West Side News & Notes
By Stephanie Kist
New downtown METRO
transit center coming
DOWNTOWN AKRON — Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic and METRO Regional Transit Authority have announced major changes in the way passenger bus traffic will move in and out of downtown Akron.
“With gasoline prices rising, there’s no better time than now for local government to partner with federal authorities to make a significant investment in mass transit,” Plusquellic said.
The city and METRO plan to build
a $15 million Intermodal
Transit Center at South Broadway and Bartges Street
on city-owned land. The city’s contribution of
land will satisfy most or all of the local match needed
to trigger federal funds to pay for the facility. Funding
for the project has already been approved in legislation
sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
All buses arriving and departing
downtown will use the site to offer passengers a place
to transfer from one bus route to another.
“We will also provide restrooms,
a small shop for passenger amenities and possibly a
tourist information center,” said METRO General
Manager Robert Pfaff.
Design of the new Intermodal Transit
Center will begin this year, with construction expected
to begin by the spring of 2008.
METRO also has been working with
the Greyhound Bus Co. to locate a terminal for intercity
travel on the site, and, in the future, the site would
provide a link to rail transportation already
accessible at the property, according
to city officials.
The new center will be located east
of and adjacent to the site selected by Ovonics Akron
for its hydrogen fuel testing facility.
“We have already applied
to the federal government and Ohio’s Third Frontier
for a hydrogen fuel cell demonstration project,”
Pfaff said.
Plusquellic and Pfaff also announced
plans to modify existing operations whereby all buses
line up on South Main Street in front of Cascade Plaza
so passengers can transfer from one bus to another.
Pfaff said METRO is talking with
property owners downtown to find a location that is
safer for riders and will enhance METRO’s service.
Sheriff’s office
to retire American flags
GREEN — The Summit County
Sheriff’s office again will host the ceremonial
retirement of American flags that are no longer suitable
for service.
The ceremony will take place on
Flag Day, June 14, at 7:15
p.m. Cadets from the Civil Air Patrol Squadron No. 278,
under the direction of First Lt. Dan Stollard and Capt.
David Stone, will conduct the ceremony.
The Summit County Sheriff’s
Honor Guard, the Summit County Sheriff’s Mounted
Patrol, the Akron Police Department Honor Guard and members
of the Chesty Puller Young Marines, under the command
of Ronald Pownall, will assist with the ceremony. The
Marine Corps Reserve Unit from Dan Street in Akron will
provide the firing squad.
Attending the ceremony as a special
guest of Sheriff Drew Alexander will be Sgt. David Hack,
a local Army recruiter and Vietnam veteran. The special
guest speaker for the event will be retired Brigadier
Gen. Thomas Luczynski, of the Army Air National Guard.
Luczynski last served as the commander of the 73rd Troop
Command and is also a Vietnam veteran.
Alexander invites the public,
with a special invitation to all veterans and veterans
groups and all youth groups,
including Boy and Girl Scout troops, to participate
in the ceremony, which will take place at the Summit
County Sheriff’s Office Training Facility, located
at 2825 Greensburg Road.
Those who attend should plan to arrive
at least 30 minutes before the start of the ceremony,
because once the ceremony begins, no traffic will be permitted
in the parking lot.
The U.S. Flag Code, Title 36,
states: “The flag, when it is in such condition
that it is no longer a fitting emblem of display, should
be destroyed in a dignified manner.” Any American
flag that is tattered, showing wear or faded should
be removed and turned in for destruction in a proper
and respectful manner, according to the sheriff’s
office.
Anyone who wishes to retire an
American flag may bring it by June 12 to a number of
area locations, including:
• lobby of the Summit County
Safety Building, 53 University Ave. in downtown Akron;
• Sheriff’s Twinsburg
office, 9833 Ravenna Road;
• Sheriff’s Northfield
Center Township office, 9546 Brandywine Road; and
• Summit County Veterans
Service Commission office, 148 Park St. in Akron.
Flags that are being brought in
for retirement should be in a protective paper or plastic
bag. The resident may attach a note to the flag eyelet
if he or she wishes to have his or her name or organization
recognized for retiring the flag.
Prior to the retirement ceremony,
flags will be inspected and prepared in accordance with
the tradition of solemn dignity and military manner.
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