AKRON — Mayor Shammas Malik held a press conference June 11 to address the increase in gun violence in the city, particularly in the Highland Square neighborhood.
Police are currently investigating a June 7 shooting that occurred just before 1:30 a.m. in the Highland Square neighborhood, injuring three bystanders. A preliminary investigation indicated that two unidentified men exchanged gunfire despite the presence of multiple officers standing within 50 yards of them, according to Akron Police Chief Brian Harding. The Akron Police Department (APD) have released photos of two people in connection with the incident and are asking the public for help identifying the suspects. The photos can be found on the APD Facebook page at www.facebook.com/AkronPoliceDepartment. Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Bush at 330-375-2490, ext. 4228 or at DBush@AkronOhio.gov. Tips may also be provided anonymously through Summit County Crimestoppers at 330-434-2677.
“Last weekend, three innocent people were shot. Since then, four other individuals in our community have been victims of gun violence,” Malik said, making it clear that he will not tolerate any type of violence in the City of Akron.
“Here and around our country, gun violence has become a recurring thing; something that we risk becoming numb to … We are here to reject that,” he said. “Violence must cease.”
Harding, while pledging to do his part as police chief, said police officers solely being present is not enough to offset this type of gun violence.
“The reality — and it’s a sad reality — is that someone can decide to pull a gun and start shooting into a crowd. There’s no police department in America that can guarantee prevention on every single case,” he said. “Twenty years ago, officers were routinely called to break up fist fights. Today, too often, those calls are shots fired.”
The chief said he is asking for everyone to “lean in a little bit harder to help us tackle this extremely complex problem,” adding that policing works best when families, businesses, neighbors, schools, community leaders and the media work together.
The mayor said when it comes to gun violence, the City of Akron will always meet the issue head on.
“We need parents to know where their kids are,” Malik said. “We need them to know who they’re with and whether they’re engaging in risky or dangerous behavior.”
Chief of Public Safety Craig Morgan said activity in the Highland Square area continues to draw a substantial number of individuals after midnight who congregate on the sidewalk and nearby parking lots drinking alcohol from open containers — many with no intention on supporting any of the businesses in the square.
He announced that, in an effort to discourage crowds, and with the hope to combat gun violence in the neighborhood, every bar in Highland Square except the Highland Tavern has agreed to close at midnight this weekend, June 12-14.
“We understand that this is an extreme measure because of the impact it can have on the businesses, patrons and neighbors,” Morgan said. “At the same time, safety must be our first priority. So until this behavior ceases, we will do everything we can to keep our community safe.”
Morgan noted the Highland Tavern — which was previously closed for posting an adulterated occupancy certificate, along with other violations — will continue to be monitored by the Akron Fire Department for capacity and other compliancy issues. Malik added the city is prepared to pursue every possible legal option, including declaring the Highland Tavern a nuisance.
In addition to the midnight bar closures, the city also will close the parking lot behind Chipotle, 825 W. Market St., at 11 p.m. Morgan said people will be allowed to exit the parking lot but no one will be allowed in. Any vehicles left there after midnight will be towed, and people loitering in the lot will be charged with criminal trespassing. The Walgreens parking lot at 834 W. Market St. will close at midnight, and vehicles left there will also be subject to towing.
Morgan explained that, for now, these measures are only in place for the weekend of June 12-14, but will be evaluated on a weekly basis.
Akron City Council member Fran Wilson (D-Ward 1) also spoke at the press conference about the violence happening in their ward.
Wilson said within the past nine months, officials have been working to secure funding, advance public safety issues and bring more investment into the Highland Square neighborhood, but urged residents to be more involved in reporting crime and other issues.
“There’s a tangible difference between walking by problems and not doing something, and stepping in and saying something,” Wilson said. “Get involved in your neighborhood.”
Malik added that while the issues plaguing the city are serious, he is hopeful for Akron’s future.
“I was born and raised in this community and have spent most of my life here in this community. I know what this community is capable of. I know that this community can lean in and tackle challenges when it needs to. But the scale of the problem is really significant,” Malik said.

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CUYAHOGA FALLS — Cuyahoga Falls City Council approved a three-year, $158,000 contract with LiveEO for the use of satellite imagery to monitor vegetation growth around power lines in the city at the June 8 meeting.
Electric Department Assistant Superintendent Jimmy Filon said this is a new and innovative approach to vegetation management for electrical outages.
Filon said LiveEO, based in Berlin, Germany, uses satellite imagery to monitor power grids and detect hazard trees, measure vegetation height, and predict grow-in/fall-in risks, which helps prevent electrical service outages. Filon said that by using the data, the department can predict whether a tree will become an issue. He said the city has been using an earlier version of the software for the past year and is happy with it.
“The longer we use it, the more it can predict,” Filon said, noting the first year is primarily focused on gathering data. “[LiveEO] can’t predict a whole lot because they have nothing to gauge it against,” he said. “So we’re asking for a three-year contract so we can see over the span of four years how the trees are growing [and] how they are decaying.”
Filon said the software monitors three things: grow-in risk, fall-in risk, and hazardous trees.
“It’s an incredible program, and it’s a lot cheaper than LiDAR,” he added.
LiDAR uses light detection from aircraft to measure vegetation and identify potential risks, while LiveEO uses satellite imagery collected during multiple passes over a designated area to monitor changes over time, predict vegetation growth and identify potential risks.
“We want to make sure this is cost effective for the city, saving the outages and doing what’s best for the community,” Filon said.
The Electric Department will use feedback from this monitoring to work with line clearance contractors to proactively trim vegetation.
The city contracts with Davey Tree for line clearing services, and Filon said the company is very supportive of the LiveEO program. He added the city’s municipal arborist, David Passarelli, is also excited about the software. Filon said Passarelli and his team have been using TreeKeeper, a cloud-based tree inventory program through Davey Tree that allows the city to map, track and analyze tree health, environmental benefits and maintenance needs. The city is currently working on a way to merge the two programs together, using the TreeKeeper program for inventory purposes and comparing the data with LiveEO to measure the health of trees.
“We’re going to be very proactive in our approach to tree trimming,” Filon said. “I know residents of Cuyahoga Falls love our trees, and we don’t want to unnecessarily hurt any trees, but we do want to see how they are affecting outages.”
Filon said the City of Westerville has been using this program for years and has cut its vegetation-related outages by almost 40%.
“Hopefully we can get there, too,” he said.
Filon said that trees account for the majority of the city’s electrical outages, and the Electric Department will benefit from this service by reducing the amount of electric outages.
Council President Russ Balthis expressed his enthusiasm for the program and thanked the department for spearheading it.
“Power reliability is so critical,” Balthis said. “Outages happen, but they’re always frustrating, so anything we can do to reduce outages is really appreciated. The fact that we can use satellites to get this level of accuracy is incredible. Thank you for looking at innovative ideas; I’m excited to learn more about this as we use it for the next coming years.”
Council also approved a $639,987 contract with Mogadore-based H.M. Miller Construction for the Nutwood Avenue sanitary sewer improvements.
City Engineer Tony Demasi said the lines for both Nutwood and Ashland avenues — both built in 1917 — are subject to backups and need to be improved. The project will include replacing the sewer on Nutwood with 8-inch PVC pipe, and lining the sewer on Ashland. He said because of the proximity of fences and other structures on Ashland, as well as the sound wall on state Route 8, “it’s simply easier to just line it as opposed to tearing it out and replacing it.”
Design for the project was completed earlier this year, with work expected to start in the fall and be completed by spring 2027.
Legislation introduced and slated for discussion during Council committee meetings next week includes:
• the transfer of $67,000 from the General Fund to the Princeton Crossroads Tax Increment Financing Fund as an advance;
• a contract for overhead power line clearance services including tree maintenance, tree and brush removal services and mowing; and
• an ordinance amending the Traffic Control File.
There will be a public hearing on an ordinance to extend the downtown Cuyahoga Falls Community Entertainment District June 15 at 6:30 p.m. in the Natatorium, 2345 Fourth St., followed by Council committee meetings. Cuyahoga Falls City Council will have its next regular legislative meeting June 22 at 6:30 p.m. in the Natatorium.

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