Stark County’s biggest township
Plain Township is home to 53,477 people, more than any Stark County city except Canton. It covers about 28.5 square miles north and east of Canton, and it’s run by three elected trustees and a fiscal officer rather than a mayor.
The Census figures for the township’s unincorporated area show a mature suburb:
| Measure | Plain Township |
|---|---|
| Housing units | About 24,300 |
| Median year built | 1972 |
| Built 1939 or earlier | About 5% |
| Owner-occupied | About 74% |
| Single-family detached | About 73% |
| Mobile homes | About 2% |
A median build year of 1972 means a typical house is past 50, which is when roofs, furnaces, windows and sewer laterals tend to come due together.
Middlebranch, Avondale, Cairo and the cities inside Plain
Plain Township holds several named communities and parts of three municipalities, and which one you’re in decides who issues your permits.
- Middlebranch is a census-designated place in the northeast.
- Avondale is an unincorporated community in the southwest, near Canton.
- Cairo is an unincorporated community in the north, on the Lake Township line.
- Canton occupies the south of the township, and part of the village of Meyers Lake is in the southwest.
- North Canton sits in the northwest. The city withdrew from the township in 2008 by forming a paper township called Hoover Township.
Houses in the unincorporated parts follow township zoning. Houses inside Canton, Meyers Lake or North Canton follow city or village rules, such as Canton’s yearly rental registration described on our Canton page and North Canton’s rental license on the North Canton page.
Plain Local, GlenOak and the North Canton district
Plain Local School District covers most of the township and educates about 6,100 students in nine buildings.
- Elementary (K-4): Avondale, Barr, Frazer, Middlebranch, Taft and Warstler.
- Glenwood Intermediate (grades 5-6) and Oakwood Middle (7-8).
- GlenOak High School (9-12).
Plain Local also reaches beyond the township into parts of Canton, North Canton, Jackson, Lake and Nimishillen townships, and the village of Hills and Dales. North Canton City Schools serve the rest of Plain, mostly north of North Canton. Two neighbors on the same road can be in different districts, so check before you price.
Getting comparable sales right
It’s easy to compare a Plain Township house with the wrong neighbors. A Canton mailing address covers parts of Plain, Jackson and the city itself, and Belden Village, the retail hub many people associate with this area, is actually in Jackson Township.
When you look at recent sales, filter by:
- School district (Plain Local versus North Canton or Canton City).
- Township versus city parcel, since taxes differ.
- Age and condition, because a 1972 split-level with original systems isn’t comparable to one that’s been redone.
The guide to what your house is worth explains how to read comparable sales.
Listing a Plain Township house, or selling it as it stands
In a stable, mostly owner-occupied township like Plain, a house that has been kept up will usually net more with an agent. We’ll tell you if yours is one of those.
An as-is sale makes sense when the house needs several systems replaced at once, when it’s an estate and nobody wants to manage repairs, or when you’re dealing with tax or mortgage trouble; the county rules for those are on our Stark County page. You can see how the process works before you call.