Kent Ohio Community News

Kent 360 - Kent, Ohio

• City Hydrant Flushing Program
  It’s the time of year that City crews go out through our water distribution network and flush the hydrants to make sure they’re in tip top shape in the event that we might need to use them. The good news is that over the last 50 years, fire prevention and fire retardant materials have made [...]
  
  
• $1.084 Million Starts a Week Off Right
  Living, working and learning in Kent is more than dollars and cents, but few things help those things go better than a pocketfull of cash. This economy has emptied most pockets which is why it was great news on Friday to officially hear that the State of Ohio, under the Clean Ohio grant program, selected [...]
  
  
• More Progress on Credit Card Payments at City Hall
  Last week I posted a blog announcing the City’s first foray into accepting credit card payments at Parks and Recreation for summer programs. This week the credit card roll out continues. The City’s Finance Department happily announced that Community Development/Building Services has successfully implemented credit/debit card acceptance capabilities which means residents, contractors etc. can use their Visa, MasterCard, [...]
  
  
• On Your Mark, Get Set, Hammer
  In my travels I often talk about how much construction work is underway around town but as much as the orange safety cones have become a feature in Kent’s streetscape, they are also popping up all over the Kent State University campus as well. Apparently not to be outdone by construction off campus, Kent State University has issued [...]
  
  
• Sweating the Small Stuff Too
  It’s a great day when I’ve got some big City news to report on the blog, but most days, I’m chock full of small stuff that I’m never quite sure is newsworthy or not. The truth is we sweat the small stuff just as much as the big stuff, so I figure it’s only appropriate to share some small [...]
  
  
• Hang On To Your Hard Hat
  Hang on to your hardhat things are about to get bumpy around the downtown redevelopment project. We’re huge fans of Acorn Alley – love what Mr. Burbick has done – and we’ve been delighted to have Mr. Burbick rushing down the redevelopment path in front of us, petal to the metal and damning the torpedoes, clearing the way for the rest [...]
  
  
• Sharing Equipment, Saving Money
  It turns out that mom’s advice to share our toys and play well with others is also full of good business logic. Cities around our region have jumped on the bandwagon and started partnering at unprecedented levels.  From sharing equipment to sharing revenues, there’s a new attitude towards our neighbors which should have benefits for all of us for [...]
  
  
• Good News On Kent Senior Housing
  One of the lessons learned from the private sale of the Silver Oaks property, and the subsequent new owners announcement that they were converting the property from senior housing to new student housing, was the obvious conclusion that we needed more senior housing in Kent. In hindsight it shouldn’t have been surprising that a developer would look at the senior [...]
  
  
• Water Improvements
  Last week City Council held a spirited community discussion on fracking. The standing room only crowd was testament to the level of interest in the prospective economic and environmental impacts from this rapidly growing industry in our region. No doubt Ohio is poised to benefit from the kind of economic resurgence that Texas enjoyed for the last decade — [...]
  
  
• Sorry About the Traffic Detours
  We knew it was coming but it still pains me to say it – nothing says Spring has arrived better than traffic detours in Kent. Even though it’s all in the name of progress, I was definitely feeling some guilt over the traffic tie ups that emerged last week when we reduced 4 lanes of traffic to 2 on SR43 [...]