Committee gives favorable report to resolution urging Schneider Park be renamed a memorial

A council committee voted to give a favorable report to a resolution urging the director of public service to rename Schneider Park to memorialize those buried there and to declare the measure an emergency.

Councilwoman Davis, sponsor of the resolution, framed it as recognition of “the sacred history of that land” and credited long-term volunteers and researchers for bringing the issue to the council’s attention. ‘‘This effort has been years in the making,’’ she said, thanking advocates who have worked six to seven years to press the issue.

Dr. Berman presented archival and aerial evidence showing that the park sits on ground used as a poor farm and infirmary burial ground. He said a 2017 University of Akron subsurface mapping study reveals neatly laid-out burial signatures visible from drone imagery and that the Summit County Public Library provided 308 death certificates covering an 18-year span as documentary evidence of burials. ‘‘We have records…lots of them that show this,’’ Dr. Berman said, noting both institutional and potter's-field burials.

Neighbor Jane Greenland, who said she has lived across from the park for 32 years, described local discovery and organizing efforts and asked the council to add "Memorial" to the park name and place a plaque or granite marker explaining the history. ‘‘Maybe we get city council to change the name from Schneider Park to Schneider Memorial Park…then people will wonder, why is it a memorial park? And then we'll tell them a story,’’ Greenland said, and gave a rough estimate for a marker or stone in the $4,000'$4,500 range.

Council members asked about the park's legal protections and the origin of the Schneider name. Staff and presenters pointed to local historical research (including a book by a local historian) and said deed language likely restricts structures on the park but that the precise legal duration or any covenant expiration was unclear. One staff member said the deed restriction appears to prohibit structures on the land but could not specify time limits.

After discussion, a committee member moved for a favorable report; the committee voted in the affirmative and placed the resolution on the consent agenda to be considered by full council this evening.

What happens next: The resolution will appear on the city council's consent agenda; proponents said they plan to apply for small historical-marker grants and pursue fundraising for a stone or plaque in parallel.

Speakers quoted in this article are drawn from the committee meeting record and include Councilwoman Davis, Dr. Berman, and resident Jane Greenland.