Barberton

Named after an 1817 settlement, the neighborhood of Johnson’s Corner in Barberton, Ohio was originally known for its smaller homes. “They built that neighborhood years ago,” says Sonja Halstead, Realtor and owner of The Halstead Team for Howard Hanna Real Estate. “It is a beautiful neighborhood with mature trees, and still to this day, when homes go up for sale there, they sell very quickly.” Halstead says the community was designed for people who wanted to downsize, but now Johnson’s Corners homes frequently sell to adults who lived in the same house as a kid. The residential streets of Johnson’s Corners are mostly gridded, and the homes lining those streets range from homes built in the early 1900s to homes built around 2000. Colonial Revivals and ranch-style homes are common throughout the neighborhood, but bungalows and Cape Cods add the occasional variety to the architectural landscape. Ranch and cottage-style homes with less than 1,000 square feet can sell as low as $45,000, while Cape Cods and Colonial Revivals with more than 1,500 square feet can sell as high as $290,000. The median home price is $150,000, up 9% from the previous year. At the corner of Wooster Road and 31st Street, Johnson’s Corners was initially established with a tavern, a post office and a small store. Today, the intersection holds national chains like Domino’s Pizza, Rite Aid, Circle K and Subway. For some Ohio flavor, the intersection is also home to Upper Crust Pizza and Chicken, which won the Best of the Best award at the 2023 International Pizza Expo. The closest grocery store, Acme Fresh Market, is about 1.5 miles north, near the intersection of Gardner Road and South Cleveland Massillon Road. With Barberton just 2 miles east, Johnson’s Corners residents are a short drive or bus ride away from the city’s annual events and festivals. Barberton’s Labor Day Fireworks and Parade are big events for the small city, but the Barberton Mum Festival attracts residents from all over the area to enjoy a garden with more than 17,000 chrysanthemums, canoe races and a water ski show. The city also hosts annual trunk-or-treat and Christmas tree-lighting festivals. Johnson’s Corners is mostly served by the Barberton City School District. Elementary-aged students can enroll in kindergarten through 2nd grade at Barberton Primary School then progress to grades 3 through 5 at Barberton Intermediate School. The schools were recently formed, so they are not yet graded on Niche. Students in higher grades can attend 6th through 8th grade classes at Barberton Middle School and 9th through 12th grade classes at Barberton High School, which offers courses in manufacturing machine technology. Barberton Middle and High Schools both earn a B-minus on Niche. Four parks give Johnson’s Corners residents green space to enjoy. Waltz Park has a playground and a tiny community library, while Conrad Park is but a little patch of grass with a playground. Kids can climb a tiny, cave-shaped rock wall and baseball players can practice homers on the park’s baseball fields. Basketball and tennis players can hit the courts of Breitenstine Park for pickup games. Akron Metro bus lines reach Barberton, serving stops along Wooster Road West and carrying riders into downtown Akron. State Route 21 runs along the western edge of Johnson’s Corners and connects drivers to Interstate 76, less than four miles north. For walkers, there’s decent access to sidewalks throughout Johnson’s Corners, but some streets lack sidewalks or space to walk.

Barberton was founded in the late 1800s when O.C. Barber brought the already well-established Diamond Match Company to the area. With this new industry sprang homes, churches, schools, and businesses. Barber’s business, in particular, was so wildly successful that a journalist described the growth as “magical.” Although Barberton endured substantial job losses in the 1970s and 1980s due to a number of factors, the town, still nicknamed “The Magic City,” is currently in a period of resurgence. Education, healthcare, and tech industries have revitalized the job market, and investments have been made in schools, parks, and infrastructure. The heart of the neighborhood is Lake Anna Park. “Lake Anna is absolutely beautiful,” says Realtor Sonja Halstead, a top seller in the neighborhood who owns The Halstead Team for Howard Hanna Real Estate. “There are quite a bit of homes around the lake, there’s a lot of shopping, there are a lot of restaurants and bar areas. They do a lot of festivals in the park. You can ice skate there in the winter, and in the summer, you see people running around on the path. The kids go there to hang out after school. It’s just a central place where a lot of people go. It's honestly the most beautiful place in Barberton.” The city's main street is along Tuscarawas Avenue. Here, small mom-and-pop retailers like The Crystal Den, Snowball Bookshop, and Aunt Hannah's Antiques and Collectibles line the very walkable, tree-lined street. For a night out, residents can catch a movie at Lake 8 Movies or take younger audiences to see a performance at the Magical Theatre Company. Among the retail and entertainment venues are several places to grab a cup of coffee, a craft beer, or a sit-down meal. Ignite Brewing Co. is one such establishment, and beer isn’t the only thing its owners do right — part of their mission is to give 11% back to their community. At M and M’s Taphouse, fresh, locally-sourced food is served alongside pinball and a stack of party games. Lake Anna Park is host to Mum Fest, a unique event held annually the last full weekend in September. In addition to food and entertainment – canoe races and water ski shows are on the docket for next year’s event – the city plants a larger-than-life mural on the park grounds consisting of over a million chrysanthemum blooms. On Tuesdays during the warmer months, the Barberton Farmers Market offers local produce, baked goods, and more. Most homes in Barberton are situated on city blocks, with small city-sized lots of less than .1 acres and sidewalks on either side of the road. Houses were primarily built at the turn of the twentieth century, and house hunters will find a mix of fixer-uppers and already-renovated homes in styles like Colonial Revivals and American Foursquares. Many have either back alleys or driveways that run along the side of the house where homeowners can park their cars. The area is popular with buyers, according to Halstead. “The houses that go up for sale around there sell very quickly because people want to live there, she says. Homes needing substantial improvements might sell for as low as $20,000, while a move-in-ready home might start closer to $100,000. Those lucky enough to score a house overlooking Lake Anna, which generally are larger than homes not on the lake, can expect prices as high as $325,000. Kids in Barberton attend Barberton City School District schools. The area’s two elementary schools, which served kindergarten through fourth-grade students, were recently reworked so that elementary-age children now attend Barberton Primary School for kindergarten through second grade before moving on to Barberton Intermediate School for third through fifth. Since both schools are in their infancies, both are unrated by Niche and Great Schools. Students then move on to Barberton Middle School, rated C-plus by Niche, and Barberton High School, also rated C-plus. Barberton High is a member of the Four Cities Compact, which provides career training, education, and other resources to help students achieve career goals in sectors like business and healthcare. Lake Anna Park is central to the neighborhood. Residents can walk or jog around the lake on the walking paths. A large community sports complex borders the neighborhood's west side where kids can learn to play baseball, softball, and soccer and play in tournaments. There are multiple METRO city bus stops around the neighborhood, primarily in the northwest quadrant. Akron is less than 10 miles away by car.

North Barberton is precisely as the name suggests: a neighborhood where locals live less than a mile north of downtown Barberton and all the benefits therein. The community also benefits from being 9 miles southwest of the noisier city of Akron. While other parts of Barberton, such as East Barberton, are just as close to downtown, North Barberton stands out as the home of Barberton Middle and High School, giving it the easiest possible access to the city's academic resources and recreational events such as high school football games in Rudy Sharkey Stadium. These qualities combine with a varied housing market and accessible parks to enable a calm yet convenient lifestyle. Most North Barberton properties have lots that are less than a quarter-acre. In these lots, cottages, Cape Cods and bungalows from the early 1900s sit in grids wrapping around a nearby forest's south and east sides. Most single-family homes have back alleys with detached garages for parking, while others have driveways running along the side of the house. Realtor Sonja Halstead, owner of The Halstead Team for Howard Hanna Real Estate, says, "There are a lot of fixer-uppers, but there used to be way more than there are now. Barberton has changed so much over the years." These fixer-uppers sell for around $45,000, while refurbished homes cost between $100,000 and $200,000. A few homes, specifically those in M&C Mobile Village and Sales on the neighborhood's west side, cost as low as $23,000. Barberton City School District serves the neighborhood. Kids start with Barberton Primary School for kindergarten through second grade before moving on to Barberton Intermediate School for grades three through five. Neither Niche nor Great Schools have ratings for these two schools. Students then head to Barberton Middle School and finish at Barberton High School. Niche gives both schools a C-plus. Barberton High is also part of a program with the University of Akron, where english teaching majors get to mentor juniors and seniors in the high school's english classes. Most of North Barberton's restaurants are found along major thoroughfares, such as Wooster Road North, Fourth Street Northwest, and Norton Avenue. Dining options include Anna Bean, a café housed in an old train station, and Angie's Italian Restaurant, a family-owned pizza shop that opened in 1955. The neighborhood has limited retail options, so many visit the Magic City Plaza downtown. Less than a mile southeast along Wooster Road North, the plaza offers groceries and other essentials at Big Lots and Marc's. Local nightlife is further south along West Tuscarawas Avenue, with bars and the Lake 8 Movie Theater. The Barberton Farmers' Market is between Angie's and the plaza, along Wunderlich Avenue. The market opens every Tuesday from late May to early October. The closest mall, Summit Mall, is much further, with a 10-mile drive north via Barber Road to Fairlawn. Barberton's small-town atmosphere and size means that people from all over town, including North Barberton, can walk downtown, where Lake Anna Park hosts all kinds of events. The annual Mum Festival in September is one of the city's most significant celebrations. The event features over 17,000 chrysanthemums of varying colors hand-planted along the lake shore to create a vibrant autumnal tapestry. The festival has live entertainment from local performers, crafting stations, and vendors selling handmade novelties. Smaller events include euchre tournaments, bingo games and open mic nights in the shops and restaurants along West Tuscarawas Avenue. North Barberton has four parks to choose from, and according to Halstead, they're a big part of the city's appeal. "The city does a great job taking care of them. They're clean, feel safe, and have plenty to do." Newton Park is the largest, at 17 acres, and it offers a basketball court, soccer field and swing set. Decker Park, near Barberton Preschool, is 6 acres but provides a more extensive playground and a dog park. The neighborhood's four major roadways are West State Street, Summit Road, Norton Avenue and Barber Road. Barber Road and West State Street connect to Interstate 76 in the community's north end, leading to Wadsworth in the west and downtown Akron in the northeast. Interstate 76 also connects to Interstate 77 to make a 40-mile drive to Cleveland in the north. Akron METRO offers public transportation with bus route eight, connecting North Barberton to the downtown area, nearby Norton to the west and downtown Akron. The entire city of Barberton has a long history of flooding, with many residential streets made impassible after heavy rainfall. Large parts of North Barberton are in a flood zone, where homes may deal with more than 3 feet of water. While citizens have petitioned the city government to create a solution for years, the issue still needs to be solved.