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Reclaim what’s yours

Nothing spurs Buckeye State residents to action like sports fandom — or, at least, it’s tempting to leap to that conclusion after a report that visits to Ohio’s unclaimed funds website skyrocketed after lawmakers suggested paying for a new Cleveland Browns stadium with some of that money. According to the Akron Beacon Journal, there is approximately $4.8 billion of Ohioans’ money sitting unclaimed, with some Republicans in the state Senate wanting to spend approximately $1.7 billion of what has been unclaimed for at least 10 years on sports and cultural projects. That would ...

Prioritizing school bus safety

House Bill 3 made its way to the Ohio Senate after having encountered no naysayers during the House of Representatives vote June 11. It seems unlikely there will be much resistance in the state Senate, either, as the School Bus Safety Act includes some important ways to keep students and drivers safer. Most drivers know the rules regarding driving safely when school buses are on the road. Too many ignore them anyway. According to the National Safety Council, between 2013 and 2022 there were 1,082 fatalities and approximately 132,000 injuries as a result of school-bus related ...

Embracing change

Belpre officials found out earlier this month that another piece of the puzzle has fallen into place as they look to the future. The city received $85,000 as part of the state Housing Technical Assistance Program, to be used to help develop a comprehensive plan to update its business and housing infrastructure. “It was critical for us. We know that right now, Belpre is in a very big growth mode,” said Mayor Susan Abdella. “We need to work on making sure that we are a community that is open and embracing change.” To that end, potential employers and developers will have no ...

‘We’re just getting started’

Grassroots efforts do not always accomplish their goal quickly, but it is certainly true that a small group of dedicated, hard-working, persistent people can make big things happen for their communities. That is happening before our eyes in Marietta, as the Historic Harmar Bridge Company earlier this month got good news from the state. The Ohio Department of Transportation’s Transportation Alternatives Program has awarded it a grant of $950,000 for initial engineering and design work for the bridge’s swing span, as part of what the group hopes will be a full restoration of the ...

Tick prevention must become a habit

If the thought of creepy crawlies sends shivers down your spine, fair warning: Tick season is upon us. According to a report by Ohio’s Country Journal, experts are seeing a shift in the number and species of ticks here; and many bring health concerns with them. “We’re seeing changes in the distribution of a lot of medically important tick species,” Risa Pesapane, an associate professor in ecosystem and wildlife health at Ohio State University told the Country Journal. “We have had new ticks arriving in the state of Ohio and becoming established here.” Sure, there’s ...

Helping teen drivers learn safe driving skills

As has always been the case, young drivers need not just lots of practice, but lots of guidance from experienced drivers (parents and guardians) before they get their driver’s licenses and hit the road on their own. One would think that would go without saying, but Ohio officials are worried enough about a growing trend that Gov. Mike DeWine has announced a new media campaign to encourage parents to spend quality time helping their teen drivers learn safe driving skills. State law requires teens to complete 50 hours of driving practice with a parent or guardian before receiving ...