Plans to revitalize the Akron Innerbelt are inching toward approval.
The freeway decimated a predominantly Black neighborhood and business district when it was constructed in the 1970s. For the past few years, the city has conducted numerous community input sessions to determine what to do with the previously decommissioned, 50-acre section of the road.
On Friday, Akron鈥檚 planning commission unanimously approved the
The plan has five goals: neighborhood investment, strengthening east-west corridors, connecting open spaces, activating assets adjacent to the Innerbelt and 鈥渦nlocking鈥� land underneath, city planner Dylan Garritano.
鈥淭hese strategies are built on incremental steps and include ... short-term and long-term strategies,鈥� Garritano told commission members during the meeting Friday. 鈥淭here are individual place-based projects throughout the site, but they also include social impact tools to help us get there.鈥�
The plan includes projects scheduled for completion this year, including landscaping a decommissioned stretch of the road and changing the zoning to make way for affordable housing, Garritano said.
鈥淲e've looked at it for 10 years as it's crumbling, and so I think maybe we're going to actually start taking some steps to improve that, as well as affordable housing in the neighborhood around the Innerbelt,鈥� Garritano said.
Long-term projects include a commercial corridor connecting the neighborhoods to Downtown Akron. They also plan to make the area more bike- and pedestrian-friendly and rehabilitate existing green spaces and parks.
Officials plan to eventually demolish and remove portions of the highway to allow for redevelopment, Garritano added.
鈥淭he completion of the Akron Innerbelt Master Plan marks an important step forward for our city,鈥� Akron Mayor Shammas Malik said in a March news release announcing the proposal. 鈥淭his community-driven vision provides a clear path for reconnecting neighborhoods, supporting residents, and guiding future development in a way that strengthens Akron for generations to come.鈥�
A group of residents who used to live in the neighborhoods near Howard Street and Wooster Avenue serve on an advisory board for the project. The advisory board will continue to have input as the project is implemented, Garritano added.
鈥淲e want to be able to commemorate the memories that were lost,鈥� Garritano said. 鈥淭hose folks are able to validate our process and the master plan itself, and they鈥檙e (going to) have full oversight in the future implementation steps of the plan.鈥�
Akron allocated $500,000 in its capital budget this year to fund the short-term improvements, including beautification projects and resurfacing Vernon Odom Boulevard near the Innerbelt.
Funding for some of the long-term plans is still in limbo. Akron received a $10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation in early 2025, but that grant was later put under review when the Trump Administration froze funding for diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
Akron officials are still waiting on guidance from the federal government, Malik wrote in the release.
鈥淭his funding is critical to turning this community vision into real, tangible change,鈥� Malik said. 鈥淲e will continue to strongly advocate for these resources so we can deliver on what our residents helped design including reconnecting neighborhoods, creating new opportunities, and building a more vibrant Akron.鈥�
During the public hearing at Friday鈥檚 commission meeting, Debra Foulk, executive director of business affairs at Akron Public Schools, raised concerns about how the plans might interfere with two APS properties: a structure at 10 N. Main Street in Downtown Akron, across from the district鈥檚 main headquarters, and the Helen Arnold Community Learning Center near the Innerbelt.
The district uses the Downtown building for development, trainings, deliveries and parking, Foulk said.
鈥淲e feel that, although this is a great development for this area, we wish to let you know the operation of this is our hub,鈥� Foulk said.
Planning Director Kyle Julien assured Foulk that APS would continue to be included in conversations as the projects progress.
鈥淭his is a vision. This is not to say that that building is going on that spot,鈥� Julien said. 鈥淚 think that, you know, the hope would be that we could, you know, over time think about transforming surface parking which, you know, is, is not a great use for downtown generally.鈥�
The plan must now be approved by Akron City Council.
