The Summit County Sheriff’s Office will lend a hand with security at the Republican National Convention.
County Council on Monday approved an agreement with Cleveland.
The Summit County mounted unit, bomb squad, SWAT team and others will be in downtown Cleveland for the event, which runs July 18-21 at Quicken Loans Arena.
“It’s a once-in-a-career opportunity to be part of this,” sheriff’s inspector Bill Holland said. “A lot of people from the agency are excited to be a part of it.”
Cleveland will reimburse the county for its costs, he said. The financial estimate is still being worked on, he added.
He said 25 to 35 deputies are expected to go to Cleveland, although not all of them at the same time.
Summit is making sure that local operations won’t be affected, Holland added.
Councilman John Schmidt questioned the county’s potential legal liability. But county Law Director Deborah Matz said Cleveland is purchasing an insurance policy to cover that.
The convention is expected to attract about 50,000 people, including delegates, family members and media. There also will be an unknown number of protesters.
Akron police also are assisting with the convention security. Akron has estimated that about 30 officers will be in Cleveland.
In other business, the council:
• Approved a $456,136 contract with Krumroy-Cozad Construction Corp. to renovate the former Rubber City McDonald’s franchise headquarters at 492 and 500 Grant St. in Akron into an early voting location.
The property, which the county bought earlier for $510,000, sits next to the Board of Elections.
The building also will be used for storage.
• Approved an $85,000 contract with the Battered Women’s Shelter of Summit and Medina Counties for homeless prevention services, and a $150,000 contract with the Akron-Canton Regional Food Bank to purchase food to distribute to food pantries throughout the county.
Rick Armon can be reached at 330-996-3569 or rarmon@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter at @armonrickABJ.