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Lakewood Residents,
With fall now in full swing, I encourage everyone to savor these last weeks of the year before the cold sets in. Get out and enjoy the foliage in Lakewood's parks, streets, and venture down to the Metroparks for a hike or bike ride!
In October, three Fire Department members assumed their new leadership roles: Chief Ryan Fairbanks, Fire Marshal Ryan Birth, and Neighborhood Paramedic Oliver Harper. I am very confident that all three are poised to do a great job and keep moving the LFD forward. Read a little more about each leader below.
On October 8, the US EPA issued a rule change that put into place several requirements that work toward the long-term goal of removing lead and galvanized service lines from the nation's water systems. In this month's newsletter, we talk about what this means for our city.
Also in this issue, we feature information on the City's leaf collection, reducing waste during the holidays, and our annual Welcome To Lakewood event.
I hope to see members of the public at the annual Veterans' Day Ceremony on November 11, and lastly, I want to wish you all a (very early) Happy Thanksgiving!
| | November 2024 Events Calendar | |
November 4
City Council Meeting
7:30 PM
City Hall Auditorium
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November 10
Car Seat Safety Check
(Registration Required)
9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Fire Station #1
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November 11
Veterans Day Ceremony
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Lakewood Park Veterans Memorial
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November 12
Welcome to Lakewood Event
6:30 - 8:30 PM
Garfield Middle School
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November 13
Cookies and Cupcakes with Safety Forces
1:00 - 2:30 PM
KB Confections
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November 16
LASWAB Pet Food Drive
7:30 PM
Marc's Plaza
14821 Detroit Ave.
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November 18
City Council Meeting
7:30 PM
City Hall Auditorium
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November 28-29
Thanksgiving Weekend
City Offices Closed
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December 7
Light Up Lakewood
4:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Detroit Ave. between Marlowe and Arthur
| | Click below to view the City of Lakewood's full events calendar. | |
Lakewood Fire Department Welcomes New Leaders
With the retirement of Chief Tim Dunphy, the Lakewood Fire Department welcomed three new members into leadership positions at the beginning of October: Chief Ryan Fairbanks, Fire Marshal Ryan Birth, and Neighborhood Paramedic Oliver Harper.
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Chief Ryan Fairbanks
Ryan Fairbanks begins his role as Chief after serving as Fire Marshal for the past five years. Ryan has been in the fire service for 27 years overall, and as Chief, hopes to preserve the rich history of the LFD and foster new traditions for its dedicated members.
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Fire Marshal Ryan Birth
Ryan Birth has taken over the Fire Marshal job after his time as Lakewood’s first Neighborhood Paramedic. In his 14 years with the LFD, Birth has also served as fire investigator, training coordinator for the Westshore FIU, and coordinator for the LFD Peer Support Team.
As Fire Marshal, Birth aims to continue to expand the Department's vision of community risk reduction through outreach, prevention, and education. He hopes to build stronger and more proactive relationships with business owners and further expand our public education programs to enhance our reach in the community.
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Neighborhood Paramedic Oliver Harper
Oliver Harper steps into the role of Lakewood’s Neighborhood Paramedic, and has been a firefighter/paramedic since 2018.
Harper hopes to connect to more County resources to better serve the residents of Lakewood, including increasing access to mental health services to accompany EMS on mental health crisis calls. He also hopes to promote health and fitness for City employees as well as residents.
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U.S. EPA Revises Rule On Water Service Lines
On October 8, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a rule revision that requires drinking water providers across the country to identify and begin to plan the replacement of lead service lines that provide drinking water to homes and businesses. As a part of this rule change, the City of Lakewood Water Department is required to notify owners of homes and buildings whose service lines are made of lead, galvanized steel, or are unknown.
Roughly 4,000 notification letters are going out or have gone out to Lakewood property owners whose buildings meet one of these criteria.
What Has The City of Lakewood Done to Address Lead Service Lines?
The City of Lakewood has worked for years to remove and replace lead service lines. Given that our water infrastructure is over 100 years old in large areas of the city, there is still some lead present in water service lines; however, with careful and proper treatment of the water that flows through them, the risk that these lead lines pose remains very low.
During water main replacements, City-owned lead and galvanized service lines are replaced by copper to ensure lead safety and water quality. Since 2018, the City has also replaced lead and galvanized service lines on the private side (the portion owned by residents) when they are encountered during scheduled water main replacements, repairs, and other infrastructure projects.
Lakewood receives drinking water from Cleveland Water, who reports that the water is lead-free when it leaves their treatment plants. Cleveland Water treats its water to prevent the leeching of lead into the water from lead service lines.
The City of Lakewood also performs lead-level testing in accordance with state policies to ensure safety, and we report the results in the annual water quality report available on the City of Lakewood’s website.
If you received a letter and have questions, please reach out to the Division of Water and Wastewater Collection at (216) 529-6820.
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Leaf Collection To Begin November 4
The Lakewood Public Works team will begin to collect leaves on Monday, November 4 and will continue through Friday, December 20, weather-permitting.
To remove your leaves, place them in a pile on your tree lawn/curb no more than 6 feet away from the edge of the street. Alternatively, you can place leaves in a paper yard waste bag and put them out on your normal refuse collection day.
Do not rake leaves into the street; this practice slows the collection process and can block up storm drains, which can in turn cause basement flooding during heavy rains.
Read more details on leaf collection and view the city-wide collection map by clicking the button below.
| | Sustainability Spotlight: Reducing Holiday Waste | |
As November begins, so do the holiday celebrations. During this time of year, Americans create an extra 25 million tons of garbage, increasing waste generated by 25% over the span of one month [Environmental Protection Agency]. Therefore, it is important to reduce the amount of waste created in the first place. If you create waste, make sure you place it in the proper receptacle (waste or recycling).
Tips for creating less waste:
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Plan your meals and utilize leftovers. Use meat or vegetable scraps to make delicious broths. Focus on whole foods instead of processed foods which are packaged in a lot of plastic.
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Compost any organic waste in your backyard compost bin or use a composting service.
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Use reusable serving and dinner ware for your celebrations and gatherings instead of disposables.
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Bring your own containers for leftovers instead of using single-use containers.
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Reuse glass or metal containers for storage jars.
- Recycle what you can, but make sure you recycle correctly. Common items like clamshell containers and takeout containers are not recyclable, but many people still try to recycle them.
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Recycle Right
Waste reduction is always the first goal. However, when waste is created, recycling is a good strategy to keep materials out of the landfill so they can continue to be used, preventing the need to extract limited resources from the planet. Great items for recycling include glass and metal, as they are pretty much infinitely recyclable. Paper and cardboard can be recycled up to about seven times so it is important you identify ways to use less paper.
Plastic, as prevalent as it is, is often not recyclable because it is cheaper to make items out of new plastic or because the plastic item has so many components it is hard to recycle. There are a few plastic types that can be recycled; however, the recycling process weakens plastic, meaning it must be downcycled (made into a lower quality item that will eventually go to landfill) so recycling plastic will not solve our global plastic problem.
It is important to use reusable when you can, or when you use disposable items, try to buy items in metal, glass, or paper and avoid plastic as much possible.
Please visit Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District and Lakewood Refuse and Recycling to learn more about what you can recycle in Lakewood, and download a printable version of the Recycle Right in Lakewood guide by clicking on the image above.
| | Pumpkin Composting Bin Coming To Lakewood | | |
Presenting another great way to go green during the autumn season: Cuyahoga County has selected Lakewood–specifically Kaufmann Park–for the placement of a pumpkin collection bin. This program helps keep pumpkins out of the landfill, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and repurposing valuable nutrients.
Residents may drop off their non-decorated pumpkins and gourds through November 8. Note that these bins are for pumpkins only; do not insert plastic bags, trash, or other organic yard waste.
Click the button below for more information.
| | | Welcome to Lakewood Event Set For Tuesday, Nov. 12 | |
The City of Lakewood’s Community Relations Advisory Commission is sponsoring the annual Welcome to Lakewood event on Tuesday, November 12, 2024 from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM at Garfield Middle School, 13114 Detroit Avenue. This long-standing community gathering provides opportunities for Lakewood neighbors old and new to connect with their city, get resources, and meet new people!
Come meet Lakewood city and school officials, as well as representatives of up to 50 local organizations. Additionally, there will be activities for kids, and yummy treats from local bakeries/restaurants. All attendees will leave with a packet of information all about Lakewood.
If you are new to Lakewood or looking for additional opportunities to connect with your community, Welcome to Lakewood is a fun event to learn more about local civic organizations, services, and ways to get involved in your hometown.
| | Please share with any people new to your neighborhood! | |
We Are Hiring!
Come and work for the City of Lakewood! We are currently hiring for the following roles:
- Sewer Maintenance Crew
- Human Services Case Manager (WRAP Specialist)
- Custodian - Parks & Police Departments
- Corrections Officer
- Security Guard (Part-Time)
- School Crossing Guard
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