Summer has officially arrived! I am thoroughly enjoying the warmer days, attending graduation parties, and seeing our Community Pool and park full.

We began the unofficial start to summer on Memorial Day with our annual Memorial Day Observance Ceremony. Although it rained this year, it did not stop us from holding the special Ribbon Cutting Ceremony that was held prior to the event, which officially recognized the renovations, enhancements, and upgrades to our Veterans Peace Memorial. Longtime resident and co-founder of the Veterans Peace Memorial, Weert Ley, joined me along with members from City Council for the ribbon cutting. I encourage you to stop by the memorial to see all of the enhancements.

The 2024 Summer Newsletter will start landing in resident mailboxes this week. It contains information regarding our upcoming Music at the Gazebo concerts, tentative Community Day & Parade schedule, along with departmental updates and future events.

Speaking of future events, I cordially invite you to attend our 2nd annual Safety Services Night, which will be held on Thursday, July 25, 2024, from 5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. at the Highland Heights Community Center. Bring the whole family to meet our Safety Forces and check out our Police, Fire, and Service Department vehicles and equipment. We will have music, free hot dogs, snacks, and giveaways. We look forward to seeing you for this fun, family-friendly event.

Our other big event of the summer season which has kept our Community Day Committee very busy is finalizing plans for this year's Community Day and Parade, which will be held on Saturday, July 20th. The parade steps off at 1:00 p.m. from St. Paschal's and will travel down Wilson Mills Road into the Community Park. There will be plenty of entertainment, live music, food, games, fireworks, and more. Please note that the Community Pool will be closed on Community Day.

Whether you are getting ready to go on a family vacation or are planning to just relax by the pool or patio, enjoy the great outdoors have a wonderful summer!

On a recent social media post, folks were talking about putting stuff out on the lawn for scavengers to pick up. Although you might think someone else can get some use out of your old stuff it may not be a good practice, and many cities have ordinances to prohibit “garbage picking” or scavenging. Highland Heights is one of those cities. You might ask why not let someone else have it if it’s just going to a landfill. Trespassing can be an issue. You don’t know who is coming into your neighborhood and what other reasons they may have to look through your trash. They could be looking for information to facilitate identity theft. They could be stalkers looking for victims to harass. They may case the neighborhood to come back and commit other theft offenses. There are health concerns with going through trash. They may make a mess and not care, it’s not their neighborhood. We’ve seen trucks overloaded with unsecured loads of scavenged items, potentially creating a traffic hazard. Just so we are clear our City Ordinance is as follows:

521.121 PRIVATE SCAVENGING PROHIBITED

   (a) No person, except as may from time-to-time be authorized by resolution of Council, shall engage in scavenging or salvaging refuse set out by property owners or occupants at the street curb for collection, whether such refuse is in containers or otherwise. Refuse so deposited for collection is deemed to be the property of the City for its purposes when so placed.

   (b) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree.

We have been receiving calls concerning residents leaving their trash cans out after being picked up. Help keep our city looking beautiful by removing the cans off the tree lawns after trash has been picked up.

Also remind your landscapers to keep grass off the streets. Leaving the clippings in the street causes it to enter the storm basins and blocking which could cause flooding to happen.

Household Hazardous Waste Collection Program

The next Household Hazardous Waste Collection Program will be held June 24th through July 5th and Saturday, July 6th.

Please refer to the city website for a full listing of acceptable items. For more information about household hazardous waste, visit Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District.

Reminder

The Highland Heights Service Department will continue collecting branches and brush as part of the Curbside Collection Program. Residents are asked to contact the Service Department at (440) 461-7266 in advance to schedule a pick up.