While the sudden departure of the head of the University Park Alliance came as a surprise, it should not jeopardize any projects or the overall mission of the organization, neighborhood group leaders said.
Eric Anthony Johnson said April 4 he was leaving as executive director to care for his ill mother in Kansas. Johnson joined UPA in the summer of 2010, coming from the Cleveland Port Authority, where he was in charge of the redevelopment of the Cleveland waterfront. He left almost immediately to begin caring for his mother.
UPA, a nonprofit group, is working on redevelopment of 50 city blocks around the University of Akron. A few months before Johnson’s hiring, UPA merged with the University Park Development Corp. to create a new organization.
In May 2011, UPA announced what it called a master plan for four geographic districts along three main roads — Exchange Street, Main Street and Market Street.
On Thursday, UPA named civic activist and recently retired Akron Deputy Mayor Dave Lieberth to be a consultant for the organization, to help oversee the organization’s strategy and direction on a temporary basis and shepherd the real estate projects forward. The board has also asked UPA Chief of Staff Carol A. Murphy to continue to oversee UPA’s community engagement projects and oversee day-to-day operations.
Lieberth will not act as an interim director and is not interested in the permanent job. UPA Board President David James, who is the Akron Public Schools superintendent, said the organization likely won’t begin its search for Johnson’s replacement until June.
Johnson’s departure is “definitely a bump in the road” but doesn’t hurt projects, said Tony O’Leary, executive director of Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority. O’Leary served as UPA board chairman for two years with Johnson and before Johnson’s arrival.
“There’s a certain amount of risk associated with all projects,” said O’Leary. But UPA board members have been active in working with Johnson and other consultants on projects and “it’ll be relatively easy to pick those up where they are and what they need to be done,” he said.
Akron would suffer from Johnson’s departure if there wasn’t a plan already in place, said Stanton Eckstut, a principal with EE&K.
Eckstut served as lead planner for the development of the UPA plan and his firm has designed many successful urban revitalization projects, including New York City’s Battery Park and Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.
“I remain very optimistic and I believe what Eric created was a truly creative, practical plan. It’s just going to take time to develop,” said Eckstut. “We’re sorry to see Eric go. I think he was a true force where others may not have really tried. We are where we are because of his push and sense of what’s possible and sensible.”
University Square
Eckstut remains the lead architect for UPA’s pending project in University Square near the University of Akron on East Exchange Street. The project is still being discussed and details haven’t been unveiled, but in general the area is to be “mixed use,” with multifamily housing and businesses, he said.
Johnson said his replacement can be successful “if they follow the basis of the master plan. The master plan is a good document. It lays the path forward.”
Johnson said flexibility is a key, citing a change in plans for student housing in University Square to multifamily dwelling as it became clear that private developers were saturating the market for off-campus student housing.
“There’s a greater market in multifamily. That’s probably better for the community at large,” Johnson said in a telephone interview from Kansas.
Family illness
Johnson said the family illness was his reason for leaving and he would have remained in Akron otherwise. “I’m not a person who shies away from a challenge,” he said.
The job requires “almost your entire skill set being brought to bear on a day-to-day basis,” he said.
O’Leary said Johnson would tell him of job offers or invitations to interview, but there was nothing imminent. O’Leary also said Johnson told him recently that he intended to stay for several years.
“It’s a tense time. There are a number of high-profile projects that have not happened yet that hopefully will happen. He didn’t state this to me, but I’m getting the impression he couldn’t do justice to both his family and demands of the project. The only frustration I’ve heard from him over the couple of years we’ve worked together is that things never move as quickly as we would like. In the development world, there’s lots of starts and stops,” O’Leary said.
Johnson said the plan was designed to bring multiple, noncompeting projects throughout the area over the years through 2030.
O’Leary said the board was pleased with Johnson’s work. He acknowledged there were some complaints, such as developers who were unhappy they didn’t receive a subsidy or people who said Johnson didn’t return calls as quickly as they wanted. “It’s high pressure to be accountable to so many people,” said O’Leary.
Johnson leaves the organization with new funding. In December, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation awarded a nearly $8 million grant, including $6 million over five years and a $1.8 million low-interest loan for a development project on East Market Street near downtown.
Previously, there was a $10 million grant with the foundation wanting UPA to generate projects to sustain itself with financial help from local partners, said O’Leary. That’s been difficult with the economy, other commitments and financial cutbacks suffered by the partners and their budgets, he said. The alliance was formed in 2001 by the University of Akron, the city and Summa Health System. The partnership has grown to include participation from all three Akron hospitals (Summa, Akron General Health System and Akron Children’s Hospital), the university, the Akron Public Schools, city and county government and businesses.
The funding situation has meant a smaller UPA staff with Johnson acting like a “one-man band” at times, O’Leary said.
O’Leary said the board discussed the qualities needed in their next leader.
“When Eric came in, UPA was floundering completely. We had no master plan. That part is all done and a lot of money has been spent to put those pieces together. Now, you need more of a taskmaster to carry out the plan and get things done,” said O’Leary.
Updated salary
In 2012, Johnson was paid a salary of $144,000. A previous Beacon Journal article reported his salary was $60,000, which was for half of a year as reported in a federal tax return for a different time period.
The UPA’s first self-directed development is taking place at East Market and Forge streets. A newly constructed building is home to the Child Guidance & Family Services offices. A complex of retail, office and restaurant mixed-use buildings also is planned for the site, previously occupied by the Fred Martin Chevrolet auto dealership.
Officials said work continues on what is called the Community Neighborhood Network, made up of neighborhood residents, businesses and the faith community.
Betty Lin-Fisher can be reached at 330-996-3724 or blinfisher@thebeaconjournal.com.