Many of you received resurfacing and concrete reconstruction assessment letters in the mail last week from the city of Akron. Some of the projects appear to go back as early as 2022 and had a payment date of August 28. Needless to say, I’ve had a number of calls and emails from residents with a lot of good of questions. As almost all of these projects were completed before I was on council, I’ve had to do some research for answers that you all deserve.
Project dates: Most project dates start when the original planning estimates come out, and that’s usually a year or sometimes two before they are complete. We cannot bill until one year after the project is completed. As example, roads resurfaced this year will not see a bill until 2026 or 2027.
Why does Akron charge for resurfacing? Akron began charging a portion of the resurfacing projects to homeowners back in the mid 1980’s to offset rising costs. The city picks up roughly 80% of the total cost and homeowners are charged a standardized rate for front footage of their property to cover the remaining 20%. Residential resurfacing assessment rates to residents have not increased for 20+ years, but like everything else, Akron’s cost have gone up.
Don’t property taxes or Issue 4 revenue cover these costs? Property taxes go Summit county, include levies for schools, library, metro parks and more, only a small portion goes to Akron. ( and mostly fund Police and Fire) This is documented and broken down on your individual tax bill. If you are on Homestead Exemption for Property taxes, you’re exempt for resurfacing assessments. A portion of Issue 4 revenues were slated for resurfacing but they cover Akrons’s 80% of the projects. Before Issue 4 passed, Akron resurfaced about 17 miles of roads but with theses additional tax dollars we now resurface close to 50 miles every year.
Only 14 days to pay? This was an error on Akron’s fault as the letters did get in the mail in time and the Mayor’s Office has issued a statement on Social Media extending the payment date to 9/15/2025. You can also put the cost of resurfacing on your property taxes instead this option spreads the cost out over five years for resurfacing or 10 years for concrete work, but an additional 4% fee that goes to the county.
I hope this sheds some light on the assessment process but if you have additional questions, feel free to contact me or the assessment office at 330–375–2484.