Twinsburg Revives Community Thanksgiving, Sets Liberty Road Trail Ribbon Cutting and Recaps State Data Center Debate

Twinsburg City Council met Oct. 13 at the Twinsburg Government Center. A 7 p.m. caucus came before the regular meeting, and all seven members were present. The night brought news of a community Thanksgiving meal and a date for the new trail’s grand opening. Two council members also urged support for a ballot issue. Community Thanksgiving Returns 400 Meals Planned for Nov. 24 A Community Center staff member announced the Community of Twinsburg Giving Back Thanksgiving Meal during caucus. The dinner is set for Tuesday, Nov. 24, at the Twinsburg Community Center. Organizers plan to serve 400 meals. It has been a few years since the city offered a community Thanksgiving meal, she said. More families are struggling, and more people are dealing with loneliness and isolation. Those needs made the meal essential this year, she said. There will be two seatings, at 4 and 6 p.m. The later time is meant for people who are still working. Registration opens Monday, Oct. 26. People can sign up online or at the Community Center, which is open weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Each household should choose only one seating. Both residents and nonresidents are welcome. Mayor Sam Scaffide will greet guests as they arrive. Local Partners Step Up Partners include: Twinsburg Garden Club Post Road United Methodist Church Twinsburg Congregational Church Journey Church Home Appliance American Coffee Company Tasty Takeouts Tasty Takeouts, located in Oakwood, will cater the turkey, stuffing and gravy. Food will arrive separately for each seating so it stays hot. Home Appliance is baking all the pumpkin pies. The staff member credited Tasty Takeouts with delivering meals to seniors at Arbor Glen senior apartments during COVID. Partners are covering costs or donating goods. Monetary donations can also help offset expenses, she said. Councilman Chuck Bonacci praised a September cooking class the city held with Home Appliance. The two are partnering again on a Pizza and Me class, where parents and children make pizza together. Liberty Road Trail Ribbon Cutting and Bike With the Mayor Set for Oct. 24 The city will cut the ribbon on the Liberty Road trail on Saturday, Oct. 24. The ceremony also launches Bike With the Mayor, a new event the city hopes to hold every year. Here is how the morning will run: 9:30 a.m.: Sign in at the pavilion at Liberty Park. There is no preregistration, but every rider must sign a waiver. 10 a.m.: Ribbon cutting, followed right away by the ride. Route: Riders travel from Liberty Park to the Nature Center and back. The round trip is about 3.5 miles. After the ride: Pizza, snacks and drinks at the pavilion. Electric bikes are not allowed. Scaffide first said walkers were welcome, then corrected himself later in the meeting. For safety, this first event is for bicycles only. He said walkers can join future rides. Scaffide said the trail cost $2 million, and ODOT covered 80% of it. He noted it was the first grant the city engineer won for Twinsburg, while still serving as assistant engineer. Fixes Coming for the Northern Half Scaffide called the trail unofficially complete because punch list items remain. He held an online meeting that day with the contractor, the installer and the material’s manufacturer. More work is coming, he said. At caucus, the city engineer said the northern half rides rougher than the southern half. The contractor may add an overlay to smooth that surface and even out the edges. Crews hydroseeded the grass along the trail the week before the meeting. Scaffide planned to ride the trail himself on Oct. 14 with the city engineer. He joked that the hill near the route will be his biggest challenge. Data Centers Debated at State Conference At large Councilman Shaun Castillo reported on the Ohio Municipal League’s annual conference in Columbus. One session was a two hour debate on the pros and cons of data centers. Castillo said many of the conference topics have also come up in Twinsburg’s council chambers and across the state. Other sessions covered artificial intelligence in local government and home rule legal updates. The USDA also presented on grants and other opportunities it offers communities. Castillo thanked council for allowing him to attend. Issue 38 Draws Council Support Councilman Bill Furey said the city cannot take a position on ballot issues. Speaking as a resident, he asked voters to support Issue 38. He said a family bought a house from a church on Post Road. Church property in Twinsburg is zoned PUD, which he described as a public use designation. The home still carries that zoning. Without a change, the family cannot easily sell, add on or get building permits. Changes to that zoning go to voters, with a ward veto, Furey said. Issue 38 would place the home in a residential district. Furey called it a simple correction, and signs supporting it are posted around the city. Councilwoman Karen Labbe said the property is in her ward. She described the owners as a local family w