Loveland, Ohio – The Charter of the City of Loveland mandates that an annual report be prepared and made available to the public. It provides an overview of city finances, personnel, police, fire, public works, and economic development. In addition, the 2024 report highlights capital projects.
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The Air Quality Index for Loveland, Ohio was in the “Unhealthy” range at 8 AM this morning and approaching the “Very Unhealthy category.
It’s always smart to pay attention to your air quality, but it’s especially true for people who may be at greater risk. They include:
• People with heart disease.
• People with lung disease, including asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).
• Older adults.
• Children and teenagers because their lungs are still developing, and they breathe more air per pound of body weight than adults.
• Pregnant people.
• Minority populations.
• Outdoor workers
Loveland, Ohio – Children face special risks from air pollution because their lungs are growing and because they are so active and breathe in a great deal of air according to the American Lung Association.
Continuing reading from the American Lung Association…
Several studies have found air pollution linked to harm to children while they are still in the womb. A large study in California found that higher particle pollution levels increased the risk of preterm birth. Pregnant women exposed to even low levels of particle pollution had higher risk for preterm birth in a Boston study. Preterm births occurred more frequently when particle pollution spiked, as an Australian study found, even when they controlled for other risk factors.
The Southern California Children’s Health study looked at the long-term effects of air pollution on children and teenagers. Tracking 1,759 children who were between ages 10 and 18 from 1993 to 2001, researchers found that those who grew up in more polluted areas face the increased risk of having reduced lung growth, which may never recover to their full capacity. The average drop in lung function was similar to the impact of growing up in a home with parents who smoked.
Community health studies are pointing to less obvious, but serious effects from year-round exposure to ozone, especially for children. Scientists followed 500 Yale University students and determined that living just four years in a region with high levels of ozone and related co-pollutants was associated with diminished lung function and frequent reports of respiratory symptoms. Another earlier report from the Children’s Health study of 3,300 schoolchildren in Southern California found reduced lung function in girls with asthma and boys who spent more time outdoors in areas with high levels of ozone.
Ohioans 21 and older would be able to cultivate, purchase and possess marijuana if a bipartisan bill passes in the Ohio Statehouse.
State Reps. Jamie Callender, R-Concord, and Casey Weinstein, D-Hudson, introduced House Bill 168 — also known as the Ohio Adult Use Act — earlier this month.
The bill would also allow conviction records for prior cultivation and possession offenses to be expunged.
“Adult-use is good for our economy, good for our justice system, and the right thing to do,” Weinstein said in a news release. “Ohioans are ready to legalize cannabis.”
HB 168 would put a 10% sales tax on adult-use cannabis products. Researchers at Ohio State University estimate the potential annual tax revenue generated from adult-use cannabis in Ohio ranges from $276 million to $374 million in year five of an operational adult-use cannabis market.
“It opens up a route for people to have access to cannabis without punishment, without losing their jobs, without losing child custody,” said Tim Johnson, CEO of Cannabis Safety First.
The bill would rename the Ohio’s Medical Marijuana Control Program to the Division of Marijuana Control and it would be in charge of regulating the medical marijuana and adult-use programs. The division would be housed within the Ohio Department of Commerce.
“Through the expansion of Ohio’s successful Medical Marijuana program to all Ohioans, we will not only be building upon best practices from around the country but utilizing the lessons learned here in Ohio,” Callender said in a news release.
Twenty-two states, including Michigan, and Washington, D.C. have legalized the recreational use of and sale of cannabis.
“It’s time for Ohio to act on this before we fall too much further behind our neighbors,” Weinstein said.
Legalizing marijuana would free up the judicial system from cannabis arrests and possession charges, Johnson said.
“It will allow law enforcement to centralize their resources around more harmful drugs and other priority incidents as far as criminal activity and so forth in their communities,” he said.
The expungement piece of the bill would help people go through a quicker process to get their possession or trafficking charges erased.
“The whole principle behind all of this is … to open up our workforce pool … to allow people to return to being able to purchase homes, go to school, receive grants, have custody rights, all of that,” Johnson said.
Gov. Mike DeWine signed Senate Bill 288, a massive criminal justice reform bill, into law earlier this year and it went into effect in April.
One of the things the bill does is allow prosecutors to expunge low-level marijuana possession offenses. It also prevents arrests and convictions for possessing marijuana paraphernalia from appearing in Ohio’s criminal records.
The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana like Alcohol is collecting petition signatures to get a similar proposal on November’s ballot. The coalition needs to get 124,000 signatures from 44 of Ohio’s 88 counties by the July 5 deadline.
Their proposal would legalize and regulate the cultivation, manufacturing, testing and sale of marijuana to Ohioans 21 and up. Ohioans 21 and older could home grow with a limit of six plants per person and 12 plants per residence, and it would impose a 10% tax at the point of sale for each transaction.
The proposal was submitted by citizens through an initiated statute, so it is not an amendment to the state’s constitution. Ohio’s Aug. 8 special election will ask voters if the state constitution should be harder to amend.
Pricilla Harris, executive director of the Sensible Movement Coalition, is excited about the legislation to legalize marijuana, but said advocates favor the ballot proposal.
The ballot proposal has more protections for possession limits — 2.5 ounces compared to the bill’s 50 grams.
“We are still looking for patient protection, workforce protection for employers,” Harris said. “Unfortunately, we are just kind of lacking in that area when it comes to the bill.”
Between legislation and the ballot initiative, marijuana activists are confident weed will soon be legalized in Ohio.
“Either way you’re gonna see something happen this year in Ohio,” Johnson said.
Harris said it’s exciting to think about marijuana potentially being legalized.
“We would no longer be putting collateral damage on the residents of Ohio that are choosing cannabis as their medicine or their personal use,” she said.
Senate Bill 9 — introduced by State Sens. Stephen Huffman, R-Tipp City, and Kirk Schuring, R-Canton — would expand Ohio’s medical marijuana program by adding more permissible forms of medical marijuana and adding to the list treatments for medical conditions.
It would also create a 13-member Medical Marijuana Oversight Commission that would oversee the Division of Marijuana Control within the Department of Commerce to oversee Ohio’s Medical Marijuana Program.
Currently, the Ohio Department of Commerce, the State Medical Board of Ohio, and the Ohio Board of Pharmacy oversee regulation and licensing in the marijuana program.
There are 355,368 patients that have registered for medical marijuana and 168,741 have both an active registration and an active recommendation as of March, according to the Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program.
Follow OCJ Reporter Megan Henry on Twitter.
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Promoted Post This event is a Women’s Executive Luncheon focused on giving women executives tips and ideas on how to better balance their lives. It is also a great way to network with area executives! The Event Includes: Luncheon, Shopping Expo – vendor tables available!, Keynote Speaker, Networking, Swag Bag, Prizes, Dessert provided by a local business, Bra Fittings, Free Headshots, and more! All sponsorship levels are available! |
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“Where we go Miles for paws big and small”
by Cassie Mattia
Loveland, Ohio – Spring is one of my favorite seasons for many reasons, one of those reasons being that National Dog Appreciation is recognized and celebrated! With 3.3 million dogs entering into shelters and 670,000 dogs being euthanized every year, our furry friends need our support more than ever. With that in mind, I looked all over Loveland and finally found Paws for Miles founders Tonya and Jennifer, two of the most respected dog adoption and foster advocates in Ohio! Paws for Miles is a Loveland foster-based rescue dedicated to helping dogs of all breeds, ages, colors, health, physical abilities, temperaments, and habits. At Paws for Miles all dogs are housed in foster homes where they are cared for, socialized, and vetted.
“Saving one dog won’t save the world, but surely the world will change for that one dog”
Paws for Miles began with one inspirational fur baby; Miles. Tonya and Jennifer were first introduced to Miles after discovering his previous owner had beaten and shot him. Both Tonya and Jennifer did everything they possibly could to ensure that Miles had a fighting chance, but the medical expenses became overwhelming. Luckily, Tonya and Jennifer were flooded with donations after the community heard about Miles and his condition. Sadly, Miles died from his injuries, but his legacy would live on through the donations that people gave to help him to start what is now called, “Paws for Miles.” Through the continued efforts by the Paws for Miles team, many dogs have been saved from terrible environments and given “new leases on life” with loving people. This is what Tonya and Jennifer refer to as “Happy Tails,” meaning dogs who have left their old lives behind for new forever homes.
In my new Table of Discussions episode, you will see Callie, a beautiful and well-behaved Pitbull/Husky mix, and Angel, a brand new Doodle/Collie puppy, on camera while Jennifer and Tonya talk about how Paws for Miles got started and tell both “Courage” and “Miles” stories. During the interview, you will learn more about the dangerous dogs list, how you can foster or adopt a dog from Paws for Miles, and how you can donate or volunteer your time to Paw for Miles. You will also get a sneak peek at five Paws for Miles fur babies that are ready for their permanent homes! Are you ready to learn more about how you can show some love to the doggies?! Tune in below to my National Dog Appreciation Table of Discussions episode featuring Tonya, Jennifer, Callie, and Angel!
Want to learn more about Courage’s journey? Click here.
Our mission at Paws for Miles is that we will goes miles for all paws big and small. We serve animals by providing them with a safe place, medical care, and by finding them a loving, safe, happy, and permanent home. We also try to provide informational help for established homes. We accept all animals regardless of age, color, wellness, temperament, and habits (space permitting). We have animals that are ready for their permanent home. The animals are our first concern. If you are unable to care for your animal(s) please contact us day or night and we can arrange to pick up. We realize that times are hard and that life is also hard. Sometimes the cuts we have to make require us to have to give up a valuable family member as in a pet Change of job, moving, or any reason. All names in our files are kept confidential. We do not judge anyone. Paws for Miles is Cincinnati’s sanctuary that provides: – Shelter/rescue surrender services – Adoption of shelter animals – Hospice Services – Up-to-date health, nutrition and care information – Vet Referrals Find out more about adoption and requirements, how to donate, how to join the team or volunteer, and view adoptable Pets at Paws for Miles. We also try to provide informational help for established homes. We accept all animals regardless of age, color, wellness, temperament, and habits (space permitting). We have animals that are ready for their permanent home. The animals are our first concern. If you are unable to care for your animal(s) please contact us day or night and we can arrange to pick up. We realize that times are hard and that life is also hard. Sometimes the cuts we have to make require us to have to give up a valuable family member as in a pet Change of job, moving, or any reason. All names in our files are kept confidential. We do not judge anyone.
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Columnist Cassie Mattia is a resident of Historic Downtown Loveland and the Public Relations Coordinator at Butler County Board of DD. Cassie was awarded the Little Miami River Chamber Alliance 2021 Young Business Professional of the Year. She is the President and Publisher of Loveland Magazine.
Contact Cassie if you would like to be considered to be on an episode of her Table of Discussions.
Voters casting ballots. | Mario Tama/Getty Images
Bill, along with SJR 2 constitutional amendment bill, directly impact abortion rights ballot initiative
– Ohio Capital Journal
Less than half a year after proclaiming August elections to be too expensive for the turnout they attract, the Senate Republican majority expanded the use of a special election this year, complete with $20 million in funding.
“This is legislative whiplash, and we do it really well here in Columbus,” said state Sen. Kent Smith, D-Euclid.
In a mostly party-line vote, Senate Bill 92 was passed Wednesday by the body. The only Republican to vote against SB 92 was state Sen. Nathan Manning, R-North Ridgeville.
The vote came immediately after the state senate also passed an increase in the threshold for passing a constitutional amendment from 50% to 60% along party lines.
The threshold bill, SJR 2, is a companion bill to HJR 1, which has been making its way through the Ohio House, but has yet to come up for a floor vote. The House resolution passed its committee after three hours of testimony on Wednesday, most of which spoke in opposition to the bill.
Both bills could lead to a ballot measure where voters would approve or deny a constitutional amendment to raise that threshold.
With the approval of SB 92, August special elections will now be held “for consideration of a General Assembly proposed constitutional amendment,” to fill a congressional vacancy or hold a special primary for congressional party candidates.
The bill also appropriates $20 million to conduct “a one-time August special election on August 8, 2023,” a funding influx made while the bill was in committee.
That August election would be to send a constitutional voter threshold to the ballot for voters to approve an legislature-initiated amendment to raise the threshold from 50% to 60%.
Republicans pushed back on comparisons between previous August elections, including last year’s that saw an abysmal 8% turnout, with the argument that this time around, voters will care.
“With this being a bonafide, statewide question, and with it being an important question … I would say the turnout is going to be markedly higher in this August election,” McColley told his colleagues on the Senate floor.
The legislative measures seem to be direct hits at a potential constitutional amendment that would codify abortion rights if it makes it to the ballot box and is approved by voters in November. Abortion rights advocates are currently collecting the needed signatures. State law currently requires more than 400,000 in 44 of the 88 states.
One of the pro-abortion rights groups helping with the ballot measure, Pro-Choice Ohio, called the passage of SB 92 “both expected and incredibly disappointing” in a post on Twitter.
Last year, after redistricting confusion rocked the legislature, Republicans all-but eliminated the August election in a move that they said would save the state money and get rid of an unneeded annual election date that historically had low voter turnout.
In August of last year, the special primary election included statehouse races because the redistricting maps were rejected by the Ohio Supreme Court before they could be included in the May election. A U.S. District Court then intervened in the legal snarl that swept up the redistricting process, and allowed the state to use a map previously deemed unconstitutional by the Ohio Supreme Court as the map for the August primary.
That map is still in effect currently.
Speaking in opposition for SB 92, state Sen. William DeMora, D-Columbus, quoted Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose who spoke in support of reducing August special election usage last year, when he said they “aren’t good for taxpayers, election officials, voters or the civic health of our state.”
“(SB 92) is so bad that (LaRose) Secretary LaRose couldn’t even find the time to come and testify about it in committee,” DeMora said.
State Sen. Theresa Gavarone, R-Bowling Green, said claims that the August special elections were eliminated last year was an exaggerated claim.
“We’re not reinventing the wheel on this legislation,” Gavarone said, pointing out that certain occasions allowed for an August special election.
SB 92 now moves to the House for consideration.
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Susan Tebben is an award-winning journalist with a decade of experience covering Ohio news, including courts and crime, Appalachian social issues, government, education, diversity and culture. She has worked for The Newark Advocate, The Glasgow (KY) Daily Times, The Athens Messenger, and WOUB Public Media. She has also had work featured on National Public Radio.
Hamilton County Small Business Day is on Monday, May 22 from 10 AM until 2 PM at the Sharonville Convention Center.
Hamilton County will be officially launching the Hamilton County Office of Small Business and brand new Small Business Relief Grants.
This event introduces small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs to all the Hamilton County Office of Small Business provides including grant applications, business plan development, and more. They will also have “rapid-fire” breakout sessions providing instruction on topics like loan readiness and bid preparation.
There is a free lunch at noon with remarks by Hamilton County Commissioners and advice from successful areas small businesses.
One-on-one help with:
Rapid-Fire Breakout Sessions (Schedule and speaker details coming soon!)
Loveland, Ohio – City Hall has invited interested parties to attend two public hearings.
The first is on April 25 and it is about Flood Damage Prevention Regulations. The second hearing is about new proposed Outdoor Lighting Regulations and is on May 9.
To learn more follow these links:
CHAPTER 554: OUTDOOR LIGHTING REGULATIONS
Flood Damage Prevention Regulations
Both hearings are at Loveland City Hall, 120 West Loveland Avenue at 7 PM.
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Secretary of State Frank LaRose announces the referral of 117 cases of alleged voting and voter registration fraud stemming from the 2020 elections. Photo courtesy The Ohio Channel.
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose on Wednesday offered another rationale for making it much more difficult for voters to amend the Ohio Constitution. Now he’s saying it’s needed to fight a possible power grab like one that grew out of a massive bribery and money-laundering scandal.
But LaRose didn’t mention in his op-ed that his name came up repeatedly in a criminal trial related to the scandal and that he appeared to be in close communication with some of its central figures.
Nor did his office respond when asked whether LaRose ever spoke out against the corrupt utility bailout before the FBI started arresting people in July 2020.
The secretary of state — who is said to be eyeing a run for U.S. Senate next year — has been pushing to increase the portion of votes needed for a citizen-initiated amendment from 50% to 60%. As he and his allies have, they’ve given a shifting set of reasons for why that’s needed.
Last November, during a lame-duck session of the legislature, LaRose and state Rep. Brian Stewart, R-Ashville, held a press conference saying that the change was necessary to prevent wanton amendments to the Ohio Constitution by monied special interests. But they didn’t point to any examples of how that had happened in the past.
Many suspected an ulterior motive.
LaRose sat on a Republican-dominated redistricting commission that last year ignored seven Ohio Supreme Court rulings saying that the legislative and congressional maps the commission produced violated anti-gerrymandering amendments overwhelmingly approved by Ohio voters. That prompted Maureen O’Connor, the outgoing Republican chief justice, to urge Ohioans to pass new, more-tightly written amendments this year.
Ohio was also roiled when a highly restrictive abortion law took effect last June just after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and horror stories poured out of abortion clinics and hospitals. An effort quickly started to get an amendment on the ballot protecting abortion rights after other protections easily passed in other states.
But at last year’s presser, LaRose denied that his goal was to block anti-gerrymandering or abortion-rights amendments. The constitutional change he was advocating was a long-term, fundamental one that he didn’t seek to block such short-term disputes, he claimed.
Just weeks later, however, Stewart, LaRose’s sidekick at the presser, sent a letter to his GOP colleagues in the House explaining the real reasons for making it harder for Ohioans to amend their constitution: to stop abortion-rights and anti-gerrymandering amendments that appear to be favored by strong majorities of Ohioans.
[/vc_column_text][vc_raw_html]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[/vc_raw_html][vc_column_text]The attempt to rush a bill through lame duck last year failed.
Now Stewart, LaRose and their allies are trying to pass it through Ohio’s now-unconstitutionally gerrymandered legislature. If it passes, it would put the measure requiring 60% of the vote to amend the state constitution on the ballot. And, since the vote would be under the existing rules, it would require just 50% of the vote to pass.
Also on the pile of accusations that it’s a naked power grab is that LaRose, Stewart and their allies want to put the measure on the ballot in a low-turnout August election. They’re doing so just months after passing a bill that had LaRose’s support to eliminate such elections as costly and unnecessary — and three months before the abortion amendment is expected to hit the ballot.
While he’s being accused of attempting a power grab, LaRose says he’s trying to stop them.
On Tuesday, The Columbus Dispatch published an op-ed in which he furnished yet another reason to make it harder for voters to change the state Constitution. He cited an attempt by former House Speaker Larry Householder to pass an amendment changing the state’s term limits so Householder could stay speaker for another 16 years.
It was part of a breathtaking scheme in which Householder and his allies took more than $61 million from Akron-based FirstEnergy and other utilities, used the money to make him speaker in January 2019, and then pass and protect a $1.3 billion ratepayer bailout that mostly went to FirstEnergy.
Fresh off the passage of the bailout, Householder raised millions in early 2020 from FirstEnergy and AEP for his scheme that would allow him to stay longer in office. But it died with his arrest that July.
It might seem ironic that LaRose would use a corruption scandal to gut a 1912 reform measure that was aimed at curbing corrupt, unresponsive government, but that’s what he argued. He said all it takes to change the Constitution now “is a well-funded, dishonest political campaign and a simple majority vote.”
LaRose added that Householder planned to call his tenure-extension scheme “Ohioans for Legislative Term Limits, a deceptive name for a constitutional amendment that would more than double his term in office. It should come as no surprise that FirstEnergy Corporation, the company at the center of Householder’s racketeering scandal, agreed to bankroll the amendment campaign.”
While he accused his opponents of “hysterical hyperbole” as he tries to make it 20% harder for voters to succeed in the already difficult process to amend the Ohio Constitution, there were some important things LaRose didn’t say in his Op-Ed.
For starters, FirstEnergy didn’t only bankroll Householder in 2018 as the now-convicted former speaker elected a team of lieutenants who would hand him the speaker’s gavel. The utility also bankrolled LaRose to the tune of $25,000 that year as he ran for secretary of state.
It was part of nearly $50,000 that the energy company — which signed a deferred prosecution agreement in the Householder scandal — has given LaRose, the campaign-finance tracker FollowTheMoney.org reports.
And while LaRose is decrying the bailout now that there have been arrests and convictions, there was reason to know there was something wrong with it well before they took place.
Insiders knew that somebody was burying Capitol Square in cash throughout the 2019 passage of House Bill 6, the corrupt utility bailout. That was especially true as FirstEnergy dumped what the FBI later determined was $36 million into a blatantly-dishonest-but-successful fight to beat back a repeal.
Because the funds were non-disclosable 501(c)(4) dark money, it was impossible for the public to know exactly where they were coming from until the feds stepped in and used subpoenas and other special powers to find out.
But HB 6 was such bad legislation and the campaign to stop the repeal so over-the-top that there was plenty of reason to suspect that somebody was being bought off to pass it. It was a massive corporate bailout that Householder and others were trying to officially declare a tax. Republican lawmakers who didn’t want to cast such a damaging vote described withering pressure from House leadership.
LaRose’s office didn’t answer Wednesday when asked if the secretary of state ever spoke out against HB 6 before the FBI started making arrests.
In the Cincinnati corruption trial that ran from late January to mid-March, federal prosecutors presented several communications to the jury that might indicate that LaRose was actually sympathetic to the effort to pass and protect the corrupt bailout.
On July 23, 2019, as the repeal effort got underway, text messages flew between two prominent figures in the scandal: Matt Borges, the former Ohio Republican Party chairman who was convicted along with Householder; and Juan Cespedes, a lobbyist who pleaded guilty and cooperated with prosecutors.
Borges told Cespedes he had received “a message from the secretary of state on the ballot-measure issue.”
The men were hoping for help from LaRose. He’s chairman of the Ohio Ballot Board, which, along with Attorney General Dave Yost, has to approve the language of constitutional amendments before they’re circulated for the hundreds of thousands of needed voter signatures — and before they’re placed on the ballot.
In the case of the HB 6 repeal, Yost initially sent the language back for revisions, then he and the ballot board approved it. But that wasn’t before the original 90 days opponents had to gather the signatures was whittled down to 53.
In the end, time ran out before opponents could gather them. But at the beginning of the effort, Borges seemed to be talking to LaRose about what LaRose needed in exchange for his help.
“LaRose is expecting us to be publicly supportive of him,” Borges said. “Apparently petitioners (for the repeal of HB 6) are going to call on him to step down from the ballot board because of ‘conflicts.’ He can be our friend in this process, so let’s be prepared to speak for him.”
Later in the repeal fight, FirstEnergy’s two top executives discussed asking LaRose’s help with Yost. In addition to hamstringing the petition effort, supporters of the corrupt bailout wanted to have it officially declared a tax, and thus legally exempt from repeal.
“I’ve been asked by (subsidiary FirstEnergy Solutions) to call Frank LaRose to get Frank to call Dave Yost,” Vice President Michael Dowling texted CEO Chuck Jones, according to messages put into evidence by prosecutors. “If Frank tells Yost that he believes HB 6 is a tax, Yost will come out publicly and say it, which (FirstEnergy Solutions) thinks helps with the Supreme Court. Frank is reluctant to make the call. I have a call in to Frank and I will ask him to do it.”
LaRose may have been reluctant about making that call. But he apparently wasn’t reluctant to keep talking to the people who funded the scandal he’s now condemning and using as a reason to make it harder for voters to amend the Ohio Constitution.
In October 2019 — shortly before the repeal effort failed — Jones sent a text to John Kiani, the chairman of the FirstEnergy subsidiary that was to receive $1 billion of the bailout. It indicated that both LaRose and Householder had been providing the FirstEnergy CEO with “private” information on the repeal effort.
“For what it’s worth, LaRose and Householder think it’s game over,” Jones told Kiani. “But that is a private conversation unless they’ve told you the same thing. And Householder has a ‘quick fix’ anyway.”
And then in November 2019 — just after the repeal failed — other messages indicated that LaRose wanted to cement a relationship with Kiani, the hard-charging former Enron executive whom Cespedes testified stood to make $100 million off the sale of FirstEnergy’s bailed-out nuclear and coal plants.
Borges texted Cespedes that LaRose, “told me he wants to get to know Kiani, and I said, ‘Are you sure about that?’”
Cespedes replied, “He will live to regret that.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
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MARTY SCHLADEN
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Loveland, Ohio – Although she could not give a definitive reopening date, the Ohio Valley Goodwill store in Loveland may open it’s doors again in the next few weeks said Sharon Hannon the marketing director. “Maybe next week, fingers crossed.”
There is a construction meeting today.
Hannon said customers should see noticeable improvements as they virtually “gutted” the interior. New lighting is being installed, fresh paint and interior graphics, new restrooms, five new changing rooms, and a new office. The drive-thru donation center has received much attention also. Top to bottom with newly painted ceilings throughout the entire store.
Ohio Valley Goodwill Industries has described it as their “Flagship Design, and the Loveland location will feature Goodwill’s new “signature colors.” Construction delays affecting most commercial construction projects set back their anticipated March reopening, however, the “retail elves” are busy restocking the shelves.
“Bells and whistles” are promised for the reopening day with giveaways and sales coupons.
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