Here are your morning headlines for Monday, April 2:
- FirstEnergy generation subsidiary files for bankruptcy;
- CDC to investigate suicides in Stark County;
- New York consultants join Hall of Fame Village project;
- Statehouse to commemorate 50th anniversary of MLK assassination;
- Kasich travels to New Hampshire, fueling presidential bid speculation;
- Akron's Bliss Institute to interview Ohio's gubernatorial candidates;
FirstEnergy generation subsidiary files for bankruptcy
A subsidiary that runs FirstEnergy Corp.'s nuclear and coal-fired power plants has filed for bankruptcy after the utility said earlier that it planned to close its three nuclear plants in Ohio and Pennsylvania. The move announced by FirstEnergy Solutions late Saturday signals the parent company's plan to get out of the power producing business and concentrate on supplying electricity. The company's aging and costly fleet of coal and nuclear plants has been unable to compete in recent years with the growing number of natural gas power plants in the East and Midwest. The utility said last week that it intended to shut down its three nuclear plants within the next three years.
CDC to investigate suicides in Stark County
Federal health officials are arriving in Stark County on Monday to investigate a series of suicides. A team from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will spend two weeks trying to figure out what’s behind the high rate of teen deaths. Since last August, 12 teens have committed suicide in a handful of school districts including Perry, Jackson and Canton Local.
New York consultants join Hall of Fame Village project
A New York-based consulting firm is joining the Hall of Fame Village project. The Repository reports M. Klein and Company will give developers advice on strategy and finances. The project recently closed on a bridge loan of up to $100 million. Under the conditions of the loan, the Village project is required to have a new governance structure. Developers have also paid back millions in outstanding construction costs for Tom Benson Stadium. It’s not clear if the consulting firm will be financially invested in future phases of the Village project.
Statehouse to commemorate 50th anniversary of MLK assassination
The 50th anniversary of the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. will be commemorated at Ohio's Statehouse this week. The Ohio Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Commission is holding the public ceremony in the atrium of the Statehouse in Columbus on Wednesday. Speakers will include the Rev. Joel L. King, Jr., a first cousin of the late civil rights leader.
Kasich travels to New Hampshire, fueling presidential bid speculation
Governor John Kasich returns to New Hampshire this week, as part of what many view as his inevitable 2020 presidential campaign. Within the past month, the state that traditionally hosts the nation’s first presidential primary already has had visits from President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake. Kasich’s “fireside chat” Tuesday night at a college near the state capital of Concord is his only public event. Kasich finished second behind Trump in New Hampshire in 2016.
Akron's Bliss Institute to interview Ohio's gubernatorial candidates
A politics institute will conduct a series of interviews with Ohio's six major gubernatorial candidates which will be live-streamed. The University of Akron's Bliss Institute for Applied Politics says the in-depth interviews are designed to give citizens information they can use ahead of the May 8 primary. The series kicks off Tuesday and runs through April 11, the day after early voting opens. The interviews will be live-streamed and archived on the university's YouTube channel, the Institute's Facebook page and WKYC's website .
