According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), H5N1 bird flu is widespread in wild birds worldwide and is causing outbreaks in poultry and U.S. dairy cows with several recent human cases in U.S. dairy and poultry workers. The best prevention is to avoid sources of exposure:

Saturday, March 1, 9:30 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Liberty Park/Nature Center

9999 Liberty Rd., Twinsburg

Join us as we reap the fruits of our labor by enjoying a traditional pancake breakfast with our own Liberty Park maple syrup. As we wrap up breakfast, there will be a presentation and discussion about the notable history of maple syrup production in and around Summit County. Registration…

Staff report

Home improvement company Home Genius Exteriors has donated more than $320,000 worth of windows and doors to Habitat for Humanity chapters in Summit County and western Pennsylvania.

The donation marks the beginning of a partnership between Home Genius and Habitat for Humanity that will allow customers to donate their old windows and doors after new installations.

"When a community business reaches out to us offering a partnership, it's a great…

By Tim Troglen
The Summiteer

Summit County needs to jump on the Groundhog Day bandwagon.

“How so?” you might ask. 

Let me tell you. 

I’m sure Pennsylvania’s own Punxsutawney Phil brings in a ton of cash with celebrations fueled by food, souvenirs and festivities as the nation’s best known-rodent is celebrated yearly for his prognostication of the end of winter.

Phil is a cash cow.

Why not get a local rodent or…

Tom Hardesty
The Summiteer

Residents of Stow and Silver Lake are about to get another option for their internet service.

Metronet announced this week that it plans multimillion-dollar investments for both communities, with the Evansville, Indiana-based company saying its 100% fiber-optic network will provide service of up to 5 gigabits per second for residents and 10 gigabits per second for businesses.

“We are excited to gain access to another internet option, creating…

Staff report

A Stow woman was fatally shot inside her home Saturday in what police say was a murder-suicide involving her boyfriend, a Summit County sheriff’s deputy.

Officers responding to a report of a possible suicide at 3:57 p.m. Jan. 27 discovered the bodies of Latoia Renee Philpott, 41, and Benjamin Asiedu, 43, inside a residence in the 4100 block of Meadowlark Trail, according to the Stow Police Department.

The Summit County…

By Tom Hardesty
The Summiteer

The Stow-Munroe Falls community is mourning the loss of SMF High School educator Jimmy Mashburn, 32, who was killed in a two-vehicle crash on I-77 in Green early on the morning of Jan. 21.

According to reports, Mashburn was driving his pickup truck northbound on I-77 when his vehicle struck the rear of a disabled semi-truck in the right lane shortly after midnight. Mashburn was pronounced dead…

By Tom Hardesty
The Summiteer

Kim Polatas was recently named as the new executive director of the Tallmadge Chamber of Commerce.

According to the Chamber, Polatas was chosen to lead the organization due to her wealth of experience in leadership, community engagement and business development, and she will play a key role in advancing the Chamber’s mission to support local businesses and foster economic growth in Tallmadge.

“I’m honored to step into…

Staff report

The city of Hudson has announced that it is not considering a joint recreation center with Stow at the LifeCenter Plus property, as previously reported.

“We have established a committee to explore various options, including discussions with neighboring cities to learn about their recreation centers,” Hudson City Manager Thomas Sheridan said in a statement posted Jan. 18 to the city’s website. “Currently, LifeCenter Plus is not being considered as a…

Saturday, February 1, 10 - 11 a.m.

Liberty Park/Nature Center

9999 Liberty Rd., Twinsburg

Join a naturalist to see which birds visit our viewing area. Bring a mug and your bird questions – we’ll provide warm beverages and birding insights. Make it a total “birdy” day: Hand-feed the chickadees or stay to help count birds for Project Feeder Watch. For more information, call 330-865-8065.

Saturday, February 1, 1…

By Tom Hardesty
The Summiteer

Update Jan. 23, 2025: We've reached out to Hudson and Stow officials and published a new article here. We're continuing to report on the rec center issue to learn more about past efforts and future solutions.

Update Jan. 20, 2025: Officials in the Hudson city administration have disputed that a join purchase of LifeCenter Plus is under consideration. We're working on a follow-up article to learn…

Staff report

Megan Higgins’ and Amanda Weinstein’s daughters are friends who can’t easily play together at Hudson parks. Isabella Higgins, 8, has a neuromuscular disorder that limits her ability to play on typical playground equipment.  

“It takes her body extra time to move,” Megan Higgins said. “I always tell people, for her, it’s like having 10 pounds of weight tied to each leg, each arm and around her waist, and that’s…

By Phil Keren
The Summiteer

An estimated $35 million project launched last fall will connect all 31 Summit County communities to a public safety fiber network and give internet service firms the opportunity to extend service to residents and businesses.

County leaders decided to initiate the Summit Connects project after the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of having reliable high-speed internet access.

“The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the growing digital divide present in…

By Tom Hardesty

Effective Jan. 9, the Cuyahoga Falls Library is eliminating overdue fines on most items and announcing fine forgiveness. The new checkout policy was approved Dec. 17 by the library’s board of trustees.

“We are thrilled to announce that the Cuyahoga Falls Library is now fine-free,” library Director Andrew Harant said. “One of our core values is access – to our collections, resources and services. Studies show that eliminating fines…

Staff report

Hudson City Council has approved a 10-year grant agreement to incentivize the relocation of Charter Communications’ regional operations.

The annual grant will be equal to 50% of the city income taxes paid by the company’s employees. Hudson has a 2% income tax rate.

The telecommunications company, which is headquartered in Connecticut and does business as Spectrum, will move employees from several regional offices outside the county to 280 Executive…

Sometimes it is the simplest

gifts which bring the most joy

on Christmas day.

I can attest to that, even more than a week past Christmas.

For Christmas I received cookies, candy and hot sauce to slather on my food. I was given processed meat links to munch between meals and books to occupy my time. 

And due to an illness I have presents that I have not opened…

By Tom Hardesty
The Summiteer

Summit County says “big pharma” helped to create the opioid crisis — and the county plans to use that industry’s own money to help defeat it.

In 2017, Summit County was joined by 21 communities and Summit County Public Health in filing a lawsuit against opioid makers, distributors and pharmacies, with the county being awarded $104 million in the resulting litigation settlement.

Now, $45 million of that…

Christine Cipa has joined Tallmadge City Council as its newest at-large member. 

A longtime city resident and former Tallmadge Board of Education member, Cipa said she is eager to “catch up” on council business and serve the community. 

“My husband and I love it here,” she said. “We love Tallmadge. If we didn't, we wouldn't still be here. We have a great school system. We have great neighborhoods. My goal, I guess…

By Phil Keren
The Summiteer

Cuyahoga Falls is making another large investment to upgrade the infrastructure and aesthetic features in its downtown.

The city is paying Kenmore Construction $6.4 million to perform a streetscape transformation project along Front Street running from Broad Boulevard south to Grant Avenue. The visual elements in this section are being updated to tie it in with the rest of downtown, according to Carrie Snyder, Director of the…

Tallmadge residents are getting a new option for their natural gas service.

The City of Tallmadge has partnered with Eastern Power & Gas (Eastern PNG), a new supplier in Ohio, to provide natural gas services to the city. Participants in the natural gas aggregation program will be charged a fixed rate of $3.85/Mcf.

This rate will last 24 months, starting in November 2024 (December 2024 billing cycle) and running through October 2026…