There is something wrong with Akron’s public image. I can’t put my finger on it.

Is it that the city acts bigger than it is? better than it is? smaller than it is? worse than it is?

Whatever it is, it isn’t correct.

Often when I see or read something promoting the city, it just doesn’t look right. Akron needs to start being Akron.

Canals and rubber may have built this place, but these are ancient history. Yes, it is fun and good to remember these ideas and use them in fun promotion (e.g. I (tire) Arkon), but we Akronites need to start taking a look at what is really around us.

This city is cheap and affordable to live in.

There is diversity in our population.

There is quite a clear divide amongst our population and neighborhoods.

There aren’t a lot of good places to get a decent, healthy bite to eat. There are some.

The city is not bike-friendly. It is bikeable.

Akronites still need to go to Cleveland for certain cultural things. And farther still for others.

The commentaries on Ohio.com are widely out of sync with most people’s opinions.

There is a lot of hidden talent in this city.

Many people move away to discover or showcase their talents.

This isn’t the East Coast.

This isn’t the West Coast.

This is Northeast Ohio.

We have forests.

We have winters.

We have muggy summers.

Autumns are beautiful.

This is not a pessimistic view of the City at the Summit. This is not a dramatization of a city we wish we all lived in. This is thinking about where we live.

It doesn’t seem to help to paint a rosier picture of Akron when promoting it. Certainly things are moving in a good direction. There have been ups and downs over the last few decades. But the overall direction is up.

It’s time to start calling the city what it is. It’s dirty. It’s fun. It’s easy. It’s just another medium-sized American city where you can do almost anything you want. It’s Akron.

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