AKRONZoo CEO tappedAKRON: J. Patricia Simmons, president and chief executive officer of the Akron Zoological Park, has been chosen to join a leadership program to help solve problems facing the global cultural community.The National Arts Strategies Chief Executive Program is a two-year initiative involving 100 top executive leaders chosen to help solve problems facing the cultural industry. The leaders, selected from around the world, will examine how cultural institutions contribute to society and what steps can be taken to improve them. The program was developed through the support of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Fidelity Foundation and the Kresge Foundation. The leaders chosen to participate in the program were selected from a wide range of cultural forms, location, perspectives and experience levels.Leaf work delayedAKRON: The city’s scheduled start date to pick up leaves in Ward 2 has been pushed back from Friday to Monday.Deputy Service Director John Valle said the delay is needed because of the “excessive rain we’ve had since the leaf program began.”Crews are expected to spend two days in Ward 2 and move to Ward 5 next Wednesday.The city will post signs in tree lawns indicating when pickups are imminent. That is when residents are asked to put out their leaves.When crews have completed a first pass of each ward, they will respond to requests for a second pickup. Residents may call the 311 information line to request another pickup.cantONBrass shrinkingCANTON: The city expects to save $750,000 a year through expected reductions in fire department administrators through attrition.The city council approved Monday an administration request to reduce the number of division chiefs from two to one and captains from 34 to 28.All the reductions are expected to occur within two years as retirees are not replaced, according to Safety Director Thomas Ream.He said the trimming is possible because their are fewer firefighters to supervise.Also Monday, the council voted to make the supervisor of emergency dispatching a civilian position with a top salary of $94,126. The change was requested because the police officer currently in charge plans to retire, Ream said.COLUMBUSNew representativeCOLUMBUS: The Ohio House Republican Caucus is accepting applications to replace former Rep. Todd McKenney, R-New Franklin.McKenney was appointed earlier this month to serve as Summit County Probate Court judge. House Speaker William Batchelder, R-Medina, said interested residents living in the 43rd House District should send a letter of interest to him at 77 S. High St., 14th Floor, Columbus, OH 43215 by 5 p.m. Friday. Applicants also may email the letter to district69@ohr.state.oh.us.A panel of five Republican House members, which the speaker will name at a later date, will interview candidates in Columbus. A full vote will be taken by the Republican caucus and the new member is tentatively scheduled to be sworn in the week of Dec. 12.The 43rd district is made up of Green, New Franklin, Clinton, Lakemore, Mogadore, Tallmadge and the majority of Coventry and Springfield townships in Summit County; and Atwater, Brimfield, Edinburg, Randolph, Rootstown and Suffield townships in Portage County.cuyahoga fallsTow fee approvedCUYAHOGA FALLS: City Council on Monday approved a $50 administration fee to be added to the cost of towing a vehicle.Police Chief Tom Pozza asked for the fee to reimburse the department for tying up two officers when a vehicle is towed because of a violation.The only vehicle owners who will not pay the fee are those whose cars are towed from the scene of an accident where no one is arrested.The fee will be added to the tow bill and must be paid before the vehicle is released to the owner.GRANGER TOWNSHIPSupervisor retiresGRANGER TWP.: Trustees have accepted the resignation of Neal Sylvester as maintenance supervisor, effective Dec. 31. He has served the township for more than 40 years in various roles, including as a trustee.His position as maintenance supervisor will be advertised, trustees said.Trustees also voted to participate for one year in an emergency notification service. A third-party vendor will provide the system that will operate through the county dispatch system. The cost to the township for the service will be $789 per year.LAKE TOWNSHIPVehicle purchasedLAKE TWP.: Trustees on Monday authorized the purchase of a John Deere Gator utility vehicle from Hartville Hardware at a cost of $16,650. It will be used for cemetery maintenance and also for the township’s road department.Because of the Christmas holiday, trustees changed the date of their second December meeting to 6:30 p.m. Dec. 27 at Lake Township Hall.MEDINA COUNTYCharity wins bigMEDINA TWP.: The Meadows Turkey Bowl set a record last week, generating $125,000 in donations for charity in the annual Thanksgiving Day matchup.The 48 men, most of whom are former Medina High School football players, began collecting donations for the St. Vincent de Paul Society months before game day. This year, team members set a record, breaking their $90,000 record set in 2010 for the charity at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church.The game, played in Mike and Connie Meadows’ Hood Road backyard, has generated $375,000 for those in need over the past eight years. One hundred percent of the proceeds go to charity.This year, rookie player Joe Hurst and his business partner, John Lurtz, both of Medina, raised $15,000 for Hurst’s former college roommate, Jeff Thomas of Louisville, who suffered a traumatic brain injury last year when his vehicle collided with a minivan. Thomas has been unable to walk since the accident and requires round-the-clock care.Medina plumber Bill Biegel took home the coveted Heavy Hitter Award trophy after single-handedly raising more than $18,500 before this year’s game.NORTH CANTONFire, EMS leviesNORTH CANTON: City Council hopes to avoid a budget shortfall of $225,000 in its Fire and Emergency Services departments by asking voters to replace two 30-year-old continuous levies in the March primary.Council on Monday approved putting the replacement levies on the ballot.The 0.5 mill fire levy voters approved in 1983 has an estimated annual collection of $93,992. The 1-mill EMS levy approved in 1982 yields $168,189 a year.Replacement millages would remain the same but would yield $189,211 for the fire department and $378,422 for EMS annually based on current property values.The owner of a $100,000 home would pay an additional $18.20 yearly for the EMS replacement and $8.41 for the fire replacement.“North Canton residents have traditionally supported their safety forces,” Council President Jon Snyder said. “We hope they will again. Without the additional revenue, cuts in personnel or services are inevitable.”PORTAGE COUNTYRecount plannedKENT: The Portage County Board of Elections will recount the votes cast in this month’s Kent City Council Ward 1 race after official results posted Tuesday showed the candidates only seven votes apart.Councilman Garret Ferrara received 764 votes; challenger Melissa Long received 757.The recount will be held at 8 a.m. Monday.STARK COUNTYPlea in ticket scamA Stark County woman will be sentenced next month after pleading guilty to theft involving a ticket scam on Craigslist, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine said Tuesday.Investigators say Kathleen Kinsella posted ads in Ohio and at least 19 other states to sell tickets to Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga and Jonas Brothers concerts, among other events. Once victims wired the money, Kinsella did not deliver the tickets.In Stark County Common Pleas Court, she admitted to stealing $5,499 from multiple victims from December 2009 through May 2011.Kinsella, of Jackson Township, will be sentenced for fifth-degree felony theft at 8:30 a.m. Dec. 21 in Stark County Common Pleas Court.