News

Summit county leaders have revealed more details about plans for Smither’s, Akron’s long-time research firm, to move its world headquarters from West Market Street to downtown.  

In a transaction involving the county, the city, the Development Finance Authority and several others, the company will renovate and occupy the former Austen BioInnovation Institute at 47 N. Main St. The plan includes tearing down the old trolley barn and constructing a new research & development facility.

Some of the workers laid off when General Motors idled its plant in Lordstown in March joined United Auto Workers on strike against GM. The automaker has offered a number of Lordstown workers transfers to other facilities.  

Other workers have been waiting for the possibility of new life for the Lordstown facility. Bill Adams is vice president of UAW Local 1112 which represents workers at Lordstown.

Ohio is getting a great deal when it borrows money these days. The Office of Budget and Management reports the state received the lowest rate on financing on record.

When Ohio issued $300 million dollars in bonds to finance school construction, Budget and Management Director Kim Murnieks said the state received a 20-year financing rate of 2.35% - its lowest ever.

“Well, Ohio has a stable credit rating and we are seen as a good investment and here in Ohio, I think we have a reputation for always paying our debts," Murnieks said.

Flooding victims in Wayne and surrounding counties will have access to federal help when the Small Business Administration opens an office in the Wooster Red Cross Tuesday. In late July heavy rain damaged homes and businesses in and around Wooster.

The SBA will be taking applications for low-interest loans for two weeks. Public Affairs Specialist Carl Dombek says the loans aren’t limited to businesses.

The Democratic National Committee will host its next presidential debate near Columbus.

Otterbein University in Westerville will host CNN's presentation of the fourth Democratic Presidential Primary Debate on October 15, and the next night if needed. Ohio Democratic Party Chair David Pepper said the suburban Columbus city is a great location for this event. “The biggest shift in Ohio politics is that suburbs like Westerville that used to be Republican have become Democrat or toss up,” Pepper said.

In an article published this week the Ohio High School Athletic Association issued a stern warning to parents and fans, saying their bad behavior is pushing referees off the field. If they don’t have game officials, OHSAA warns, there will be no more games.

A national report finds 80% of game officials quit after their first two years mainly because of unruly parents and fans.

A three-day, multi-agency, undercover human trafficking sting in Central Ohio has resulted in 104 people being arrested.  This sting is just the latest in statewide efforts to combat human trafficking.

Attorney General Dave Yost says 30 police agencies worked together in this sting, an operation called “Fourth and Goal.” Fifty-three of 104 arrests were for felonies, and 26 arrests involved crimes against children. 

This fall, media outlets, universities and people around the world are remembering the year 1619, the year a ship carrying more than 20 slaves came ashore in what is now Virginia. An exhibition at the Allen Memorial Art Museum in Oberlin looks at how artists are exploring slavery and the African Diaspora.

In this week's State of the Arts, we take a walk through "Afterlives of the Black Atlantic."

The Ohio Wine Producers Association is hopeful a trade deal with China is reached before Ohio’s wines are pushed off store shelves. The head of the association, Doniella Winchell, said shelf space is already limited by the more than 300 wineries in Ohio.

School districts all around Ohio are taking a close look at their new report cards. The state-issued analysis includes an overall letter grade for each district.

Seven of the state's eight big urban districts improved from an "F" to a "D." That includes Dayton, which was in danger of a potential state takeover.

The well-funded group fighting to keep the nuclear power plant bailout in place is paying people to follow the opposition. One of these "monitors" has even been accused of assaulting a petitioner. The group says their goal is to--politely--educate the voters.

Generation Now has been playing pro-nuclear bailout ads for most of this year, pushing for an agenda that closely aligns with FirstEnergy Solutions, which owns the two nuclear power plants.

A retired Stark County judge sentenced Lance Mason to life in prison today.

Mason is a former Cuyahoga County judge who assaulted and fatally stabbed his ex-wife, Aisha Fraser, late last year. Mason had previously pleaded guilty to the murder and other charges.

Advocates for sexual abuse victims can be required to report and testify in court about the cases they are handling – unlike doctors and lawyers. Some victims of sexual abuse say have been retaliated against when that happens.

A bipartisan bill would grant those advocates privacy so they wouldn’t have to divulge that information.

Hiram College’s plan to reduce tuition by thirty-five percent for all undergrads could have an impact well beyond the school.

Hiram College President Lori Varlotta says the goal is to reduce the sticker shock of going to Hiram and ease concern when applying. Varlotta says in the past her students rarely paid the full price, which was $37,710.

A Northeast Ohio police department is part of a nationwide partnership with Amazon that uses a doorbell security system for surveillance.

Rocky River is the first police department in the region to use Amazon’s Ring video doorbell system, which allows residents to send videos of suspicious activity through an app called Neighbors.

Amazon hopes the app will create a safer environment, but critics are concerned about the risks of becoming a surveillance society.

The state is spending four million dollars in an effort to keep kids from vaping.

This comes on the heels of news that there are now ten confirmed cases of severe pulmonary illnesses connected to vaping in Ohio and another fourteen are being investigated.

Nationally, there have been four-hundred and fifty cases and at least five deaths associated with the problem.

A federal appeals court says an execution set for next May can go forward, because the condemned killer didn’t prove his claim that the state’s three-drug execution method is unconstitutional.

Attorneys for Wayne Keith Henness argued the mixture creates the sensation of waterboarding. But the 6thCircuit Court of Appeals said they didn’t prove that.