Springfield Twp., hotel owner reach deal

Hope to ease pressure on police over activity at site

Springfield Township has reached a tentative agreement with the owner of Red Roof Inn after trustees filed a nuisance lawsuit against the hotel earlier this month in Summit County Common Pleas Court.

Trustees and the court will have to approve the deal to reduce hundreds of police calls made annually about activity at the hotel. But Police Chief Jack Simone anticipates the agreement will get the approval of both.

In the lawsuit, the township cited the high volume of calls and police resources required to respond to incidents at the hotel. It was the second such lawsuit in as many years, the other filed against Quality Inn in January 2023.

Although calls from the Red Roof Inn to the police peaked in 2021 at 391, they continue to remain near that level, with 336 logged last year.

It’s a drain on a department with limited resources, Simone said in a recent phone interview after the lawsuit was filed.

Depending on the type of incident, a call can require the presence of multiple officers, he said. At times, attention to an incident at the hotel can affect response times for others seeking assistance. It can also require other township services.

“If we have a call up there… it (could) also take the fire department out of service,” he said. “If they transport, they may be out of service for two hours or more.”

Attempts to meet with the hotel’s owners had failed until Friday, Simone said in a phone interview Tuesday.

Meeting with Red Roof Inn representatives

Simone said he and Trustee Kellie Chapman met with Red Roof representatives — including an owner — and their attorneys to discuss the situation. The police chief said talks were fruitful, yielding an agreement similar to one reached last year with a nearby hotel.

The lawsuit had included statistics on the number of calls by year, classifying 37 calls in 2023 as related to drug overdoses or medical issues and 33 as fight- or threat-related. Nearly 200 of the calls were related to a host of other incidents, including stolen vehicles, domestic disputes, property damage and forgery or fraud.

Two hotels within a half-mile of the Red Roof Inn received only seven calls each in the two-year period of 2021-22. Incidents cited in the lawsuit include:

• March 12, 2022: A woman who reported a sexual assault after waking up in a hotel room without remembering how she had arrived there.

• April 26, 2022: A hotel guest who threatened staff with a knife.

• Jan. 13, 2023: A man who overdosed and was give Narcan. Fentanyl and meth were found in the room.

• Feb. 3, 2023: An employee who was charged with theft.

• September 2023: Two alleged rapes took place, one still under investigation.

Included in the list are a host of drugrelated, assault and domestic violence incidents.

Earlier agreement with another hotel reduced call numbers

Although the agreement has yet to be approved by trustees and the court, Simone said the agreement with Quality Inn helped reduce calls substantially.

“It’s improved,” he said. “I gauge things on call volume. The call numbers have dropped significantly.”

Walmart, which is near the hotels, utilizes township police to help discourage illicit activity at the store, .

“Every day they have an officer in there,” he said.

Simone said Friday’s meeting was encouraging.

“It was nice because we were able to sit in one room and resolve our issues,” he said. Leave a message for Alan Ashworth at 330-996-3859 or email him at aashworth@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @newsalanbeaconj or Facebook at www.facebook.com/ alan.newsman.