A postcard from 1916 shows Kenmore Blvd. looking east toward 15th St.

The Kenmore Boulevard commercial area is one step away to being designated a National Historic District.

On March 22, the Ohio State Historic Preservation Advisory Board approved Kenmore Neighborhood Alliance’s nomination of the Kenmore Boulevard Historic District to the National Register of Historic Places.

If approved by the National Park Service, contributing structures will eligible for federal historic tax credits. The parks service’s decision is expected this spring. 

“This designation would be huge for Kenmore,” said Akron City Councilman Mike Freeman. “Not only will it set Kenmore Boulevard apart as a destination and a place to be proud of, it will encourage the kind of investment residents want.”

KNA began pursuing the historic designation in 2018, the same year the city of Akron named it one of 10 Great Streets Districts eligible for competitive façade grants and infrastructure investments from the city. KNA Executive Director Tina Boyes believes this combination of city investments and tax credits will magnify investment in the area.

“While compliance with historic renovation standards won’t be mandated by the national designation, it certainly offers financial incentive for developers to go the historic route: from a city, state and now federal perspective,” Boyes said. “We hope this will maintain and even improve the historic nature of Kenmore Boulevard.”

The Kenmore Boulevard Historic District’s contributing structures are located mostly between 12th St. and Florida Ave. According to historic architect Lauren Burge, principal at Perspectus Historic Architecture, the Chambers, Murphy, & Burge Studio, the properties reflect the architecture of the early 20th century, with entrances built to the sidewalk to accommodate pedestrians and street car users.

“The district retains its sense of scale and feeling,” she explained. “Most of the contributing buildings to the Kenmore Boulevard Historic District were constructed within a 20-year period between 1908 and 1928 and retain their materials and workmanship, imparting the overall feeling of an early 20th century ‘streetcar suburb’ commercial district.”

Kenmore Blvd. looking east toward 15th St. (Photo: Perspectus Architecture)

In 1901, the Northern Ohio Traction and Light Company developed street car lines to connect new suburban developments to factories. The Kenmore Boulevard line was sited down the center of Kenmore Boulevard, creating a connection between rubber factories in Akron and neighboring industry in Barberton.  That same year, the Akron Realty Company began developing Kenmore to be what they termed “the choicest residence section for both the busy cities, as well as for all the factories between them.”

Kenmore’s street car line stopped operating in 1947, but its impact can be seen in the tree-lined center median in its former location and in the growth of the neighborhood, which went from 1,561 residents in 1910 to 12,683 in 1920 to – today – more than 18,000 residents, making Kenmore the second largest of Akron’s 24 neighborhoods.

“Many Kenmore residents go back three, four even five generations,” said Kenmore Historical Society President Matt Zeiner. “They remember when Kenmore Boulevard was a vibrant commercial district, and it can be again. Now, we’re one step closer.”

By Jennifer Conn, Akron reporter, cleveland.com

The Kenmore Neighborhood Alliance has received a $150,000 grant aimed at helping residents secure well-paying jobs while expanding the culinary presence on Kenmore Boulevard.

The CareSource Foundation’s two-year, $75,000-per-year grant will pay for the nonprofit Jump On Board for Success (JOBS) to train, license and prepare struggling Kenmore mothers for culinary careers.

CareSource awards grants to nonprofits working to eliminate poverty and address the health needs of families. JOBS works to combat generational poverty among mothers in the Kenmore area.

The culinary program, launched this week, will take 20 to 30 single mothers through several six-week courses, while providing them with transportation and childcare. The program is designed to:

• offer students experience at restaurants close to home
• equip them with chef tools for use at home and at restaurants pay for Level 1 and Level 2 culinary licensing
• provide 50 percent of wages paid to licensed graduates if employed at restaurants within KNA’s area of focus 

Students also will receive counseling on banking, budgeting and saving through the Financial Empowerment Center in Kenmore. The center was launched last year by the city and the United Way of Summit County to offer free financial services to all Akron residents.

KNA has been focused on strengthening and launching businesses on the boulevard since its inception in 2016. Early on, the group conducted a survey in which residents listed a coffee shop and restaurants as the top two things they wanted on the boulevard.

The group also commissioned KM Date Community Planning to conduct a retail study that revealed more than $25 million in restaurant revenue is leaving Kenmore every year to nearby malls and business strips.

“That’s money that could and should be supporting our neighborhood with jobs and food for our residents and vibrancy for business district,” Tina Boyes, Kenmore Neighborhood Alliance’s executive director, said in a news release. “This grant will help us meet an immediate need of an at-risk group of residents while adding another tool to attract healthy food to our neighborhood. I call that a win-win.”

KNA is working to prepare the neighborhood to take advantage of activity expected to come via a new employer at the nearby site of the former Rolling Acres Mall. The city is working with a yet-to-be-named developer and expects the development will bring 500 jobs paying an annual average of $60,000.

“Eighty-six percent of folks who shop on Kenmore Boulevard are not from Kenmore, and from zip code data we know their average annual income is more than $66,000,” Boyes said in the release. “They’re demanding food and coffee like our residents are, who we know will patronize them, so we believe restaurants can do very well here.”

Live Music Now is bringing another season of top-notch regional live music to Kenmore Boulevard thanks to The Big Love Network, a group of organizers, artists and healing practitioners who advocate for social equity through activism and the arts based on Carey Ave.

Led by local musician Zach Freidhof, The Big Love Network has already hosted musicians like LA-based Rachel Roberts, Angie Haze and rapper A-MINUS at the venue.

“Live Music Now provides a great opportunity to engage both residents and folks from around the city who may not be overly familiar with Kenmore,” he explained. “Partners in our network are bringing diverse music into this space, allowing a safe and inclusive space for people to get to know others.”

Live Music Now started as a collaborative enterprise between Kenmore Neighborhood Alliance, the Big Love Network, Open Tone Music, and Kenmore-based Jim Ballard Skylyne Studio and Studio 1008. Patrons were asked to donate $5-10 – or whatever they could afford – at the door, which went directly to the artists. All money made at the bar supported Kenmore Neighborhood Alliance.

Big Love Network is continuing this model, seeking to provide an example of a new economy of cooperative and collective ventures.

“If this model can be successful in Kenmore, it can possibly be an opportunity in other neighborhoods as well,” Zach said.

Live Music Now is sponsored by Kenmore Neighborhood Alliance. All other funds to keep the events running come through donations at the door, which pay the artists, and the purchase of beverages at the bar.

Upcoming shows include:

• Thursday, Feb. 21 – Female Showcase w/Bethany Joy, Jose McGee & Indre
• Friday, March 8 – Ray Flanagan and Zach
• Friday, April 5 – Jeri Sapronetti (Time Cat)

“It’s refreshing to have a space where the artists and the community can co-create and come together,” Zach said. “Big Love is excited to be part of the Kenmore neighborhood.”

Doors open at 7 p.m. for all Live Music Now! shows. Suggested donation is $5-10. For more information and a full list of upcoming shows, visit www.facebook.com/KenmoreLiveMusicNow.

Dan Rowland Photography at 989 Kenmore Blvd. is the newest addition to the Boulevard District’s growing enclave of creatives.Dan is a freelance commercial photographer specializing in architectural, interior, family and artist portraits, product, nature and out-of-the-box thinking.

Dan has 35 years of photography experience. He studied commercial photography at the University of Akron and began his career under photographer Jim Maguire as an assistant and studio manager.

“I opened my own studio and pursued more of a fine art style photography using an old 4×5 field camera, the type where you pull the cloth over your head,” he said.

Dan went on to learn the ins and outs of the The Zone system, a technique for determining optimal film exposure and development formulated by world-famous black and white landscape photographer Ansel Adams, from one of Adams’s students, Howard Bond.

Dan also has his teaching degree and hopes to someday use his studio as a photography classroom. Until then, he holds meeting for the Rubber City Camera Club, which takes place every 2nd and 4th Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m. at the studio. Everyone is welcome, from seasoned photographers to those new to the field.

“Every meeting will be devoted to a photo critique. There are no rules regarding subject matter,” he said.

To learn more about the Rubber City Camera Club, contact Dan at danrowland2011@gmail.com or 330-671-4382. Or, for more information about Dan Rowland Photography or to book a session, visit https://www.danrowlandphotography.com.

Updated: Nov 4, 2018

On Dec. 1, kick off the holiday season with a daylong game of Pokemon GO and a seasonal sing-along on Kenmore Boulevard.

In celebration of the event’s 20th anniversary, Kenmore Neighborhood Alliance and the Akron/Summit Convention & Visitors Bureau are teaming up to bring Pokemon GO trainers to this year’s Kenmore Holiday Celebration. Holiday Hunt players will have chances to win prizes by participating in a Pokemon scavenger hunt.

You can pick up their Pokemon GO map at the Live Music Now Courtyard from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Then, enjoy free admission to the Holiday Hootenanny at the Rialto Theatre from 3 to 5 p.m., featuring the high-energy honkytonk and country sounds of Shooter Sharp & the Shootouts along with Rubber City Ukes. Expect an afternoon of hand-clapping, toe-tapping entertainment and singalongs. This will be a free all-ages show.

Shooter Sharp & the Shootouts will headline the Holiday Hootenanny at the Rialto Theatre Dec. 1

“I’ve seen a lot of positive things happening in Kenmore recently,” said Roger Riddle, the marketing and social media manager for the Akron/Summit Convention & Visitors Bureau. “When you see a neighborhood trying its best to become a better place to live work and play, you want to help out whatever way you can. This fellowship with Niantic and Knight gave me an opportunity to bring people who may not be familiar with Kenmore to the neighborhood so they can see the good things that are happening.”

For more information about this and other events, visit the KNA Facebook page at www.facebook.com/KNACares.

Kai Wick Studios and The Rialto Theatre are partnering to bring top-notch art to Kenmore Boulevard, and they’re starting by featuring the work of talented residents in the Akron Soul Train program.

Project Three Gallery, a project of Kenmore Better Block veteran Kai Wick, is a new gallery space at 998 Kenmore Blvd. that will feature local, regional and national artists to create and display original works. The space will operate as a work area, gallery, small store front and teaching space, Wick said. It will also provide an accessible, affordable space for Kent State University, University of Akron Students and Kenmore-Garfield art students to feature their work.

“The goal is to create an education exchange between the community, art world and students,”

said Wick said. “We will hold demo classes, artist talks, and, possibly a pop-up shop so artists

can sell their wares.”

The gallery will make its debut Dec. 1 during the 20th Annual Kenmore Holiday Celebration and

will feature the work of Akron Soul Train September and October residents Joshua Eiskamp of

Seven HIlls and Charisse Mae Harris, a Columbus resident and daughter of So Fresh Used Auto Sales owner Jacqueline Harris. Joshua specializes in abstract painting and Charisse in mixed media. Their work will be on view through Dec. 20. Then, on January 10 an opening reception will be held for Christi Birchfield, a print and sculpture artist from Cleveland who was Akron Soul Train’s November artist in residence. It will be on display throughout the month.

Akron Soul Train is an artist residency village connecting and empowering the community and

artists by granting fellowships that provide resources for all creative disciplines, thereby

fostering a more vibrant Akron. Since its inception in 2016, Akron Soul Train has supported

seven local artists with fellowships. Most recently, out of 70 applicants for 2018-2019

residencies, the committee selected 13 local and regional artists for residency. For more

information visit https://www.akronsoultrain.org.

Learn more bout the Dec. 1 opening event

Updated: Nov 4, 2018

Kenmore Neighborhood Alliance has invited a team from Main Street Ohio to our community, Nov. 7-8, to explore the possibility of becoming an official Main Street affiliate. The Main Street Program, administered by Heritage Ohio, works with communities across the state to revitalize their historic or traditional downtown areas. It is designed to improve all aspects of the business district, producing both tangible and intangible benefits such as: recruiting new businesses, rehabilitating buildings, strengthening community participation, elevating public perception and making the business district a fun place for residents and visitors.

Throughout Main Street Ohio’s two-day visit to our community, they will be touring Kenmore Boulevard, providing information to residents about the Main Street program and meeting with residents and stakeholders in small groups to identify opportunities and issues to be addressed.

In the beginning of 2019, Main Street Ohio will deliver a plan to the Kenmore community with specific recommendations to address all concerns and create clear strategies for a thriving neighborhood business district.

“As a Main Street Ohio affiliate, we will gain the direction and focus needed to accomplish our revitalization goals over the long term while more robustly engaging the community,” said Jeffrey Vujevich, president of the Kenmore Neighborhood Alliance.

On Nov. 7 at 6 p.m. at Sam Salem Community Learning Center, residents are invited to engage with Main Street Ohio’s team, which is made up of downtown revitalization veterans from around the state. Community members will hear about Main Street Ohio’s work in other communities, learn about proven strategies for revitalization, as well as provide input to help guide the plan for Kenmore’s Boulevard District.

For more information about Main Street America program, visit www.mainstreet.org. Or, for details about the Nov. 7 community session, visit the event page..

Next month, Kenmore, will play host to the nationally renowned New York Public Theater for a free staging of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play SWEAT in Kenmore’s Masonic Temple on Oct. 2, 2018 at 6 p.m.

With warm humor and tremendous heart, SWEAT tells the story of a group of friends who have spent their lives sharing drinks, secrets and laughs while working together on the line of a factory floor. But when layoffs and picket lines begin to chip away at their trust, the friends find themselves pitted against each other in the hard fight to stay afloat.

With Kenmore’s industrial past, many families may find themselves relating to this story. According to Karen Freeman of KenMore Kreative, stories like this have the power to open up dialogue within communities. “The issues in the play are issues relevant to Akron and even to Kenmore, and they should prove to provoke thought and conversations about our own community,” she said.

Karen is most excited because, as she puts it, “Broadway is coming to us: real Broadway actors with a play that’s been performed in New York and all over the country. There’s no need to get dressed up or drive far, just down to the Boulevard,” she said. “How exciting is that?”

This Pulitzer Prize-winning drama is a collaboration of The Public Theater, KenMore Kreative, Victory Lodge #1160, Arts Now and Kenmore Neighborhood Alliance.Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and the show starts at 6:00 p.m.

Tickets are free and available here

Recommended for ages 16+ due to strong language.

Sixty four years ago, a Scottish-Irish Kenmore native named Etta Mae Smith opened a dance studio on the boulevard. Since then, the studio’s mission has been to educate, inspire, and instill a passion for dance in each student. Etta Mae Studio of Dance strives to create a good atmosphere where dancers can find their true voice and achieve confidence.

Keeping Etta Mae’s legacy alive, the studio has been teaching classes in the following subjects:

• Ballet: A technical and graceful form of dance that builds the foundations for other types of dance.
• Pointe: A form of ballet where the dancers wear special shoes and perform dance steps on their toes.
• Jazz: An energetic form of dance seen on TV, in commercials, movies, music videos and on the stage in musicals.
• Hip Hop: A style of dance that incorporates street dance, break dance, and jazz.
• Tap: A form of dance where the dancer creates rhythmic sounds using metal plates on the tap shoes.
• Lyrical: A fluid style of jazz that blends with ballet and is performed to interpret the lyrics of the song.
• Acro: Bending, twisting, balance, stretching and rotating to perform skills for incorporation into dance routines.

Etta Mae studio of dance has performances and recitals throughout the year. Interested students can participate in classes for $35 per month or can take private lessons. To learn more about registration, visit ettamaedance.wixsite.com/emsstudioofdance/schedule—fees.