing the resort would be to stabilize the property.Cedar Fair has made a number of investments along Cleveland Road, which is one of the main pathways to its flagship park Cedar Point, including the $24 million Sports Force Parks at Cedar Point Sports Center, located down the road from Sawmill Creek.The agreed upon purchase price for Sawmill Creek isn't known, but the Erie County auditor's website values the resort and convention center portions at more than $8 million when last assessed in 2018.Sawmill Creek historyIn the 1970s, a group of investors spent $4.25 million — more than $26 million today when adjusted for inflation — to turn 235 acres on Lake Erie into a year-round attraction.Greg Hill got in on the ground floor of the project when his company, Hill's Interiors, sold 13,000 yards of carpeting for the hotel in 1969 when the plan was first announced.In the 1980s, he was approached by the resort owners to purchase the land to the northwest of the resort and build a condominium complex, according to a 1995 Register article.His ownership of Mariner Village Condominiums led to years of investments into the resort for Hill and his wife, Lisa. They would go on to own the yacht club and Mariner's Club Restaurant. The Hills continued to come up with new ways to attract visitors to the resort and help the community including holiday favorite the Firelands Festival of Lights.In 1995, the Hills and business partner Tom Bleile purchased the controlling stake of the entire resort complex. In 2009, the Hills and Jeffery Lococo bought out Bleile. The Hills became the majority owners and Lococo became the minority owner of the resort.But many of the original investors, or their children and grandchildren — and others who made investments in the property later — continue to have financial interest in the resort and any sale will likely include payouts for each individual.*Editor's note: This article has been updated to correct when the land's value was last assessed and to include the minority owner's name.Reach reporter Michael Harrington at michaelharrington@sanduskyregister.com, follow the Register at Facebook.com/SanduskyRegisterCedar Fair is close to closing a deal to purchase Sawmill Creek Resort, a reliable source told the Register.