As Akron bids farewell to its bicentennial year it can also wave goodbye to the short-lived rubber worker logo.
During the city’s closing ceremony for its yearlong bicentennial celebration at Perkins Square on the Akron Children’s Hospital campus, Akron Mayor Shammas Malik unveiled a green and blue logo crafted with residents’ input and realized by Akron firm Pritt Entertainment Group.
“Every element of this design is a direct result of the feedback received throughout this process, and we’re excited to give the city a logo they can be proud of,” Malik said in a prepared statement following the Dec. 6 event. “So many respondents expressed during the engagement that Akron is home for them and that they are proud of where they come from. My hope is that this new symbol can be a rallying point for our community.”
In January, Akron and the Akron Bicentennial Committee formed a 10-person subcommittee to guide the process. Malik explained that the team engaged residents, helped choose a designer and more.
Malik said before taking office he received numerous questions about whether his administration would revise the rubber worker logo debuted by former Mayor Dan Horrigan near the end of his administration. Malik said he made a commitment to residents to revamp the logo “with community input and engagement at the heart of the process.”
The rubber worker logo was designed by former city communications and media supervisor Jake Bell, and it met with mixed reactions: Some loved it, others hated it.
The city allocated $50,000 in the 2025 budget toward the design of the logo.
The new logo will be used alongside the city’s All-America seal as Akron’s official insignia.
What do the elements in Akron’s new logo represent?
Malik explained the significance of the imagery featured on the new logo to the crowd gathered at Perkins Square despite the cold.
Blue and green, Malik said, were the colors residents said best fit Akron.
“Some of the biggest takeaways were that folks really appreciate and value the green and blue spaces here in Akron − our city parks and Summit Metro Parks,” he said, “our Cuyahoga Valley National Park, our Akron waterways.”
He pointed out a great blue heron standing on the bank of the river depicted in the logo. It represents “the power of change and rebirth,” he said. “As Akron has worked to clean up our waterways, it has brought back a variety of species of fish and birds, including the blue heron.”
Akron’s downtown skyline towers in the background to represent, he said, “not only businesses but redevelopment, innovation, investment and a focus on reinvention” and the city’s standing in the field of sustainable polymers.
The upward tilt of the text reading “The City of Akron Established 1825” honors the roots of Akron’s name. It comes from the Greek akros, meaning “high point “or “summit,” the city explained in its release.
To the left of the text above a depiction of two buckeye trees — Ohio’s official tree — a blue blimp stands out against the white background.
“We are proud of our roots,” Malik said, “and the blimp pays homage to Akron’s past as the ‘Rubber Capital of the World’ with a clear nod to The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company which has been headquartered in Akron since 1898.”
The ceremony was held at Perkins Square, Akron’s original public square when Gen. Simon Perkins and Paul Williams filed the plat map Dec. 6, 1825, and co-founded the village.
Contact reporter Derek Kreider at DKreider@Gannett.com or 330-541-9413.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Akron unveils new logo at bicentennial celebration closing ceremony
Reporting by Derek Kreider, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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