Akron

As of the 2020 Census, the city proper had a total population of 190,469, making it the 125th largest city in the United States. The Akron metropolitan area, covering Summit and Portage counties, had an estimated population of 703,505. The city was founded in 1825 by Simon Perkins and Paul Williams, along the Little Cuyahoga River at the summit of the developing Ohio and Erie Canal. It was briefly renamed South Akron after Eliakim Crosby founded nearby North Akron in 1833, until both merged into an incorporated village in 1836. A long history of rubber and tire manufacturing, carried on today by The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, gave Akron the nickname "Rubber Capital of the World". It was once known as a center of airship development. Today, its economy includes manufacturing, education, healthcare, and biomedical research; leading corporations include Gojo Industries, FirstEnergy, Huntington Bank, and Charter Spectrum. It has seen noted racial relations speeches by Sojourner Truth in 1851the Ain't I A Woman? speech; W. E. B. Du Bois in 1920; and President Bill Clinton in 1997. In 1914, Marcus Garvey founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association in Akron. In 1870, a businessman associated with John R. Buchtel, founded Buchtel College, which became the local university. In 1913, a local businessman, John Schumacher, bought the local church. In 1883, a journalist began the modern toy industry by founding the Akron Toy Company.

History

Akron is the primary city name, but also Coventry Township, Coventry Twp are acceptable city names or spellings, South Arlington on the other hand no longer accepted or obsolete and are no longer used as a designation. In 1811, Paul Williams suggested to General Simon Perkins, who was surveyor of the Connecticut Land Company's Connecticut Western Reserve, that they found a town at the summit of the developing Ohio and Erie Canal. The name is adapted from the Greek word (ákron), meaning summit or high point. In 1883, a local journalist began the modern toy industry by founding the Akron Toy Company. In 1895, the first long-distance electric railway, the Akron, Bedford and Cleveland Railroad, began service. On Easter Sunday 1913, 9.55 inches of rain fell, causing floods that killed five people and destroyed the Ohio and. Erie Canal system. The Akron School Law of 1847 founded the city's public schools and created the K12 grade school system, which currently is used in every U.S. state. The American trucking industry was birthed through Akron's Rubber Capital of the World era when the four major tire companies Goodrich Corporation (1869), Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company (1898), Firestone Tire and rubber Company (1900), and General Tire (1915) were headquartered in the city. In 1929, Akron became a boomtown, being America's fastest growing city with a 2018% increase in population. Of the 208,000 citizens, almost one-third were immigrants and their children from West Virginia and West Virginia. The city's first school is now a museum on Broadway Street near the corner of Exchange. In 1923, 10,000 schoolgirls took part in the successful Akron Experiment, testing iodized salt to prevent goiter in the "Goiter Belt" known as the Akron District.

Geography

Akron is located in the Great Lakes region about 39 miles (63 km) south of Lake Erie, on the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau. It is bordered by Cuyahoga Falls on the north and Barberton in the southwest. The Ohio and Erie Canal passes through the city, separating the east from west. The city has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa), typical of the Midwest, with four distinct seasons, and lies in USDA hardiness zone 6b. Akron has the only biogas facility in the United States that produces methane through the decomposition process of sludge to create electricity. According to the 2010 census, the city has an area of 62.37 square miles (161.5 km²) (or 99.45%) of which 62.03 sq miles (160.7km²) is land and 0.34sq miles (0.88 km²), or 0.55% of the city is water. The normal annual mean temperature is 49.8 °F (9.9 °C) Normal yearly precipitation based on the 30-year average from 1991 to 2020 is 41.57 inches (1,056 mm), falling on an average 158 days. July is the warmest month with an average mean temperature of 72.0 °C (22 °C). Autumn is relatively dry with many clear warm days and cool nights. The snowiest month on record was 37.5 inches (95 cm) in January 1978. The most precipitation to fall on one calendar day was on July 7, 1943, when 5.96" was measured.

Demographics

Akron has a metropolitan population of 703,203 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010). Akron is also part of the larger Cleveland-Akron-Canton Combined Statistical Area, which was the 15th largest in the country with a population of over 3.5 million according to the 2010 Census. In 1999, Akron ranked as the 94th-most-dangerous city (and the 229th safest) on the 7th Morgan Quitno list. The distribution of methamphetamine ("meth") in Akron greatly contributed to Summit County becoming known as the "Meth Capital of Ohio" in the early 2000s. The city is in northern Ohio, where the Inland North dialect is expected, its settlement history puts it in the North Midland dialect area. Some localisms that have developed include devilstrip, which refers to the grass strip between a sidewalk and street, and the Akron-Cleveland dialect, which means "the city of Akron" or "the town of Akron". In 2010, the median income for a household in the city was $34,139. The per capita income was $17,596. About 26.7% of persons were in poverty. Akron has experienced several riots in its history, including the Riot of 1900 and the Wooster Avenue Riots of 1968. In 2007, the city had significantly more registered sites of a major Mexican meth operation than any other city in the state. In 2009, the Akron Police Department received a grant to help with the ridding of the city of meth labs.

Economy

Akron has won economic awards such as for City Livability and All-American City. Current Fortune 500 companies headquartered in the city include the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company and FirstEnergy. The city is the headquarters to a number of other notable companies such as GOJO, Advanced Elastomer Systems, Babcock & Wilcox, Myers Industries, Acme Fresh Market and Sterling Jewelers. Akron has designated an area called the Biomedical Corridor, aimed at luring health-related ventures to the region. In 1974, Dr. Howard Igel and Dr. Aaron Freeman successfully grew human skin in a lab to treat burn victims, making Akron Children's Hospital the first hospital in the world to achieve such a feat. Summa Health System operates Akron City Hospital and the former St. Thomas Hospital, which were recognized for the 11th consecutive year as one of "America's Best Hospitals" by U.S. News & World Report. Akron General Health in affiliation with the Cleveland Clinic operates Akron General Medical Center, which in 2009, was recognized asone of " America's best hospitals" in the nation. Akron City and Akron General hospitals are designated Level I Trauma Centers. In 2010, the National Polymer Innovation Center opened on campus. The first College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering was begun by the university. In 2001, more than 400 companies manufactured polymer-based materials in the area. The area holds forty-five percent of the state's polymer industries, with the oldest dating to the 19th century.

Arts and culture

E. J. Thomas Hall is one of three Akron performance halls. Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens is the seventh-largest historic house in the United States. The city is home to a historic 1920s atmospheric movie palace, the Akron Civic Theatre. In 2009, the National Arbor Day Foundation designated Akron as a Tree City USA for the 14th time. The Akron Police Museum displays mementos including items from Pretty Boy Floyd, whose gang frequented the city. The First Methodist Episcopal Church first used the Akron Plan in 1872, the plan later gained popularity, being used in many Congregationalists, Baptists, and Presbyterians. There are numerous points of interest in the Akron area, including the Ohio and Erie Canal, the Sand Run Metro Park, and the Goodyear Polymer Center on the University of Akron campus. In 2007, the museum more than tripled in size with the addition of the John S. and James L. Knight Building, which received the 2005 American Architecture Award from the Chicago Athenaeum while still under construction. The Huntington Tower, the city's tallest building, features the art deco style and is covered in glazed architectural terra-cotta. It is built on top of the Hamilton Building, completed in 1900 in the neo-gothic style. Near the turn of the millennium the tower was given a $2.5 million facelift, including a $1.8 million restoration of the tower's terra/cotta, brick and limestone.

Sports

Akron hosted some of the events of the 2014 Gay Games including the marathon, the men's and women's golf tournaments, and softball at Firestone Stadium. The Akron Marathon is an annual marathon in the city which offers a team relay and shorter races throughout the summer and fall. The University of Akron's Akron Zips compete in the NCAA and the Mid-American Conference (MAC) in a variety of sports at the Division I level. In 2009, the Zips men's soccer team completed the regular-season undefeated, then won the NCAA Men's Division I Soccer Championship in 2010. The Firestone Country Club, which annually hosts the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, has in the past hosted the PGA Championship, American Golf Classic, and Rubber City Open Invitational. On January 7, 1938, Akron became the birthplace of women's professional Mud Wrestling, in a match including Professional Wrestling, WWE, and Wrestling Observer Hall of Famer, Mildred Burke. LeBron James' King for Kids bike-a-thon feature James riding with kids through the city each June. In November, the city hosts the annual Home Run for the Homeless 4-mile run. Former teams of Akron include the Akron Professionals of the National Football League who played in the historic Rubber Bowl and won the 1920 championship. The Goodyear Silents, a deaf semi-professional football; the Akron Black Tyrites of the Negro National League; and the Akron Americans of the International Hockey League.

Parks and recreation

Major parks in Akron include Lock 3, Firestone, Goodyear Heights, the F.A. Seiberling Nature Realm (or Naturealm), and part of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Several of the parks are along the locks of the canal. Lock 3 Park in downtown Akron is the city's hub for entertainment. Akron residents can enjoy various ice skating activities year round at the historic Akron Ice House. The Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail is a regional bike and hike trail that follows the canal and is a popular tourist attraction. The Portage Hike and Bike Trail, when fully complete, will connect with the hike and bike trails in the county. The State of Ohio plans to reconstruct the trail which once ran completely through Ohio, to New Philadelphia from Cleveland. The trail features a floating observation deck section over Summit Lake, which attracts over 2 million visits annually. It is also home to the Akron Skatepark, a 19,000-square-foot (1,800 m2) outdoor skatepark. The park features concrete ramps, including two bowls going as deep as 7 feet (2.1 m), a snake run, two hips, a stair set with handrail, many smaller quarter pipes and a variety of grind boxes. A Pro BMX course where organized races are often held in the warmer months is located just a few feet from the skatepark, and is often used for organized races in the winter months. The city is home to a National Park Service park.

Government

The mayor of Akron is elected in a citywide vote. In 2016, the city elected its 62nd mayor. The city is divided into 10 wards, each elect a member to the Akron City Council, while an additional 3 are elected at large. The mayor's cabinet currently consist of directors and deputy directors of administration, communications, community relations, economic development, intergovernmental relations, labor relations, law, planning & urban development, planning director deputy, public safety, and public service. The current mayor is Dan Horrigan. Longtime Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic announced on May 8, 2015, that he would resign on May 31 after 28 years as mayor and 41 years of service to the city. Garry Moneypenny was sworn in as the new mayor at East High School. On June 5, 2015 he announced he would not run for a full term because of inappropriate contact with a city employee. Council president Jeff Fusco assumed the duties of mayor on June 11, 2015. The Democratic candidates were Summit County Clerk of Courts and former ward 4 CouncilmanDan Horrigan; at-large Councilman Mike Williams; and Summit County Councilman Frank Communale. Horrigan won the Democratic primary, held on September 8. In the general election, he faced the lone GOP candidate, Eddie Sipplen, an African-American criminal defense attorney. He took office on January 1, 2016. On November 5, 2019, Mayor Horrigan was re-elected to a second term.

Education

Planning of the district began in 1840, when Ansel Miller suggested to build free public schools for all children in the city. Akron's first public schools were established in the fall of 1847 and were led by Mortimer Leggett. In 1984, all-day kindergarten was piloted at Seiberling, Rankin and Hatton schools. In 1967, Kenmore launched the Air Force JROTC. In 1971, Jennings piloted the middle school model, which moved ninth-graders to the senior high school. The district received an A+ evaluation from the state in 1987. All Akron Public Schools are currently going through a 15-year, $800 million rebuilding process. Akron was served by the Akron Digital Academy from 2002 to 2018, when it shut down. LeBron James founded the I Promise School, which serves underprivillaged kids. The city is home to the University of Akron, originally Buchtel College, the school is home of the Goodyear Polymer Center and the National Polymer Innovation Center. In the 1920s, an Americanization program was designed to help the many Akron students who were first-generation Americans. A "continuation school" began for working boys and girls who were required by law to have at least four hours of schooling a week. In 1924, Akron's platoon schools attracted visitors from all over the country. During the 1950s boom town phase, Akron schools grew eight times faster than the city's population. The majority of school board and government officials were members of the Ku Klux Klan during the decade.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Akron, Summit County, Ohio = 16.3. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 27. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 30. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Akron = 3.4 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 190,469 individuals with a median age of 36.4 age the population dropped by -4.83% in Akron, Summit County, Ohio population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 3,075.40 residents per square mile of area (1,187.42/km²). There are average 2.31 people per household in the 87,000 households with an average household income of $35,709 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 10.40% of the available work force and has dropped -6.20% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 17.20%. The number of physicians in Akron per 100,000 population = 251.3.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Akron = 36.3 inches and the annual snowfall = 46.3 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 127. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 164. 82 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 20.8 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 49, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Akron, Summit County, Ohio which are owned by the occupant = 53.54%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 56 years with median home cost = $56,830 and home appreciation of -5.67%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $12.66 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $5,464 per student. There are 17.4 students for each teacher in the school, 246 students for each Librarian and 526 students for each Counselor. 4.80% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 12.23% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 6.30% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).