Displaying items by tag: Dan Horrigan

Every so often, the mayor of Akron, Dan Horrigan, stops in the WAKR studios to discuss an array of topics throughout the city.

One of those topics, as mentioned on the Ray Horner Morning Show, was about the continued development in downtown Akron, which include Lock 3 and Lock 4. Mayor Horrigan took a trip to Philadelphia, and a plan is to model the civic commons after the City of Brotherly Love. The mayor mentioned he outsourced some opinions on what to do with the future of the Innerbelt to get an outside and fresh perspective.

Horrigan also talked about the initiative about retirees paying for insurance, which, as he admits, may not be the most popular moves by the city, but needed to be done.

The passing of county executive Russ Pry has shaken up a lot of people, both citizens and politicians alike. But his impact was felt across the entire region, and just not politically.

First, Mayor Dan Horrigan, a close friend of his for many years, spoke about dealing with Russ on a personal and professional level.

Marco Sommerville also dealt with Russ on different projects throughout the years, and he talked of the county executive’s efforts on keeping jobs in the Akron area.

Reaction to the passing of Summit County Executive Russ Pry was quick on Sunday; Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan said he would "...miss his leadership and his ability to bring people together" and credited Pry's personality to bring people together.

Congressman Tim Ryan calls Pry "...first and foremost...a dear friend, a thoughtful, compassionate human being who always put the good of the people ahead of politics."

Senator Sherrod Brown noted Pry's loss is "...will be felt by all those whose lives were made better by his service to his community.”

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Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan: “I’ve lost a great friend much too early. We will all miss his leadership and his ability to bring people together. Russ had an uncanny knack for empathizing and identifying with all people, regardless of their age, race, gender, orientation or creed, making him well-loved by all. Personally, I will miss his friendship, his quick wit and his invaluable advice.”

U.S. Congressman Tim Ryan: "Russ first and foremost was a dear friend, a thoughtful, compassionate human being who always put the good of the people ahead of politics.

I have never seen a better leader than Russ Pry, who made local government work efficiently and effectively for the people he represented. He had no ego and always brought people together to make lives better for ordinary people.There is a huge hole in Summit County today and a huge hole in my heart as well--one that can never be filled. But we can all learn from how Russ conducted himself; always with humility, always responsibly and, for those of us in public life, always making sure government was creating opportunity for those who were looking to get ahead in life.Andrea and I extend our deepest sympathies to Russ' family and his amazing group of friends and coworkers who know better than anyone the amazing gifts that Russ brought to the people of Summit County.He was a friend, a leader, a generous and brilliant public servant lost too soon."

U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown: “Connie and I are saddened to hear of Russ’s passing and offer our deepest sympathies to his family and the Summit County community. His loss will be felt by all those whose lives were made better by his service to his community.”

Ohio Democratic Party Chairman David Pepper: “Ohio Democrats’ hearts are heavy today as we mourn the passing of our friend, Summit County Executive Russ Pry. Russ loved the people of Summit County and served them with an open heart and generous spirit, always fighting for progressive values. He was a great champion for Summit County Democrats, and he helped nurture the current generation of Democratic leaders. Our thoughts and prayers are with his friends and family.”

17 overdoses and one death in one day have city and county officials reacting to Akron's heroin epidemic.

Akron mayor Dan Horrigan says the problem can't just be solved by arresting people.

"We must realize while our first responders continue to bear the brunt of this epidemic," Horrigan told reporters at a news conference at the Summit County Public Health Department, "this is long past moved into the public health crisis, and away from a public safety crisis that afflicts many communities across our state and across our country."

And Akron police chief James Nice, his department investigating what happened Tuesday and any link between the cases, says the epidemic will continue while the supply keeps coming in...which nothing that local police can stop...

"But as long as the supply is coming in so strong from Mexico, which the Akron Police Department is not able to do much from it coming into the country," Chief Nice says, "we're going to have problems with heroin as long as it coming into the country so easily."

The overdoses happened in the afternoon and evening hours in various parts of Akron.

A 44 year-old man died, and among those who survived were a mother and two adult daughters, who all overdosed at the same time.

Most survived thanks to the anti-heroin drug. Narcan, but police say that the heroin may have been laced with fentanyl...which is more resistant to Narcan.

As of early Wednesday afternoon, two more overdoses have been reported.

The City of Akron isn't very happy with those urban explorations inside the ruined Rolling Acres Mall. The city now owns the hulking old shopping center after numerous sheriff's sales for back taxes came up empty; Rolling Acres has been a magnet for photographers and thrill-seekers skateboarding and biking inside the mall. Mayor Dan Horrigan issuing a "public safety" message warning people to stay out and says violators will be fully prosecuted.

It hasn't gotten much better since this authorized RCExplorer drone video shot in the winter of 2015.

 

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(City of Akron) The City of Akron has taken ownership of Rolling Acres Mall and has secured the building. While the City understands there is public interest in the space, there are no plans to give any future tours.

“For everyone’s safety, I request that citizens stay clear of the area. Police will have an increased presence,” stated Mayor Dan Horrigan.

Any trespassers may be prosecuted.

So much to share from last night -- Akron as you've never seen it or heard it, all for King James.

Some accounts pegged the crowd at 30,000 people but others were in the 20,000-25,000 range after Lock 3 topped capacity of more than 7,000 packed in standing room only for the LeBron James Hometown Hero Celebration sponsored by the City of Akron and LeBron James Family Foundation.

Overflow crowds on South Main Street went into Canal Park and packed every seat to watch the ceremony on the stadium's big video screen, then enjoyed the fireworks show at the conclusion.

It was an all-Akron affair and more personal, unlike the massive parade and ceremony that drew 1.3 million people to Cleveland Wednesday. Local performers included the Miller South Choir; speakers included Mayor Dan Horrigan, who renamed the stretch of South Main from West Market south through downtown as "King James Way" to formative coaches Dru Joyce II and Keith Dambrot.

Others such as Akron Public Schools Superintendent David James noted the transformative impact on Akron LeBron's had, including programs for local elementary and secondary school students but also millions allocated to support scholarships at the University of Akron.

The Kenmore High School football team was on hand in their stylish Nike uniforms -- gifts thanks to LeBron last year.

One note for the summer: LeBron announced he will not take part in the basketball competition at Rio this summer, opting instead for rest. It's not like The King has anything to prove in the Olympics; even there, he makes history with two gold and one bronze medal with Team USA, one of only three players to play three Olympics. He's also the Team USA basketball all-time leading scorer, too.

 

The parting of ways with Scott Scarborough was certainly not surprising, but it was not without its concerns. Those concerns are being heard throughout the Akron community, and the local leaders are listening.

Mayor Dan Horrigan joined the Ray Horner Morning Show on Thursday, two days after the announcement from the University of Akron. Horrigan talked about the search for the new president and the challenges it can bring, as well as what it means for the region.

In addition to the university, Horrigan also touched on the food truck popularity and the state softball tournament at Firestone Stadium.

Stark State College has been looking for a campus in Akron city limits, and the plans were announced on Thursday by Dr. Para Jones. The campus will be located on E. Market Street, right off Route 8, adjacent to the soon-to-be expanded Summa Health complex.

Mayor Dan Horrigan is intrigued about what Stark State can bring to the area, and he discussed his excitement in studio on the Ray Horner Morning Show. Horrigan believes this will benefit the city greatly, especially with Millennial retention, which has been a focus in recent years. On the announcement, the mayor believed Thursday was “a very exciting day for the city."

The planned start date for the college is fall of 2018.

Horrigan also gave an update on the future of the Innerbelt, and what the vision is for the land long-term.

We could learn more next week about plans for Stark State College to establish a presence in Akron.

Stark State, along with leaders from Akron, Summit County and others, plan an announcement on Thursday morning in Akron.

A news release describes "Stark State College Akron" as "a new education and workforce training center" with few other details.

Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan and Summit County Executive Russ Pry will be there, along with Stark State president Dr. Para Jones.

Stark State recently received $6 million in state funding towards an Akron initiative.

Stark State already has a Summit County presence, with a branch in Barberton.

Each month, Dan Horrigan, the mayor of Akron, joins the Ray Horner Morning Show to discuss a variety of topics and takes your phone calls.

Among the topics were the city-owned golf courses, which include GolfTEC and Mud Run. The purpose of these courses were to have teenagers and inner city children hit the links, so keeping these owned by the city, the mayor believes, is a "quality of life" issue.

Other points of interest were Horrigan managing his first budget here in 2016, and the mayor taking calls from the listeners. Below is the interview in its entirety.

Once again, the vacant area that was once home to Rolling Acres Mall is on the selling block. The retail space deteriorated in the 1990s, with the mall closing in 2008. What will the future hold?

Mayor Dan Horrigan called into the Ray Horner Morning Show to discuss the large property over on Romig Road. Talking about the area, Horrigan believes the Rolling Acres strip is “fairly well located, and [has a lot of] good amenities,” as he and the city try to find the best use for it long-term.

Horrigan stressed that the city does care about the Roming Road area, saying they want to take advantage of the quality of life opportunities.

Former President Bill Clinton was welcomed by a boisterous applause when he entered the United Steelworkers local 2 building in Akron on Saturday.

Senator Sherrod Brown introduced former President Clinton, telling him no offense, but Hillary is the best qualified presidential candidate running in his lifetime.

Speaking to a crowd of about 100 people, Clinton told the group, the country cannot afford to vote a republican as president. He says to a roaring crowd, thanks to Ohio that won't happen.

Clinton was joined by Summit County Executive Russ Pry, Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan, Congressman Tim Ryan, and former Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic, who Clinton joked with, saying he looks just as young as he did when he first came to Akron. He joked "it is a life after politics".

Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton was in Cleveland, speaking at Olivet Institutional Baptist Church.

Each month, the (new) mayor of Akron will stop in the WAKR studios to discuss the goings on throughout the city and what is on his plate for the coming months. Dan Horrigan will also take your calls during each visit, at (330) 370-1590.

Horrigan sat down on the Ray Horner Morning Show to recap his first full month as mayor, along with the growth of education in the area, from kindergarten through post-high school. Specifically, the Akron mayor talked about welcoming Stark State Community College into Summit County, and touched on David James’s State of the Schools Address.

On James’s speech, Horrigan congratulated Akron Public Schools for their impressive turnaround, and how they’re “changing the narrative” about urban public schools. "I’m happy to be a part of it, helping them grow, too.”

Horrigan also addressed the housing situation in the Akron area. A stat the mayor brought up was how there have been more homes built during the Great Depression than in recent history. The mayor is in favor of saving homes and properties, if they are indeed salvageable.

News broke late Monday night that FirstMerit Bank will soon merge with Huntington, though not for another six months. The headquarters for FirstMerit Corporation is located in downtown Akron, and, after the merger with Columbus’s Huntington, it will create the largest bank in the state of Ohio.

This came as a shock to many local residents and even politicians, where many jobs and branches will soon be affected. Summit County executive Russ Pry and Akron mayor Dan Horrigan called into the Ray Horner Morning Show to share their thoughts on FirstMerit’s history in Akron and their commitment to the community, as well as what Huntington has in store going forward.

Once again, the topic of "dead malls" is at the forefront. More than a decade ago, it was Rolling Acres. This time around, Chapel Hill may be reaching dead mall status.

Dan Horrigan, the new mayor of Akron, joined the Ray Horner Morning Show to discuss the future of Chapel Hill Mall and the surrounding area. Horrigan says he is putting the mall "at the forefront," and touched on security concerns in and around the space.

Before his first day on the job as mayor of Akron, Dan Horrigan stopped by the WAKR studios to discuss a slew of topics.

Among those topics, Horrigan spoke to Ray Horner about the sewer system and the corresponding water rates. The new mayor also discussed other city services (including the salt trucks on this particular snowy morning), potential economic and house development, and his first weekend in the big chair.

Mayor-elect Dan Horrigan will take the oath of office on New Year's Day in downtown Akron.

The city says Horrigan will become Akron's 62nd Mayor in a public ceremony January 1st at 10 AM at Greystone Hall, on South High Street.

The ceremony is expected to take about 30 to 40 minutes. Though it's open to the public, the city says seating is limited.

(City of Akron, news release) The City of Akron will be hosting the ceremony administering the inaugural oath of office to Mayor-elect Daniel Horrigan on New Year's Day. Horrigan will be sworn in as the 62nd Mayor of Akron on January 1, 2016 at 10:00 am at Greystone Hall, located at 103 South High Street in Downtown Akron. A brief reception will be held immediately following the 30-40 minute ceremony. This event is open to the public, however seating is limited.

Jason Segedy is getting ready to make the move from the Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation Study (AMATS) to the cabinet of incoming Akron mayor Dan Horrigan.

Akron's new planning director has put forth a lot of ideas before being hired for Horrigan's cabinet.

Segedy says that those ideas helped him to get hired, but he's practical as well.

"They want someone in the cabinet that can kind of 'dream big', and I like to think that I'm a doer as well," Segedy tells WAKR's Jasen Sokol. "So, I try to do the pragmatic part of it too."

Segedy says he wants to bring people who come back to the area after leaving, back to Akron itself.

"We do get a lot of people who 'bounce back' to the area, that grow up here, move somewhere for a while and come back," Segedy says. "And I'd like to see the city do more to try to get them to maybe choose Akron over another community the region."

Segedy says he wants to help regrow Akron's shrinking population, and says he wants to end the "rust belt" population loss narrative.

The new year is fast approaching, and that means a new mayor will take office.

Mayor-elect Dan Horrigan has spent the last couple rounding out his cabinet, even before the election. Horrigan called into the Ray Horner Morning Show to showcase the names in his cabinet, including planning director Marco Sommerville.

Akron's Mayor-elect Dan Horrigan used his first press conference this morning, following his election win Tuesday, to announce details related to a new advisory board that will look into the city's financial and economic health.

"It's just not looking at things that are wrong, but also looking at things that are right and improving them," said Horrigan .

Horrigan announced that the city of Akron will be forming the Blue Ribbon Task Force, which will be led by Tim Ochsenhirt, a retired managing partner at Roetzel & Andress.

"We're going to look at the finances of the city. We're going to look at the operations of the city and some of the opportunities and risks that the city may face," said Ochsenhirt.

The task force will be comprised of several local leaders, including Dan Colantone, president and CEO of the Greater Akron Chamber and David James, superintendent of Akron Public Schools.

According to Horrigan, the task force has been asked to focus on the following areas:

· City finances

· City operations

· Personnel and human resource management

· Economic and neighborhood development

· Risk management

· Charter changes

The budget for the task force has been set at $300,000 to pay for consultant fees and the force itself, but details on the breakdown have not been released.

The task force is expected to present their findings to Akron City Council in February.

 

Much has occurred both locally, nationally, and internationally since 1987, the last time citizens of Akron elected a new mayor. The Berlin Wall was still intact; there have been two generations of Bushes in the White House; LeBron James was just three years of age.

2015 has been a whirlwind year for Akron politics, from turmoil inside city council chambers to the resignations of long-time mayor Don Plusquellic and his successor Garry Moneypenny. But the stepping down of Plusquellic opened the door for a collection of others to throw their hat in the proverbial mayoral ring.

One of those names is the mayor-elect, Dan Horrigan.

"We had got a message out early and stayed consistent with it," said Horrigan during his interview on the Ray Horner Morning Show. "Mike Williams said it a long time ago 'sewers aren't sexy,' but it's those issues that are important, and we stayed with those. It's the financial stability of the city. It's operations and how we can be efficient. That's the approach I've taken in my entire public service career."

Through it all, Horrigan was pleased that his opponents ran campaigns largely free of mudslinging, saying this was a "welcome change" in Akron politics.

"I congratulate [Eddie Sipplen and Bill Melver]. They both ran vigorous campaigns, they concentrated on issues."

Though Akron traditionally has been a Democrat haven, Horrigan cleaned up at the polls, taking home 72 percent of the vote. Sipplen garnered 24 percent, while Melver came in at 3.7.

"I will lead this city forward. It's about having the respect of other people's opinion, and respecting the institutions that they come from."

So what is on the mayor-elect's plate for the near future?

"We're not going to wait till January to get started," says Horrigan. "I want to put together a financial and operational assessment team. These are people who have volunteered civic, community, and faith-based leaders to kinda take look at the city's finances from the outside, then give us a baseline on where to move forward."

Horrigan will take over as 62nd mayor of Akron beginning January 2016.

In less than 24 hours, the polls will open for Akronites to elect their first new long-term mayor in nearly three decades. Republican candidate Eddie Sipplen and Democratic candidate Dan Horrigan talked to The Jasen Sokol Show about their experiences on the campaign trail, the sewer issue, and who they think is underrepresented in city government.

 

Democratic mayoral nominee Dan Horrigan says his campaign is still working hard, despite the success of other Democrats in the past.

"You always work hard. You don't take anything for granted. Nobody gives you anything, " Horrigan tells WAKR.net. "You've gotta go out and earn it, and that's one of the great characteristics of the city...we've earned every everything that we've had. Nobody gives us anything."

Horrigan faces challenges from Republican Eddie Sipplen and Independent Bill Melver. The city of Akron historically leans heavily Democratic, and has had a Democratic mayor leading the city for the past 30 years.

There are more than 20,000 registered Democrats in Akron, compared to more than 2,800 that identify themselves as Republican, according to the Summit County Board of Elections data. There are over 99,000 voters who identify as independent.

Horrigan says his campaign's efforts on the ground proved to be an important tool, saying candidates have to understand the voters' needs and concerns. "This campaign has always been about issues," Horrigan says. "And it's about the voters. It's not about me, and it's not about the other opponent. It's about what they (voters) care about. Because that's what elections are for."

Akron will elect a new mayor for the first time in nearly 30 years next Tuesday. Early voting through the weekend hours at the Summit County Board of Elections, 500 Grant Street, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Saturday; 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Sunday and 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Monday. Precincts will be open the usual times for in-person voting on Tuesday.

Ohio Senator Rob Portman offered his support for Republican mayoral candidate Eddie Sipplen during his visit to Akron on Saturday.

"I was excited when Eddie agreed to step up and run," Portman said at Sipplen's campaign headquarters on W.Exchange Street.. "I think Akron needs Eddie Sipplen." Senator Portman, as part of his first Super Saturday grassroots campaign event traveled across nearly all of Ohio, in an effort to reach 25,000 voters in one day.

He also gave his thoughts on why he thinks Eddie Sipplen would be the best leader for the city.

"He's a guy with his MBA, his legal degree; he's got great qualifications," Portman said. "He knows how to work across the aisle and work with everybody and that will be great for Akron." With the election less than a couple of weeks away, the two candidates, Sipplen and Dan Horrigan, are ramping up their efforts to convince voters to punch their ticket as the next mayor of the Rubber City. Portman's team assisted Sipplen's campaign Saturday in reaching more than 1,500 voters by going door-to-door and asking for their vote.

Sipplen says his focus is on the people of Akron. "We [he and Portman] talked about the financial aspects of the campaign and he was like look; it's not about the money in the campaign its about what you are going to do for the people. Stay focused on that." Sipplen says his campaign has always been one that wants to talk to voters directly and that involves getting out into the neighborhoods. He says that's what he's always done and it won't change, as the November election approaches. "I'm not taking it for granted," Sipplen said. "I'm knocking on the doors. Every volunteer that's out there knocking on the doors. I'm out knocking with them so they know that I walk the talk."

WAKR contacted Horrigan for comment on this story, but he was unavailable.

The general election to choose the next mayor will be on Tuesday, November 3rd.