Akron City Council finalized the Highland Square Special Improvement District Monday, requiring that businesses in the district be billed for the safety and beautification services the SID is expected to provide.
The approval comes on the heels of five Highland Square property owners on West Market Street — who were not among the 11 businesses that signed the petition to create the SID — objecting to and appealing the special assessments.
While creating an SID for the neighborhood was discussed in October 2025 following the shooting death of a bystander outside the area’s popular cluster of bars, the first official steps to establish the Highland Square SID were taken in July by Akron City Council.
It approved the collection of $100,000 annually over three years, on top of property taxes, from building owners located on a key quarter-mile stretch of West Market Street that frequently draws significant crowds and occasional incidents of violence on weekend nights…