The Akron Beacon Journal from Akron, Ohio • Page 15

Thursday, May 22, 1986 Akron Beacon Journal A15 Life on route a mixture Fa worry, 1 VS I I By Barbara Galloway Beacon Journal staff writer The reactions of residents along the Hands Across America route range from disbelief and delight that a national event is being staged in front of their homes to fears of trampled corn crops and strange people asking to use their bathrooms. "We're kind of excited," said Janice Raber, who lives on Ohio 173 in Stark County's Marlboro Township. "We figured if they need people, we'll go out and join hands." She says her daughter, Tammy, has heard all about the campaign to raise $50 million for the hungry and homeless, and is especially proud that the hand-holding will take place in front of their farmhouse. Mrs. Raber, a nurse at Timken Mercy Medical Center in Canton, says her husband, Bruce, farms about 1,600 acres with his brother, Dwight.

There are green fields of hay and newly sprouting corn as far as the eye can see on this stretch of the road. But aside from their neighbors' house right across their street, the Rabers' house is the only house for a mile either way. Mrs. Raber says they'll probably let people use their bathroom or get a drink of water, since no other facilities are available. Elton "Tony" Schneider, who, with his sons, Mike and Jim, operates the feed mill his father Dave Swartz and son, Dave Beacon Journal photo by Lew Stamp say they'll watch the line as it passes along Middlebranch Avenue in Stark County Area police fear human chain will be be forming just a few feet from the bay window of her mobile home.

"If it's a good cause, I'm for it," she said. Richard McCombs and his wife, Hazel, also weren't aware that the line was going past their house on Ohio 91 (Darrow Road) in the Ellet neighborhood of Akron, where they have lived for 35 years. He looked at the road over by his neatly arranged flower beds and shook his head. "It's going to take a lot of people hand-in-hand," he said. "I a major officers for security, later declined to do so.

Instead, the city police will pay five off-duty officers. In addition, nine regular officers will work overtime for the event. The city will close sections of Cherry Street, Moga-dore Road, West Summit Street, Franklin Avenue, West Main Street and one northbound lane of Ohio 43. AKRON: Traffic Bureau spokesman Sgt. Phillip Dye said the city would supply a police officer at each intersection on the 2te-mile route through the city's southeast side on Canton Road.

This will require about 25 officers on foot, at a cost to the city of about $60 per officer. Intersections will be blocked during the event. SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP: Acting Police Chief Robert Blasdel said his department would provide 17 officers on overtime to cover key intersections, plus eight barricades, along a three-mile stretch of Canton Road. Also, the department will have four roving supervisors in cruisers and two ex about litter, even though a discarded bottle could blow out a tractor tire that would cost hundreds of dollars to replace. "I get enough of that (litter) anyway," he said, grinning.

"Every spring, I go around picking it up before I start plowing. I usually get about half a truck load." Marge Rickenbacker, who with her husband, Tom, owns the cop-per-doored Bledsoe's Market on Cleveland Road and Ohio 619, said she never thought the line would come through Uniontown. "This is such a little town she said. the Hands line to form. "It (3 p.m.) is not one of our high traffic times, either in or out of the park," she said.

A spokeswoman for Geauga Lake said most of the amusement park's customers "come well before 3 p.m. so they can spend the whole day in the park, so there should be no exit or entrance problems for customers." Hands Across America had announced that state highway officials were posting 15 mph speed limits for state highways during the event, but George had not heard of any change in the speed limit through Aurora. Today ODOT's Ziegler said there would be no speed-limit alterations. Portage County Sheriff Ross Jamerson is strongly backing the Hands event, department spokesman Lt. John Mazzola said.

"We will be covering the whole route," Mazzola said. "The sheriff has gone full out, pulling al don't know where they're going to get them all." Pearl and Edward Henderson also weren't aware the happening was going to be in front of their house on Darrow Road in Tall-madge. Henderson said he thought the route had been moved elsewhere. "If it's for a good cause, I'm all for that," Mrs. Henderson said, admitting she didn't know much about the campaign.

"I'm against things like this," her husband said. "I think someone's just out to make money." tangle tra-duty cars on patrol. The Hands Across America security company told him it would have some security personnel on hand, but he had no details, he said. MARLBORO: Police Chief Dennis Dev-ies said his department would patrol its six-mile segment with all available officers, working in cooperation with the township's mobile fire department, the Nimishillen Township fire department and the Stark County Alert emergency reaction unit. Traffic will be closed across the intersections of Columbus Road and Ohio 44 (Ravenna Avenue) and State Street during the event.

ALLIANCE: Police chief George D. Ziga said Hands Across America is supplying three olficers and the city is arranging for 25 auxiliary police volunteers to stand along the city's four-mile route. Traffic will be stopped, with barricades, along the route on U.S. 62 and through all north-south cross streets during the event. "Remodeling my kitchen could have been a troublesome project.

I wanted everything beauty, function and comfort the complete design. Because I went to Builder's Kitchens, things were much easier than I had thought they would be. Their professional staff helped me choose from a large selection of cabinets and appliances to achieve just the design I wanted. I recommend Builder's Kitchens to any one planning on remodeling their kitchen or bath. deli founded in 1927 at the intersection of Ohio 173 and Columbus Road Northeast, says someone from their operation definitely will be at the mill Sunday when the hand line stretches in front of it.

"We're afraid of somebody smoking or throwing a cigarette," he said. Such an action near a grain elevator, where corn is shelled from the cob daily and particles of grain dust constantly float in the air, could result in a tremendous and fatal explosion. The Schneiders wondered where all these people are going to park. Some can park in a vacant field near the mill, they said as long as the drivers are careful not to get stuck in the mud. Dave Swartz and his son, Dave who recently celebrated his fourth birthday, had planned to leave for the weekend.

"We were going away for the weekend, but since this is going by, we decided to stick around and watch," Swartz said. He and his family farm about 800 acres on the corner of Ohio 173 and Mjddlebranch Avenue in Lake Township. He says he's a little worried about people parking in their farm fields, tearing out the alfalfa plants that are just about ready for harvest and crunching the corn that's just starting to come up. He says he's not as concerned block off Tallmadge Circle just before 3 p.m. Sunday, reopening it after the 15-minute mass demonstration ends.

"The mile coordinators for Hands Across America are supposed to take care of the parking," Gault said. "Certain parts of Tallmadge are going to be OK, but certain parts are going to be difficult. Gault said besides residents' fears of littering and parking bottlenecks, a sore point is that the Hands route passing through Tallmadge Circle was reserved for people sponsored by Coca-Cola of Ohio, WKDD Radio and West Chevrolet. "I would think that at least the focal point (of the Tallmadge route) would be reserved for(resi-dents here," he said. Coca-Cola spokeswoman Barbara Wilkins said the company had committed itself early in the Hands campaign to fill one segment leaving from Tallmadge Circle, providing spaces in the line for Explorer Scouts, foster families from the Summit County Children Services Board and other groups.

The rest of the segment will be filled with Coca-Cola customers, sales representatives and advertising employees. In Portage County, Aurora Police Chief Ted George said he was concerned about traffic traveling Ohio 43 to Sea World and Geauga Lake. Aurora police are responsible for the safety of six miles of the Hands route and will provide six extra officers for the event. Hands Across America is providing one security officer for every two miles. "We are asking everybody to be especially cautious," George said.

"It's going to be very I'm just hoping nobody get's injured walking on the roads." Geauga Lake and Sea World officials say they see no problems with the Hands route passing through Aurora. A mile of the line will actually pass through the Sea World park. Sea World spokesman Terri Drohan said most Sea World customers already are in the park well before the 3 p.m. time for is probably because of a lack of knowledge on the part of the people as to what things are available," Reagan said. "Not only is the government doing much in that line, but there has been about a three-time increase in private charity and aid in our country," Reagan said, adding that private donations to charity were $79.8 billion in 1985.

Reagan made the comments in a 30-minute session with 117 students from various parts of, the country. The meeting was sponsored by the "Close Up" Foundation, a non-partisan organization that gives students a chance to study the federal government. What do business leaders say about Builder's Kitchens? Continued from page Al cers, in addition to its usual Sunday detail of eight. "I haven't even projected the 'cost of the overtime yet," Umble- by said. He said that originally, Matt-, man Security had told the county that Hands Across America i would hire security officers (off-duty police officers) to stand at every mile along the route.

But the route was changed and financial projections were altered. By last week, Hands organizers said 'they could afford to hire only three officers to patrol the 17 miles. Lt. Ken Marshall of the Massil-i. Ion post of the Ohio Highway Pa-trol said his department would have 80 percent of its manpower the road Sunday without assigning any extra to the Hands detail.

Two patrolmen will roam the Hands route in Stark County, he said. Communications among traffic "officials are still up in the air. Z. "We've been told by Hands Across America that state Route .173 would be closed by the Ohio "Department of Transportation," Marshall said. "ODOT hasn't told us it is going to be closed.

lt ODOT Division 4 operations chief Robert Ziegler said today Ohio 173 traffic would be detoured from the U.S. 62 bypass west to Alliance, over to Ohio 44 "tor 4l2 miles during the event. That will be the only state high-way detour in this area, he said, and will avoid the stretch known as "Mutt and Jeff Hill." "We're going to handle the situation as best as we can," Marshall said. "We had had conversations with Mattman Security and the Hands organizers, and, quite frankly, neither one of them "knows what the other is doing." Tallmadge Police Chief Gale Gault said parking is going to be a "very serious problem" for participants and residents near Tall-'madge Circle, a focal point for the area event. Tallmadge police, assisted by three off-duty officers hired by "Hands Across America, will be "responsible for 4.8 miles of the route.

The police department will Mrs. Rickenbacker said the store, an old-fashioned corner enterprise with deer, bgar and antelope trophies on the wall, probably will be closed Sunday. "We don't usually open on Sunday," she said, shrugging. She said she doesn't know whether she will stand in line, "but I've got four or five grand-kids and I might try to get them in. This is something they can remember for a long time." Zelma Ryan, who lives in Mace's Mobile Estates on Cleveland Avenue, said she wasn't aware that a line of people would most every unit that we have to assist on this." The Portage deputies will supply 33 officers, providing police protection every quarter-mile along the 20 miles in unincorporated areas of the county route.

They will work with a command post in Kent, and Kent police will take over the patrol in Kent. Here are reports from other departments with responsibilities for safety along the route: SOLON: Police Chief Robert Bruckner i is concerned about the intersection ol Ohio 9 1 and Ohio 43, east o( the city, a major intersection for traffic going to Sea World and Geauga Lake. Hands Across America is providing one security officer per mile through the city, and Solon is paying 16 auxiliary officers to work the event. STREETSBORO: Police Chief James Brown said he was satisfied with arrangements for patrolling the city's five miles on the route. Hands Across America has promised one security person per mile, and the city will assist with 12 officers and eight cruisers up from its usual detail of two officers and two cruisers.

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