AKRON, Ohio — The city of Akron has officially begun accepting applications for its next fire chief.
Mayor Shammas Malik kicked off the search Tuesday, more than a month following the retirement of former Chief Joe Natko. However, only internal candidates will be considered for the position, due to what Malik says are limitations presented by the city's charter.
Back in March, Malik noted that the charter states all promotions within the fire and police departments must occur internally "whenever practicable." He then announced he would not consider external candidates for the open police and fire chief positions, even though previous Police Chief Steve Mylett came from Bellevue, Washington.
The mayor has asked voters to change the charter in the November election, but has also vowed to hire permanent police and fire chiefs before then, believing going that many months with only acting chiefs would be harmful for the city. In the police department, current Acting Chief Brian Harding is currently the only finalist for the permanent position.
Due to the restrictions presented by the internal search, only candidates with at least 10 years of either fire or EMS service along with one year of experience as an Akron deputy fire chief will be considered for the chief's position. Deputy Chief Steven Kaut is currently leading the department on an acting basis.
"The Akron Fire Department provides essential services to residents, particularly in responding to fires and medical emergencies," Malik said in a statement this afternoon. "We are eager to appoint a new Fire Chief to succeed Joe Natko and lead our department forward. We look forward to introducing our new Fire Chief to the community this summer at a townhall focused on Fire/EMS services."