STATEHOUSE & POLITICS
Heartbeat ban: The Ohio Supreme Court denied an emergency request by abortion providers to block the state’s heartbeat law, reports Laura Hancock. The unsigned decision means that, for now, abortions remain illegal at around six weeks, or when fetal cardiac activity can first be detected.
Birth control? State Rep. Jean Schmidt, a Clermont County Republican, said she would entertain a debate about outlawing birth control in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning constitutional protections for abortion. Seth Richardson reports Schmidt also said companies that provide travel expenses for employees to get abortion care could face legal consequences. Schmidt is the sponsor of a bill in the state legislature that would eliminate abortion from the time of conception.
Q&A: Can women with an ectopic pregnancy have an abortion? What about rape and incest? The status of abortion is changing rapidly in Ohio. Laura Hancock answers questions.
Biden visit: President Joe Biden will visit Cleveland on Wednesday to deliver remarks on his economic agenda and “building the economy from the bottom up and the middle out,” reports Sabrina Eaton.
METRO
EPA dispute: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Ohio EPA are at odds over the amount of phosphorus Euclid’s wastewater treatment plant can discharge into Lake Erie, and the outcome of their disagreement could have broad repercussions for sewage plant operators elsewhere in Ohio. Peter Krouse reports the issue came to a head after the Ohio EPA issued a draft discharge permit for Euclid as a renewal for an expiring permit. The U.S. EPA objected, claiming the proposed phosphorus limit contained in the permit is inconsistent with the water quality requirements of the federal Clean Water Act.
Health improvement: No American city has figured out how to dismantle the intergenerational poverty that has afflicted majority-Black urban neighborhoods across the country since the days of redlining and Jim Crow. But new Cleveland State University research suggests that focusing economic development projects on improving health in struggling neighborhoods could be an answer. Steven Litt reports that improving the “social determinants of health” could be the central focus of economic development.
Hot in CLE: Summer 2022 is off to a hot start in Cleveland, starting with a record-tying 95 degrees on the first day of the season. Zachary Smith reports that we averaged an 81.1-degree high, compared to a 79.8 average in the past. From 1970 through last year, average summer temperatures in Cleveland increased by 3.4 degrees.
Ronayne reproductive freedom: Chris Ronayne, a Democrat running for Cuyahoga County executive, announced a “Reproductive Freedom” plan Friday meant to ensure abortion care and access for county residents in the wake of recent actions stripping them of those protections. Kaitlin Durbin reports that Lee Weingart, the Republican candidate, did not denounce Ronayne’s plan but didn’t applaud it, either.
ARPA spending: Cuyahoga County Council members have introduced another batch of various proposals to spend $6.9 million in American Rescue Plan Act dollars, reports Lucas Daprile. The proposals include funding for community centers, playgrounds, the zoo, police/fire, arts, and routine municipal expenses.
School names: The Cleveland Metropolitan School District board has approved name changes for three elementary schools as part of a year-long effort to replace the names of schools named for slaveholders or other people with racially problematic or oppressive histories. Courtney Astolfi reports that the board agreed unanimously on new names for the schools that are expected to be in place for the upcoming school year.
Broadband: Cleveland is seeking proposals for how to provide broadband internet to city residents through a $20 million plan funded by COVID stimulus money. Lucas Daprile reports the city seeks plans that could provide broadband access to 50,000 residents within a year of the plan’s “deployment” and would provide devices to those in need.
Flag maker: Joe Burdick, a veteran of the U.S. Navy, uses his love and devotion to create American flag art pieces, reports Brenda Cain. Laid off from his full-time job in 2018, Burdick saw an opportunity to commit to making his flags a full-time business. Four days later, he received his first order from the Cleveland Browns for 40 flags as Christmas gifts for the team’s corporate sponsors.
Vintage finds: For Laura Johnston, vintage pieces are unique. They come with stories, layers of history that automatically make them more interesting. And people can make them into whatever they want. Plus, there’s the thrill of seeking – and finding. It’s a thrill Johnston didn’t share as a kid, trailing her mom through antique shows. She’d warn Johnston not to touch anything, then point to a Victrola record player or a baker’s cabinet and say, “We had one of those!”
COVID-19 & HEALTHCARE
Vasectomy increase: More men are scheduling appointments for vasectomies in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision on abortion rights overturning Roe v. Wade. Gretchen Cuda Kroen reports that the Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals and Northeast Ohio clinics are seeing huge upswings in requests and appointments as part of a national trend in birth control.
Plan B: Some pharmacies are temporarily restricting sales of over-the-counter emergency contraception to cope with increased demand seen across the country from women worried about future access to birth control. Julie Washington reports that, for example, Rite Aid is temporarily limiting sales of Plan B and similar pills to three packages per customer in its Northeast Ohio stores and nationally.
COVID map: Many Northeast Ohio counties — including Cuyahoga — have turned from green to yellow, or designated as having medium COVID-19 transmission on the latest CDC map, reports Julie Washington.
BUSINESS
Labor shortage: Where Are the Workers?, the Fund for Our Economic Future stud delving into the labor shortage in Northeast Ohio, has created a new website to share its findings. Sean McDonnell reports about 408,000 people have quit their jobs in the last 12 months and another 330,000 are planning to quit.
New apartments: A developer can move ahead with a 250-unit apartment complex, and the demolition of six historic townhomes, after getting approval from the Cleveland Planning Commission Friday morning. Sean McDonnell reports the Stokes West development would bring about 250 apartments, with rents starting at $1,395, and six new townhomes to a plot of land bordered by Stokes Boulevard, Cedar Avenue and East 107th Street.
CRIME
LGBTQ center vandalized: Police are investigating a potential hate crime after Colors+ Youth Center in Fairview Park was vandalized about 6:20 a.m. Friday. When officers arrived at the community center located at West 214th Street and Lorain Road, they found racist graffiti spray-painted on the outside of the window and a brick thrown through the front window, reports Olivia Mitchell.
Fatal stabbing: A man is accused of stabbing and killing two of his relatives and wounding a third in Seven Hills on Sunday afternoon, Cory Shaffer reports.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
House of the week: A French chateau on Lake Erie in Bay Village has sweeping water and Cleveland skyline views, reports Joey Morona. Listed at $5.9 million, the home offers six bedrooms and eight bathrooms in 8,955 square feet, plus an additional 4,000 square feet in the finished lower level.
