Tag: local news

  • Wards Corner Road at Arnold Palmer Drive to close October 20 thru 22

    Wards Corner Road at Arnold Palmer Drive to close October 20 thru 22

    Miami Township, Ohio – The replacement of a culvert will require the closure of Wards Corner Road in Miami Township. The closure is located just north of Arnold Palmer Drive on Wards Corner Road.

    The road will be closed to through traffic from 7 AM to 5 PM on Wednesday, October 20 through Friday, October 22.

    Arnold Palmer Drive will be accessible from the Branch Hill-Guinea Road side during this clousre.

    This closure will not go into effect until the previous closure on Wards Corner Road has been completed.

  • House Republicans propose legalizing marijuana for 21+ recreational use

    House Republicans propose legalizing marijuana for 21+ recreational use

    BY: JAKE ZUCKERMAN and Ohio Capital Journal

    Two Ohio House Republicans on Tuesday proposed legalizing marijuana for recreational use in Ohio.

    In legislation that has not yet been formally introduced, Reps. Jamie Callender and Ron Ferguson pitched a program that would allow Ohioans 21 and older to purchase marijuana from licensed distributors or grow up to six plants in their home.

    “Adults should be able to make decisions for themselves,” Ferguson said. “That’s what this bill is about.”

    The bill would impose a 10% sales tax on marijuana. As drafted, 25% of the revenue would go to support law enforcement, and another 25% would go toward mental health services with a focus on substance use recovery efforts. Adults could lawfully possess up to five ounces of marijuana.

    The sponsors acknowledged the bill’s trajectory would be somewhat dicey: They said the House Speaker is hesitant on the issue; the governor and Senate President have expressed more explicit opposition.

    However, the 2020 elections were a banner year for marijuana, notching ballot referendum wins even in GOP strongholds like Montana and South Dakota. Eighteen states, plus Washington D.C., have legalized marijuana for adult recreational use, according to July research from the National Conference of State Legislatures. Thirty-six, including Ohio, have legalized marijuana for medicinal use.

    “[The Speaker] is generally unfavorable to recreational use,” Callender said. “However, he does read the tea leaves, and he is giving us a chance to prove that this is a reasonable option.”

    A Cupp spokesman didn’t respond to inquiries. Senate President Matt Huffman, R-Lima, told the USA TODAY Network Ohio this summer that he opposes marijuana legalization.

    Callender said there would be an expungement process outlined in the bill for people who have previously been convicted of certain crimes related to marijuana. He didn’t immediately offer specifics.

    Outside organizers, in an industry-backed effort, are seeking to force the Legislature’s hand. In August, they received the green light from state officials to begin collecting the 133,000 signatures required to force lawmakers to consider the issue. Should lawmakers decline to do so, the issue would then be placed on the ballot for voters to directly weigh in.

    Callender said his proposal could be a means to get ahead of the ballot referendum and give lawmakers more control over the final outcome, though he acknowledged the principal ideas in both are similar.

    The idea can be lucrative for the state. Colorado, roughly half the population of Ohio, levies a 15% sales tax on retail marijuana, plus a 2.9% sales tax on marijuana sold in stores and a 15% wholesale sales tax. The state earned $387 million in marijuana tax revenue from calendar year 2020, according to state data. Michigan, which launched its recreational program in late 2019, received $45.7 million in tax revenue in fiscal year 2020.

    Research from Ohio State University’s Drug Enforcement and Policy Center within its law school estimated that Ohio could drive $625 million in revenue from recreational marijuana sales, assuming the state taxes and its residents consume marijuana at even levels as Colorado.

    House Democrats have proposed a marijuana program as well, though the legislation has yet to receive any committee attention.

  • [Video] Sharon Scovanner asks should we annex Grailville Property?

    [Video] Sharon Scovanner asks should we annex Grailville Property?

    Loveland, Ohio – Resident Sharon Scovanner asked, “Is this good for Loveland. Is this good for our citizens.” She made the argument at last night’s council meeting that maybe annexing the Grail Property right now may not be the best course, and provided an alternative.

    The Grail is asking for the annexation of approximately 97-acres into the City and it must be approved by Council and the Clermont County Commissioners. Grailville is located at 931 O’Bannonville Road. A proposal is pending for a single-family residential development by Drees Homes.

  • The annual Student LIFE Shop event was a great success!

    The annual Student LIFE Shop event was a great success!

    Loveland, Ohio – Pantry clients with eligible students in preschool through 12th grade, were invited to attend on July 31 or August 7 to shop for school-related items. A total of 35 families with 81 children attended.

    The program is run by the LIFE Food Pantry in Loveland.

    Each student received a backpack filled with grade-appropriate school supplies, required reading books, Loveland Spirit wear from RP Diamond, socks, underwear, and a bag of personal care items containing shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrush, soap, body wash, shaving cream, razors, and feminine hygiene products. 

    Many smiles were seen on children excited with their new school supplies and apparel.

    The Pantry said that special thanks are due to Sharon Raess, who chaired and organized the event.

    LIFE also said, “We couldn’t have done it without all the LIFE volunteers who helped us prepare and work the event, and the Loveland community for donations – thank you for your support!”

    And LIFE gives a special shout out to the following partners for their generous donations; RP Diamond, North Star Care Center, Easter Seals, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Jarvis Global Investments, Epiphany United Methodist Church, St. Columban, Loveland Presbyterian, Saw Pilates, One Source Employee Management, Miami Trails, and Mathnasium.

  • Loveland School Covid 19 Dashboard for October 10, 2021

    Loveland School Covid 19 Dashboard for October 10, 2021

    Loveland, Ohio – At the beginning of each week, the Loveland City School District releases their latest Covid 19 Dashboard.

    Note the correction to the 10/3/ report and that community cases increased from 51 to 62.

  • Have you Signed up to be a part of Loveland’s Wonka-Land Halloween Edition?

    Have you Signed up to be a part of Loveland’s Wonka-Land Halloween Edition?

    by Cassie Mattia

    Loveland, Ohio – With Halloween just around the corner, many people are in search of frights, pumpkin festivals, and costume celebrations to bring in the holiday the right way! This year Loveland has a little something special up their sleeve for this Halloween; introducing Loveland’s Wonka-Land Halloween Edition!

    In year’s past, the city of Loveland has celebrated Halloween with costume contests, special live entertainment at Downtown’s local restaurants, and spooky vendors that typically set up along the Loveland Bike Trail, but this year Little Miami River Chamber of Alliance Board President Doug Portmann envisioned something a little different…Loveland decked out in its very own Wonka-Land! 

    “As my wife and I were brainstorming as to what Loveland’s theme should be this year for Halloween my daughter said, ‘It’s Halloween so why don’t you do a Willy Wonka theme?” Portmann explained, “From there all we really needed to do was fill in the details!”

    On Saturday, October 30th from 6 PM-8 PM teams of 4 will go on a hunt through Loveland’s impromptu candy land in search of Willy Wonka’s Golden Ticket! Teams will participate in “sweet” games in this ultimate Halloween scavenger hunt in order to find the grand prize. Those that will be participating are asked to please eat dinner beforehand as beer and food discount tickets will not be given out to teams until after the games have ended.

    Teams and those that attend Loveland’s Wonka-Land Halloween Edition are asked to dress in their absolute best Willy Wonka-themed attire! Some of the Willy Wonka characters are as follows: Willy Wonka, Charlie Buckett, Grandpa Joe, Veruka Salt, Mike Teave, Arthur Slugworth, Augustus Gloop, Violet Beauregarde, Mr. Salt, Mrs. Teavee, Oompa-Lumpas, Mrs. Gloop, Mr. Turkentine, and The Tinker. Here are a few links to places where you can purchase Willy Wonka character-inspired costumes, HalloweenCostumes.com, Walmart, and Amazon.

    Need more Wonka inspiration? Check out the original Willy Wonka movie trailer from 1971 starring the legendary Gene Wilder!

    Excited and ready to sign up yet?! We have included the link to sign up below, but before you do so here are a few simple rules to adhere to before you enter into the search for the Golden Ticket!

    1. All those participating must be 21 years old.
    2. It is recommended that all participants eat dinner beforehand as the event will be very crowded and hard to order a full dinner quickly!
    3. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, there will be no food tastings this year, but restaurants will be offering food and drink discount tickets to all participants after the games!
    4. The most important rule is…HAVE FUN!

    Loveland’s Wonka-Land Halloween Edition is already half sold out so we encourage you to grab your team and sign up before it’s too late!

    A Huge Shout-Out to This Year’s Sponsors! Thank you so Much for Your Support!

    For more Loveland event updates stay tuned to the Loveland Salad With ME, Cassie Mattia!

  • Linda Bergholz Shares why Loveland Music Academy was Forced to Move

    Linda Bergholz Shares why Loveland Music Academy was Forced to Move

    by Cassie Mattia

    Symmes Township, Ohio – Loveland is full of so many wonderful things for families to get involved in and for parents to get their children involved within the community. The Loveland Music Academy (LMA) is one of those places that welcomes anyone that has a passion for music or simply wants to learn something new that is entirely community-oriented! 

    LMA came into conception in 2007 when Linda Bergholz and Aaron O’Keefe found a need within the Loveland community for a music academy that could provide quality instruction based on the need of the student. LMA began its journey by offering private lessons for guitar, piano, strings, woodwinds, brass, harp, percussion, voice, and acting in the heart of Downtown Loveland. LMA’s goal was to provide students with a solid musical education and lessons tailored to each student’s interests and goals. With that motto in mind LMA grew rapidly! 

    LMA quickly began to be known as the go-to place in Loveland and beyond for fantastic music education and instruction at a very reasonable price. In 2009, LMA moved into the Brown Building at 209 W Loveland Ave (which was across the street from LMA’s original location) because they were growing so fast and needed more space for studios. Within 5 years LMA gained 26 instructors educating 400-500 students per week!  

    “I teach from age six through adults; each lesson is tailored to the individual student. I believe that it is important for students to be exposed to all types and styles of music–from classical to jazz, rock to gospel, country to blues, broadway to reggae, we all find our ‘niche’–and learn to make the music we love.  My goal in teaching a student is not that they win awards, but that they carry the love of listening to and playing music for a lifetime. You can’t always find someone to play a game of soccer or basketball or tennis with you, but you can always sit down to a piano (or keyboard, or pick up the flute) and make music yourself.” – Linda Bergholz

    Bergholz started to make plans to both expand and improve the LMA building due to the influx of new students, instructors, and much-needed renovations putting in a significant amount of money to a building that LMA didn’t own. Over the course of 10 plus years that LMA called 209 W Loveland home, they paid over 200,000 dollars in rent to the Loveland Community Firefighters’ Association (LCFA), a non-profit organization that owns the Brown Building off the Loveland Bike Trail in Downtown Loveland’s Historic District where LMA resided.

    The LCFA according to their website, “works year round to raise funds to help supplement the department and many other community services. Most of the members of the LCFA are also members of the fire department or their families. These individuals work diligently year-round at fundraisers to raise money to donate to the fire department and other causes around the community. The LCFA has always tried to give as much back to the community as possible that we serve.”

    Because of the LCFA motto, Bergholz thought that LMA would be in Downtown Loveland forever as it not only served the community, and supplied local music instructors with jobs, but also brought in a lot of money for both local restaurants and shopping boutiques from its 400 plus students and their parents. Unfortunately, this was not the case.

    LMA’s new home at 10084 East Kemper Road, just outside of the Loveland City limit in Symmes Township.

    In September of this year, LMA moved to 10084 East Kemper Road, just outside of the Loveland City limit in Symmes Township because they were notified that their lease would not be renewed by the LCFA. Bergholz along with LMA’s music instructors and students were devastated as they thought this would be the end of Loveland’s only music academy. 

    Bergholz coincidentally came into Mile42 Coffee the day she was notified that LMA was being kicked out of the Brown Building and ran into me. I could tell by the look in her eyes that she was not okay and that something major had happened. Bergholz sat with me and told me what had happened and said she just couldn’t let this be the end of LMA. I agreed and encouraged her to keep on fighting because hundreds of local students, parents, and music instructors depended on her strength and dedication. That’s just what Bergholz decided to do. Not only did she write a letter to LCFA asking why LMA’s lease wasn’t going to be renewed and if they would reconsider, she began to work as hard she could to find a new location for LMA. Bergholz later found out that LMA’s lease was not being renewed because LCFA wanted to acrue more income from the Brown Building i.e they wanted to put in a new bar or restaurant. Although Bergholz felt she could prove that LMA did provide a significant amount of income, she decided to move forward in search of a new building.

    The search for a new LMA building was tough for Bergholz being that America was in the midst of a pandemic, the cost to move LMA would be extravagant due to all the heavy music equipment (LMA has several Grand Pianos), and LMA would have to stop doing business for however long it took to move. Bergholz was determined to make it work, and she did just that.

    I decided to take a trip to the LMA’s new location to see how the moving progress was going and to talk to Bergholz about the journey that led to the new building! So without further ado, I bring to you a one-on-one EXCLUSIVE Loveland Magazine TV Interview with Linda Bergholz! Believe me you won’t want to miss this one!

    If you would like to take music lessons or you would like to get involved with LMA you can call them at 513-239-7105 or send LMA an email.

    In September of this year, LMA moved to 10084 East Kemper Road, just outside of the Loveland City limit in Symmes Township.

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    For more heart-felt Loveland stories stay tuned to the Loveland Salad With ME, Cassie Mattia!

  • When is Trick or Treating in Loveland?

    When is Trick or Treating in Loveland?

    Loveland, Ohio – Trick or Treat hours are between 6 and 8 PM on Sunday, October 31.


  • Road repair started in downtown

    Road repair started in downtown

    Loveland, Ohio – Road repairs have started this week along State Route 48 near the downtown area. Curb repairs, pavement milling, and re-paving will be completed.

    Repairs will be near 250 East Broadway, work west toward the Five Points intersection, and then north toward the O’Bannon Creek Bridge between Harrison Avenue. and Lyon Avenue.

  • Loveland School Covid 19 Dashboard for October 3, 2021

    Loveland School Covid 19 Dashboard for October 3, 2021

    Loveland, Ohio – At the beginning of each week, the Loveland City School District releases their latest Covid 19 Dashboard.