Events Calendar
In This Section
Most Read Stories
Soldier on leave dies after shooting near UA
Man breaks into house, flees when owner wakes up
Theft, fraud allegations leave family in turmoil
Cavs to negotiate for Ilgauskas' return
Teen accused of drinking, dancing topless in club
Intoxicated, suicidal educator apprehended after chilling drive in park
Irish eyes smiling on Falls newlyweds
Barberton man hit by vehicle after fight dies
Blogs:
Akron Docs in Haiti:
Almost home
First Bell - On Education:
Strange, sad story from Canton
Pets:
Found: White Eskimo male dog near Bath and State Rd.
The Heldenfiles:
Fess Parker, R.I.P.
Akron Zips:
Looking back on the season
Tribe Matters:
Cabrera says it’s time to play
Cleveland Browns:
Yates latest to re-sign
Balanced Ledger:
How times have changed?
Kent State Sports:
Kent State beats Tulsa in NIT; Will face Illinois on ESPNU
Cleveland Cavaliers:
Highlights from Wednesday’s Cavs-Pacers Game
Buckeye Blogging:
Bucks High Seed – Turner High Praise
Varsity Letters:
DII state semifinal: Walsh Jesuit loses to Hathaway Brown 53-48
All Da King's Men:
ObamaCare To Reduce Premiums By 3000% ?
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Why Republicans Are Acting So Crazy
Akron Law Café:
Does Capitalism Inspire "Moral Flexibility"?
Car Chase:
2010 CONCOURS SEASON IS UPON US
Let's Talk Real Estate:
Deals in Miami?!.
Sound Check:
Willie Nelson & Family coming to the Akron Civic Theatre May 11
See Jane Style:
Who Wore What – The Oscars
HRLite House:
Horses of Courses
Akron Gamer:
PlayStation's Move ups the interaction, fidelity
City Council unanimously votes for port authority to issue $17.2 million in bonds to fund the project
By Stephanie Warsmith
Beacon Journal staff writer
Published on Tuesday, Mar 24, 2009
Akron City Council members Monday approved a deal aimed at moving the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. headquarters project forward.
Council members, some of whom initially had misgivings about the agreement, approved it unanimously. The deal calls for the Summit County Port Authority to issue up to $17.2 million in short-term bonds for Industrial Realty Group, the private developer behind the project.
''This is good for Goodyear and good for the city,'' said Terry Albanese, who chairs the council's economic development committee.
IRG announced this month that it couldn't find private financing to start the estimated $900 million project because of the souring economy and asked for public help.
Albanese said she and other council members saw the tentative agreement between IRG and Goodyear and were able to get their questions answered.
''This is not any riskier than anything else we've done — and we have so much to lose,'' she said. ''It's worth the risk to save the jobs.''
Goodyear employs about 3,000 in Akron.
Albanese said the agreement will at least keep Goodyear in Akron for five years. At that point, she said, the economy hopefully will have improved.
The Summit County Council approved the deal last week.
Both Akron and Summit County have committed to spending millions on public improvements tied to the project. On Monday, for example, the Akron council approved spending $751,000 for improvements to Tech Way off Kelly Avenue, work that is related to the project.
The city and county would be responsible for repaying the bonds in case of a default.
Developer Stuart Lichter has changed the order of the project — opting to renovate the current Goodyear headquarters and later build a new facility. Goodyear will remain in the building during the renovation.
In other business, Mayor Don Plusquellic and Service Director Rick Merolla told the council's planning committee about the formation of a Stimulus Bill Project Review Committee.
The committee, made up of leaders of Akron agencies and community groups, will meet for the first time at 11 a.m. today.
''They will go through and figure out how to get as much money as possible and get it in areas that help the most people,'' said Merolla, who just returned from a trip to Washington, D.C., focused on stimulus funds. ''I'm convinced that's what the president and vice president want to see happening.''
Merolla gave the council a preliminary list of 28 committee members, which includes representatives of large institutions like Akron schools, the University of Akron and United Way and smaller groups like North Howard Block Watch, Firestone Park Home & Garden Club and St. Martha Parish.
Merolla and Plusquellic pointed to other areas of the country where big cities have complained that they haven't received funding proportional to their population. Plusquellic said he wants to ensure that ''Akron gets its share.''
Merolla said he expects the stimulus committee to meet for at least three months.
The council's public safety committee discussed concerns about how safe Akron is after a recent string of crimes.
Safety Director Larry Givens said he thinks Akron is ''extremely safe,'' but is not ''crime free.'' He and interim Police Chief Craig Gilbride told council members that officers are doing their best to make Akron safer.
Stephanie Warsmith can be reached at 330-996-3705 or swarsmith@thebeaconjournal.com.
Akron City Council members Monday approved a deal aimed at moving the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. headquarters project forward.
Get the full article here.
Comments
Click here to post your comments
Wadsworth, OH
Posted 06:27 AM, 03/24/2009
So the Goodyear deal gets unanimous approval by council. Does that mean you malcontents are going to try to recall all of them as well?
Tallmadge, OH
Posted 06:40 AM, 03/24/2009
The Goodyear Project is in real trouble. IRG can't get financing. This is only a stop gap measure to make Mayor Donnny Boy look good as he prepares to fight for his job against the mayoral recall.
Insiders I know at Goodyear Corporate say that Goodyear does not have the cash funds to complete the project now with this bad economy with all their lost tire sales. The chances of a default are very high and Goodyear pulling out of the deal. This just adds to the city's $800 million debt promise. Why put the city & county at more risk?
Time to relook at the Goodyear Project, but no the politicians forge ahead knowing it may well be dead !!!!
akron, oh
Posted 07:10 AM, 03/24/2009
Deputy Mayor Lebo, quite interesting the first words out of your mouth concern the recall. Donny is having trouble sobering up these days, must be scared out of his wits.
My Heart Is In K-Town, .
Posted 07:32 AM, 03/24/2009
@ The Big Lebowski – Yeah, you're probably right…Warner will simply include them in a 'class action recall'.
@ OldManGrump – I see they turned the computers on early today at the ‘home’ for you and the “insiders” you know. A lot of credibility there (from your insider friends - lol) that they would suggest to hold back, and do nothing on progress and potential job loss.
Posted 07:39 AM, 03/24/2009
This is not the end of Akron, lets consider it only the beginning of a Great American metropolis.
akron, oh
Posted 07:59 AM, 03/24/2009
larry givens is a moron. akron is far from safe.
Akron, OH
Posted 08:32 AM, 03/24/2009
"This is not the end of Akron, lets consider it only the beginning of a Great American metropolis."
ROFLMAO
Akron, OH
Posted 08:47 AM, 03/24/2009
I guess Akron City Council hasn't been reading about the "sweet deals" at www.akronwatch.org.
Akron, OH
Posted 08:51 AM, 03/24/2009
I look for zero posts from the malcontents starting at 11:00 AM today since they will all be at the Stimulus Bill Project Review Committee meeting. After all, if one is to incessantly complain about the shape of Akron, then they would obviously be attending these meetings.
Akron, OH
Posted 08:56 AM, 03/24/2009
According to the ABJ Story...
================================
Albanese said the agreement will at least keep Goodyear in Akron for five years.
================================
FIVE YEARS??????
WTF????
Where is the "long term" relationship between Goodyear and the taxpayers of Akron that Mayor Don and IRG have promised will come with the hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars that are being forked out for this project?
If all these clowns can squeeze out of Goodyear is a 5 year agreement, I believe that the taxpayers need to say...
Thanks, but no thanks!
This project is too rich for our blood
Posted 09:04 AM, 03/24/2009
AM I READING THIS RIGHT? 900 million and goodyear is only committed to staying 5 years? i cannot believe those morons ok'd this! akron is gonna lose and lose BIG on this one.
akron, oh
Posted 09:06 AM, 03/24/2009
Deputy Mayor Jason, Why do you hate so much? You should love your brother (Akron Watch). I doubt if anybody bothers to attend Akron meeting since you are prohibited from speaking. It is part of Don's Dictater Regime Officio Edict, 1997.
Akron, Oh
Posted 09:40 AM, 03/24/2009
The wards are falling apart. the crime is out of controle, the city leadership is in a deadlock with activist. and as far as the lame duck, stim package, It seems that the only people that are being represented here are the mayors boys(Summerville, shealy, and buisness buddys).
Albanese's loyalties are to the mayor, as well as Crawford, not there wards. Whene council is being told what to do by the mayor, they are not doing there job. look at the condition of our streets! or city parks, the crime (Givens is an idiot). Do your homework people, and vote these clowns out...
Akron, OH
Posted 10:14 AM, 03/24/2009
McDonald,
Hurry and get to that meeting so you can be constructive.
akron, oh
Posted 10:32 AM, 03/24/2009
DM Jason (Lieberth) No thanks, I usually take a BM at 11:AM.
Akron, OH
Posted 10:34 AM, 03/24/2009
@Overtaxed Voter:
EXACTLY-----I mean this whole deal is ONLY for 5 more years. Not exactly a major commitment in this package, is there???
Akron, OH
Posted 10:40 AM, 03/24/2009
Hmmm, the coward is on here early today I see.
Nice little tidbit about our 20 year deal now bein' down to 5 years. Makes one wonder what else they are trimmin' from this deal.
The more this is renegotiated the worse the deal becomes.
Akron, OH
Posted 11:26 AM, 03/24/2009
I wish I was the Deputy Mayor because I could be telling you in person how silly you guys have been acting. You know, we'd be looking at each other in this 11:00 meeting...... since you are there right now...... being constructive.
Cuyahoga Falls, Oh
Posted 11:39 AM, 03/24/2009
@The Original Jason,
You only get to be deputy mayor if you agree with the mayor, look at issue 8 last year, which of the deputy mayors told Mayor Don this was a bad idea-none of them.
So if your were and did you wouldn't be one for long.
If think they are called bobble heads, and have you ever seen a bobble head say no?
Cuyahoga Falls, Oh
Posted 11:40 AM, 03/24/2009
Is David Brennan involved with this deal?
Seminole, FL
Posted 12:05 PM, 03/24/2009
$900 million project, and they only got $17.2 million? Oh boy, this project is doomed. Sort of like Goodyear went to the Kansas legislature to get 38 million to help keep their Topeka plant open, and only got 14.4 million from the State Dept. of Commerce. Goodyear better be getting some realistic plans or they're going to run out of cash in 2010.....
Tallmadge, Oh
Posted 12:38 PM, 03/24/2009
Thank goodness! My uncle has worked there for years-initially at two different sites. But then they whittled it down to one.
Akron, OH
Posted 02:06 PM, 03/24/2009
Did anyone notice how quickly this story fell off of the front page of Ohio.com?
I guess they want to minimize the average reader's exposure to anyone saying "the emperor has no clothes".
Akron, OH
Posted 02:34 PM, 03/24/2009
Hmm...the story got put back on the local news section of the front page.
Maybe someone does read our comments.
I would hope that management realizes the discussions on WNIR about the story might actually help sell some newspapers.
Posted 05:26 PM, 03/24/2009
Akron safe?!? Really? I wonder if Givens would take his wife and grandkids for a walk down oh, lets say Copley Rd at oh lets say 9 pm. Yeah just for a stroll from the zoo to the Handles. You know to get a cone and into a gun battle. Ooops! Sorry, no gun battle, I mean cause that type of stuff never happens around Garth. Oh, wait, it happened last night. Then after they drop off the grandkids they can go to the Holiday lounge, for a drink and a robbery and a another gun battle. Well I got to go check the house for new bullet holes now.
Posted 11:51 AM, 03/25/2009
The Carolina's gave Firestone & Goodyear Factories.
Goodyear wouldn't do that for Akron .
