Here are your morning headlines for Friday, August 14:
- Cuyahoga remains at red COVID-19 level, Medina drops to orange
- Cleveland facing millions in lost revenue due to pandemic
- New Ohio jobless claims down, lowest level since March peak
- Akron paid $32k to Israeli developer for "Akronite" app
- Bridgestone Senior Players Championship raises $750k for local charities
- Lebron James’ shoes to go on sale, benefit Akron’s I Promise School
- State high school sports decision coming next week
- Ohio Athletic Conference reschedules some fall sports for spring
- Rock Hall opens new inductee exhibit
Cuyahoga remains at red COVID-19 level, Medina drops to orange
Ohio’s updated coronavirus alert map has 12 counties in the red, including Cuyahoga and Erie. Medina County dropped from red to orange, indicating that community spread has lessened. Summit, Stark, Portage and Wayne remain orange, and Tuscarawas in yellow. The top four counties in terms of cases per 100,000 population are Mercer, Champaign, Lawrence and Darke.
Cleveland facing millions in lost revenue due to pandemic
The city of Cleveland says the coronavirus pandemic is having a huge financial impact. Officials say Cleveland spent $13 million more than it collected in revenues through July. Mayor Frank Jackson says the city also anticipates a loss of 6 to 8 percent in income tax revenue, totaling as much as $35 million. The city has been able to fall back on reserves to remain in the black. No layoffs or furloughs are scheduled at this time.
New Ohio jobless claims down, lowest level since March peak
Unemployment claims in Ohio are continuing to drop. The state says Ohioans filed nearly 21,000 initial jobless claims last week, the lowest level since the state hit the peak of more than 272,000 in mid-March. Continued jobless claims totaled nearly 375,000. The state has distributed around $6 billion in unemployment compensation since the pandemic began.
Akron paid $32k to Israeli company for "Akronite" app
The city of Akron paid around $32,000 to an Israel-based company to develop an app that offers incentives for residents to support local businesses. Cleveland.com reports the city has set aside an additional $40,000 to reimburse businesses for discounts that will be given to app users through a point system. Deputy Mayor James Hardy told Cleveland.com that the city partnered with the foreign company Colu in order to act quickly to get an already-developed product, rather than building one from scratch.
Bridgestone Senior Players Championship raises $750k for local charities
This week’s Bridgestone Senior Players Championship has raised $750,000 for local charities. The golf tournament at Akron’s Firestone Country Club raises money for organizations including United Way, Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank and Akron Children’s Hospital. The total is down from last year’s $825,000, when the senior tournament replaced the annual World Golf Championships.
Lebron James’ shoes to go on sale, benefit Akron’s I Promise School
About 100 pairs of LeBron James’ game-worn Nike shoes are going on sale to benefit his I Promise School in Akron. A pair will cost as much as $30,000 on Upper Deck’s website. Funds raised through the sale will go to support the school’s family resource center, community food pantry and other wraparound services, along with the new I Promise Village that provides transitional housing for students and families struggling with homelessness.
State high school sports decision coming next week
Gov. Mike DeWine says a decision on high school sports will be coming next week. He indicated during his Thursday press briefing that contact sports will go on in some fashion this fall despite the pandemic. DeWine said that he and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted will go over detailed plans with high school officials over the weekend and that an announcement will come Tuesday.
Ohio Athletic Conference reschedules some fall sports for spring
Colleges including Mount Union, Baldwin Wallace, and John Carroll are scheduling canceled fall sports for the spring.The Ohio Athletic Conferencesays a preliminary plan calls for football, women’s volleyball and men’s and women’s soccer to be played in March and April. The schedules include five games in football, 10 in soccer and 20 volleyball matches.
Rock Hall opens new inductee exhibit
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland opens its inductee exhibit Friday. It includes outfits worn by Whitney Houston and The Notorious B.I.G., as well as rare artifacts from Depeche Mode and T. Rex. And for Cleveland-native Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, the hall has put together an installation that honors the band's performance at Woodstock '94. This year's induction ceremony in Cleveland was canceled due to the pandemic. An HBO special honoring the inductees will air in November.
