Sasaki Selected to Lead Innerbelt Highway Transformation in Akron
The City of Akron, Ohio. Photography by Sean Pavone
The City of Akron, Ohio has chosen Sasaki to lead the transformation of the Innerbelt, an abandoned mile-long stretch of highway that fractured a vibrant community five decades ago. The construction of the Innerbelt, a key component of the urban renewal projects planned throughout Akron in the 1960s and 1970s, displaced predominantly Black and lower-income communities in the city’s Downtown. Sasaki will develop a comprehensive plan to redevelop the decommissioned site and help build a more resilient and equitable future for Akron communities.Â
Fueled by the city’s then-booming rubber industry, as well as a federal push to expand the interstate highway system, the Innerbelt plan sought to connect offices and factories downtown with the growing suburbs and link Route 8 to US Route 224. Invoking eminent domain, the city razed and displaced hundreds of residences, local businesses, churches, and other cultural institutions in largely Black neighborhoods, rupturing community ties and transportation and economic corridors.Â
Despite all the ambitions of policymakers, the project was never completed. Funding shortages, local opposition, and underutilization left behind a half-baked road that is now material evidence of the social and economic challenges that span across the city. The devaluation of property values along the highway has inhibited generations of Black families from thriving and weakened the cultural life of these communities.Â
In recent years, the city of Akron has resolved to reckon with these harmful legacies of urban planning. Through civic efforts, the portion of the Innerbelt immediately adjacent to Downtown Akron was vacated by the Ohio Department of Transportation and returned to the city for public use in 2016. Sasaki will build upon the research conducted in Phase One of the project, which drew upon community input and case studies to identify recommendations, to initiate a master planning process that repurposes existing infrastructure, topography, and land use to help build a healthier, resilient, and more connected Akron.Â
Community Engagement Workshop with Sasaki. Photography by Jenna Eastman c/o Akron Documenters
“The Innerbelt created a scar on the face of our community and as we take the next steps to determine the future of this area, we can hopefully begin to heal that wound and repair what was damaged,” said Akron Mayor Shammas Malik.Â
In order to effectively address the complex needs of the 30-acre site, Sasaki has brought together an interdisciplinary team including engineering firm WSP, one of the world’s leading engineering firms, ThirdSpace Action Lab, a Cleveland-based consulting firm and minority business enterprise, Ideas and Action, a minority business enterprise who will assess real estate, economic development and community wealth building, City Architecture, a local Urban Design and community based architecture firm, and Vista Site Selection, an Ohio-based company specializing in economic development.Â
“Sasaki is honored to be selected to lead the Innerbelt Master Planning process for Akron,” said Siqi Zhu, Associate Principal, Director of Planning & Urban Technology at Sasaki. “This is an opportunity to confront the racist legacies of urban renewal, reconnect divided communities, and create equitable access to new opportunities for all Akronites. We will collaborate closely with the community, especially those impacted by the Innerbelt, to ensure that the solutions we propose look and feel like Akron. Together, we can turn a symbol of historical harm into one of healing and opportunity for the future.”Â
In March 2023, the City of Akron received a first-of-its-kind grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program. The $960,000 award seeks to support communities that have been historically disenfranchised by past transportation infrastructural decisions. Sasaki will work with the City to apply for an additional grant through the Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program to help realize Phase Two of this project. Through close collaboration with civic and community partners, Sasaki will chart a future for the Innerbelt that empowers local voices and celebrates the rich histories and spaces of Downtown Akron.Â
Learn More About Sasaki
Sasaki has been a leader in the design industry for over 70 years. The firm is known for blending disciplines, engaging with clients and communities, drawing on history and context, and using data and emerging technologies to shape the built environment. With offices in Boston, Denver, New York, Los Angeles, and Shanghai, Sasaki’s 300 professionals partner with education, civic, institutional, and commercial clients around the world. Sasaki’s integrated services span architecture, interior design, planning and urban design, space planning, landscape architecture, and civil engineering.
Contact:
Eric Baldwin, Director of Communications