When the rain arrived in Kent last Saturday I thought for sure it would mean a wash-out for the volunteer river clean up.  Man was I wrong.  I guess when you’re planning to get in the water, a little water in the air is just accessorizing.  This annual river clean up continues to get stronger each year and I think it comes down to the fact that the river is one of those cross-over community assets.  Students love it just as much as residents so when it’s time for a little river TLC, clean up crews answer the call.  Check your egos and stereotypes at the river’s edge, the river is ours and we spell river clean up:  CITY-KSU.

If you’re looking for an example of the power of Dr. Lefton’s “the year of YES”  in town-gown relations look no further than the river clean up.  Dr. Lefton spoke of a yes filled future and based on what I saw, students, resident volunteers and city staff collaborated for boat loads full of yes — a cornucopia of Yes, a Yes-a-Palooza.  Ok, enough with Yes-mania but they say it takes the average person to hear something 7 times before it sinks in — and I think this is too important to let slip through our community consciousness.  Town-gown synergy, like we saw on Saturday, is exactly what makes Kent such a great place to hang out, work, learn, live and grow.

Here’s a short summary of Saturday’s festivities from our Public Service Director, Gene Roberts:

In partnership with KSU’s Outdoor Adventure Center and NEFCO, the City fulfilled its OEPA Storm Water MS4 permit requirements with a Cuyahoga River cleanup on Saturday Sept. 26, 2009. Bob Brown, Water Reclamation Facility Manager organized the event for the City, with a great deal of help from KSU and NEFCO. Starting upstream at 8:00 am from Tannery Park several KSU students, faculty and volunteers cleaned down to the new hike and bike trail where John Idone and his staff off loaded the collection of large items such as tires, old bikes, shopping carts and railroad ties. After a quick lunch the group continued downstream cleaning all the way to Middlebury Road (in the rain) where Jack Hogue’s staff loaded up the debris collected on the second half.

At the same Dave Herpy, KSU Outdoor Adventure and Camp Coordinator, brought several KSU students down the river in kayaks to remove small trash such as paper, cups and plastic bags. Dave’s group made it all the way to Summit County’s Fish Creek Waste Water Plant. Simultaneously other volunteers cleaned trash from the river bank. A special thanks to the Akron Water Treatment plant for discharging sufficient water to allow for floating the boats loaded with trash and for the plant manager for bring his family down to help, they cleaned upstream of Tannery Park towards the dam.

Together the efforts of all, removed an estimated 8-tons of trash from the river plus what was removed from the river bank. As one participant, Patrick D. Lorch, KSU Biology Professor, put it “It was great to see such enthusiasm for cleaning up the Cuyahoga through our city. It also felt good to get all that trash out of the river. The cleanup will do wonders for making the running of this stretch of river more fun and safer.”

Living up to the Town-Gown spirit, here’s a great article by a KSU correspondent reporting directly from the front lines of the river clean up.  But do yourself a multi-media favor and don’t settle for just the written word (even though it’s written very well), visit the web link and hear and see the story in the reporter’s own words and pictures.

Forty years after the Cuyahoga River caught fire, a small group of students, instructors and other volunteers geared up for an adventure. Little did I know I would become a part of that adventure and witness first-hand the shocking reality of one of Kent’s finest natural resources – the state of which raised concern for a cause I never even thought about.

When I signed up to actually experience (and not just blindly write about) an Adventure Trip hosted by the Student Recreation and Wellness Center’s Adventure Center, I never expected to learn anything new, take up a cause or dramatically change the way I view pollution. After witnessing a phone booth, bikes, boatloads of tires and a mailbox submerged in the river, my eyes were opened.

I launched from John Brown Tannery Park in Kent, excited about the adventure, not knowing what to expect. I was told to pick up anything I could find; I didn’t expect it to be much, but I knew there’d be an occasional bottle or wrapper to be picked up. For larger items, there’d be canoes pulling boats. Despite the weather’s gray skies and a forecast undoubtedly predicting rain, the brave group set out, and I went with them.

I paddled into the river, where I found Styrofoam cups and bowls, plastic bottles, cans and tarps. I didn’t see anything larger right away, but soon more and more tires started appearing.

One adventurer asked an instructor why we were finding so many tires, and he replied that a lot of people dumped them into the river because the trash pick-up requires a fee for them. Clearly, a lot of people refuse to pay additional fees for tires because the canoe teams started filling the boats with them.

But other large items showed up. I even paddled by as one team pulled a television out of the river. Yes. A TV.

There was an occasional drizzle, but the group continued on. Our importance became evident as we saw the state of the river. I’ve heard the stories of a dirty Cuyahoga from years past, but I had an overwhelming sense of a cleaner river from recent reports. Now I know through my own eyes how horribly we’ve treated it.

Trash bags upon trash bags gathered on my kayak and the kayaks around me. The farther we traveled, the more we found.

Rusted metal milk crates from the old days of milk delivery trucks, netting, beer bottles and gallon milk jugs still play in my head from when I discovered them or saw others discover them.

Every partially submerged item was coated in mud, and brave, usually bare, fingers grabbed for the things that the river could never have rid itself of.

As the weather forecast came to fruition, the adventure was cut short. The other drenched kayakers and I paddled in the rain to a clearing behind Stow’s water treatment plant. We gathered and loaded the equipment, shared stories of the crazy things we found and laughed about it. There was a sense of community and teamwork, and we all walked away with a sense that the river was at least a little better off now than it was that morning.

Later on, a sense of sadness about the state of the river overwhelmed me. Even though we laughed about all of the things we found, the knowledge that it ended up there in the first place haunted me. The knowledge that it would continue ending up there haunted me even more, and an unceasing, grimy feeling akin to the slimy mud on the stuff we found settled in my stomach.

Contact student recreation and wellness center reporter Robert Checkal at rcheckal@kent.edu

In a town known for it’s black squirrels and nuts, nothing beats opening an acorn, especially when it’s Acorn Alley.  On Friday Mr. Ron Burbick officially unveiled his latest (re) creation — Acorn Alley — and all it’s great new shops.  There’s been a few soft openings of the new Vintage Rehab clothing store and Pita Pit but as of Friday Mr. Burbick went live with everything in the alley.  It felt a bit like the Willie Wonka story with all of us watching for months as Mr. Burbick has worked his architectural magic to transform a tired old building into a creative and interesting retail space for all of us to enjoy (both as customers and taxpayers who are delighted to see new jobs in this otherwise difficult economy).  On Friday Mr. Burbick threw open the doors to his candy factory and I felt like Charley taking in all the sights and sounds of the latest phases of the Phoenix Project (I guess that makes Dan Smith our Oompa Loompa).

Here’s a great article from Kent News Net that tells the acorn alley story:

Addition of Acorn Alley is just one change to come for downtown Kent

By: Pamela Crimbchin and Denise Wright

Posted: 9/3/09

Take a stroll down Acorn Alley.

For freshman arriving in Kent for the first time, almost every place in town presents a new experience. But this year, even upperclassmen have a new downtown to discover with the addition of the Phoenix Project’s Acorn Alley.

“I didn’t even realize they were building it,” said Bryan Baker, junior construction management major. “It’s pretty sweet.”

Shaun Fitzpatrick, freshman political science major, agreed.

“Everything seems pretty good. It seems like a pretty complete downtown area,” he said.

The “complete” downtown feel that comes with Acorn Alley can be accredited to Ron Burbick, president of RLB Phoenix Properties. Burbick said an alley in London helped inspire the storefronts.

Dan Smith, economic development director, said demand for the project was so high that phases two and three were completed in the same time span. Acorn Alley was initially supposed to be completed around December 2011, almost two-and-a-half years ahead of schedule.

Burbick’s Acorn Alley features 12 businesses, which include new sushi restaurant The Dancing Beta, The Arctic Squirrel ice cream shop and The Pita Pit.

“I’m definitely going to hit up the sushi after late nights at the bar,” Baker said.

Collin Bruning, senior sports administration major, said he’s excited about the Pita Pit.

“We’ll be eating healthy when we come back from the bars,” Bruning said. “No more crushing Guy’s (Pizza).”

Heidi Shaffer, Ward 5 councilwoman, said these unique destinations are the key to creating a thriving downtown area. Despite recent loss of businesses and a “struggling” downtown, Shaffer said Burbick’s project sets an example for developers in the future.

“We need to attract people that we’ve failed to tap into,” Shaffer said. “The public consensus is that we need to bridge the gap between the university and downtown.”

Burbick and Shaffer agreed that one of the main goals behind the renovations is to keep students in the city – on the weekends and even after graduation – and increase visitation to the downtown area in general.

“Young people give Kent a kind of vibrancy already,” Shaffer said. “(These renovations) will give Kent even more of a cool factor.”

With the anticipation of more students going downtown, security has increased. Burbick said 14 cameras have been placed in Acorn Alley alone.

“Several other businesses are putting up cameras and eventually we’d like the whole

downtown to be covered with cameras,” Burbick said.

With security and overall construction, the alley came with a $6.5 million price tag. Burbick said the down economy did not affect the project too much because he paid for the construction out-of-pocket. He also said many of the businesses are locally owned, and the owners were not too concerned with economy.

“A college town seems to be insolated from the general economy more than most towns because you’ve always got the student population here,” Burbick said. “They might not spend much, but there is enough of them to spend something.”

Beth Straubhaar, assistant manager of Empire, said it’s a little too early to tell if the new renovations will bring in more pedestrian traffic, but she thinks it will.

“People have a reason to wander around Kent and enjoy it now – not just drive through.”

Burbick agreed.

“Quite honestly, I’ll be the first one to tell you there wasn’t a whole lot to do in Kent unless you wanted to drink, but we’re trying to create downtown as a destination,” he said.

WHAT’S TO COME FOR DOWNTOWN

“The skyline of Kent is going to change more in the next two years than it probably has over the last three or four decades, “said Dan Smith, economic development director.

Heidi Shaffer, Ward 5 Councilwoman said to make walking downtown more convenient to students, university and city officials are planning to extend the university esplanade, or walkway, from campus to Acorn Alley – almost like a “yellow brick road to downtown.”

In addition, Smith said negotiations for a redevelopment block are currently in progress. The block would extend from Water Street and Haymaker Parkway to Depeyster and Erie Streets.

“The whole idea of this is basically to further connect downtown Kent with Kent State University,” Smith said.

Beyond the redevelopment block, Smith said the city has been working with ODOT to make Haymaker Parkway more pedestrian and bike-friendly. When Haymaker was constructed in the mid- 1970s, it obstructed the connection between College and Erie Streets and the rest of downtown.

Other plans for the downtown area include:

•A hotel and conference center

•The relocation of county municipal courthouse

• Corporate offices relocating

• A mix of locally-owned and chain retail stores and restaurants

•A possible whitewater park

Smith emphasized that all these projects would bring a critical need for more parking downtown. He said Acorn Alley alone has created a need for 150 additional spaces. Officials are working with PARTA to build a multi-modal facility for bus transfers, bike docks and parking.

Smith said although all of the projects will take a few years to complete, it will be something that everyone from current freshmen to returning alumni can enjoy.

“This project does more than just bring some new jobs and shops,” Smith said. “We really want this to be a genuine college experience where residents and students can come together in a very positive manner to share in cultural opportunities.”

Contact features reporter Pamela Crimbchin at pcrimbch@kent.edu.

Contact features reporter Denise Wright at dwright6@kent.edu.

By the way, Vintage Rehab Clothing is sponsored a Kent version of Rally in the Alley featuring live music Saturday night and I’m told they plan to do that every couple of weeks.  I’ll keep you posted.

Celebrate we will.

Making sense of today’s economy is enough to push anyone off the deep end. Make no mistake about it these are tough times for some of the most important parts of our economy. Yet I’ve personally been at 3 grand openings in the last month for Kent businesses that invested a total of $23 million because they are growing faster than ever before. We’ve seen some old local favorites like RB&W close their doors for good but then we’ve cut ribbons just around the corner at the new Cambria manufacturing plant. We’ve grumbled over the old Kent Hotel’s deteriorated state while we we’ve been wowed by the restoration work Mr. Burbick did right next store. Nationally, cities are reporting some of the worst revenue projections in decades — oh, except university cities which are touted as percolating nicely along. So which trend defines Kent? How do we make sense of all this? I guess by accepting living the life of an oxymoron.

When I use the phrase economic oxymoron I am not referring to our Economic Development Director (sorry Dan, I couldn’t resist) but rather the apparent economic contradictions — doom and gloom versus bright and shiny — that we see at work in our hometown. I feel compelled to make sense of this because the City plays a supporting role in our economy and we are continually assessing what’s working and what’s not to guide our strategies and next steps. This is particularly true at this time of year as we prepare next year’s budget and we pull out the old crystal ball to predict what’s in store for the Kent economy next year.

Most years, a conservatively incremental forecast is the best bet. Make a few modest growth assumptions so that you’re covered in the event of an unexpected slip in the economy and be pleasantly surprised when things turn out better than anticipated. That’s a good rule of thumb in City budgeting where it’s always better to under-promise and over-deliver on things that are mostly out of your control.

A City budget isn’t done in a lab somewhere, it’s a reflection and product of the local economy. When the economy is firing on all cylinders the City has resources to fulfill its mission. When the economy is grinding, the City also grinds to make ends meet. Despite what some folks say, that’s why the City is fundamentally pro-business — because business success turn the wheels of the City bus. Granted, we can’t be pro-business at any cost — we have other priorities that we hold dear — but our ability to do good in this community depends upon a healthy economy which begins and ends with business success.

Anticipating business success for next year is proving to be a bigger challenge than usual. On the doom and gloom side, all around us we’re seeing our neighboring cities deal with revenues falling off a cliff. We’re reading about layoffs, furloughs, and deep cuts in services. Except of course university cities that we’re told are plugging away in a business as usual mode. The reality is we’ve had a little of both sides at work here. We’ve got reserves in the bank and we continue to see slight growth in income taxes. So I guess the question is, are we more of a manufacturing based city or a university city?  Because these days the future for looks very different depending upon how you answer that.

Historically I’d say that we leaned more towards the manufacturing side of things but if you look at the tax base here in Kent over the last 2 decades you’ll see a number of the big manufacturing names slide down the Top Ten list while the University continues to climb in market share for income tax contributions. That’s not to suggest that we don’t still have healthy corporations here, we do, but most are smaller than they used to be and as a percentage their overall share of income tax contributions is less.

Under normal economic circumstances we might begrudge those losses because the big gainers tend to be in the private sector but in a declining economy those big gainers have become big losers which is why our diminished dependence on them is probably a good thing as far as our overall economic stability. We’ll probably never see the big jumps but we’re also buffered from the big drops.

In preparing the City budget for 2010 we’re counting our beans, reading the tea leaves and listening to the wind for clues — all in the name of due diligence. The trouble is we’ve got an angel on one shoulder whispering sweet nothings about all the good things happening in Kent the university city while the other shoulder has that little devil predicting the economic apocalypse for traditional manufacturing. It’s a bi-polar oxymoron state of the City these days.

At a time when many cities are struggling to spur civic vitality, places that are home to major colleges or universities are percolating along robustly, often with healthy job growth, low costs of living and rising property values. Fueling this rise is the massive influence academic institutions have on their regions in terms of economic impact, civic connections, and innovative mindsets. Diverse spots — Columbia, Missouri; College Park, Pennsylvania; Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina and Chico, California, just to name a few — attract families, retirees, and the academically-minded. The migrants are drawn to the intellectual stimulation and community vibe.

Universities have long served as incubators for fresh thinking and new research. They also provide a solid economic base for area residents, allowing college towns to hold the distinction as areas of low unemployment. The economic activity trickles down into the host city, influencing the ethos of its civic life, from outdoor leisure pursuits to the performing arts.

For evidence, look at Columbus, Ohio’s capital city. In “Buckeye Nation,” the words ‘The Ohio State University’ mean one thing: football. Saturday afternoon crowds at Ohio Stadium are often in excess of 100,000; a major phenomenon. The steady fan base yields benefits for Columbus, the university’s home, in economic and cultural diversity: OSU has students from all 50 states and over 100 foreign countries, making it the largest student population of any single campus in the nation.

The two-mile stretch of High Street in the university district presents an energetic cross-section of students, college professors, local residents and visitors, all drawn to the energy for which collegiate communities are known. Areas like the university district in Columbus are also robust real estate markets, as they attract steady streams of academics and students who seek housing.

Even as the state of Ohio has been ravaged economically, Columbus recorded an unemployment rate of 8.9%, according to second quarter stats released by the Columbus Chamber of Commerce. That’s nothing to brag about, but certainly below the 11.2% and 9.4% rates, respectively, for the state and nation.

This fact is consistent with recent studies which suggest that cities with a university presence have lower unemployment rates than in other locales. According to June 2009 U.S. Census bureau figures, Manhattan, Kansas, home of Kansas State University, came in at an unemployment rate of 4.6%, the second lowest small city rate in the nation. Iowa City, Iowa, where the University of Iowa is located, recorded a respectable 6.2%.

University cities often experience strong job growth from start-up companies seeking to capitalize on readily available talent. The Research Triangle in North Carolina — Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill – is perhaps the most striking example of a region benefiting economically from the presence of three major universities: North Carolina State University, the University of North Carolina, and Duke University. These three institutions are adjacent to regional research and technology firms that are on the cutting edge of important innovations. Emerging start-up companies in particular serve in essence as potential feeder systems for new graduates.

Toward Virginia’s eastern border lies Charlottesville, an eclectic city of 40,000 and of the University of Virginia. It has a deep historical legacy as the home of three U.S. presidents (Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe) and is the locality of Monticello, Jefferson’s residence and a heavily visited tourist attraction. The university’s influence on Charlottesville is most notable in the faculty and student presence in the downtown district, which features a walkable mall as well as trendy restaurants. There’s also a bustling local arts movement.

Charlottesville is also one of eighty-plus cities nationally that features college linked retirement communities: senior enclaves affiliated with education institutions that allow residents to audit classes and participate in other local learning opportunities. Students over sixty who have lived in-state for at least a year can also audit courses at the University of Virginia for free.

According to Tom Wetzel, founder and president of the Retirement Living Information Center in Redding, Connecticut, the development of retirement communities near colleges and universities is a trend that is gaining momentum nationally. “Our information suggests that learning opportunities, as well as cultural, entertainment and sporting events, are attracting growing numbers of seniors’ to university cities,” says Wetzel. “These seniors tend to be intellectually curious.”

Blacksburg, Virginia, is a another example of a city whose university serves as a catalyst for community vitality and economic growth. Home of Virginia Polytechnic and State University, Blacksburg offers the quintessential small-town collegiate environment. Nestled in a picturesque pleat between the Blue Ridge and Allegheny mountains, it boasts a moderate climate, reasonable cost of living and abundant leisure activities, many derived from its natural surroundings. Outdoor enthusiasts are drawn by the easily-accessible Appalachian Trail and Washington-Jefferson National Forest. Downtown Blacksburg features brick streetscapes, and unpretentious restaurants, coffeehouses, and watering holes, all within walking distance of the college. With its unique mix of local and regional amenities, Blacksburg is often among the top-rated cities for livability and outdoor activities.

Davis, California is a college town that has formed a niche identity around its university. Known for its forward-thinking, ecologically based emphasis, the University of California Davis attracts a range of global scholar-practitioners who are committed to sustainable living practices. Recognized as one of the most educated cities in the nation (based on its percentage of residents with a graduate degree), Davis has evolved into a close-knit community of intellectuals, researchers and environmental advocates — some with official University affiliation; some not — pursuing advancements in such areas as hydrogen fuel cell technology, green building practices, and viticulture.

Davis has also played a pioneering role as a bicycling community, featuring extensive bike lanes, paths and crossings, that create the backbone of the city’s social fabric. Thousands of residents, as well as students and professors, use this alternate form of transportation, creating massive daily seas of cyclists who navigate around campus and through the city’s downtown corridor.

University cities represent a key engine for our nation’s economic emergence. But perhaps more importantly, they serve as vibrant centers of livability, built upon partnerships between higher education institutes and civic institutions; between academic researchers and businesses, and between students and the community.

Michael P. Scott is a Northern California urban journalist, demographic researcher and technical writer. He can be reached at michaels@vdowntownamerica.com.

Strapped cities lay off workers, cancel projects

As sales and income taxes decline, 9 of 10 cities are forced to cut spending. Future looks grim with property taxes expected to drop in 2010 and 2011.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — More than nine out of 10 cities are slashing spending this year as the recession wreaks havoc on their sales and income tax revenue, a new study found.

And the future looks even worse, as the housing market’s steep declines continue cutting into property tax revenue, according to the National League of Cities, which issued the update on city fiscal conditions Tuesday.

City finance officers’ pessimism is running at its highest level in the history of the group’s 24-year survey. The economic situation on the local level has grown more dire in the seven months since the group released its last report.

“City leaders know the worst is still ahead of them in terms of revenue declines and service cuts,” said Chris Hoene, the league’s director of research.

The Obama administration’s $787 billion stimulus package is expected to help offset some of the cities’ misery, but the money won’t have much impact until 2010, Hoene said.

Spending cuts

To combat declining revenues, 62% of cities are delaying or canceling infrastructure projects, the study found. That’s a 20 percentage point increase from the league’s February status report. Some two-thirds of cities are laying off workers or instituting hiring freezes, roughly the same figure as reported earlier this year.

Meanwhile, officials are also raising taxes and fees, as well as tapping city coffers. Some 45% of cities have increased fees for services, while 25% have upped property taxes. More than one in four have added fees.

Also, cities are expected to draw from their ending balances — which are similar to states’ reserve funds — for the first time since the recession of the early 1990s. Ending balances are expected to decline to 20.8% of budgets, a drop of 3.5 percentage points.

Cities are taking these and other actions to close a projected 2.1% budget gap for 2009, the report found.

In Northglenn, Colo., park lawns are being mowed less frequently and some streets are not being repaired — the results of a $900,000 paring of the Denver suburb’s $18 million 2009 budget. But these moves weren’t enough. Two weeks ago, the city laid off 11 workers.

The coming year will bring more cutbacks, such as the likely elimination of the July 4th fireworks display, said Mayor Kathleen Novak. More details will be unveiled when the budget is presented in two weeks.

“We’re really trying to keep our core services intact, but the extra things we’d like to do are being cut back,” said Novak, who is the league’s president.

Property tax pain

While income and sales tax revenues are expected to decline in 2009, property taxes are still projected to grow, albeit at a slower pace. That’s because there is often a few years’ lag in adjusting property tax assessments.

Many cities are still collecting taxes based on the value of homes from 2006 and 2007, the height of the market, Hoene said. In coming years, however, the rolls will likely be adjusted to reflect the steep plunge in home prices.

“It takes awhile for cities’ revenues to catch up to what’s happening in the market,” he said.

Sales tax revenues are expected to decline 3.8% in 2009 as consumers rein in spending, while income tax receipts are projected to fall 1.3% as unemployment takes its toll, the survey found.

Cities got more bad news Tuesday when a federal report showed that metropolitan area unemployment worsened in nearly 200 places in July.

Detroit, which has the highest unemployment rate among large metro areas, saw its level rise to 17.7% in July, up from 17.1% in June, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Meanwhile, El Centro, Calif., once again had the nation’s highest metro unemployment rate, coming in at 30.2%, up from 29.4% a month earlier.

Property tax revenues should rise by 1.6% this year, but then decline for the next three years.

Cities are also bracing for reduced aid from state governments, which are facing $26 billion in shortfalls for the current fiscal year. States have been slashing spending for local aid, social services and education as they look to balance their budgets. Neither states nor cities are allowed to run deficits, in most cases.

Stimulus kicks in

Cities are expected to receive billions of dollars in stimulus funds in the next 18 months.

Stimulus dollars will help Riverside, Calif., replace four police motorcycles and 14 patrol cars, as well as maintain the positions of two department staffers. These funds are part of $12 million in stimulus grants the city is expecting to receive in coming months. The money will also go towards efforts including homelessness prevention and energy-saving initiatives.

But little of that will help the city balance its budget, said Riverside Mayor Ron Loveridge. City leaders had to cut nearly $25 million out of the 2009-2010 budget, which totals $190 million. They didn’t even consider stimulus funds when preparing the spending plan.

“The stimulus will help, but boy it won’t be any silver bullet,” said Loveridge.

Elsewhere, stimulus funds may do more to make up budget reductions. Some cities will receive money for infrastructure projects in 2010, which will help offset the cutbacks in capital initiatives, Hoene said.

“It will hit the local government level at a time when they are most in need,” he said.

First Published: September 1, 2009: 3:48 AM ET

This week I’ve featured a couple of river related good news stories so it only seemed appropriate to advertise the Kent river clean up event scheduled for September 26 from 8 am to 1:30 pm.  Friends and volunteers from the City of Kent and Kent State University and the Cuyahoga River Partners have organized a trash clean-up of the Cuyahoga River on Saturday, September 26^th. The local project area will extend from Tannery Park to the Middlebury Road Bridge.

Volunteers are requested to meet at Tannery Park (near Stow St. Bridge) at 8:00 a.m. Boaters, kayakers and canoeists are also encouraged to participate by transporting trash to designated collection sites along the river. Clothing should be appropriate for wading in the river to collect trash and should include sturdy shoes and gloves. For questions and additional information contact Bob Brown at 330-678-8105.

Here’s more details:

We learned firsthand in Kent that one of the best unintended consequences of removing dams is how much it opens up the river to new passive and active recreational opportunities. When the City set out to open up the Kent Dam we knew all about the water quality improvements and the good things it would do for fish and aquatic life but it’s also been a great way to give more people an opportunity to enjoy the river in a personal way. From fishing to walking, biking, skipping stones, meditating and kayaking the river has become one of the favorite spots of residents of all ages and tastes for outdoor recreation. This story apparently is replaying itself at a rate of about 40 dam removal projects a year. Here’s an interesting piece from the New York Times that talks about this river revival all across the country.

The recent notice of favorable consideration for the City’s $250,000 state grant request (click here to read the news article) means that Kent Parks and Recreation will be able to improve access to and from the river in Kent which is exactly what these other cities are doing as well.

August 9, 2009

Dams Go Down, Uncorking Rivers for Kayakers

By MATTHEW PREUSCH

It was a warm May afternoon, and the blue water of the Sandy River in northern Oregon was frothing into white peaks and swirling eddies. Above this roiling current, Paul Kuthe, a kayaking instructor from Portland, steered his yellow kayak past the bleached stump of a fir embedded in the pebbly bank.

Not long ago, Mr. Kuthe said, this was all underwater, hidden under a two-mile-long reservoir created by the Marmot Dam, a hydroelectric plant that once hummed in the foothills east of Portland. Then two years ago, the 47-foot-tall concrete dam was dynamited away, and the Sandy River flowed freely from Mount Hood to the Columbia River for the first time in nearly a century.

Ever since, nature has come rushing back. Salmon have been spotted swimming upriver. The tender shoots of alder and cedar have begun to recover their turf. Meanwhile, kayakers like Mr. Kuthe make frequent trips downstream to see how the river is reclaiming its old bed — and to discover new whitewater rapids that may have formed.

“It looks so different, even from just a few months ago,” he said, as he eased his plastic kayak near a concrete wall that once anchored the dam.

A lot of rivers are starting to look different. In the 1950s and ’60s, a dam went up in the United States every six minutes to generate electricity, provide irrigation water and protect against floods, according to the United States Forest Service. As a result, there are an estimated 75,000 aging dams blocking rivers large and small today.

If that was the great dam-building era, we are now in the age of dam removal. Many dams have outlived their usefulness.

The Marmot, built in 1913, is a prime example. The dam’s owner, Portland General Electric, chose to replace it with cheaper power sources rather than pay for repairs and upgrades. Others are known as L.D.D.’s in the dam business, or “little dinky dams,” that few would miss.

There is also a growing consensus that dams are destructive to fish habitats and wildlife, and environmental groups have been lobbying aggressively for their removal.

“Many of these dams just don’t make much sense,” said Thomas O’Keefe, a spokesman for American Whitewater, a river stewardship group based in Cullowhee, N.C. “You have these dams that have huge ecological impact that don’t produce a lot of power.”

River by river, old dams are being dismantled at a rate of about 40 a year, according to American Rivers, a nonprofit conservancy in Washington that advocates for dam removal. While that’s good news for fish and wildlife, it’s also benefiting paddlers like Mr. Kuthe who are flocking to these uncorked rivers in search of newly formed whitewater rapids and other paddling adventures.

Many of these dams were erected decades before kayaking and rafting became mainstream sports. So when a dam is dismantled and the water recedes, mysteries are revealed. Will a Class V rapid emerge from a drained reservoir? Will a trickling ravine turn into a gushing torrent or an impassible waterfall? First descents can be claimed, new challenges charted and overcome.

“There’s also the excitement of the unknown,” said Tao Berman, a professional kayaker who lives in White Salmon, Wash., not far from the White Salmon River, which is known for its whitewater runs by kayakers the world over.

Mr. Berman has good reason to be excited these days. The Condit Dam, a 125-foot-high hydroelectric dam that has plugged the White Salmon River for 96 years, is expected to come out as early as next year. When that happens, a mile-long section behind the dam, which had been submerged under the artificial lake, will once again flow freely. There could be a series of gentle rapids or something more exciting, like a boat-flipping cataract.

“I just can’t wait to see it,” Mr. Berman, 30, said. “Is it going to unearth a great play spot, or is there going to be one really steep, difficult rapid? I have no idea.”

Large-scale dam removal is also being considered for the Klamath River, a 263-mile-long river that cuts through the mountains of northern California and southern Oregon and that is already a popular kayaking destination. Environmental and tribal groups are negotiating with PacifiCorp, a utility company, to decommission and remove four hydroelectric dams along the river.

But most dam removals are smaller affairs. In Virginia, the 22-foot-high Embrey Dam on the Rappahannock River was removed five years ago. The dam had outlived its usefulness, and now canoeists paddle through a half mile of rapids, just north of Fredericksburg, Va., and anglers cast for shad and herring in the unimpeded river. One of the new rapids is named Randy Never Saw It, a tribute to the late canoeing icon Randy Carter.

And 10 years ago, in one of the first victories for river advocates, the Edwards Dam was removed from the Kennebec River in Maine, freeing 17 miles of the river for the first time in more than 150 years. Over the years, the Kennebec River has become a popular stretch for canoeists and kayakers, with numerous outfitters and businesses sprouting along its banks.

The removal of Edwards Dam in Maine not only brought recreational and commercial life back to riverside communities, but it also helped galvanize a young environmental movement. Since then, more than 430 outdated dams have been removed nationwide, according to American Rivers.

Among the latest was the Marmot Dam. Its removal was actually paid for by Portland General Electric, which owned it, in part to restore native salmon runs.

Although the reclaimed stretch has revealed only a few small rapids — not enough to stir excitement among avid kayakers — that hasn’t stopped locals like Keith Jensen, who opened Alder Creek Kayak and Canoe, a shop in Portland, from exploring its newly exposed nooks.

On a crisp Sunday morning last November, Mr. Jensen, who knows the Sandy’s pools and drops as well as anyone, returned for the first time since the dam was removed. From a forested farmstead about six miles up the river, he put his red plastic boat into the swiftly moving river and paddled his way down to the site of the former dam.

A bald eagle flew overhead and landed on a fir perched over the river. Below, mergansers scampered along the water’s surface like graceful paddlers. Soon a road came into view where the dam used to be. Bits of spare pipe protruded from the gravel.

Mr. Jensen pulled his boat up on a fan of dry rocks and marveled at the changed river. “It’s a privilege to be out here,” he said.

RAPID TRANSIT PROJECTS

About 430 dams, large and small, have been removed nationwide since 1999, according to the group American Rivers, opening up opportunities for rafting and paddling. Here are a few noteworthy spots.

Salmon River, Sunbeam Dam, Idaho This 1910 dam in the mountains northeast of Boise was partly blasted away in the 1930s to improve fish passage, and the Sunbeam Run has been a Class III standard ever since (Idaho Tourism Division, www.visitidaho.org/whitewater).

Rappahannock River, Embrey Dam, Virginia The Embrey Dam near Fredricksburg, Va., was removed in 2004, creating a half mile of rapids on the Rappahannock River (Friends of the Rappahannock, 540-373-3448; www.riverfriends.org).

Rogue River, Savage Rapids Dam, Oregon Several dam removal projects are under way along a 157-mile segment of the Rogue River in southern Oregon. This summer, a portion of the 88-year-old Savage Rapids dam is being demolished (Southern Oregon Visitors Association; www.southernoregon.org).

Kennebec River, Edwards Dam, Maine The Edwards Dam on Maine’s Kennebec River was removed 10 years ago, which opened up 17 miles of the river to paddling and helped bring attention to river restoration (Maine Office of Tourism; www.visitmaine.com).

Tuckasegee River, Dillsboro Dam, North Carolina The Dillsboro Dam along North Carolina’s Tuckasegee River was approved for removal by the federal government in 2007. When it comes out, it will open up a Class II run and allow for a possible whitewater park (Dillsboro Merchants Association; www.visitdillsboro.org).

White Salmon River, Condit Dam, Washington The White Salmon River in southern Washington already has waterfalls and easy runs, and the planned removal of the Condit Dam next year is expected to expand this paddlers’ playground even further (Columbia River Gorge Visitors Association; www.crgva.org).

American Rivers (www.americanrivers.org) and American Whitewater (www.americanwhitewater.org) have details on dam removal and white water.

If you think that the choice of words can actually mean something when you’re trying to communicate then you’ll appreciate the semantic difference between a road and a street.  If not, then go back to texting and tweeting where the meaning of words is almost irrelevant.  There’s a movement afoot in city planning circles that advocates great streets and tries to get us to shift the focus from considerations of automobile roadway needs only to include all the other infrastructure amenities that make up a street right of way, including sidewalks, street benches, lighting, grass and landscaped strips, etc.  Their point is a great street is more than just a fresh coat of asphalt on the road – a great street is the sum of all it’s parts.  I think this is the wind beneath the wings of the sidewalk shoveling discussion so I thought I’d share some of the points of the great streets folks to set the context.

The following is an article from Charlotte NC where development pressures have been enormous and suburbs have reigned supreme.  I’d speculate that despite their great development success there are those in Charlotte that long for something more than the highways and byways that connect one suburb community to the next.  There are people looking for that sense of old city neighborhoods in a new city environment.  That old city stuff is exactly what we have in Kent and why Council is so interested in sidewalks, biking and transit.  I found that reading about Charlotte’s challenges helped me appreciate just how good we’ve got it here in Kent.   

[if you're interested, here's a link to the Great Streets web site.]

‘Roads’ talk won’t get us anywhere

As I mentioned in my blog post yesterday, the City has been looking long and hard at options to improve the walkability of City sidewalks in the winter after mother nature has been a bit mean spirited and deposited piles of the white stuff on our front walk.  So far much of the discussion has been about a sense of moral obligation to be a good neighbor and shovel the sidewalks with as much vigor as we shovel our driveways.  That message appeals to some but others want to know what’s in it for me so when I happened to come across an article that had real data showing that the more walkable a home is the more it’s worth — I figured I should share it.

Here’s the thing, Kent is more city living than it is suburban living.  And one of the things that makes city living so great is that cities tend to be much more walkable than the suburbs.  Better yet, Kent is more small city than big city, which means everything is just about within walking distance and usually it’s a pleasant walk.  

But here’s the rub — Kent is in northeast Ohio where winter happens.  And when it does, that pleasant walk can turn a bit treacherous and in some instances even dangerous as sidewalk walkers are forced to go head to head with cars in the street because the streets are the only area clear enough to walk.  Cars and walkers in bad weather conditions don’t mix well which gets us back to why the City has been masticating over this topic since the last snowstorm we had in February.

I thought the following article offered a slightly different perspective on the whole issue of sidewalk walking.  The article seems to suggest that you don’t have to have a conscience – you just have to own property – to see the value of keeping sidewalks walkable.    

[If you're a source document sort of person, here's the full report]

City Council has spent about 6 months working with staff, citizens and the Council members to come up with ways to inspire property owners and renters to crawl out of bed the morning after a late night lake effect snow storm to shovel off their sidewalks — all in the name of civic pride. That doesn’t sound so challenging in these 70 degree, happy to be alive, bright sunny days but try 10 degrees, dark skies and blustery on for size and see how quicky your neighbors bound out of bed to do their civic duty. That’s human nature but the trouble is clear sidewalks matter in our City — they matter to folks that don’t have transportation and those folks tend to be the very folks that our social conscience says we need to look out for — the elderly, the disabled, and school kids. Here’s the latest proposal prepared by a couple of Council members that will be discussed in Council’s Committee session this evening.

The following proposal represents the latest evolution of ideas that came out of the volunteer citizens committee on sidewalk snow clearing.  It’s worth stating that this is a compromise proposal that 2 Council members plan to propose to the full Council as good first steps.  Like many things in the political arena, it’s tough to get 100% consensus and it is the art of compromise that actually gets things done. 

SIDEWALK POLICY PROPOSAL

To: Mayor Fender and Kent City Council

From: Council Members Shaffer and Hawksley

Date: September 10.2009

Background: Per recent committee discussions, and including a meeting with City Manager Ruller, Community Development Director Locke and Service Director Roberts, we would propose the following policy changes. These changes all work towards an approach to improve the safety and welfare for pedestrians after significant snow events. While they are intended to provide a comprehensive approach, they can be discussed and voted on separately.

1. Change current code section 521.16(b) from a misdemeanor to a civil infraction. This will remove enforcement of the section from the police department and place it under discretion of city manager. This will allow city staff, primarily in service and community development or other appropriate person to issue a citation to ticket those who by their actions obstruct the right of way. It may be necessary to include language including sidewalks.
2. Authorize administration to flesh out details for a license program for snow plow operators.. Mr Roberts indicated that he still believes this could be a soft touch approach that would gain the most improvement for least resources. This motion would authorize Mr. Roberts to provide a specific proposal for consideration at the earliest possible time. (This is different than a previous motion to adopt an unspecified license program)
   
3. Authorize administration to flesh out details for subscription service for sidewalk clearing. Mr. Roberts and Mr. Locke believe this would be a way to provide citizens with the information they need to hire someone to plow their walks/drives. This motion would authorize the administration to provide a specific proposal for consideration at the earliest possible time.
   
4. Authorize the administration to develop a good neighbor educational campaign. There have been various things discussed, including door hangers, encouraging volunteers, working with Service learning at KSU, providing readily available de-icer, shovels for rent, etc.
   
5. Authorize the administration to include $50,000 in the snow removal budget to hire private contractors to help move snow that city plows have piled in various critical locations. This allows discretion and application of resources in most effective way without additional hiring or over-time. Critical locations would be the large mounds at intersections that turn to icebergs.

Last week Dan Smith, the City’s Economic Development Director, was the featured speaker at the monthly Chamber luncheon.  He provided an engaging update on the progress of the City’s key economic initiatives — from downtown redevelopment to job retention and job growth.  He had a lot to cover that day so he didn’t get a chance to dive into great detail on any one of the success stories but with Governor Strickland’s caravan rolling into Kent today to join us in celebrating the official grand opening of the new Alpha Micron technology building on SR 59 he took time to write up a synopsis of the evolution of Alpha Micron from it’s humble roots in Kent State’s Liquid Crystal Institute labs to being recognized as a global leader in the field with their home base in our hometown of Kent Ohio.  Here’s Dan’s summary.   

City of Kent & Kent State University Partner to Keep AlphaMicron Local:

Start-up & Incubation
AlphaMicron, Inc. started their journey into the world of commercializing liquid crystal technologies in the City of Kent over a decade ago. The venture was founded in 1997 by three faculty members from Kent State University’s Liquid Crystal Institute in order to fulfill a U.S. Air Force Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract. The group worked with the Kent Regional Business Alliance (KRBA) and began R & D and assembling proto-type visors in the KRBA business incubator facility located on Martinel Drive.

Since that time, their creative commercialization of liquid crystal technologies has continued and they have expanded their products and patents to include digital lenses and eye ware, automotive dimming mirrors, electronic windows and fashion & design applications. The company currently employees over thirty employees and is continuing to experience rapid growth as well as a $5 million award in the most recent round of Ohio Third Frontier grants for their continued product development.

AlphaMicron, at from start-up through today, has been supported with ongoing help from the Kent Regional Business Alliance, Kent State University and the City of Kent. AlphaMicron was one of the original tenants the KRBA’s Incubator program. From modest beginnings, the company continued to invest and expand at the site as they created a clean room, various labs and assembly rooms. In 2003, the City of Kent continued to provide support with a forgivable loan to assist Alpha Micron’s ongoing expansion and push for product commercialization.

Normally a company will “graduate” from an incubator program into a new site located within the community. It was soon realized that AlphaMicron was experiencing such tremendous growth and commercial success that it required immediate new square footage for expansion. Due to the significant investments that had already been made at the Martinel site, leadership from the KRBA and City of Kent decided turn control of the entire incubator facility over to Dr. Taheri and AlphaMicron to insure they would remain a Kent firm and continue to build upon their initial successes.

Fast Forward- Time to grow again…..enter Team Kent !
Early in 2008, officials from Kent State University, the City of Kent and other various community stakeholders began exploring how we could enhance the local climate for business start-ups and support additional entrepreneurial activities. The discussion quickly turned to Kent State University as an economic engine and how key players and local assets could be better organized in support of capturing knowledge economy opportunities. The team consisted of Kent City Council members, the Mayor, Kent City Manager, ED & Community Development staffers, Kent State University V.P.s and Office of Technology Transfer Officials as well as the Portage County office of Economic Development and the Ohio Department of Development.

With AlphaMicron’s ongoing innovation, product development and commercialization successes came recognition. Without question, AlphaMicron was gaining attention on the national and world stage and economic development officials from around Ohio and beyond took notice of their success and tremendous potential for future growth.  By 2008 the company was once again bursting at the seams and began exploring all of the options for yet another major expansion.

Recognizing the significant positive economic impacts, potential for future growth, as well as the immediate threat of losing the venture to the aggressive lobbying of other regional or state players, “Team Kent” mobilized to work out a plan to keep AlphaMicron local and continue to build synergy with Kent State University and the City of Kent.

Team Kent learned that AlphaMicron had immediate needs to expand their facilities as well as enhance their manufacturing capabilities and image to capture additional opportunities in global markets. With the knowledge that other regions and states were aggressively working to attract AlphaMicron to their communities, the circumstances provided the opportunity for the new Team Kent initiative to go to work. An immediate meeting was set with company officials and their real estate advisor. The meeting proved to be very productive.

After exploring several available sites and finance options, an agreement was reached to relocate AlphaMicron next to the Kent State University campus in the newly created Centennial Research Park (State Route 261 & 59, former Fiala building). Dr. Lester Lefton and Kent State University officials were instrumental in creating a facility that will foster the upcoming expansion and future growth AlphaMicron. Both the City of Kent and Franklin Township will benefit from the expansion and increased tax revenues the site will create. New, high paying jobs will be achieved with completion of relocation.

Building Critical Mass- On an Economic Roll
The ability to retain AlphaMicron as well as foster their current, and ongoing expansion, is no small achievement. In addition to the AlphaMicron announcement, Crystal Diagnostics, formerly Pathogen Systems Inc., from Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy, is also in the process of signing an agreement to locate a significant portion of its business operations in Centennial Research Park.

Crystal Diagnostics also conducts research and development work in an Applied Research Laboratory on the campus of NEOUCOM. Last year the state of Ohio awarded NEOUCOM with a $3 million Wright Project grant to further the development of the partnership with Crystal Diagnostics and Kent State University. The addition of Crystal Diagnostics to the project means that the entire Centennial Research Park facility will be occupied at 100% capacity. Kent State University and Team Kent will now set our attention on exploring sites for developing Centennial Research Park II!

The blue print and ground work have been laid for fostering additional business investment/activities with strong ties to Kent State University. AlphaMicron, Crystal Diagnostics and Kent Displays are just a few of the many local examples technology transfer and entrepreneurial activities driving the knowledge economy and Kent’s future. Team Kent’s activities will continue to offer tremendous opportunities to KSU students as well as provide much needed new employment opportunities and enhanced tax revenues for the City of Kent, Franklin Township and the greater N.E. Ohio region. Team Kent is on an economic roll.