Rock the Park

One of the shining jewels in the crown of Twinsburg’s Director of Parks and Recreations is Rock the Park. The successful concert series has been delighting attendees of all ages since 2009. Local musical luminaries, the Cleveland Orchestra, and Michael Stanley (along with many others) have graced the Perici Amphitheater stage, one of Twinsburg’s hidden gems, tucked away in the far reaches of Glen Chamberlin Park. The amphitheater, which resembles a miniature Blossom Music Center, can accommodate 1,500 attendees and often is filled to capacity for these popular performances.

As is often the case, the series started on a much smaller scale: in the summer of 2009, a concert geared exclusively toward adults was scheduled at the community outdoor pool, but with the murder of Officer Josh Miktarian it quickly morphed into a benefit for the fallen hero. The outpouring of support from the community  was tremendous and the following year three concerts were planned at the amphitheater, a mere two hundred yards from its original locale. At present, the event offers not only musical acts, but a wide assortment of edibles and beverages, including some that are courtesy of food trucks. Arguably 2015 was the event’s most successful year to date as six concerts drew seven thousand attendees during the sultry summer months.

Reminderville PD Help Thwart Russian Mob

A massive marijuana pipeline (at an estimated worth of $27 million) run by a loosely linked network of Russian criminals (with possible, though unlikely, Russian mob ties) was thwarted, in part due to the hard work of the Reminderville PD. The pipeline ran from a St. Regis Mohawk Reservation on the New York/Canada border to Northeast Ohio. Both the Reminderville and Beachwood police departments worked closely with federal agents and police in New York to plug up the pipeline.

The cretinous crew’s crimes were not confined to simply cannabis running, they also stole from computer buyers and insurance companies, and were responsible for a lengthy list of scams and extortion schemes in Northeast Ohio over a number of years. According to numerous articles in the Plain Dealer, the investigations commenced in Beachwood and Reminderville, and it was police from these suburbs who identified a suspect from Stockholm, New York, early in the process. Not long after, the suspect, who made biweekly deliveries between New York and Ohio, was murdered. The investigation continued with the aid of wiretaps and surveillance, eventually leading to the arrests of three Cleveland-area residents for trafficking in 2008.

Glenwood Acres

Few things can spur growth and development in a small town like the construction of a company in need of thousands of local employees. Taxes are generated, jobs created, and area infrastructure receives much needed improvements. The construction of the Glenwood Acres subdivision is an example of one such development. Preparations began shortly after the announcement that Chrysler was pulling its automotive plant out of nearby Macedonia and shifting its gaze to Twinsburg. When construction was complete, the development would boast more than four hundred low-cost houses. With the influx of new residents moving to the area in search of good jobs, few could overlook the housing opportunity afforded by Glenwood Acres. Residents began moving in the week of November 11, 1956, according to the Twinsburg Bulletin.

The Acres was not without its shortcomings. During a city council meeting just four months after occupancy began, vocal residents of the newly created subdivision brought their frustration to light, demanding something be done to improve upon the poor quality of the roads. However, their grievances went unaddressed. Records for 1958 indicate that voter turnout in Ward 1, which consisted of Glenwood Acres, was higher than that in the other four wards combined. The prolonged back-and-forth between City Council and the residents continued into the 1970s with issues of adequate sewage and sidewalks in need of attention. Sixty years have passed since the first residents arrived in Glenwood Acres, and in the intervening time these issues have been addressed one by one.

Educational Facilities

The pages of history record and recall stories and statistics of the earliest schoolhouses to dot the countryside, these antiquated institutes of learning were long vacant by the time the first truly modern school came into being. While the first centralized school brought all the students under one roof, it was the “Old School” that many remember so fondly.

The source of countless lessons learned and friendships forged, the old schoolhouse located just off the town square served the area’s children for nearly seventy-five years. Welcoming its first students in the fall of 1921, the two-story red brick schoolhouse was a replacement for the older, whitewashed building that once stood behind it. Games were won and lost, field trips were taken, and countless bells rang, signaling the end of one period and the beginning of another. For more than thirty years, the school served all grades from kindergarten through twelfth grade. The edifice, now vacant, evolved in numerous ways after closing its doors in 1992, including its utilization by Kent State University. Congressman Steven LaTourette used the space while campaigning, it was the first location of the Twinsburg Senior Center, and at one point a proposal to transform it into a perambulator museum was bounced around.

Exterior of vacant school building taken April 26, 2016.

Exterior of vacant school building taken April 26, 2016.

All of Twinsburg’s current educational facilities except the new high school and the Kent State University Regional Academic Center were constructed in the mid-twentieth century, a time rampant with civil unrest and racial tensions. For those who attended area schools during this time, race relations were present, though subdued in comparison to other areas of the country. As is the case with most things though, time’s passage washed away much of the tension, as new students, new initiatives, and new administration came and went. As our world grows increasing diverse, so too does the student body. Individuals from all corners of the world converge amid the lockers and lunch tables, mirroring the melding of ethnicities, nationalities, ideologies, and opinions that occurs on the web on a daily basis. Today, most school-age students from the three communities attend school in one of five facilities:

  • Wilcox Primary (kindergarten through first grade)
  • Samuel Bissell (second and third grade)
  • George G. Dodge (fourth through sixth grade)
  • R. B. Chamberlin (seventh and eighth grade)
  • Twinsburg High (ninth through twelfth grade)

The newest addition to Twinsburg’s educational landscape is Kent State’s Regional Academic Center. It offers a less expensive alternative for college students from both Twinsburg and neighboring cities such as Oakwood and Bedford. The building is LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified as a “green” building. Kent State University has had a presence in Twinsburg since 1991, when it began offering training and education to employees at the Chrysler stamping plant.

Forest City Erectors, Inc.

In the winter of 1958 Jim Mirgliotta, an ironworker at the time, was working on a high-level bridge that connects Cuyahoga Falls to Akron, when the improperly installed falsework holding up part of the arch behind him became unhinged, causing the structure to nearly collapse. This sort of occurrence was commonplace in the era before OSHAA regulated the construction business. Danger lurked at every corner, often with little guarantee of a steady paycheck.

Mr. Mirgliotta, who was stranded 180 feet in the air at the time of the collapse without any safety apparatus to impede his fall, miraculously suffered no injuries.  Following this near-death experience and tired of dealing with the instability and danger that comprise the life of an ironworker, Mirgliotta decided to start a company. So in 1959 with the help and advice of a good friend, he started Park Iron Erectors.

Just a short time later, in 1961, Mr. Mirgliotta and his wife Betty were able to purchase fifty percent of a struggling Cleveland-based steel erector company, Forest City Erectors. Prior to their purchase the business was a “sad affair” (Mirgliotta, 00:33:38). After buying out his partner in 1970, Jim sold fifty-one percent of Forest City Erectors to his wife Betty, thus qualifying it as a Woman owned, Female Business Enterprise (FBE). In 1980 the business was relocated to its current home in Twinsburg’s Industrial Park. A move that made great sense for the Mirgliotta’s who were among the first residents of Glenwood Acres when it opened in the 1950s.

Under the dual helm ship of Jim and Betty Mirgliotta the business prospered and is now one of the largest full service structural steel & construction material erection providers in the state of Ohio. They have been involved in the building and renovation of such Cleveland-area landmarks as First Energy Stadium, Cleveland Clinic, Medical Mart, and Cuyahoga County Hilton Hotel.

Community Theatre

For the vast majority of the three communities’ two hundred years of existence, there was a lack of local theater in the area. That all changed in December 1996, when the Twinsburg Youth Theatre debuted with a production of Babes in Toyland. First conceived in 1994 by Meredith Shreve, the youth theater started its transformation into a multigenerational community theater in 2001 after many adults approached Shreve with their desire to perform onstage. Before the 2001 production of Annie, adults only worked behind the scenes, building sets, dropping backgrounds, and so forth.

Shreve, originally from Cleveland, moved to Twinsburg in 1993; soon after her arrival she started serving on the Parks and Recreation Commission, in part due to her realization that there was no community theater. In particular, she recognized the importance of a theater program for children. According to Shreve, “Theater is a very great way for kids to have some activity and earn self-confidence and grow within themselves and express themselves.”

Thousands of adults and children have been involved in the community theater over the first twenty years of its existence. Almost all of them have participated solely for their love of the arts and sense of community, as there has never been any financial compensation. It is a nonprofit endeavor that pays for all the necessities in putting on a top-flight musical production via ticket sales, concessions, program sales, and fees paid by performers. All of these proceeds go toward funding expenditures such as royalties, rigging systems, choreographers, costumes, and other related requirements.

The productions have often been mounted on a grand scale, with as many as 120 people working on a single musical. World-renowned Hall Associates Flying FX supplied their exceptional effects for the flying sequences in Peter Pan.

One of the drawbacks to the community theater is that it is financed in part by a pay-to-perform platform, as all performers must pay a fee of fifty dollars to act in a production. This reduces the opportunity of underprivileged youths to participate in the community arts program. For those who have had the good fortune to participate in the community theater, it has brought great joy, a sense of achievement, and lifelong rewarding relationships with their fellow performers.

If there is any doubt as to the community theater’s positive effect on Twinsburg, it should be quelled by Mayor Katherine Procop’s statement that she couldn’t think of  anyone who has brought more joy to the community than Meredith Shreve, through her devotion to the theater.

Twinsburg Community Theatre commemorated its twentieth anniversary in 2016 with a musical revue, a first for the theater. The production celebrates twenty years of Broadway, including fan favorites Wicked, The Little Mermaid, and Phantom of the Opera.

Joshua Miktarian, Police Dept.

Violent crime is almost nonexistent in the three communities. According to statistics compiled by the FBI there were only ten violent crimes committed in Twinsburg in 2012 (the latest statistic compiled). This makes the tragic and senseless events of July 13, 2008, all the more startling and harrowing.

Around two a.m. on that fateful day, Officer Joshua T. Miktarian, a Twinsburg police officer of eleven years, pulled over motorist Ashford Thompson, who was playing music at a deafening decibel level and possibly driving under the influence. The incident transpired right in front of a home at 2454 Glenwood Drive, near Route 91. What must have initially seemed like a relatively routine traffic stop soon turned serious and deadly: mere minutes after Officer Miktarian radioed for backup, he was shot several times in the head by Thompson. Miktarian’s beloved canine compadre Bagio watched helpelessly, locked in the patrol car and unable to intervene in the absurd altercation. Less than an hour later Miktarian was pronounced dead at MetroHealth Medical Center.

Police Chief Chris Noga has referred to the slaying of Officer Miktarian as “the darkest day of my career.” Noga and Miktarian had started in the department within a week of each other and were close friends. Seeing a fellow officer slain is never easy, much less someone you’ve worked side by side with for eleven years.

According to Katherine Procop, mayor at the time of the murder: “It was absolutely devastating to the police force, and community. There is truly not a day that goes by I don’t think about Josh.” Such was the effect that Josh had during his too-brief tenure on this Earth. Sporting a mischievous grin, infectious sense of humor, and magnetic personality, the devoted husband and father was beloved by his fellow police officers and the community as a whole. “Josh was one of the few young persons who used to really respect the older guys . . . like myself,” said retired police officer Joe Jasany.

His interests and activities were varied, as illustrated by his ownership of a Gionino’s Pizza restaurant and his dual duties as guitarist and songwriter for the heavy metal band Barium. He is survived by his wife Holly and their daughter Thea, only three months old at the time of the murder.

Salamander Run

“Twinsburg’s most popular outdoor nature adventure” is the salamander crossing, annually occurring in Center Valley Park. (Almost) every spring since the early 2000s the salamander migration has been documented by Stanley Stine, city of Twinsburg naturalist.

Belonging to the mole salamander family, the spotted salamander lives underground for the vast majority of the year, using holes dug by mice, chipmunks, and even crayfish to get away on a hot summer afternoons or hibernate for the winter. These intriguing, innovative amphibians emerge at the start of each spring scurrying to the same vernal pools in the Twinsburg wetlands to lay their eggs. Spotted salamanders, bespeckled with orangish-yellow spots, must lay their eggs in temporary pools as opposed to permanent bodies of water as the fish that occupy larger bodies of water would devour all the eggs and possibly the adult salamanders as well. Thanks to the efforts of Mr. Stine this wondrous natural phenomenon has been witnessed by many residents who otherwise would have been unaware this annual event occurs in their hometown.

The Salamander and Frog Festival, an indoor event that Stine also initiated, precedes the salamander migration. Whereas the crossing adventure is geared towards people of all ages the Salamander and Frog Festival piques the interest and educates wee little ones via games, coloring contests and various other arts and crafts.