Author: Kelly Krabill

Ideastream Public Media (9/17/25)  http://youtube.com/watch?v=5IPqUYlneNo Affordable housing is an issue in Ohio and nationwide. As property values and home prices rise, families and first-time buyers are being priced out of home ownership. Rental prices are also rising. According to a recent report from the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio, the gap between what renters make and what they need to make to afford a basic two-bedroom apartment is widening. The subject of housing is the focus of our new "Sound of Us" community storytelling project. Our Engaged Journalism team worked with the organization Canton For All People to connect with people in Canton…

Ideastream Public Media (9/16/25) This story is part of Ideastream Public Media’s “Sound of Us” series covering housing and advocacy in Canton, produced in partnership with Canton for All People. Learn more at ideastream.org/soundofus. Inside her ranch-style house near the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Darnella Jenkins said she still can’t believe her custom-built home belongs to her. “I always used to say that I wanted to own my home by the time I’m 40,” she said. “It’s just perfect. Dreams do come true, and I’m just incredibly grateful.” Jenkins turned 40 this year, within months of closing on the home. For…

Canton Repository (6/8/25) A tear slid down Octavia Shipp’s cheek as she watched volunteers on Saturday dig into her yard along Sherrick Road SE. The volunteers were widening and fixing her concrete walkway so Shipp could more easily push her daughter’s wheelchair up and down the ramp and avoid pushing it through the grass. “Nobody ever helps here,” said Shipp, a mother of seven children and grandmother to three grandchildren who moved to Sherrick Road SE eight years ago. “We’re the lost cause of the city. … It’s a beautiful feeling to have people see us.” Volunteers also fixed the…

Canton Repository (1/31/25) The rebirth of the former Canton Inn site has grabbed the attention of federal housing officials and lawmakers who believe the work to improve some of Canton’s poorest neighborhoods could serve as a model for communities nationwide. Scott Turner, secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, on July 31 toured with county, state and federal elected officials the under-construction 52-unit family apartment complex being built on the former Canton Inn site at 1031 Tuscarawas St. W, which had been a haven for prostitution and drug use before it was demolished in 2022. “As we stand…

Canton Repository (12/26/24) Construction crews will be busy in Stark County in 2025 with projects to address housing and medical needs, give businesses new or expanded homes, reconstruct roadways and improve local parks. Here’s a look at some of the construction projects that will be underway in 2025: Stark County housing projects planned for 2025 Local planning commissions are seeing an increase in housing development projects for 2025 that help address Stark County's housing shortage for people with low and middle income and for people who are aged 55 and older. Canton For All People, a nonprofit development corporation formed by Crossroads…

Ideastream Public Media (10/28/24) A former church in Canton is set to be transformed into an early childhood center with the goal of increasing kindergarten readiness in a neighborhood that experiences a disproportionate amount of crime and poverty. The former Canton Calvary Mission Church, across the street from Gibbs Elementary School on Gibbs Avenue, will soon be repurposed into Gibbs Avenue Center.   Canton For All People, a ministry of Crossroads United Methodist Church working to improve the lives of residents in Canton, wants to build back the Gibbs neighborhood with local partners. First step: educating its youngest residents. More…

Canton Repository (9/29/24) A partnership among the city, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and ICAN Housing, a nonprofit mental health agency, will result in some new housing aimed at reducing the number of homeless residents. Duncan Square will be built at 35th Street and Harmont Avenue NE. Construction is expected to begin next year. The complex will consist of 12, one-story Craftsman-style units and will include case management and wrap-around supportive services, said Julie Sparks, ICAN executive director, and Sherice L. Freeman, the city's director of community development. Freeman said the city has committed $1,754,327 in American…

Canton Repository (12/7/23) A year after crews demolished the troubled Canton Inn, the plans – and funding – for a new family housing complex on the site are taking shape. A half-mile away on Shorb Avenue NW, a market offering free fresh food opened last week. And Canton officials have committed more city and federal funds to the Shorb neighborhood to help homeowners improve their homes and to help developers build new ones. "The neighborhood, with the challenges it has, didn't get this way in just two years," said Don Ackerman, executive director of Canton For All People and lead pastor of Crossroads United Methodist…

Canton Repository (2/9/23) Three newly constructed houses, eight renovated residences and a community center. Those are what Canton For All People intends to accomplish in the greater Shorb neighborhood this year. In the past eight months, the community development corporation created by Crossroads United Methodist Church and the Lemmon and DeHoff family foundations has purchased 11 properties, demolishing two that were not safe to renovate, said Don Ackerman, lead pastor at Crossroads and executive director of Canton For All People. "Primarily, we're here to rebuild the neighborhood," he said.  The city and Canton For All People each produced their own studies…