Note to readers:

The following item is a written record of the Ward 10 Akron City County meeting from Aug. 18, compiled by Akron Documenter Wanda Shelton. It is not a reported story.

Documenters are residents who are trained to observe and document local government meetings. Their notes are edited before publication for clarity and accuracy — unless quotation marks are used, all text is paraphrased.

If you believe anything in these notes is inaccurate, please email us at documenters@signalakron.org with "Correction Request" in the subject line

Summary

  • Ward 10 Council Member Sharon Connor talked about efforts to repurpose the green water tower and pump station in Goodyear Heights’ Reservoir Park.
  • Akron participated in the National NIght Out Against Crime event Aug. 4. Connor asked residents how to make the two-hour event better. She and residents discussed having a band or DJ. This will be discussed at upcoming meetings.
  • Water Tower Marketplace is a seasonal event held some Thursdays in the summer at Reservoir Park from 7 to 9 p.m. Connor and residents talked about how to address why people are not aware of this event that combines live music and vendors selling their goods. 
  • The Goodyear Heights Community Development Corporation (CDC)  formed two years ago to bring the neighborhood together. They are sponsoring the second Historic Heights 5K run and walk to raise money and awareness of Goodyear Heights and to support the CDC.

Documenter follow-up questions

  • Why are the residents of Goodyear Heights not attending the Water Tower Marketplace and Concert Series? 
  • What would make resident attendance better at a Ward 10 meeting?
  • Do residents get to vote on how they want $15,000 spent?

Ward 10 meeting notes: 

The Ward 10 meeting started at 6:03 p.m.

Goodyear Heights’ water tower and pump house restoration efforts ongoing

  • “We’re trying hard to save that water tower,” Connor said. 
  • This is an historic green water tower in Reservoir Park. The city is rebuilding the nearby city reservoir and has plans to tear down the water tower as part of the project. Connor said they hired a company to renderings of the water tower in an effort to save it. The posters are available to view. She said some ideas for what the to do with the water tower and pump house include an eating area and using the pump house for STEM education. 

Akron reservoir construction update

  • Connor said that work started Aug. 17 on the new reservoir construction with a concrete floor being poured. Workers will pour concrete at night to keep it from overheating and for getting the best results.
Signal background

Goodyear Heights CDC sponsors 5K, does housing advocacy 

Council Member Sharon Conner opened the meeting by  introducing Fred Strelbicki.  the President and Treasurer of the Goodyear Heights Community Development Corporation (CDC). Strelbicki was born and raised in Goodyear Heights. 

He shared the following information

  • The CDC started two years ago to bring neighbors together.
  • The group is developing opportunities for resident interaction for small business support
  • CDC has a housing stability initiative to advocate and support aging in place assistance
  • Historic Heights 5K race is Sept. 5. Set up starts at 7a.m. The race for runners  begins at 8 a.m. and 8:05 a.m. for walkers. Strelbicki talked about the route for the race that runs through the Goodyear Heights neighborhood.  
  • He said volunteers are needed for water stations along the route. 
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Ward meeting survey handed out

  • Conner said this month’s ward meeting would be focused on evaluation of things in the ward. For this reason, there was no guest speaker. She handed out a one-page survey for residents to give feedback about ward meetings structures and things happening in the ward.

Night Out Against Crime event discussion

  • Connor asked what people liked or disliked about the Aug. 4 two-hour event. She asked about areas for improvement. 
  • The biggest comments she heard is that people would prefer a band over a DJ.  Conner suggested one year a band and the next year a DJ. The event is two hours long and bands are more costly, she said. 
Sgt. Damber Subba with the Akron Police Department shows his meta glasses to Malayah Bronner at the 43rd Annual National Night Out at the Patterson Park sports complex in Akron's North Hill neighborhood.
Sgt. Damber Subba with the Akron Police Department shows his meta glasses to Malayah Bronner at the 43rd Annual National Night Out at the Patterson Park sports complex in Akron’s North Hill neighborhood. (Michael Francis McElroy / Signal Akron).

Water Tower Marketplace attendance improvements sought

  • This is a summer concert series with local vendors selling goods. This year, there were three concerts in June at Reservoir Park, 1735 Hillside Terrace. 
  • Conner said a lot of people feel it is not being publicized very well and attendance is low.   
  • She said for this next year they’ll try to get the dates out earlier, even if the bands are picked yet. 

Public safety update shows overdoses dropping

  • Akron Police Officer Karlton Stark passed out a city-wide status report that showed a decrease in homicides. Stark said that overdoses are down thanks to wide usage of Narcan, a medication police use to revive people suffering an overdose. The report also listed other crimes, calls, use of force calls and complaints.  
  • Stark said that the Akron Police Department will have a new class of officers graduating on Aug. 21. Akron will have fresh officers on the beat. 
  • Stark also talked about Flock surveillance cameras. He said that residents at neighborhood watch meeting were discussing this. Stark said he knew there were differences of opinion and that some police have misused them, but he said the license-plate tracking technology has helped them in cases like finding a Cleveland woman with dementia whose license plate was flagged on the system in Akron. 

A closer look at Goodyear Heights

$15,000 spread out to neighborhood organizations

  • Every year Akron City Council members get $15,000 to spend in their ward. Conner said she tries to break this up so more can go around. 
  • This year she gave $9,000 to Hearts 4 the City  to help with tree removal on private property. The Goodyear Heights Christian church works with residents, tree removal experts, and volunteers to bring down old or dangerous trees. 
  • Conor gave $3,000 was to the Goodyear Heights CDC to help with the Night Out Against Crimes event and the 5K race. 
  • Habitat for Humanity got $6,000 to help build a playground in North Hill where the organization has built 16 homes. 

What would you do with $10,000?

Connor asked residents what they would do with $10,000 and a nonprofit partner to help improve neighborhoods in Ward 10. Some of the answers include:

  • Have a mixer event to help tell people about the resources available.
  • Efforts to help with blight, lawns and trash removal
  • Help people get housing
  • Good Neighbors Food Pantry expansion

Miscellaneous Ward 10 information

Connor shared a packet of information for residents to take with them. It contained flyers with information on leaf removal, free laundry services, Summit Metro Parks, Trolley trips and Faith & Blue,  billed as the “community-law enforcement collaboration in history.” The event will be held in Reservoir Park on Oct. 10.       

Shakeela Gary talked about Freedom Blocs’ housing initiatives that they are working to get on the November ballot. She said they are hiring canvassers to help collect signatures and the pay is $24/hour. 

The meeting ended at 6:35 p.m.

Akron Documenters trains and pays residents to document local government meetings with notes and live-tweet threads. We then make those meeting summaries available as a new public record.