Here are your morning headlines for Tuesday, August 18:
- Ohio attorney general warns Trump against changes to USPS
- Lt. governor backs prep sports; DeWine weighs it
- Electric scooters coming this month to Akron, UA
- Casino and racino revenue bouncing back
- Ohio Restaurant Association raising $30K to help struggling industry
- ODOT Crews installing fencing along Brecksville bridge to stem recent suicides
- COVID-19 pop-up testing in Avon Lake this week
- Hiram College names next president
Ohio attorney general warns Trump against changes to USPS
Ohio’s attorney general joined the chorus of people calling on President Donald Trump to cease his attempts to starve the U.S. Postal Service of money ahead of the November election. Attorney General Dave Yost pleaded with Trump in a letter sent Sunday to postpone any needed changes to the Postal Service until after Election Day, warning that the “radical changes” would “place the solvency of the Post Office above the legitimacy of the Government itself." The letter comes after Trump frankly acknowledged he’s starving the Postal Service of money in order to make it harder to process an expected surge of mail-in ballots, which he worries could cost him the election.
Lt. governor backs prep sports; DeWine weighs it
Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted has been one of the loudest voices advocating that fall high school sports proceed during the coronavirus pandemic. The former University of Dayton football player has been outspoken on this issue on Twitter. He tweeted last week that good results can't be expected when sports are taken away from young people. Husted's comments come as Gov. Mike DeWine is expected Tuesday to announce plans for falls sports. DeWine has hinted that he will leave a lot of decision-making to local officials.
Electric scooters coming this month to Akron, UA
Electric scooters are coming to Akron. The University of Akron and the city have each partnered with San Francisco-based Spin that provides electric scooter rentals through an app. Scooters will start to pop up on campus next week, and expand citywide this fall. Cleveland.com reports 100 scooters will be available at first. It costs $1 to rent one, plus $.31 per minute to ride. The city has entered into an agreement with Spin through October of 2021.
Casino and racino revenue bouncing back
Ohio's casinos and racinos are bouncing back from their three-month shutdown from March through June. Revenue was up nearly 12% in July over a year ago. Cleveland.com reports the increase was led in large part by a near doubling in business at Toledo's casino while those in Detroit were still closed. Total gambling revenue in Ohio was about $180 million in July, up nearly $20 million from the same month last year. For the year to date, revenue remains down sharply because of the pandemic.
Ohio Restaurant Association raising $30K to help struggling industry
The restaurant industry is banding together to help their businesses survive. The Ohio Restaurant Association Education Foundation aims to raise $30,000 in donations in 30 days to assist restaurant employees. The association recently said more than half all Ohio restaurants may close within the next nine months if the pandemic doesn't improve. Cleveland.com reports the fundraiser offers virtual events and offers for donors, including a cooking class and special beer releases. Information is at ohiorestaurantsrelief.org.
ODOT installing fencing along Brecksville bridge to stem recent suicides
State crews will soon be installing fences along a historic Northeast Ohio bridge in efforts to prevent people from using it to commit suicide. Cleveland.com reports that in the last month three people have died from jumping from the Rt. 82 bridge in Brecksville. That prompted local officials along with the Cuyahoga Valley National Park to pressure ODOT to install 6 foot fencing to help prevent further deaths.
COVID-19 pop-up testing in Avon Lake this week
A free, pop-up COVID testing site will be available in Avon Lake this Wednesday and Thursday. It's in partnership with Lorain County Public Health and the Ohio National Guard at the aquatic center. Anyone can get a test regardless of symptoms. It takes about three days to get test results.
Hiram College names next president
Hiram College has named its next president. David Haney becomes interim president September 1and will replace Lori Varlotta, who announced in June that she would be leaving at the end of September. Haney comes to Hiram after serving two years as president of Centenary University, a private liberal arts school in Hackettstown, New Jersey. He also worked as the Vice President for Academic Affairs at Emory & Henry College in Southwest Virginia.
