Release Date: May 20,2021
Downtown Akron Partnership Announces Summer Fitness Programs, Tours, Roller Skating and Music
May 20, 2021, Akron, Ohio — Downtown Akron Partnership (DAP) announced its schedule for summer fitness programs, downtown tours, roller skating and live music, and hinted at plans in the works for games and a mobile creativity cart. The offerings are free and open to all; DAP recommends that participants register in advance for fitness programs, which include yoga, doggie bootcamp, taiji (tai chi), kickboxing, line dancing, Zumba and DrumFIT. A different program will be offered every day of the week. Details are available at downtownakron.com/summer, and the daily schedule is listed below.
DAP Director of Engagement and Events, Kelli Fetter said, “We are excited to offer fun and accessible programming for everyone in our community in downtown Akron, and we want to invite everyone to visit. We’ve added some fun new classes to our fitness offerings, like kickboxing with Black2Life Fitness Ministry, taiji from local Shifu Gary Harris, and Thank Dog! Bootcamp for our four legged friends and their humans.”
DAP will be tailoring all of the events to follow health recommendations of the Summit County Board of Health, along with state and federal guidelines.
Roller skating Returns
For eight weeks on Saturdays, DAP will host roller skating on Cascade Plaza, with four weeks of family skates and four weeks of skate night for grownups with DJ group Phuture Boogie.
“We wanted the adult nights to be real parties, so we are working with Phuture Boogie (Forrest Getemgump, Darrell Stout and Andre Leone), who were inspired by the successful Soul Skate events in Detroit and wanted to bring that vibe to Akron,” said Fetter.
“Growing up in the 70s and 80s Downtown was always the place on Saturday,” said Forrest “Getemgump” Webb. “Having a roller-skating event in the middle of downtown on a Saturday evening is a great way to relive some of that and bring people together in a fun way. We thought it was time to revisit, reimagine and reclaim the time to boogie, whether it’s by skates or just people coming to groove!”
Tours
In addition to fitness and roller skating, DAP is showing off the new aspects of Main St. this summer with hour-long walking, biking and scooter tours. There are even walking tours of the Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA), which opens a portion of Main St. and Locks 2, 3 and 4 for adults to carry and enjoy open alcoholic beverages sold in specially designated DORA cups.
Scooter and biking tours introduce participants to the downtown Cycletrack, along with public art, development projects and downtown businesses, and walking tours can go a bit more in depth with details about downtown development and public space.
More music in the air
DAP has scheduled an eclectic line up of solo performers to perform in the Northside Green from 6 – 7 p.m. on Saturdays from May 22 through September 4. The musical genres you can expect to hear range from Irish fiddle, to genre-expanding hip-hop, to classical music and more.
The performers will use the EarthQuaker Devices Seismic Station, a portable, amplified busking station that comes in a custom-made cabinet on wheels which includes a mic, a stool, chalkboard sign, rechargeable battery-powered amp and four EarthQuaker Devices effects pedals. The Seismic Station debuted last summer in Northside Green and is available to any musician to check out for impromptu concerts in the Northside Green from Tuesday – Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
More to come?
“In addition to classes and events, we’re going to encourage some work breaks on Main St. at Lock 3 with numerous self-guided games, like Jenga, Giant Connect 4, and cornhole,” Fetter said. “We may be lining up some times for participants to challenge a few special mystery opponents at the games. Also, in mid- to late June look for two very colorful, mobile additions to the downtown environment that will encourage everyone to “try” something new this summer (hint hint!).”
Summer Downtown Programs
Sundays, June 6 – Sept. 26
Line Dancing with JustUs Line Dance Crew • 4 – 5 p.m. • Lock 3
Tuesdays, June 1 – Sept. 28
Practice yoga with Yoga Squared • 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. • Lock 3
Thank Dog! Bootcamp and dog obedience • 7 – 8 p.m. • Lock 3
Thursdays, June 3 – Sept. 30
24 Forms Yang Style Taiji class, can be played standing or while seated in a chair • 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. • Cascade Plaza
Black2Life Fitness Ministry leads kickboxing class • 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. • Cascade Plaza
Line Dancing with JustUs Line Dance Crew • 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. • Cascade Plaza
Saturdays
Zumba with Instructor Christy Leenheer • June 5, 12; July 25; Aug. 29; Sept. 26 • 9:30 – 10:30 a.m. • Cascade Plaza
DrumFIT with FitCamp • June 19; July 10; Sept. 11 • 9:30 – 10:30 a.m. • Cascade Plaza
Family Roller Skating • June 5; July 3; Aug. 7; Sept. 4 • 3 – 6 p.m. • Cascade Plaza
Skate Night with Phuture Boogie • June 19; July 17; Aug. 21; Sept. 18 • 6 – 9 p.m. • Cascade Plaza
Tours
Wednesdays
Lunchtime Walking Tours • June 9; July 14; Aug. 11; Sept. 8 • 12 – 1 p.m.
Rediscover Downtown Akron Biking Tours • June 16; July 21; Aug. 18 • 12 – 1 p.m.
Thursdays
DORA Walking Tours • June 10; July 15; Aug. 12 • 6 – 7 p.m.
Downtown Scooter Tours • May 20; June 17; July 15; Aug. 19; Sept. 16 • 6 - 7 p.m.
Live music at the Northside Green
Saturdays, May 22 – Sept. 4 • 6 – 7 p.m.
May 22: Holly Brunswick
May 29: Eric Bernhardt
June 5: Jul Big Green
June 12: James Marron
June 19: TBA
June 26: Shelby Olive
July 3: Trevor Matthews
July 10: Santino Palma
July 17: Ben Gage
July 24: Matthew Marton
July 31: TBA
August 7: TBA
August 14: Victor Samalot
August 21: TBA
August 28: Rachel Roberts
Sept. 4: TBA
Recess on Main
Wednesdays and Fridays • 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. • Main St. at Lock 3
Get outside for a break and enjoy lawn games like cornhole, giant Connect 4, Jenga and more.
Support for summer programming is provided by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Ohio Arts Council.
Find out more about Downtown Akron Partnership. Follow us at www.downtownakron.com, and on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.