One of Akron’s historic canal locks has gotten a makeover.
Every day walkers, cyclists and runners use the Towpath Trail that winds through Akron. Many like to stop and sit by a tranquil waterfall near Canal Park.
“It’s kind of a tiny park along the Towpath Trail and Canal. If listeners are regular trail users, they might have passed it and not necessarily seen it," Katelyn Freil with the Ohio and Erie Canalway Coalition said.
The park was redesigned this summer to be an intimate place for conversations or losing oneself in a book. There are string lights overhead and brightly colored tables and chairs set up cafe-style.
“We just kind of wanted to make it feel more like a living room," says Freil.
The $25,000 makeover is part of the Reimagining the Civic Commons Project, a revitalization program for a handful of cities nationwide.
Freil says spaces in South Akron at Park East and Summit Lake are currently being revamped as part of the three-year project.
