Akron’s Summit Lake community celebrated the opening of the new Ohio and Erie Canal Summit Lake Trail on Tuesday. The trail is the latest resident-led project in the community.
Summit Lake was a recreation hub in the early 1900s, but the predominantly Black neighborhood has suffered disinvestment in recent decades. So much so that resident Sandra Saulsberry said it was hard to enjoy the beautiful lake that centers the community.
“Seven years ago, we couldn’t even see the lake," Saulsberry said. "We couldn’t see anything that’s here today.”
Akron Civic Commons Donor Committee Co-chair Bill Considine grew up in Summit Lake. It was difficult to see the neighborhood fall on hard times, he said.
"We're not just now going to talk about the proud history of Summit Lake, we're going to start talking about the bright future of what we have in our hometown," Considine said.
Through Akron Civic Commons 2.0, residents engaged in a community-driven process to decide what they wanted in this public space.
"This is not the story of public space for the sake of public space," Knight Foundation Akron Program Director Kyle Kutuchief said, "but rather a model for how it can be a catalyst to bridge economic and racial divides and establish trust with neighborhood residents."
Since the project kicked off, picnic tables, a pavilion, benches and swings have been added to the lakeside. The new almost three-mile-long trail circles the lake and connects to the Towpath Trail. Nearby Kenmore resident Sean Blake said he already feels a difference in his community.
“There is a buzz on this side of the lake that I’ve never seen before," Blake said, adding that Akron Civic Commons 2.0 has brought hope back to the community.
These efforts have and will continue to change decades of disinvestment and broken promises, said Akron City Council President Margo Sommerville, whose ward covers part of Summit Lake.
“Akron Civic Commons has worked hard to build trust and authentic relationships with neighborhood residents, asking: How might we return Summit Lake to a place of pride and play?" Sommerville said. "I do believe we are on track to do that.”
The change Saulsberry has seen in her community has been incredible, she said.
"Seven years ago, people was riding through this, speeding through this path, riding fast, hoping they didn't get mugged or nothing bad happened to them," Saulsberry said. "But now they're briskly riding through our community and doing a double take at the bridge. They stop, turn around and have conversations with us."
The trail was funded by the city, the Knight Foundation and individual donors.
