AKRON: An Akron man was sentenced Wednesday to 12 years in prison for stealing video games and cash from a business.

Duane A. Clayton, 31, of Tioga Avenue, was sentenced by Summit County Common Pleas Court Judge Lynne Callahan after being convicted Feb. 25 of aggravated robbery.

Prosecutors said that on Sept. 18, Clayton and his cousin, Myron Clayton-Foster, 20, took several video games and money from the Game Rack store on Goodyear Boulevard.

Police tracked Clayton to the basement of a nearby residence with the assistance of a K-9 unit. The stolen items and some of Clayton’s clothing were found in the yard of the building, prosecutors said.

Clayton-Foster, of Dover Avenue, previously pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery and a firearms offense and was sentenced to seven years in prison.

Summit County can afford to give its sheriff’s deputies annual pay raises during a three-year contract, according to a fact-finder’s report that could be approved by early next week.

Jonathan Klein made his recommendation this week, saying that based on revenue projections, the county is in a position to grant modest increases to the 283 members of the Fraternal Order of Police, Ohio Labor Council Inc.

The wage increases that Klein suggests are more than the county offered but less than the union wanted.

Union members will vote on the fact-finder’s report today. Summit County Council will hold a special meeting on the matter Monday. Leadership on each side is recommending approval.

The contract went to fact-finding when the union and county could not agree on salary increases, insurance costs and some work rules. Deputies are working under terms of a contract that expired at the end of the year.

The recommended raises are 1.5 percent effective Jan. 1, 2014; 2 percent effective Jan. 1, 2015; and 2.25 percent effective Jan. 1, 2016.

Summit County sought a wage freeze over the three years. The union sought annual increases of 3 percent, 3 percent and 4 percent through 2016.

In presenting its case to the fact-finder, the union said its bargaining employees did not receive a raise in 2011 or 2012 and made concessions, including a cut in clothing allowances. Members received a 1.5 percent raise last year, which was also a fact-finder’s recommendation.

The union said Summit County’s deputies are the second-lowest paid among comparable jurisdictions statewide, ahead of Lucas County but trailing deputies in Franklin, Montgomery, Hamilton and Cuyahoga counties. It also noted that county revenue has increased by nearly 3.8 percent over the past five years and sales tax collections increased 4 percent last year.

Summit officials said the county still is affected by the aftermath of an economic recession and continues to operate in a deficit.

“Things started going down in 2008, and the county has been spending down its reserve balances over the past five years,” Brian Nelson, the county’s finance director, said. “Overall revenues have declined because of cuts in state government funding and property valuation reductions.”

In the fact-finder’s report, the county said revenue dropped from $111 million in 2008 to $100 million in 2013. Its responses on the expense side of the ledger have included a countywide hiring freeze, requiring a reduction in the budgets of all county offices and offering incentive-based, voluntary separation plans.

If no action is taken on the fact-finder’s report, it automatically would be approved. If the fact-finder’s report is rejected, the contract would go to reconciliation, where there is no compromise; either the county’s proposed wage freeze or the union’s proposal of annual raises of 3 percent, 3 percent and 4 percent would be imposed.

The report also includes changes in insurance, which favors the union position, and in how job vacancies are filled, which favors the county position.

Marilyn Miller can be reached at 330-996-3098 or mmiller@thebeaconjournal.com.

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History has acquired a rare tamarack bog in southern Summit County.

The 58-acre Long Lake Bog in Coventry Township is home to 11 rare plant and animal species.

The high-quality shrubby wetland that now has permanent protection stretches from Long Lake to East Reservoir in the Portage Lakes area.

The land was purchased for $375,000 with the assistance of the Western Reserve Land Conservancy, a nonprofit conservation group based in Moreland Hills.

The project was funded by a $156,000 grant from the Clean Ohio Fund and $207,140 in funding from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. That EPA money came from a sewer project in the city of Solon.

The museum will own and manage the bog that is adjacent to Portage Lakes State Park and is close to the Portage Lakes Wetland, a six-acre state nature preserve off Portage Lakes Drive.

A conservation easement has been placed on the land to block future development. It will be held by the conservancy.

The tract includes a tamarack forest along with surrounding alder shrub fen, greater bur-reed meadows and fen sedge meadow habitats, said James Bissell, director of conservation for the museum’s Center for Conservation & Biodiversity.

It is dominated by speckled alder, arrowwood, swamp birch, tamaracks, alder-leaved buckthorn and smooth gooseberry.

It is home to 11 species that are listed as rare, endangered or threatened including the globally rare bog bluegrass and the state-endangered bog birch.

“Long Lake Bog has four rare plants not present within the museum’s other glacial fen preserves,” Bissell said in a statement.

“No true bogs, the common bogs across Canada and Alaska, are present in Ohio. The museum’s Fern Lake Bog and Singer Lake Bog have recently been placed into a relatively new natural community type: poor fen. Poor fens and rich fens such as Long Lake Bog are ranked as globally rarer within North America,” he said.

Fern Lake Bog covers 14.5 acres near Burton in Geauga County and 344-acre Singer Lake Bog is in the city of Green.

Over the last 25 years, the Cleveland museum has inventoried all glacial lakes within Portage Lakes State Park, Bissell said.

Museum staffers in 1959 found a rare bullhead lily adjacent to Long Lake Bog. The plant is known to grow in only one other site in Ohio: at Magee Marsh on Lake Erie in Ottawa County.

“We are thrilled to be able to play a role in the preservation of this amazing property along with the Cleveland Museum of Natural History,” said Keith McClintock, vice president of conservation with the conservancy.

“Development has dramatically reduced Ohio’s wetlands and preserving a property like Long Lake Bog protects rare habitat and improves water quality,” he said.

The museum has 37 natural areas covering 5,425 acres in northern Ohio. Three are open to the public on a regular basis.

Bob Downing can be reached at 330-996-3745 or bdowning@thebeaconjournal.com.

AKRON

Robber sentenced

AKRON: An Akron man was sentenced Wednesday to 12 years in prison for stealing video games and cash from a business.

Duane A. Clayton, 31, of Tioga Avenue, was sentenced by Summit County Common Pleas Court Judge Lynne Callahan after being convicted Feb. 25 of aggravated robbery.

Prosecutors said that on Sept. 18, Clayton and his cousin, Myron Clayton-Foster, 20, took several video games and money from the Game Rack store on Goodyear Boulevard.

Police tracked Clayton to the basement of a nearby residence with the assistance of a K-9 unit. The stolen items and some of Clayton’s clothing were found in the yard of the building, prosecutors said.

Clayton-Foster, of Dover Avenue, previously pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery and a firearms offense and was sentenced to seven years in prison.

NORTHEAST OHIO

Boating rules

Boating restrictions at Mogadore, East Branch and LaDue reservoirs have been eased.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ Division of Wildlife and the city of Akron have worked to ease the restriction on boats at the Akron drinking-water reservoirs that are popular with anglers.

Gasoline motors still are prohibited, but boats with attached motors may operate on the three reservoirs under electric power as long as any external gas tanks are removed.

That change should increase the number of boaters who can access the three lakes, officials said.

Trees planted

More than 1,100 holiday trees, weighing 28 tons, have been placed in Berlin Reservoir by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources to boost fish habitat.

The trees were placed in 4 to 8 feet of water southwest of the Price Street Bridge, which runs across the 3,280-acre lake that straddles the Stark-Portage-Mahoning county lines.

A downloadable Google Earth file containing all the fish structure placements in Northeast Ohio is available by calling the Division of Wildlife office at 330-644-2293.

Leadership class

AKRON: Leadership Akron is accepting applications for its 2014-205 Signature Program Class 31.

The program begins with a two-day retreat. After the retreat, participants spend one full day every month focusing on a certain aspect of their community including: social services, business, education, the arts, health and others.

Applicants must live or work in Summit County.

Application and additional materials can be found at www.leadershipakron.org/how-to-apply.

PLAIN SCHOOLS

Calendar revised

PLAIN TWP.: The Plain Local Board of Education on Wednesday approve a plan for students districtwide to make up a calamity day when schools were closed in February due to hazardous weather.

The board approved adding 30 minutes to the school day — 15 minutes in the morning and 15 in the afternoon — from April 14 to April 29 to make up the missed day.

Elementary school hours will be 8:55 a.m. to 4:05 p.m.; intermediate and middle school hours, 7:55 a.m. to 3:20 p.m.; and GlenOak High School, 7:10 a.m. to 2:35 p.m.

The district canceled classes nine times this winter because of weather conditions. Five days are forgiven under Ohio law, and students completed “blizzard bags” of take-home assignments to make up three additional days.

GlenOak students also will attend classes May 30 to make up a day when the building was closed due to electrical problems.

Superintendent Brent May said a letter would be mailed to parents notifying them of the changes.

PORTAGE COUNTY

Marine patrol grant

COLUMBUS: The Ohio Department of Natural Resources will award $18,000 to the Portage County Sheriff’s Marine Patrol Unit.

The money awarded will be used for law enforcement on waterways throughout the county.

“I am pleased to see this funding awarded to enhance our Sheriff’s Marine Patrol Unit,” state Rep. Kathleen Clyde, D-Kent, said in announcing the grant. “As we approach the summer months, our waterways will soon be used for a variety of recreational activities. These state funds will help ensure the safety of those who enjoy the lakes and rivers of Portage County.”

STARK COUNTY

Sewer upgrades

CANTON: Stark County will help pay the cost of upgrading the Massillon sewage treatment plant.

County commissioners on Wednesday approved an agreement to share design and engineering costs for the improvements.

The county’s share is estimated at $1.7 million, or 46.5 percent for that portion of the project. The share is based on the amount of sewage the county’s collection system sends to the plant.

The county later will pay the same percentage toward construction, which is expected to bring the project’s total cost to $24 million.

GFS to expand

PLAIN TWP.: GFS Marketplace may add nearly 1,000 square feet to its store at 4324 Whipple Ave. NW, the Plain Township Board of Zoning Appeals ruled Wednesday in granting a variance request.

Plans are for GFS to expand its storage space and freezer.

Construction will begin this summer and retail operations are not expected to be affected.

SUMMIT COUNTY

New HelpLine hours

AKRON: Community Legal Aid’s toll-free HelpLine will be staffed during revised hours, effective immediately.

The new hours are 9 a.m. to noon Monday and Wednesday 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday.

The HelpLine number, 1-800-998-9454, remains the same.

Legal Aid’s online application system remains open around the clock.

To apply online or for more information about the services available, go to www.communitylegalaid.org.

MEDINA

Cartwright, Maynard Lars, 92, of Medina. Died Wednesday. Waite & Son.

STARK

Cochran, John “Jack,” 64, of Massillon. Died Wednesday. Paquelet.

Hacker, Neville J., 81, of Canal Fulton. Died Wednesday. Paquelet, Massillon.

WAYNE

Berman, Marilyn Rae, 71, of Wooster. Died Thursday. McIntire, Bradham & Sleek.

Fraunfelter, William R., 86, formerly of West Salem. Died Wednesday. Matteson.

Rogers, Jack, 82, of Creston. Died Thursday. Murray.

Richeson, Bessie L., 98,of Wooster. Died Wednesday. McIntire, Bradham & Sleek.

Underwood, Linda, 67, of Wooster. Died Wednesday. McIntire, Bradham & Sleek.

OTHER

Michl, Barbara B., 95, of Wintersville. Died Wednesday. McIntire, Bradham & Sleek, Wooster.

Piper, John R., 66, of Pompano Beach, Fla., formerly of Massillon. Died Dec. 17, 2013. Paquelet, Massillon.

The Akron Marathon has selected 10 local nonprofits as its charity partners for 2014.

Those accepted into the Blue Line Charity Program allows the groups to use the Akron Marathon as a fundraiser without having to plan and organize an event themselves.

Each charity is asked to recruit runners, volunteers and raise funds for their organization, with all of the funds raised going directly back to their respective causes.

The organizations participating this year are: Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank, Boys and Girls Clubs of the Western Reserve, Catholic Charities, Child Guidance and Family Solutions, Ears to You, Haslinger Family Pediatric Palliative Care Center, Patriot Runners, Rahab Ministries, Trample ALS and Victory Gallop, Know Your Purpose Akron Chapter will participate as a “Helping Hands” partner, providing volunteers.

With 15,000 runners, 3,000 volunteers and nearly 100,000 spectators, race officials say the charities are assured a large promotional audience.

Supporting nonprofits is also “very important to our organization,” marathon Director Anne Bitong said.

“We are pleased to have these wonderful organizations as part of our 2014 Blue Line Charity Program. Each and every one of them is making a difference in the greater Akron community on a daily basis,” she said.

Race participants, spectators, volunteers and community members will be encouraged to support the Blue Line Charity Partners by volunteering or making a donation to one or more of the partners.

For more information on supporting charity partners, visit akronmarathon.org or Crowdrise, an online fundraising platform.

The 12th annual Akron Marathon will be held Sept. 27.

We are counting the days until April 15 — the day the Beacon Journal turns 175.

That makes us older than what most people think about on April 15 so we invite you to forget about your taxes and join us for some cake and baseball that day.

We will serve up the cake between the early innings April 15 at Canal Park as the RubberDucks take on the Trenton Thunder at 6:35 p.m. The baseball team also is offering special ticket prices through its “Two for Tuesdays” program (details available at www.akronrubberducks.com).

There will be a giveaway of commemorative Beacon Journal T-shirts, the singing of Happy Birthday to the Beacon Journal and a chance to take a photo with the Beacon Journal mascot, Browser.

And if you still are thinking about that tax thing, here is a historical note. The 16th amendment to the U.S. Constitution established the federal income tax as we know it today. It was ratified on Feb. 3, 1913. The Beacon Journal has been around since April 15, 1839.

Today we offer some history from the Beacon Journal by presenting the second of five groupings of pages from our past. Each month through July, we will publish more of our historic front pages in a special package such as today’s that wraps the A section.

Save the pages if you like, or you can see them on our website, Ohio.com, as they are published in the paper. At the end of the five months, we urge you to go to Ohio.com, where you can vote on your favorite historic front pages at www.ohio.com/beaconjournal175.

On another historical note, April 14, we will tell the story of Akron through past headlines that look back 10, 25, 50 and 100 years. This weekly feature, “History in Beacon Journal headlines,” will appear Mondays on the front of the Community section.

Enough of the past — the Beacon Journal also is looking ahead.

During April, we will introduce a redesign of Ohio.com. We have been working on this project for a while. With the redesign, you will find Ohio.com easier to use whether you are viewing it on a computer screen, tablet or smartphone.

At the same time, we will introduce a new replica edition of the newspaper for viewing online. The pages will appear as PDFs with improved navigation through the stories and other content.

We look forward to seeing you at our birthday party on April 15.

Mark Cohen

Publisher

Bruce Winges

Editor

COPLEY TWP.: The township will need to advertise again for bids to demolish the Copley Community Center.

Trustees on Wednesday approved a request from township Service Director Mark Mitchell to “reject all bids” to raze the building at 1278 Sunset Drive “due to insufficient bid documents.”

Mitchell said only one company submitted a proposal.

The building will be torn down to make way for a new police station. Construction is scheduled to start in August.

In related legislation, trustees approved a resolution authorizing Mitchell to request that the Summit County engineer prepare plans and specifications for paving Sunset Drive, a the two-lane gravel strip off Copley Road. The project would be timed to be completed as the police station opens, tentatively scheduled for November 2015.

In other business, trustees unanimously approved an updated firefighting mutual-aid agreement covering equipment and apparatus use. It formally adds Chippewa, Granger and Sharon townships and Wadsworth to the Westside (Code 10) Fire Departments.

The group includes Copley, Norton, Fairlawn, the village of Richfield, Bath Township and the Valley Fire Department.

There’s no cost and “it helps everybody,” township Fire Chief Michael Benson said.

TWINSBURG: A Twinsburg man has filed a lawsuit against the city and the mayor, saying he was blocked from opening his gun shop in a timely manner.

City officials say there’s a catch with the shop owner’s claims:

“If you drive up there now, he’s open. He’s been open since last summer. I’m not sure of the exact date,” Twinsburg Law Director David Maistros said in a recent interview, “but I want to say he opened his doors sometime in July or August last year.”

Maistros said the city issued an occupancy permit for the gun shop June 18, and the city was done with the matter at that point.

“It is strange, but that’s why we’re denying these allegations and intend to hash it out in court,” he said.

An attorney for the shop owner, identified in the lawsuit’s complaint as John Dabrowski, 33, says city officials tried to breach his contract with his landlord; violated his right to due process by not following city procedures in reviewing his occupancy application and broke state law by not issuing the occupancy permit after the zoning permit was granted.

The suit says Dabrowski has incurred expenses by not being able to open his shop when he wanted. He asks for statutory, punitive and treble damages in excess of $2 million.

Dabrowski, who was behind the desk in his shop with a customer when the Beacon Journal attempted to interview him last month, deferred comment on the suit to Brendon J. Kohrs, his attorney.

Kohrs did not reply to numerous messages by phone and in an email seeking a response to the city’s position.

The shop, located in a corner plaza off Ravenna Road, is marked with a white sign out front with the store’s name in red letters: Twinsburg Public Safety and Firearms.

Signs also are posted on the storefront window that read: “Come on In. We’re Open” and “Register for CCW Classes Here.”

Dabrowski named the city, Mayor Katherine Procop and Maistros as defendants.

According to the suit, Procop conducted interviews with two Cleveland television stations last year in which she said Dabrowski failed to comply with city ordinances in opening the gun shop.

Dabrowski argues that the mayor’s interviews are worthy of being cited in the complaint because he had procured all applications, zoning certificates and his federal firearms license on or about April 29 last year.

The suit originally was filed in February in Summit County Common Pleas Court, but since has been transferred to U.S. District Court in Akron at the city’s request.

Maistros said the city has insurance coverage on such cases and that it is customary for a federal court to handle constitutional issues — in this instance Dabrowski’s allegation that his right to due process was violated.

“We’re all at a loss as to where the claim is really coming from,” Maistros said, “but we’ll let the court handle it.”

The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Sara Lioi.

Ed Meyer can be reached at 330-996-3784 or at emeyer@thebeaconjournal.com.

AKRON

Robbery near school

AKRON: An Akron woman was robbed in her driveway, prompting a brief lockdown at a nearby elementary school.

A woman pulled into her driveway in the 600 block of Garry Road about 11 a.m. Thursday, authorities said. A man who appeared to have a gun approached her from the back of the house.

The robber demanded the woman’s cash and a diamond ring on her finger. The woman said she threw the ring and about $400 on the ground and ran into her home.

The robber fled, prompting police to place Barber school on lockdown while officers searched the area.

Officers recovered the woman’s ring.

The robber remained at large.

Anyone with information is asked to call Akron detectives at 330-375-2490.

CUYAHOGA VALLEY

Towpath Trail reopens

AKRON: Because of flooding caused by heavy rain, the National Park Service closed the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail in Cuyahoga Valley National Park for several hours Friday.

The closure covered 19.7 miles from the Boztum Trailhead in Akron north to Rockside Road in Independence.

The action included all trail-related parking lots.

The closure was lifted about 3 p.m.

MEDINA COUNTY

Recycling program

MEDINA: County residents can recycle household appliances next week.

The collection, organized by the Medina County Solid Waste Management District, will accept refrigerators, freezers, washing machines, dryers, dishwashers, ranges, air conditioners, hot-water tanks, dehumidifiers and small kitchen appliances.

The items can be dropped off from 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through April 11 and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 12 at the county’s Central Processing Facility, 8700 Lake Road, Westfield Township.

Appliances also can be dropped off from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 12 at the county sanitary engineer’s plant, 2417 Plum Creek Parkway in Brunswick Hills Township.

There is no charge, and refrigerants will be removed at no cost to residents.

For more information, call 800-968-7273.

SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP

Home standoff ends

SPRINGFIELD TWP.: A township man was arrested without incident early Friday following a standoff with police that lasted about 3½ hours.

Nicholas Gisentaner, 20, was charged with inducing panic. He was being held in Summit County Jail.

According to a report from Springfield police, officers were called to a residence on Lyndon Drive about 9:30 p.m. Thursday regarding a domestic disturbance. Family members told them that Gisentaner was inside the home and that he might be armed with a handgun.

Gisentaner refused to come out of the home, police said, and made threats to shoot at officers.

At that point, Metro SWAT was dispatched. About 1 a.m., SWAT officers entered the home and found Gisentaner in the basement.

No weapons were recovered.

Stark county

Victims’ Rights Week

NORTH CANTON: The office of Stark County Prosecuting Attorney John D. Ferrero will partner with the Stark County Victims’ Rights Coalition and Stark State College to host an event which will recognize Nation Crime Victims’ Rights Week of April 6 to 12.

The public is invited to attend a local ceremony honoring crime victims, survivors and advocates at noon Thursday at Stark State College, 6200 Frank Ave. NW, Jackson Township, in the Advanced Technology Center Building, Room T113.

For more information, call 330-451-7887.

SUMMIT COUNTY

Norwegians to meet

CUYAHOGA FALLS: The local lodge of Sons of Norway will meet at 3 p.m. April 13 at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, 2121 Sixth St., Cuyahoga Falls.

The program will consist of travelogues of Oslo and Bergen. For more information, call 330-633-7482.

Indicted in slaying

AKRON: A Summit County grand jury indicted a woman charged in the murder of a housemate in Stow.

Roxanne Buck, 44, of Bryn Mar Drive, also is charged with tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony.

Prosecutors allege that Buck killed Michelle Johnson, 21, and left her body in a shed on the property March 15.

Buck will be arraigned at 8 a.m. Wednesday in Summit County Common Pleas Court.

STARK COUNTY

Lodging fee rejected

CANTON: Stark County commissioners this week unanimously rejected a request to pay $2,560 in hotel costs for six employees of the Veterans Service Commission to attend a training session in Independence from May 6-9. The board agreed to expenditures for transportation, meals and registration.

Commissioner Janet Weir Creighton said the lodging money would be better spent on services for veterans. She said she has made a round trip to Columbus in one day without the need for an overnight stay.

STATE NEWS

Proposal for farmers

COLUMBUS: Two state agencies are proposing to streamline Ohio’s manure-management rules.

Under the change, all Ohio farms that produce manure would be under the direction of a single agency, the Ohio Department of Agriculture.

Current Ohio rules give oversight of smaller livestock farms to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, while the Agriculture Department manages large-scale livestock operations.

The change would have little affect on farm operations, state officials said.

The proposal is part of House Bill 490 pending in the Ohio legislature.

A multimedia learning opportunity about the symbolism in a Passover Seder is scheduled from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday in the Barrette Business and Community Center at Walsh University, 2020 E. Maple St., North Canton.

The session will be facilitated by Rabbi John Spitzer, associate professor of Jewish studies and founding director of the Jewish-Catholic Studies Institute at Walsh. It does not include a full Seder meal but symbolic foods will be served.

Passover, which begins at sundown on April 14, is one of the most commonly observed Jewish holidays. Agriculturally, it represents the beginning of the harvest season in Israel, but observances primarily focus on the exodus of the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt.

During the eight-day celebration, families and friends typically gather on the first two nights to share the Seder meal, using a book called the Haggadah as a guide. Symbolic foods on the Seder plate are also used to share the Passover story. Passover will conclude at sundown on April 22.

Reservations and a $5 donation are requested for the Walsh event. Students with identification will be admitted free. Parking is free adjacent to the center. The session is eligible for credit in the Walsh Lifelong Learning Academy and is recognized by the dioceses of Youngstown and Cleveland for religious education credit. For more information, call 330-244-4734 or email jspitzer@walsh.edu.

In other religion news:

Events

Canton Christian Women’s Connection — at The Fairways, 1500 Rogwin Circle SW, Plain Township. 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 17. Lights, Camera, Action! is the theme for monthly luncheon. Speaker Loraine Serra will discuss how life in the spotlight “can be blinding.” A vocalist, she will also entertain with a mini-concert after her talk. The $13 cost includes lunch. For required reservations or free nursery, call Sherry at 330-837-6552 or email cantoncwc@aol.com by Sunday. All area women are welcome.

Catholic Charities of Summit County — Noon to 8 p.m. Sunday. Beef O’Brady’s will contribute up to 20 percent of food sales to Catholic Charities during those hours. Carryout is available. Locations participating are 3732 Darrow Road, Stow, 330-688-8200; 1090 Williams Reserve Blvd., Wadsworth, 330-336-3600; and 3975 Cascades Blvd., Brimfield Township, 330-678-4800. Customers wishing to participate will need the “Spirit Night” flyer. It can be downloaded at http://ccdocle.org/events/spirit-day-beef-obradys or Catholic Charities will send one to you. Call 330-762-2961, ext. 220 or 232 or email kkaufman@clevelandcatholiccharities.org.

Catholic Diocese of Youngstown — at St. Columba Cathedral, 159 W Rayen Ave., Youngstown. 4:30 p.m. April 12. Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord Mass with Very Reverend Monsignor Peter M. Polando presiding. Sunday Masses will be at 10:30 a.m. with the Rev. Edward Brienz, and at 4 p.m. with Monsignor Polando presiding. 330-744-8451.

Faith United Methodist Church — 1235 Tallmadge Road, Brimfield Township. 4:30 to 7 p.m. April 12. Swiss steak dinner will be served. Includes mashed potatoes, vegetables, coleslaw, applesauce, desserts and beverage. Adults $9, youth $4, ages 5 and younger free. Carryout available.

First Church of Brethren — 1812 Marigold Ave., Akron. 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. today. All-you-can-eat soup supper plus desserts. Adults $6, ages 12 and under $4.

Grace United Methodist Church — 1720 Schneider St. NW, Plain Township. 2 to 4 p.m. April 13. Easter Adventure and Egg Hunt will be held for children. They will experience and take part in Palm Sunday, The Garden of Gethsemane, The Last Supper, Good Friday and The Resurrection. That will be followed by an age-appropriate Easter egg hunt. Refreshments will be served. Free and open to everyone. Register by Tuesday at 330-499-2330.

Green Valley United Methodist Church — 620 E. Turkeyfoot Lake Road, Green. 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday. The annual Spring Salad Luncheon will be held. Cost is $6 and all proceeds will go to missions. 330-896-4357.

Livingstone Baptist Church — 288 Harter Ave., Barberton. 10:45 a.m. Sunday. Marking the second pastoral appreciation celebration for the Rev. Paul Watson and his wife, Bonita. At morning service, speaker will be the Rev. Paul Smoot. At 4 p.m. service, the speaker is Bishop Clifton T. Jones Sr. Both speakers are from Agape Love Ministries in Sandusky. 330-753-0648.

Love Akron Network — at Mountain of the Lord Fellowship, 1477 Copley Road, Akron. 10 to 11:30 a.m. Wednesday. All Christian leaders are invited to pray, network and fellowship at a prayer event. Lunch immediately following. For information or to RSVP, email loveakronoffice@loveakron.org.

Mount Calvary Baptist Church — 442 Bell St., Akron. 9 a.m. to noon today. FirstMerit’s Free Mortgage Seminar will be held. Includes free credit counseling, refreshments and child care available for ages 3 to 8. Preregistration required. Call 330-253-3711 or arrive at 8:30 a.m. today before the seminar.

St. George’s Fellowship Centre — 3204 Ridgewood Road, Fairlawn. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 12, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 13. The Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show will be held. A portion of the profits will benefit Stewart’s Caring Place, a nonprofit cancer wellness center. Admission is $3, ages 12 and under free. www.avantgardeshows.com.

St. Mark Lutheran Church — 158 North Ave., Tallmadge. 6 p.m. Wednesday. Last of the Lenten soup suppers will be served. It will be followed by a Lenten service with communion at 7 p.m. 330-633-3718.

St. Mark’s Episcopal Church — 515 48th St., Canton. 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. A potluck meal and Lent program will be held. Bring a dish to share. Saving Jesus, a video program presenting several contemporary theologians’ exploration of a “credible Jesus for the third millennium” will begin at 6:15 p.m., followed by conversation. 330-499-2662.

St. Matthew Rectory — 2603 Benton St., Akron. 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Thursday and April 24. A Cancer Spirituality Group will meet twice a month on the second and fourth Thursdays starting in April. It is for those facing the diagnosis of cancer or have faced that diagnosis in the past, and who wish to talk about the experience in the context of spirituality. It is facilitated by cancer survivors Pat Flaherty and Linda Herold. For more information, contact Pat at 330-628-5725 or everhiker@sbcglobal.net.

Unitarian Universalist Church of Akron — 3300 Morewood Road, Fairlawn. 7 p.m. Thursday. Opening reception and silent auction for UU Women in Action Inaugural Spring Art Show. The exhibit will run through April 27. Seventeen local artists will be featured with a wide range of mediums. The pieces include glass, textile, photography, jewelry, ceramic, metal work and more. Visit from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays. 330-836-2206.

Performances

The Chapel in Marlboro — 8700 State Route 619, Marlboro Township. 6 p.m. Sunday. The Blackwood Quartet will be in concert for one performance only. Free-will offering. 330-935-0132.

Fairlawn Lutheran Church — 3415 W. Market St., Fairlawn. 4 p.m. Sunday. Holtkamp Organ Dedication Recital, featuring Mark Lindgren and Gary Pinter on organ and piano. They will play duets of well-known sacred selections and hymns. Pipes were recently added to the Holtkamp pipe organ, as originally designed. The recital is the Parish Arts Series’ fifth free concert of the season. Refreshments afterward in Fellowship Hall. 330-867-3082.

Christ Presbyterian Church — 530 Tuscarawas St. W., Canton. 7:30 p.m. Friday. The 2013-14 Christ Church Concert Series continues with A Tale of Three Cities: Music Between the Wars featuring soprano Christine Brandes and organist Jonathan Dimmock. Suggested donation of $10-15. 330-456-8113, www.cantoncpc.org.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help — 342 S. Chillicothe Road, Aurora. 4 p.m. Sunday. The play Make Us Believers will be presented. Written and directed by Bob Summers, it is a musical of the Passion of Christ. Free-will offering. A post-production, meet-the-cast reception will be held in the parish hall. 330-562-8419, ext. 233.

Whipple Heights CMA Church — 4900 12th St. NW, Canton. 7 p.m. Friday. The Canton Singspiration Concert will feature the Southern Gospel Quartet and Ed O’Neal and the Dixie Melody Boys, along with the Pathway Quartet. Free-will offering. 330-477-7834.

Speakers, classes, workshops

Parents of Prodigals — at Natatorium Erie Room, 2345 Fourth St., Cuyahoga Falls. 7 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday. A seminar titled Don’t Be Blindsided: Heroin Use is an Epidemic will be held. Speakers are China Darrington of XIX Recovery Support Services and Dennis Shawhand of Broken Chains Ministry, Summit County Jail. Open to all concerned parents and family members who want to know the signs of heroin use. Registration fee is $5. Seating is limited. For information or group reservations, call Ed Davidian at 330-620-5668.

Renew — at Tangier restaurant, 532 W Market St., Akron. 11:30 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. Thursday. The Rev. Ronald J. Fowler, pastor laureate of Arlington Church of God, will speak on A Winner’s Game Plan at the monthly meeting. Pastor for 37 years, the Rev. Fowler has received numerous service awards including the Bert A. Polsky Humanitarian Award and Love Akron’s Allies Award. RSVP to renewsummit@yahoo.com. Cost of $15 includes lunch and is payable at the door.

The deadline for Religion Notes is noon Tuesday. Items must be in writing. Please fax information to 330-996-3033, email it to religion@thebeaconjournal.com or send it to Religion, Akron Beacon Journal, 44 E. Exchange St., Akron OH 44309.

Eric Goldstein felt a desire to lead the Jerry Shaw Jewish Community Center of Akron the moment he walked through its front doors.

“I fell in love as soon as I got here. It just feels like home,” said Goldstein who started working as executive director of the center March 12.

Goldstein, 44, was selected from a pool of about 25 candidates, with the help of the Jewish Community Centers of America, according to David Koch, CEO of the Jewish Community Board of Akron. Koch said one of the most attractive things about Goldstein is his 20-year work experience with YMCAs and Jewish Community Centers, which includes serving as executive director of JCCs in Toledo, Las Vegas and Nashville, Tenn.

“We believe that his experience is going to pay off for us because he has seen all the various sides of running JCCs and Y’s. The models are similar,” Koch said. “The added bonus is that he and his family want to be in Akron. He and his wife want to raise their girls in a Midwestern environment. And, so far, the response [to Goldstein] from the community has been very positive.”

Goldstein, who grew up on New York’s Long Island, earned an undergraduate degree in education at the University of Central Florida. His experience includes employment in membership in Richmond, Va., and work as a program director in sports and fitness in Wayne, N.J.

As an executive director in Toledo from 2001 to 2004, Goldstein worked to merge two entities to create the YMCA and JCC of Greater Toledo. The agreement to merge was prompted by the shrinking JCC, which became too small to stand alone.

Goldstein left Toledo to serve as executive director of the Jewish Community Center of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas and the Jewish Family Service Agency of Las Vegas. He spent five years in Nevada, leaving in 2009 to take the helm at the Gordon JCC in Nashville, where he oversaw a 53-acre campus until 2012.

A desire to move closer to family — his in New York and his wife, Anne’s, in Indianapolis — drew Goldstein to the Chicago area, where he served as executive director of two YMCAs.

“I really wanted to get back into the JCC field, so when Akron opened up, I went for it,” Goldstein said. “I see tremendous potential for this campus. While I am still getting to know the staff and the community, I can already see opportunities to interact and collaborate with other organizations and opportunities to build programs and relationships. We have great board members, great volunteers and a staff that works as a team.”

The local JCC includes three primary components: camp, early childhood education and health and fitness. The center, established in 1920, is located on a 60-acre campus at 750 White Pond Drive, which is also home to the Jewish Community Board of Akron, Jewish Family Service, The Lippman School and Beth El Congregation.

Thom Mandel, president of the Shaw JCC board of trustees, said he expects the center to thrive under Goldstein’s leadership. Mandel was also part of the search committee for the new executive director.

“He is already getting a lot of support around the community, and it’s building. He’s going to be our ambassador to Northeast Ohio,” Mandel said. “We like that he’s a family man and that he has experience working with the broader community, beyond the Jewish community.

“Our population has a significant number of non-Jewish members,” he said, “and we need someone who knows how to program for everybody.”

Goldstein and his wife are the parents of three daughters: Gabriella, 10; Lindy, 8; and Mimi, 7. He replaces Todd Rockoff, who resigned in July to become president and CEO of the Jewish Community Center of Tucson, Ariz.

Stephanie Davis-Dieringer, who served as the local center’s interim director after Rockoff left, is now the JCC’s assistant director.

“I’m excited to be here, and I’m looking forward to putting together a vision for the JCC with the board and staff,” Goldstein said. “As we set our goals, we want to work toward having the best programming in the community and to create a place where people want to be by concentrating on customer service.”

The JCC is launching a $1.7 million project to reconstruct its indoor pool and locker rooms. A kickoff event for the project is scheduled for 6:30 to 7 p.m. Monday.

For more information at the JCC, call 330-867-7850 or go to www.shawjcc.org.

Colette Jenkins can be reached at 330-996-3731 or cjenkins@thebeaconjournal.com. She can be followed at www.twitter.com/ColetteMJenkins.

MEDINA

Arnold, Jerry W., 44, of Lodi. Died Friday. Waite & Son, Medina.

Letner, Allie M., 79, of Medina. Died Friday. Waite & Son.

STARK

Joksimovic, Marija, 95, of Massillon. Died Thursday. Paquelet & Arnold-Lynch.

Jones, Eleanor, 95, of Massillon. Died March 27. Paquelet.

Swihart, Doris, 76, of Alliance. Died Wednesday. Cassaday-Turkle-Christian.

WAYNE

Breneman, M. Lucille, 90, of Wooster. Died Friday. McIntire, Bradham & Sleek.

Kelly, Corrine P., 89, of Wooster. Died Friday. McIntire, Bradham & Sleek.

Rootstown: The Northeast Ohio Medical University might sink its teeth into a new academic specialty: dentistry.

NEOMED is conducting a feasibility study to see if dentistry should join medical, pharmacy and graduate programs in public health and other fields on the Portage County campus.

“We are always looking at how we can enhance our educational mission. This is a complement and aligns with our three other programs,” said Sergio Garcia, NEOMED’s chief of staff.

Currently only two other universities statewide offer dentistry: Case Western Reserve, where almost 400 students are enrolled; and Ohio State, whose enrollment is about 425.

Yet as only five of Northeast Ohio’s 21 counties have the national average of dentists to their population, that might be a need for more dentists and the training to get them into the pipeline, NEOMED suggests.

The tax-supported NEOMED hired the Academy for Academic Leadership in Atlanta for $125,000 to conduct the feasibility study.

The consultant is assessing the level of support for a dental school among NEOMED’s partners, how to integrate a dental curriculum into the university’s offerings and how to finance the undertaking. The consultant’s report will go to NEOMED trustees in June for a decision.

A top opportunity

If the trustees agree to take on the new specialty, they would be offering training for what U.S. News magazine said is No. 3 on its “100 Best Jobs” list. Dentistry trails only software developer and computer systems analyst in those rankings.

Also, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that dentistry will experience above average growth of about 16 percent through 2022.

Yet while 12 new dental schools have opened nationwide since 1997, the number of applicants is down, often among minorities, according to the American Dental Education Association’s 2013 President’s Report.

Perhaps that’s because of the rising student debt, the report suggested.

“The average cost of attending dental school has risen 60 percent since 2000, and dental students are graduating with an average of nearly $222,000 in debt.”

That impacts what dental students specialize in — often, the more lucrative specialities in which they have a better chance of paying off their loans, according to the report.

NEOMED started in 1973 as a six-year medical school that partnered with the University of Akron, Kent State and Youngstown State. It since has added Cleveland State.

The school added graduate medical studies in 2009.

Carol Biliczky can be reached at cbiliczky@thebeaconjournal.com or 330-996-3729.

Ohio on Friday tightened its rules on air emissions from natural gas-oil drilling at horizontal wells.

Ohio became just the third state to target what are called fugitive emissions — the releases of methane gas from valves, connectors and other drilling equipment — at its large-scale Utica Shale operations.

Drilling companies now are required to perform regular inspections to pinpoint any equipment leaks and seal them quickly.

Such leaks can contribute to air pollution with unhealthy ozone, add to global warming and represent lost or wasted energy. Fugitive emissions can account for 1 to 8 percent of methane from an individual well, according to some studies.

Studies also show that horizontal shale wells might emit up to twice as much methane as vertical-only wells, due to the steps needed to complete the well and hydraulically fracture it.

The revised rules — in development for more than a year — were released by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and go into effect immediately, officials said.

“It’s a step in the right direction,” EPA spokesman Chris Abbruzzese said. “We’re pleased and positive with the changes made.”

The drilling industry in Ohio is “pretty much on board with the changes,” said Mike Hopkins, the EPA’s assistant chief of air permitting.

Mike Chadsey, spokesman for the Ohio Oil & Gas Association, said: “This general air permit provides clear regulatory guidance for oil and gas operators looking to do business in Ohio.”

Shawn Bennett, spokesman for the pro-drilling group Energy In Depth-Ohio, said the updated general permit “further illustrates Ohio’s commitment to safely and responsibly developing our shale resources.”

The revised rules drew praise from a national environmental group, the Environmental Defense Fund.

“This is just the latest example of leadership from the Kasich administration in minimizing risk around oil and gas development. It reflects a fast-growing recognition that, if we’re going to develop this resource, we have to do it right. It’s essential we maintain an unblinking vigilance in driving down harmful emissions,” defense fund President Fred Krupp said in a statement.

“This is what leadership looks like,” said Matt Watson, the defense fund’s national director of state programs for natural gas. “There are parts of the policy we would have written differently, but this unquestionably puts Ohio among the national leaders in tackling fugitive emissions.”

Watson’s group had offered its input to Ohio while the revisions were being debated, along with many other stakeholders, he said.

Reaction from a statewide group also was positive, albeit more tempered.

“This is serious medicine for a serious problem,” said Jack Shaner, spokesman for the Ohio Environmental Council. “This is a positive first step toward preventing fugitive air emissions, but it is only a first step.”

Shaner said the state needs to expand the rules to also cover compressors, pipelines and vertical-only wells.

Beyond U.S. mandates

The Ohio program comes on the heels of similar programs being rolled out in Colorado and Wyoming in recent months, Watson said. He called air emissions a priority issue in shale-drilling areas.

He said the three states adopted rules for emissions not covered under federal clean-air mandates.

“Not many states are doing what Ohio has done,” Watson said. “It has fixed a big problem. It’s all the way good, but it’s not nirvana on regulating emissions.”

Under the Ohio policy, operators are required to scan all the equipment at a well site on a quarterly basis using an infrared camera or other devices that can detect hydrocarbons.

A first attempt at fixing any found leaks must be made within five days, and operators will be required to submit detailed leak detection and repair reports to state regulators on an annual basis. Semiannual or annual checks then would be required in subsequent years if leaks are few.

If leaks exceed 2 percent, the operators must comply quarterly.

Previously, operators had to conduct such checks once a year.

The inspections will cover “everything” at drill sites, the EPA’s Hopkins said.

“Every flange, every pipe, every pump, anything that could leak. All parts. Everything,” he said. “The new rules encourage them not to have leakers.”

Leaks “will be found sooner and will be corrected sooner,” Hopkins said.

For more information about the permitting process in Ohio, go to www.epa.ohio.gov/dapc/genpermit/genpermits.aspx.

Bob Downing can be reached at 330-996-3745 or bdowning@thebeaconjournal.com.

A man who shot a Twinsburg police officer during a 2008 traffic stop will appeal his conviction and death sentence before the Ohio Supreme Court on Tuesday.

The court will hear oral arguments in the death penalty case in Columbus.

Ashford Thompson was 23 years old when he killed Officer Joshua Miktarian, who had stopped Thompson’s vehicle in the early morning hours because of loud music and a suspicion that the driver might be drunk.

When Miktarian was handcuffing Thompson to place him under arrest, they struggled. Thompson had a permit to carry a concealed weapon, and he pulled his gun during the arrest and shot the officer four times in the head.

Thompson was convicted in 2010 of aggravated murder and other charges, and the court imposed the death penalty.

In Thompson’s appeal to the Supreme Court, his attorneys argue that 18 errors were made at his trial. Those are grounds for the court to reverse Thompson’s conviction and death sentence, his filing said.

His attorneys contend that the trial court’s judgment and sentencing orders did not adhere to the legal requirements for those documents, so they were not final. Orders that are not final cannot be appealed, they maintain.

They also assert that a potential juror was dismissed from the jury because of her race, instead of for the race-neutral reason that prosecutors cited. In addition, after the jury was chosen, some jurors might have heard that Thompson initially pleaded guilty in the case but later withdrew his plea, and that knowledge might have tainted the jury’s impartiality, Thompson’s attorneys argue.

Miktarian, who was on the Twinsburg force for 11 years, was a 33-year-old married father with an infant daughter at the time of his death.

Arguments before the court will be carried live online at http://sc.ohio.gov and broadcast live on the Ohio Channel. The court session begins at 9 a.m.

An animal-welfare organization is trying to capitalize on the notoriety of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer’s childhood home by suggesting it might turn the house into a vegan restaurant.

Ingrid E. Newkirk, president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, sent a letter dated Friday to the realty agent who has listed the Bath Township house for sale. In the letter, she asked about the listing and proposed making the house a vegan restaurant “to respond to the past with something positive.”

Newkirk likened the way animals are slaughtered, processed and consumed to the way Dahmer treated his victims.

“We are always looking for ways to draw attention to the violence inherent in the production of meat, eggs, and milk — which involve processes that would shock all but the most hard-hearted person,” Newkirk wrote in the letter to Richard Lubinski of Stouffer Realty. “Dahmer’s old house gives us a way to evoke sympathy for these victims and to suggest that a life-affirming diet can change everything.”

The plan’s feasibility, however, is questionable. The three-bedroom house at 4480 W. Bath Road — the site of Dahmer’s first murder — is zoned for single-family residential use. It’s unlikely Bath Township would change the zoning to allow a business such as a restaurant in a residential neighborhood, said Bill Funk, the township’s zoning inspector and administrator.

Funk said the building and lot are poorly suited for that purpose. He pointed out that the house has well water and a septic system, and the sloped, wooded lot would make parking difficult.

“I think they’d have a lot of hurdles to jump,” he said.

Apparently, PETA hadn’t researched the house’s location before sending the letter. Newkirk offered in the letter to take up possible zoning issues with the Akron Board of Zoning Appeals, but Akron’s board has no jurisdiction over zoning in Bath.

Nevertheless, PETA spokesperson Lindsay Rajt insisted the organization is serious about the offer. She said the organization learned the house was for sale by monitoring the news and was initially limited to information available online.

Rajt said PETA is cautiously optimistic about the plan and has gone so far as to come up with a name, concept and menu items for the restaurant. It would be called Eat For Life: Home Cooking and would offer entrees for $10 or less, she said. Menu items would include chipotle barbecue tofu kebabs and vegan creamy chicken casserole, made from mock chicken and dairy-free sour cream.

Lubinski, the listing agent, raised concerns about the zoning but said he’s willing to discuss a possible transaction with PETA.

“I think it’s great,” he said. “If they want to buy it and repurpose it, that’s phenomenal.”

Lubinski said he wasn’t sure whether PETA was serious about the offer or just looking for publicity. But “I’m certainly going to treat it as a serious lead at this point,” he said.

The house is where Dahmer killed the first of his 17 victims. In 1978, he killed and dismembered Coventry Township resident Steven M. Hicks in the house and scattered his remains on the 1.5-acre property.

The 2,170-square-foot, midcentury modern house has been on and off the market since 2012. The current owner, musician Chris Butler, has said he bought the house in 2005 to have a place to stay when he visited Akron, but he no longer has reason to spend much time in the area.

When Butler listed the house with Keller Williams Realty in August 2012, the price was $329,000. It’s now listed for $295,000.

Mary Beth Breckenridge can be reached at 330-996-3756 or mbrecken@thebeaconjournal.com. You can also become a fan on Facebook at http://tinyurl.com/mbbreck, follow her on Twitter @MBBreckABJ and read her blog at www.ohio.com/blogs/mary-beth.

It is not much of an exaggeration to say that Douglas W. Vogus knows almost every colorful bird along the Towpath Trail.

He has seen such species as blue-headed vireos, golden-crowned kinglets, black-and-white warblers, red-shouldered hawks and yellow-bellied sapsuckers.

Vogus, a 47-year-old Akron resident, regularly hikes 13 miles along the trail from Akron north through Cuyahoga Falls, Boston Township and Peninsula to Sagamore Hills Township to identify birds by sight and sound. He’s quite good at his craft.

Vogus makes one trek each month of the year. The hikes along the Towpath Trail start at sunrise and can take up to 10½ hours to complete — with constant stops to check on sightings with binoculars and to listen to bird calls.

May and October hikes, when birds are migrating, take longer, he said.

In his nearly 4½ years, Vogus has logged 163 bird species along his route, most of which is within the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

To date, that has required 156 miles on foot annually over the years and an estimated 390 hours — more than 16 full days — in the field.

He spotted 133 species in 2010, 129 in 2011, 127 in 2012, 127 in 2013 and 63, to date, in 2014.

His counts are the only monthly bird censuses in the Cuyahoga Valley.

Vogus’ record high is 90 species in one day, in May 2011, and his low is 30 species in one day on two occasions.

He might count as few as 524 individual birds in one month — that’s his low, from September 2011 — to as many as 5,796 birds, his record high from October 2010. That included a flock of 4,000 grackles at Jaite. A typical monthly count is about 1,400 birds.

His results, he said, are pretty much what might be expected. “There’s really nothing out of the ordinary,” he said.

“There is never a dull moment when you’re out on the trail,” Vogus said. “It’s a chance to be outdoors and collecting what could be useful information. It’s a challenge, but there is a joy to it.”

Bird population trends

Such censuses are valuable because they show trends in bird populations, especially if the counts continue for years, he said. He has no intention of ending his Towpath counts anytime soon.

Vogus, a lab technician at Eagle Elastomer Inc. in Cuyahoga Falls, is super meticulous with his records. He keeps track of on-the-trail sightings with a clipboard and organized note cards.

“I’m a chronic lister,” he said.

Data later are compiled by his wife, Michelle, onto computer spreadsheets and onto reports that are shared with other birders.

Counting birds along the Towpath is a labor of love, Vogus said.

“It’s a nice hike. It’s a chance to see peregrine falcons, bald eagles and river otters,” he said, noting that he also has logged 17 species of mammals on his hikes. “It’s amazing what’s down there in what’s nothing more than a river bottom.”

Vogus, a longtime local birder, began his counting project in January 2010 as a one-man operation. Since 2012, he has help: co-worker John Henry of Barberton offers help, support and companionship.

“Extra eyes help,” Vogus said. “Sometimes you feel like your head is on a swivel.”

His reason for choosing the Towpath Trail was simple: It’s flat and easily accessible, he said.

But the trail can still be tough to hike. February’s hike was on heavy ice with no snow and little traction. It was not easy, he recalled.

Northeast Ohio’s brutal winter is showing up in Vogus’ data, too.

Carolina wren numbers are down sharply because the Arctic-like temperatures in January and February killed the birds. On the other hand, diving duck numbers are up. The ducks that typically would hang around Cleveland harbor were forced by the cold to head south on the Cuyahoga River to find open water and food, Vogus said.

Vogus has logged six new species, diving ducks and gulls, this year. One of his new species was an Iceland gull found in the Cuyahoga Valley because of the cold.

Favorite spot to count

Vogus’ favorite spot along the Towpath Trail is the Beaver Marsh north of Ira Road in Cuyahoga Falls. His favorite birds are the belted kingfisher, a flashy blue bird found around water, and the pileated woodpecker, a crow-sized woodpecker, the largest found in Ohio.

“And I’m really big on hawks,” he said.

Vogus admits he still has nightmares over trying to positively identify a rare blue grosbeak in 2011 north of Peninsula that he viewed in bad light.

He has worked on the Greater Akron Audubon Society’s Christmas bird count since 1980 and on twice-a-year censuses in the Cuyahoga Valley since 1980. He is also part of an ongoing census at the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge, east of Toledo on Lake Erie, since 2002.

His bird watching goes back to his late father, Jim, a onetime ranger with Metro Parks, Serving Summit County. The younger Vogus met retired chief naturalist and veteran birder Bert Szabo in fourth grade and helped longtime Akron birder Marie Morgan band bluebirds when he was 12 years old.

“Bird watching is just who I am,” he said. “I grew up watching birds.”

Bob Downing can be reached at 330-996-3745 or bdowning@thebeaconjournal.com.

Tallmadge officials are courting Rootstown Township for a new Joint Economic Development District, citing its successful experience with neighboring Brimfield Township.

It’s a budding relationship. Mayor David Kline spoke informally to trustees at a recent meeting, and trustees agreed another date might be in order.

Rootstown Trustee Dave McIntyre said perhaps sometime this year they’ll invite Tallmadge back to a community forum so residents and business owners can ask questions as well.

“It was a good conversation,” McIntyre said. “There were no expectations on anybody’s part ... I’m not saying it’s a good fit or not, but it’s worth looking into.”

The most significant benefit to both communities would be the ability to collect and share income taxes from those who work at Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED), possibly the Rootstown school district and other businesses.

The township could decide what properties to include in a JEDD, but Kline said the commercial area off Interstate 76 and state Route 44 would be a likely goal.

By law, townships cannot collect income taxes. Most of the folks who work in Rootstown and live outside the township pay an income tax to their home community.

But a JEDD would change those rules and allow some of those taxes to stay in the township, where the revenue could be used for roads and other improvements.

Brimfield Fiscal Officer John Dalziel said the township’s JEDD with Tallmadge, and a smaller one with Kent, “is the best thing that could ever happen to a township.”

The JEDD shared with Tallmadge has brought in so much development, the township collects about $250,000 a year — money that has paid for a new police station, gave the fire department a new engine and provides extra money for paving and road equipment.

“About 80 to 90 percent of people who live in Brimfield don’t work in Brimfield, so we’re pretty much just getting the taxes they already pay to the city where they live,” he said. “It doesn’t affect [most people] at all.”

It also ended annexation battles with Kent and Tallmadge, which have left Brimfield’s borders looking like a jigsaw puzzle.

Ending annexation fights was a major motivation when Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic first proposed the idea of a JEDD in the 1980s. The Ohio Legislature made it legal in 1993, allowing cities and villages to form defined economic development zones with their rural neighbors in which income taxes could be collected and shared.

As to a Tallmadge-Rootstown JEDD, NEOMED has weighed in on the matter. It surveyed employees and found most were OK with it because, for most, it is simply a change in where their tax dollars would go.

Individuals most affected would be those who both live and work in Rootstown; they pay no income tax now.

This month’s overture isn’t the first time Tallmadge has cast a glance toward Rootstown.

“We’ve been talking to them off and on for five years,” Kline said — ever since the JEDD formed by Tallmadge and Brimfield reached to Rootstown’s borders.

Kline said he believes the township always has resisted a union out of suspicion of letting a “big city” get too close.

But the township has two new trustees, so Kline decided to try again.

“We know how much it can help them out, because it did Brimfield,” Kline said. “We’re not trying to be the big city that runs Rootstown. We have no desire to run their town.”

McIntyre said there is probably a lot of misunderstanding among his constituents about how a JEDD works.

“You want to know if it’s all it’s cracked up to be,” McIntyre said. “I’m still learning, but there are a lot of positive things in it.”

The conversation is just beginning, Kline and McIntyre said.

“I thought the [reception] was excellent. They thanked us very much for being there, and they want us to come back,” Kline said.

Kent and Ravenna would also be eligible to form a JEDD with Rootstown, but Tallmadge is the only community to make its pitch at a trustees meeting.

Paula Schleis can be reached at 330-996-3741 or pschleis@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/paulaschleis.

The Green High Classes of 1969 and 1970 will reunite Oct. 3 and 4. Contact Jim Elsey at 330-931-0021.

Akron East High School classmates who graduated 60 or more years ago will meet at noon May 8 at Guy’s Party Center on Waterloo Road in Akron. Reservation deadline is April 25. Contact Marilyn Cochran Miletich at 330-628-3611 or Shirley Flanick Carr at shirleycarr@neo.rr.com for details.

Send announcements of school, military, club and company reunions to Carol Biliczky at cbiliczky@thebeaconjournal.com or fax them to 330-996-3030.