City Council - Regular Meeting

Good evening. We're going to call the meeting for Akron City Council to order. At this time, our clerk will read the roll.

Bolden. Aye. Boyes. Aye. Connor. Aye. Davis. Aye. Garrett.

Present.

Greer.

Aye.

Hanna.

Aye.

Kamer. Aye. Lombardo.

Aye.

McKittrick?

Aye.

Omobian? Aye. Somerville? Aye. Wilson?

Aye.

All members are present.

For those who voluntarily wish to do so, would you please stand at this time as we are led in prayer by Minister Mitchell of Building and Rebuilding Foundation. Immediately following our prayer, I'm going to ask if Councilperson Wilson will lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Good evening, everyone. Father God, we come to you on this day, Lord. Lord, I'd rather than take it lightly, Lord, I thank you right now, Father God, for allowing me to stand in the gap, Father God, on behalf of your peoples, Father God. Father God, we just pray right now, Father God, you tell us in your word, Father God, if your peoples will humble themselves and come together, Father God, and then we will hear from heaven, Father God, and you will heal the land. Lord, we are here with many different debates, many different situations, many concerns. Father God, and you know all of those concerns. Father God, we are asking right now, Father God, I open my heart to you, Lord, to cry out to you, Father God. Father, yet sitting on my mind, we see some of our military here. We see our city councils. We see our leaders. We see our mayor. Father God, bring us together. Bring us together on one accord, Father God, for this meeting, that it will be what you will have it to be. Father, that we could come together. And make a difference, Father God, right here in the state of Ohio. So we can put our difference to the side. And get about your business, Father God. Father God, we need you. We need you in the name of Jesus, Lord. Because we are up against many destruction, Father God. Many violence. Many drugs. Many mental health. Many... of violence, Father God. Many are trafficking, Father God. Human trafficking, Father God. So, Father God, admit it. We can go down the list. But, Father God, you know. So, Father, I ask everyone to open up their hearts. Let's come together and make a better way. Let's come together to make a better city. Let's come together to... Ooh, Lord Jesus. Youth prevention, Father God. Let's not stop talking about, Lord, after we have the addiction, after the violence happened. Father God, help us. to our way, Father God, to come together to prevent these things that are destroying lives and are destroying your peoples. Father God, please, I beg of you, Lord. I cry out to you, Father God, for no shame, no glory of my own, only to glorify you, Father God. And I hope these prayers, Father God, touch each one of our hearts, whatever is up on our heart, Father God. Let us release it. Father God, and give it to you. But bring us together in the city council room, Father God, that the decision made will be made by you, Father God, and be used to your purpose. So, Father God, we ask this in Jesus' name, and we thank you in Jesus' name. Amen.

of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. The minutes from our previously held meeting have been provided. Are there any additions or corrections?

Motion to approve.

Is there a second?

Second.

All in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

Any opposed? The ayes have it.

The motion to approve the minutes passes 13 to 0.

We'll now move to our public comment period. I'm going to ask all those who signed up if you'll please stand at this time so that you may be sworn in by our clerk.

Could you please raise your right hand? Do you swear or affirm that the testimony you give will be the truth? If so, please say, I do. I do. Thank you. Thank you.

Just going to ask when you hear your name, if you'll please approach the podium. And just as a reminder, you will have three minutes to speak to this body. And we're going to begin with Wayman Griffin III. Is Wayman here? Tamika Boyd?

Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for allowing me this time to speak. The reason why I wanted to come up and speak is because we all know that Akron has a problem. And that problem is our young people are falling by the wayside. And so I'm a firm believer that it's going to take the village. We are that village. But somehow, someway, our village is disconnecting. We got to be able to merge back together. And so what I started doing was thinking about ways that we can help our kids. They're in a time now where their voices are heard. They no longer want to hear, no, they'll go and find a way. So with Michael Jackson's movie coming out, I did not realize that the younger generation was still in tune to Michael Jackson until I started viewing the social media. So I went on ahead and started a youth wide talent show. And it's going to take place this Sunday at the main library at 2 o'clock, and I want to invite you all there. But that is only part of the solution. We have to come up with things that are going to help our children. But in order to help the children, we got to help the household, the parents. I see a lot of food trucks and that's all well and good. We appreciate the food trucks. Well, let's take some of those trucks that we are using and let that be a safe haven station where a kid can go, hey, I just need somebody to talk to. I might need a pair of socks. I might need something to drink or something to eat where no one else has to know that that person is going to get help. It's going to take everyone to start thinking about the kids because if we don't start thinking about the kids we're going to continue to have the problems that we're having. No one's to blame. I hear a lot of people blaming this person, that person, the higher ups We're all to blame. And until we all step out and do our part, it's going to continue to happen. Now, I'm not saying go out there and combat with guns, because we can't fight a gun. But if we start using our brains, using our voices, if we reach one, that one is going to reach another. So we have to start small and work our way up. I'm willing to help no matter what. So just calling me, I'm a pastor and I'm also a kindergarten teacher. So I know very well what these children are doing. I speak to them all the time. I hear about what's going on in their homes. I see what they need. I hear what they need. But until us adults start listening, and start pouring into them. It's not going to cost nothing to say, you can do it. It's not going to cost us anything to say, I believe in you. They might not hear it at home, and I guess that's my time, but I'm sorry. Thank you. I have flyers for anyone who wants them, and I'll be here after the meeting. Thank you.

Thank you, Tamika. Is Theodore here?

Good.

Hi, my name is Ted Forsberg. I'm the secretary to the Friends of the Summit Metro Parks. I'm here in reference to the Eastwood property concerning a training facility. We've had this before you before, about a month ago, I believe. And that's a training facility where they're going to have weapons and they're going to have dog training and other things. I've been secretary for two years and I haven't gotten notice. Friends of the Metro Parks has an ownership right in the easement that runs through that park. I think the law requires notice before any zoning change. The city of Akron already has an existing gun range. In fact, I saw in the budget there was a lot of money that has been allocated for improvements of that gun range. The trails that run at the Goodyear Metro Park run adjacent to the fence that is part of this property. the children of this community would be very close to a wire fence separating it from the gun range. The Akron Audubon does national bird counts at the Goodyear Metro Parks throughout the year. And finally, this spring, 400 children from our school system were bused in at the expense of the Friends of the Metro Park for nature walks and for educational events and were given a free lunch. And they walk on the trails adjacent to this facility. I ask you to deny this zoning request. Thank you very much.

Thank you so much. Donnie Brooks.

First off, I would like to say thank you to Councilman Mark Greer. Officer Miller, he's not here today. Chief Henderson and Mayor Justin Bibb for reaching out, sending your prayers to my family and I. My mother, she had a coma a couple weeks ago. She woke out of it. And my family and I are looking for a full recovery for her. But I'd like to thank those men that I just mentioned that reached out. Thank you, guys. I really appreciate it. So I'm here tonight. Because public safety matters to all of us, and so does trust between the community and the police who serve us. Like many families in Akron, especially in our neighborhoods, we want to feel safe walking our streets, sending our kids to school, and calling 911, knowing help will come with respect and fairness. Safety is not just about law enforcement presence. It's about relationships, accountability, and prevention. Police officers have a difficult job. We all know that. And some serve with honor and some don't. At the same time, we have to be honest with ourselves. When trust is broken, public safety suffers. People stop calling for help, tensions rise, and everyone loses residents and officers alike. When I'm in City Council, my plan is to push for smart police reform, including stronger accountability and transparency, ongoing training in de-escalation and mental health response, real community input, especially from youth and families most affected by policing, invested in prevention, not just enforcement, programs that address violence before it happens. Public safety works best when the police and the community see each other as partners, not opponents. Akron has the opportunity to lead, to show that we can support good officers and demand a system that treats every resident with dignity and respect. I'm committed to reforms a few times a month, all year long, and build trust, save lives, and make Akron safer for everyone. And just so that everyone don't know, I am running for city council for Ward 4 in 2027. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Brooks. Nathaniel Green.

How you doing?

Well, anyway, this is probably going to be my last meeting for a while. I'm going to take a summer break. But I got some real good reason. But anyway, this is a message to the three of you, Grit, Davis, Somerville, and Garrett. You guys had the public forums out in the community, but you haven't, for some reason, you didn't guys didn't come to North Hill. I don't know why. I hope you guys do. North High School, Jennings, Finley School, North Hill Library, they'd be glad to have you guys up there for it. But anyway... The mayor's been catching a lot of flack lately for what he's not doing. You guys are the legislator. You guys, you had your meetings. You went out, you heard from the community at those meetings. So I want to know legislatively, what are you guys planning now that you heard? All right. It's going to take a team effort between you guys and the mayor. You know, it's not enough to just come down here. Ambassador Mayor, Margo, last week you said you're tired of hearing about stuff through Signal newspaper, obviously. So I think you guys should pass some legislation. It is common sense, even Kamer, Lombardo, McKittredge, and Bowdoin should be able to support it, that will require the public safety director every 30 days to bring you guys a report on how many Icahn police officers have had complaints filed against them. How many on suspension, okay? How many of them have been disciplined for rule violations? How many resigned? If there's any of them under investigation who have resigned, okay? Because that happens a lot of times when police officers, especially if they know they might face criminal charges. All right? You know, we all heard about the lieutenant who resigned from the police department recently. So I think you, Garrett Davis, and the public safety director should go down to Columbus and lobby the legislator for harsher penalties for the kind of crimes he committed. And it should be statewide. Because... You know, the mayor's got great powers, that's the mayor. And the president, some of you got great powers, that's the president of the city council. And as Spider-Man once said, with great powers comes great responsibility. Yeah, I got a sense of humor. So, like I said, it would be a shame at the end of this year that you guys... don't have nothing to show for it, legislative-wise, because otherwise people are gonna look back and say, all I got out of those meetings was some politicians strutting around with a mic, a PowerPoint presentation, and a free meal, and they deserve more than that. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Mr. Green. I don't wanna mispronounce the first name, but the last name is Macklin.

Good evening, council members. My name is Queta Macklin, and I'm here tonight to address a growing problem that many tenants in Akron are facing. When out of town property management companies purchase local rental properties, but fail to provide the support and accountability that tenants deserve. I live in a building that was sold to owners who do not live here, and from what I have experienced, do not seem to be interested in maintaining the property, nor having a direct relationship with the tenants in the building. Meanwhile, I'm left with issues, ceilings caving in in three different rooms, chasing for answers with little or no response. What concerns me most is the lack of accountability. Representatives have appeared at the property multiple times, claiming to be from Summit County and inspecting the building. Yet when there are concerns, questions, or problems that need to be addressed, tenants are expected to take time off work, attend meetings or appointments because property owners or management companies cannot make it themselves available. Why should working people have to lose wages to accommodate property owners who choose to invest in housing here but cannot show up when needed? I've also been sent in circles trying to get help. When I contacted AMHA, I was told to reach out to Fair Housing. I contact Fair Housing. I was told to contact Legal Aid. Meanwhile, I'm left navigating the maze of all these agencies while still dealing with the original problem. There needs to be a better process. Tenants should not have to become legal experts just to get basic answers or have concerns addressed. There should be clear accountability for property owners and management companies, especially those who purchase properties in our neighborhoods while operating from other states. Housing is more than an investment. It's where families live, where children sleep, and where people are trying to build stable lives. When communication breaks down and accountability disappears, it is the tenants who suffer the consequences. I'm asking City Council to consider stronger oversight of absentee landlords and property management companies and to create a more direct path for tenants to receive assistance without being bounced around, duck, duck, goose. Thank you for your time and listening.

Thank you, Queda, for sharing. Tasha Mills.

Thank you.

Good evening. During a community walk involving members of the Fairhaven Gun Club in Ward 3, approximately 6.38 p.m. yesterday, serious concerns were raised regarding whether constitutional rights were violated by four Akron police officers, one lieutenant, and a sergeant. When we are engaged in lawful community activity, we do not surrender our constitutional rights. The First Amendment still applies. The Fourth Amendment still applies. The Constitution still applies. For a lieutenant to state that the Ohio law doesn't mean anything and he felt like a rifle should be carried in a sling, An officer's personal belief that a rifle should be carried a certain way is not a criminal statute. Under Terry v. Ohio, an investigative detention requires specific and facts suggesting criminal activity. If the detention was based solely on lawful firearm possession and an officer's preference regarding a sling, the stop lacked reasonable suspicion and constituted an unreasonable seizure under the Fourth Amendment. Florida versus JL, where the Supreme Court held that merely receiving a report that someone has a gun does not automatically justify a stop and freeze based reliable information suggesting illegal conduct. Under federal law, deprivation of rights under color of law occurs when government authority is used to violate constitutional rights. That law exists because public officials are entrusted with power, and with that power comes mandated accountability. What actions is this council willing to take to ensure that constitutional rights are protected, misconduct is addressed, and no person act under color of law is above accountability? Not next year, not after another study, not after another report, but now. I am formally put in the city on notice that we are publicly requesting a transparent and independent review of the incident involving the Frayhampton Gun Club. Report number 2667177. We also intend to file a civil rights complaint with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The concerns raised involve potential violations of constitutional rights under color law. and the possibility of deprivation of rights under color law. The public deserves accountability, transparency, and complete review of facts. When you have a lieutenant and a sergeant on scene manipulating the laws, I can only imagine what they are saying and doing to those that don't know better. Black power and power to the people.

Thank you, Tasha, for bringing that to our attention. Harrington Hargrove.

Harrington Hargrove, 1008 Laurel Avenue. And I'm here in reference to the black community in ward three. And I want to thank Mr. Mark Greer for what he said last week. And this council should have been doing that. I've been asking for my community down there for 40 some years, 40, 40. And none of you stood up, now I won't say none. But those who did, they know who you are. Those who didn't, you know who you are. And so I'm going to give this to the three new councils, because they haven't read it. But I pass this out to every one of you. And it states, Congresswoman Fudge responds to report finding exclusion of African-Americans from Economic opportunity inaccurate. And if any of you don't believe this, stand up and say something. Please. Please. Please. Anybody? I didn't think so. I want to give these to the three new council people and let you read it so you'll know what's going on. And then I'm going to have some more things to pass out, but what I'm going to, I want y'all to know this. Excuse me, could you hand me those glasses? Thank you. City of Akron budget for the years of 2022, $772 million. 2023, $798 million. 2024, 815 plus $360 million, year 2024. 2025, $798 million. In 2026, $800 million. It came up to the total of $4,343,000,000 and we've got nothing in my community. Rouches burned down, but everybody was all gonna help them. Our community got destroyed by backhoes and bulldozers and nobody come and give us anything. Is it, I'm over with? I want to pass this out. I want to pass this out. Spread it to the council, please.

Thank you, Mr. Hargrove. Thank you. Austin Quails.

Good evening council.

So I just want to touch on something that is to me and a lot of other people, especially in my industry, but other industries alike, three to one. So 3% of the global fresh water, that's all we have is 3%. 2% of that is frozen. and we can't get access to it. 1% is what we all drink and utilize in our showers and our tap. Right now, we're in a situation where we have a lot of data centers being built. And so I sent something through the portal when I signed up to speak tonight. But the idea is that Akron, it sits at a very interesting point because we have the Great Lakes surrounding us. Data centers want access to that. It takes a lot of fresh water to cool down that technology. So the idea is that we can get ahead of the problem. There's a lot of states that are being utilized as prototypes, as beta, as workshops, and they build those data centers and it doesn't just suck up electricity, it sucks up the fresh water. If we have 1% and that's the same 1% that you and I to bottle our waters, our water treatment facility makes about 35 million gallons a day. Those centers suck up billions of gallons a day. Every time you send through a request on ChatGPT or Claude or any of this AI, it takes at least 20 gallons to answer one question. And we're all using it to build presentations and create images and everything else. So my saying is no water, no coffee. I'm a coffee owner, small batch specialty coffee roaster. We make drinks and all kind of cool stuff that's a lot of fun until you don't have no water to brew your coffee in. So the idea is no water, no coffee, no community. I think we have to get ahead of the problem. I would not be surprised if they haven't already come banging on our doors to build these centers and different things of that nature. And if they haven't, they certainly will. So amongst Rowland Acres and Chapel Hill and all of our malls being shut down, these are massive properties that data centers would love to get access to. We're talking about Cleveland. We're talking about Canton. We're talking about down in Cincinnati. They want access to that fresh water. So I just employ us as a community to definitely just – be aware, but then also as legislators to make sure that we're doing the right thing by our community and thinking about our future. This is not about stopping progress. This is about being proactive. So we have the technology, we have the resources to build machinery, machines and different things of that nature to clean this water, to make sure that we can use AI and different things like that. We can use it in a way that is going to benefit us in the future and not just the right now. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Austin. Janos, can you hear us?

Yes, I can hear you.

Okay, you can begin.

I think, as you might have noticed, all of the various speeches at tonight's Akron City Council have been some sort of comment on the village of Akron, Ohio, and how, in many ways, we have failed the ordinary people of Akron. And Unfortunately, how we have failed our children. And I think of this as, um, there is no worse example in recent memory, I think, then Jasmine or Tucker. Jasmine Tucker was a 15 year old basketball star, all around good student, good son to his mother, good brother. And. We took that from the community. Instead of taking a look at that as a possible success for the village, we decided to not do anything as they lay dying. That's still sickening to me. And now we're going to ignore, basically, that this killer, Davon Fields, of the APD, is now a credibly accused predator. That's why he's on paid leave. Huh.

I think it's rather interesting that we can just keep on investigating police and then reinstating them when nobody's looking. Just saying, oh, they did nothing wrong. Throw them on the next police strike. Who cares? Who cares? And then in the meantime, we'll just keep on grabbing the budgets, taking them away from the schools, taking them away from the metro parks. And then we're like, oh, we need these for the police. We need these for the data centers. No, we don't. That's building a police state. My grandfather taught me about history. He warned me about police states for most of my life. He was Hungarian. He lived for a time under the Nazi occupation. He wasn't a big fan of the Soviets either. And now we're building another police state. And we're sending our children to die in it. And then not caring. I can't stand that kind of world. And neither should you. So I'm going to say this once more. Mayor Malik, Akron City Council, you have various powers within you. And as Spider-Man has heard it, and as Pastor Green has said it, with that power, comes great responsibility. That great responsibility is to fire the officers when they do something wrong, is to make sure that our community has adequate water, has adequate ways to raise our children. And so I leave you with those thoughts. Have a good night.

Thank you, Janos. Jerome McClendon.

I just want to thank y'all for bringing up the videos once again. You know what I'm saying?

It's been a long time with us not having those cameras on. In the State of the City address, which was nothing more than a recap of City Council bending to this man's will over the last year, we were told that there were to be no more head strikes by officers and said it was a new policy, correct? correct yes ok yet five days after this video footage surface of yet another officer pulling a citizen out of their car and striking them in the head and face on the west side yes the person was stopped in traffic yes that could have been very dangerous for oncoming traffic but this man was parked in his car probably having a horrible day and instead of crashing out in public he did it in the confines of his own vehicle Once they got his doors open, the officers proceeded to use justifiable force to get him out of the car mixed with unnecessary force to get him to the ground. Now, the moment I've been waiting for. Shamus, you said there was nothing that could be done about the officer you allowed to retire instead of punished for his thievery. Yet a simple Google search shows that in Ohio, any officer found guilty of a felony that is a direct result of a misuse of their official position can indeed lose their pension. Now, allowing him to retire and not press charges seems like a concocted idea of you and Lucy to save face and not mess with any pension when it should have been stripped. Grand larceny is $1,000. How much did he steal? It's a fifth degree felony. If the city or state can pick up on cases when a family member or girlfriend does not want to press charges, why can't this city pick up that case voluntarily as well? Stop playing in our face, sir. I sent these officers guilty of murder, sexual misconduct, and fraud down and off the force. If not for us, then for the remaining officers, they have to struggle now that the public's mistrust is apparent. You are making what a lot of society already does not believe exists, which are good officers, struggle by sheltering and exonerating the guilty. Roll for five.

Thank you. Thank you so much, Jerome, for sharing. Mr. Hargrove, I'm sorry. I'm sorry? We have gone through all of our speakers for tonight. You got something else to give us? You can give them to Councilperson Wilson. Thank you. So that does conclude our public comment period, and we do want to thank each and every one of you who came down and shared and participated. Council, before you is the consent agenda. Is there a motion to approve?

So moved. Second.

All in favor signify by saying aye. Aye.

Abstain.

The consent agenda passes 12-0 with one abstention.

Thank you. We'll now move to our old business, starting with budget and finance. Councilman Lombardo, would you like to have our clerk read that in for you?

Please.

Okay.

Item number one in budget and finance is an ordinance authorizing the mayor or his designee to execute an intergovernmental agreement with the County of Summit for animal control services provided by the executive's division of animal control for a two-year term for the period of January 1st, 2026 to December 31st, 2027 with two options to renew for an additional two-year term and declaring an emergency. Councilman Lombardo.

Committee's report is favorable and we're asking for a suspension of the rules.

Are there any objections to suspension of the rules? Seeing and hearing none, the rules have been suspended.

I have one comment, yeah. So, Madam President, I realize that without a contract, our Summit County Animal Shelter doesn't have to pick up any of our dogs and cats starting yesterday, really. But there's a few things that bother me regarding this piece of legislation. And the first thing would be that in prior years, we've paid them Well, it's less than $100,000 for their services. And yet this contract is worth 2.9 million over two years, roughly about 1.45 average per year. And we're getting, starting in November, we're getting 20 less kennels. So I realize that the money that we paid in prior years may be, they were on the short side of the stick because they provide food, vaccinations, and care for our dogs and cats there. But to increase it by that much and for it to be less kennels, that concerns me. And speaking of that, with the 20 less kennels, I was just thinking, I don't know if the administration here is hoping that the request for proposals For the overflow animal control facility, is that going to be, are they hoping for that being our saving grace? Because, you know, that's not even in place yet. It's not part of this legislation. It will come up later, but that's not in place. That request for proposals for those additional facilities, I think those are due June 15th. So anyhow, our animal problem, actually it's a people problem. I don't think the animals... are doing this to us, people let them go. It's going to cost us more than $1.5 million when we get those requests for proposals completed. Another thing that bothers me on this legislation is I don't see any language in this legislation regarding any type of audit the city will do regarding the Summit County Animal Facility. And the final thing is that I would like to see an APD report to find out how many times that they have basically knocked on the doors of that Summit County Animal Shelter and got turned away. I realize the 60 kennels could fill up real fast. Those other overflow facilities, that might fill up fast too. I appreciate somewhat of a plan, but it's not a complete plan, so that's why I'm voting no.

Thank you so much, Councilman Labardo. Are there any additional comments at this time? Councilperson Wilson?

Thank you, Madam President. I reflect some of the concerns that I'm going to be voting yes. The dog issues are something we need to hop on. I do share concerns about the number of kennels, however, if we could have more conversations about that. Also, if we could put the contract in the legislative docket with the rest of the legislation, that would be great. Thank you.

Thank you so much. Councilman Kamer.

Thank you, Madam President. I rise. to vote against this, also with my colleague Phil Lombardo. Everything he said, I totally agree with. I also want to point out that there's no educational piece to this. I think that is very important. And also, we hear it almost every Monday, accountability and oversight. And this piece does not have that. in regards to what's going on down at the animal facility. So I appreciate the work from the administration, especially Deb Matz from our law department and the conversations we've had, but I just can't support this right now. Thank you.

Thank you, Councilperson. Councilman Bolden.

Thank you, Madam President. I rise in support of this ordinance for a couple reasons. First of all, the question I asked today is, two questions I asked, is who is responsible for lowering the amount of beds? Is it us? Is it a budget issue? Or is it, it's the county. The county is saying they need, they're giving us less beds. Not us. It's not a budget cut. It's not the administration. It's not anybody saying, we're only going to take 60 dogs. It's the county saying that. Other question I ask is, what happens if we don't pass this? We don't have any contract with them. They don't have to take any of our dogs starting tomorrow. We don't have to. So what are our options? I don't want to see all of our dogs in the city go nowhere. I've got a dog. My dogs both came from shelters. I take care of my dog, I make sure, but the dog did get run away once and we chased after it. We did find it the next day, but that happens. There's also people that don't care for their dogs and we need to have a safe place for them to go tonight, tomorrow, and next week. The beds will hit, I think, in November is when it drops from 60 down to 60. We also have RFPs that went out countywide into other counties to find agencies that would actually apply and help out. Now, they've got to have insurance. They've got to have a place to do it. Someone has pulled that and is working on it. We're hoping they're going to get it filled. If it doesn't get done by June 15th and no one applies, I'm going to request that we throw it out again and give it another chance, see what we can get, so we can take care of these dogs, the overflow dogs. But I'm rising in support of this.

Thank you, Councilman Bolden. Councilman Lombardo, are there any additional comments from any councilmembers who haven't had an opportunity to speak?

Okay. So, again, the committee's report was favorable, and we're asking for a suspension of the rules.

Thank you. So... Miramax, do you have a comment? Yup.

Good evening, everyone.

Obviously, this is something that has been discussed in committee and something we have talked about for many years in those chambers. I certainly respect everyone's opinion on this. I know how much, particularly Councilman Lombardo and Councilman Kamer, you care about this issue. What I would say is that Summit County, in so many ways, is one of our closest partners as a government. There are fellow local government. We work with them in many ways, the Summit County Jail, animal control, water and sewer and many other ways. This contract is trying to find a balance and trying to find what works best for both partners going forward. It is not the end-all, be-all. I don't think anyone here is saying that it will fix all of the problems. I think we've said in these chambers before that there is need for accountability, and I think looking at our own ordinances and how we can strengthen them is really important. On behalf of the administration and council, I think that's work we can do together. But I do think this is a solution that will help us address an issue that we have been dealing with for a long time, that it will be an improvement. Again, that we can continue to improve it from here.

Thank you so much, Mayor. The committee's report is favorable. All in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed?

Nay.

Roll call, please.

Bolden.

Aye.

Boyes.

Aye.

Connor. Aye. Davis.

Aye.

Garrett. Aye. Greer.

Nay.

Hannah. Aye.

Nay.

Kamer? Nay. Lombardo?

Nay.

McKittrick?

Aye.

Omobian?

Aye.

Somerville? Aye. Wilson?

Aye.

The motion passes nine to four. This ordinance passes.

Thank you so much. Councilman Lombardo, with item number two, please.

The committee requests time.

Thank you. Time will be granted. Planning and Economic Development, Councilman Kamer.

I'd like to file number 16, and then continue time on the rest of the old agenda.

Thank you. Time will be granted. Public Service, Councilman Kamer.

Continue time.

Time will be granted. Public Safety, Councilman McKittrick.

Continue time, please.

Thank you. Time will be granted. That does conclude our old business. We'll now move into new legislation.

Item number one offered by Kamer, ordinance approving the Lincoln Mill redevelopment plan, making necessary findings in connection therewith and declaring an emergency. Councilman Kamer.

Refer.

This item will be referred.

Item number two offered by Kamer, ordinance authorizing the mayor or his designee to enter into an agreement or agreements without the formality of publicly advertising for bids with the Community Hall Foundation Incorporated doing business as Akron Civic Theater for professional services relating to lock three and declaring an emergency. Councilman Kamer.

Consent agenda.

This item will be placed on the consent agenda. Item number three offered by Kamer, ordinance authorizing the sale of vacant city-owned property located on Copley Road, parcel numbers 6716110, 6811294, and 6830619 to Angels Land Here, LLC, determining said property is not needed for public use and declaring an emergency. Councilman Kamer.

Consent agenda.

This item will also be placed on the consent agenda. That does conclude our new legislation for this evening. We'll now move into our committee assignments. Rules. Councilman McKittrick. 2 p.m. Public safety. Councilman McKittrick.

2.15.

Budget and finance. Councilman Lombardo.

3 p.m.

Parks and recreation. Councilwoman Conner. Planning and economic development. Councilman Kamer. 1. Housing and Neighborhood Assistance, Councilman Bolden.

3.30.

Public Service, Councilman Kamer. 2.00 p.m. Health and Social Services, Councilwoman Davis. 2.40. Is there anything else coming before Council at this time? Councilperson Wilson.

Thank you, Madam President. I just wanted to rise today to address, we had a shooting in Highland Square over the weekend, so I just wanted to say a couple words about that. Just overview for those who have not been able to see the Akron police report, two shooters exchanged fire between the library and the theater at approximately 1.30 a.m. Sunday morning. There were two bystander victims, a 26-year-old man in critical condition and a 34-year-old woman It was stable. Shooters have not been identified to my knowledge yet. And the open fire happened in view and proximity of a very large group of people out in public that night in front of the security that was hired by the district in front of multiple police officers and cruisers. I was on site right before that happened and immediately after it. I got to speak with a lot of people who were going through a lot of the time, waiting for answers. It was a very tragic scene. I pray and my thoughts are with the folks who were hit and hopefully everybody recovers well. You know, in Highland Square, we've been working for the last nine months on a special improvement district with the businesses, the property owners, a lot of the workers, and some of the patrons and neighbors. And it is absolutely devastating that this happened amid so much that we're trying to turn over in the district to improve it. So hopefully in the coming days we can have a little bit more of a plan and continue our upgrades and improvements on safety. But I just want to share with people that this is personally very important to me, important to the neighborhood, and important to the city, and we are taking action and hope to have some more work. But I think I've been reflecting a lot. In the back, we were talking a lot about the different instances of gun violence that have happened in our different wards and around the city over the last couple months, and it's really shaking. So I hope we have more conversations about this, about what we can do on the city level. In the circles that I run in, we talk about how we can't you know police our way out of this situation um we have to be able to a couple people talked about community tonight rely on each other and have the networks to be able to hold each other accountable and our neighbors accountable um so that's kind of what i've been reflecting on but thank you for uh taking time thank you thank you councilman davis

Thank you, Madam President. I just wanted to rise to thank Director Lash and I don't see Chris Little. He's not here. For their help with Walgreens, I really appreciate that. I know I probably got on you guys' nerves quite a bit, but we need to make sure our business districts are viable, safe, and clean. We are having a community-wide cleanup on this coming Saturday from 8 to 12 p.m., I personally met with every business owner within the Maple Valley District, and they will be working along with us because it's important to have a viable business district. And it's a really diverse district, some great folks there, but we're trying to come together as a community there to make sure we can keep that property up until it can get sold. We still have... The CVS is sitting there as well. So we don't know when those things are gonna be sold, but it's up to us as a community. I've gotten great response from people that will be coming out, some of the churches and so forth, and they really do appreciate the effort. And again, I just wanted to rise and say thank you guys for all that you did.

Thank you. Councilman Garrett.

Thank you, Madam President, for the opportunity. Madam President, I rise today to talk a little bit more about lack of institutional control. When you have an individual who's over, I am so happy. I'm so happy that Ward 1 had law enforcement there to at least be there. We had an incident that take place at Lane Field. And you know, if you allow the community to forget, then it'll happen again. There was a, three years ago, a seven year old kid was shot there. And they were promised, because we all wonder why these little young black, white, and brown boys at these fields, they look up to the executive branch, because a lot of people want to say, well, it's up to the legislative branch, the council. No, it's the executor. The executor, he has the power, Madam President. He looked at these young kids and he said, you know what, I work for you. Well, if I work for you, then you should have coverage. You should mandate coverage so that these young kids would feel safe at Lane Field. If it was a priority, if it was a priority, if they meant anything, he would direct, similar to how he directed the law enforcement not to engage with ICE. You remember? He put a legislation out, told them not to. He directed. Now all of a sudden, you have Lane Field. He promised. What do these young boys look around? They have these guns. And everybody wants to wonder, why do these kids have guns? Where do they get these guns? Who can you trust? Who can you trust? If the executor of the branch doesn't even keep their word to keep them safe, the mandate that someone's there, not suggest, hey, Chief of Police, when you have some time, could you please send somebody by Lane Field? No, Madam President. You direct them. You become a leader. Lack of institutional control. That's what we're witnessing here. I'm not going back and forth. I don't want to do that. But when constituents call me and ask me, why aren't these kids feeling safe down here at Lanefield? They have the coverage at Ward 1. I just wish they had that same coverage if they were considered the same. If they were just considered, Madam President, and it's unfortunate that we have to continue to bring this up. I have to continue to remind folks so they don't forget. The executor, the mayor, has the power to direct. In lack of that, Madam President, we're going to continue to have this hot spot. I appreciate your time, Madam President.

Thank you, Councilman Garrett. Councilman Boyce.

Thank you, Madam President. As Councilperson Wilson referred to, we did have a tragic shooting in our community as well that left one young man dead. And I just, it's tragic all the way around. But I do want to thank Deputy Chief Mike Miller as well as Deputy Chief Dave Laughlin and Community Engagement Officer Jeff Smith who all reached out to me within minutes of that happening. So I just want to thank them publicly for their hard work. I also want to thank Chief of Public Safety Craig Morgan and Deputy Chief Laughlin who attended my ward meeting last week. It was it was helpful to remind folks that this is a contract and we have with one another. This isn't just the executive branch or the legislative branch or the police. It's a community issue. And I'm grateful for them for reminding us that it takes all of us to report things when we see them. Where this took place, I've been told, is a nuisance property. I've reported it myself. When we looked at the police calls at this property, only four over five years. That means people are driving by a property, saying it's a nuisance, but not reporting it. Living around it, jeopardizing their family's safety and not reporting it. I just want to encourage folks, there are multiple ways you can report things. You don't even have to report, you can report them anonymously. So I just wanted to list them for everyone's benefit. The police's Tip 411 system, these are for not urgent tips, helpful intelligence around illegal activity. There are three ways you can report tips. Keyword Akron PED plus your tip, text it to 847411. submit or down and download a tip or download the akron pd app on your phones it allows you to click report anonymously okay any and all tips are helpful it's helpful to folks you know the police officers when they have your contact information so they can follow up if it's something you have good intelligence that's helpful but if you want to remain anonymous you can as well you can submit it online at akroncops.org for non-emergency, but urgent things that you see. You know, Dave Laughlin reminded us, you know, you know your community's best. You know when something looks off. If it looks off, call the Akron PD non-emergency line at 330-375- May I ask you to please maintain order? 2181. Okay? But if something is an emergency, if you hear shots fired, report it to 911. You have to. I'm guilty of it too. I've heard shots fired and not know where they were from. Okay? And not called. We have to report these things. It benefits all of us. It benefits our kids. And I just want to also encourage folks, please stay engaged in your communities when these things happen. It cannot shut down our lives. On Kenmore Boulevard this Saturday, we had 1,400 people there for a parade and a 7K race. It was a glorious day. And literally at my board meeting, people were saying, is it safe to go out? Your presence makes a difference. Your eyes on the street make a difference. And I just want to publicly thank Better Kenmore CDC for not cutting and running and maintaining the community benefit for everyone involved. Thank you, Madam President.

Thank you, Councilwoman. Any other council members have anything they'd like to share at this time? Thank you. Mayor Malik?

Thank you, Madam President. Thank you all. Thank you to those who came out this evening and shared comments. I want to just address a couple of them in order. It was great hearing about the Youth Talent Show, and I think these are the kinds of things we all do have a responsibility, as you shared. We all have such an opportunity, right? And this is something that if we're going to tackle this issue, which often seems beyond solution. It often seems hopeless. It will be through all of us, so thank you very much. I wanted to address Ms. Mills. You bring up the incident yesterday. I think several folks with the gun club shared that on social media with us this afternoon. We will look at that thoroughly. Whatever litigation, other ways outside of the city process you choose to pursue that is your own business, but we will review it thoroughly on our end, and we will share that with all of you. Mr. Hargrove, I just want to note we have our city economic development, a standing invitation to meet with you and your son. I know that many of the members of council have shared that and have shared a desire to work with you, and we look forward to doing that, sir. All right. Mr. Wells, I want to note that we are, as a city, looking at regulations when it comes to data centers. This is something that, frankly, city governments and governments at the state and federal level are all behind the eight ball on. And given how fast this industry has emerged, it is something where we need to have very clear rules of the road. So I appreciate you talking about it. I think we're going to talk about it more with this council and more with the public as well. We will bring more forward when we have it, but we are always open to hear feedback directly about how the impacts that people are feeling directly. Mr. McClendon. Yes, sir. I wanted to note a couple things, too. First of all, the incident that you mentioned after the State of the City with the apparent head strikes, I believe I know the incident that you're referring to. I've spoken about it with our Chief of Police and our Chief of Public Safety after I saw the video. What I want to be clear about is we will, I'm not going to do the investigation from this podium, but we will share that with you and with council. My understanding, what I said in the policy, what the policy says is that there are no head strikes except in cases of... in which there's active resistance, right? Which includes punching and kicking. And any violations of that are violations and will be dealt with as violations. And so we will absolutely follow up on that. And I just want to note that. The second piece of that is you brought up the situation. I apologize, I'm not supposed to be directing the comments to individual members. I apologize. Yes, thank you. It has been a while since I was in the seat. The second piece was about Lieutenant Farrar. And I just want to note a couple of things. First of all, the point that I was making is that firing versus resigning would not change whether a pension is available, which is true. I think the point that was raised was about whether felony charges, a felony conviction, would strip someone of a pension. I want to be very clear. Our prosecutor's office does not bring forward felony charges or any charges that we do not think will be successful in a court of law. I understand, and frankly, I take the high degree of frustration and anger that people have expressed about that, and I don't expect anyone to be satisfied with the result in this case. What is clear and is documented in the report of investigation is that several... outside organizations were reached out to and said they had no interest in pursuing charges. But I'm happy to continue discussing this, because I do think it speaks to the fact that we need a better system when it comes to extra duty and off duty jobs. And lastly, I want to talk about safety for a moment. And I appreciate the comments that have been made this evening. It was just last night, we had a situation in which shots were fired into a home, and a 14-year-old and an 18-year-old were injured. It was horrific. It is... To see the amount of work that has gone in to preventing situations like what happened in Highland Square and to see it happen anyways is horrific. When hundreds of people are in a public space, it's terrifying. We have had murders. In Kenmore, we have murders in North Hill. We could go around the city and talk about those. And we have with many of you to try to work through some of the particular hotspots and specific incidents that we have. And we absolutely need to do more. And I will never tell anyone that they should be satisfied with their actions or that any of us as elected officials are above critique or above reproach. We will continue to work on this across the whole city. On Friday, we will officially announce with our partners, Cleveland Clinic, Akron General, and with SUMA, our hospital-linked violence intervention program that our administration has worked on and the previous administration has worked on, and this council approved the contract so that when violence happens, that there are trained professionals who will go and try to prevent retaliatory violence, which is a lot of the violence that we see. Over the weekend, there were 12 people injured at a shooting at a festival in Toledo, Ohio. Over the weekend, there were, I believe, nine people shot at a illegal nightclub in Kansas City, Missouri. There was a huge fight that broke out at a gathering in Columbus, Ohio. This is a challenge that we have across the nation. We have a responsibility, I have a responsibility, we all have a responsibility for the city of Akron, Ohio, and to our young people. I want to be very clear about the situation at Lane Field. Because I walked on that field after the young man was shot, who's a student at Allen Arnold. I walked on that field several months ago with folks from the South Rangers, and we are working to address violence there like we are working to address violence across the city. Madam President, I appreciate you reaching out this weekend on Friday and sharing information about some of the concerns. And we've had several conversations already, both within our city and also directly with the South Rangers, to try to make sure that they have what they need. But for anyone, and I think we heard a couple comments in the public comment about blame, for anyone to say that I'm responsible because there weren't officers there, when someone could easily pick up the phone, as you did, Madam President, and say, hey, we have this concern. We'd like to work through it with you. And there is a difference between trying to solve a problem and trying to allocate blame. And if anyone thinks that they can predict whether something would happen. I say only to you that we spent the last week trying to make sure we had several officers knowing that there would be potentially a crowd of hundreds of people in Highland Square and shots were fired 30 yards away from those officers. And so to anyone to say this would have happened or would not have happened because of one action, we can fall victim to that kind of blame game. I do not think it will help us solve this fundamental issue in this city or this country. Thank you.

Thank you. Councilman Garrett.

Thank you, Madam President.

I just really want to be clear that they were promised that they would have coverage there. And there's only one person Only one person that could have directed that coverage be there. We get an opportunity to hear this amazing word salad. That gentleman was allowed, Mr. Farrar, the police officer who stole money from the LeBron James Foundation, from other companies. He was offered an opportunity to pay back $12,000. So there was a conversation, there was a plea deal, there was all of that going on, but no accountability. His behind could be, they could bring charges, but did you hear the word silent? I don't want to bring up something that we could potentially not win. Try for us. Try for Lane Field and have somebody there. You know, that's all we're asking for. And his whole notion, Madam President, like, oh, you can just pick up the phone and reach out. He has, I gave him six pieces of legislation that I drew up. Because, you know, they put us on blast, me, you, and Jan. We did all of these town halls, and what did you come up with? We came up with legislation. I gave him all of those. Do you think for a second he would have picked up the phone and called me? Not at all, Madam President. And so this is what I struggle with. Luckily, I don't have a ward. He could attack me and stop me. If I was a ward for council for Ward 4, oh, Copper Road wouldn't get a dime. If I was over in Ward 10, I wouldn't get a dime. But because I'm at large, that gives me the ability to speak out citywide. And that's why I'm not here to run for mayor. Not at all. I'm here for accountability. As a prior military veteran who fought for this amazing country, accountability means something. I'm not moving past that. I am just trying to hold the individual accountable for their actions. It's not the blame game, but if you're the executive branch, you have that power. And the gentleman said, with great power comes great responsibility. Lead, follow, or get out of the way. Thank you, Madam President.

Thank you, Councilman Garrett. Councilperson Wilson, did I see your hand?

Just a quick note, and I'm happy to speak to anybody about what's been going on in Ward 1, especially the Highland Square District. It's been mentioned, so I just thought I'd address it. Yeah, we have been working really hard and hand-in-hand with the city and the property owners around that. So I'm happy to share any more information about what we're doing there, and maybe it can be reflected in other areas as well.

Thank you so much. Councilman Greer?

Thank you, Madam President. I just have a couple of things. I, like so many of us, know that we have citizens who are hurting. I've had some people who've reached out to me over the weekend and said that they were afraid to let their kids go out at night. I've heard people who have said that this doesn't look like the Akron that they grew up in. I believe that we are going to do what it takes to turn this around. I don't want to hear anything about kids who are afraid to go out. I hate hearing when seniors are afraid of what might happen if gunshots go through their home. We've got a lot of work to do. But I know that and I do believe that we are going to make this work and we're going to turn this around and make sure that the promise of Akron extends to all of us, extends to our children and our children's children. Speaking of our young people, I did want to rise and also just recognize and give a congratulations to the Buchtel Lady Griffs, who just won for the second time in the last two years back-to-back state champions in the four by 200 relay. It's an amazing achievement. I want to say congratulations to not only the Lady Griffs, but their parents and their coaching staff. And as a proud Firestone High School grad. I am just as proud to be able to congratulate the Lady Griffiths. And again, congratulations to all of them.

Thank you so much, Councilman Greer. I just want to say this just for the record. Councilperson Wilson triggered this for me when you stood up and said that you had been working on safety in Highland Square. And I really want to make it really clear that we had been trying to work on safety at Lane Field. In fact, for four weeks we had been trying to get police presence there. And I did have a conversation with Mayor Malik about that. And I do appreciate Deputy Chief Miller for trying to do all that he could do within his power to do that. But, Mayor, we need your assistance. And so I appreciate the conversation that we did have. So thank you. Is there anything else coming before council at this time? We have a motion on the floor. If there are no objections, meeting adjourned.

This concludes the live broadcast of Akron City Council. Margo Somerville, President of Council, presiding.