Lock 3 Park Update: December 17, 2024

Thank you for following along with our hard hat update series for the Akron Civic Commons 2.0 Lock 3 Park Project! Our final video showcases the recently completed park and its elements.

Located in the center of Akron, and along the 101-mile Ohio & Erie Canalway and Towpath Trail, Lock 3 Park has been transformed into a premier park that is accessible, equitable, and welcoming for residents and visitors with the introduction of shaded seating, landscaped gardens, artwork, skating areas, and the world-class Maynard Performance Pavilion. The Lock 3 Vision Plan is a key component of the resident-led Akron Civic Commons 2.0 project that plans to build on the success of Lock 3 Park as an event, concert, and festival public space and develop a year-round park that is a destination for residents, guests, hikers, and bicyclists along the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail. Lock 3 was unveiled to the public on Friday, November 29 following the Welcome Santa Parade.

The redeveloped park includes the world-class Maynard Performance Pavilion, named after civic leader and philanthropist Phil Maynard; the Cleveland Clinic Akron General Towpath Trail that connects our neighborhoods; the sprawling Knight Lawn which offers an amazing view of the performance pavilion; the Richard and Frances Buchholzer Balcony that includes shaded seating; the Rogers Bloom Garden filled with flowering plants by the PNC Balcony; the Swensons Game Patio that contains the primary ice rink during the holidays and will be filled with vendors and concessions during festival and concert season; and the Cynthia and Landon Knight Hemlock Walk, which adds shade and a natural feel as guests meander between the entrance from Main Street down the pathway to the Maynard Performance Pavilion.

We are incredibly grateful and humbled by the support of our project partners and our generous donors who made this project possible.