What you need to know Wednesday, Dec. 22, 2021 WEATHER
We're off to another cloudy start today, but skies again will clear by the afternoon. However, it will be brisk ... highs will stay in the low 30s. Wind gusts up to 28 mph are possible. It will be partly cloudy and cold overnight, with lows around 22 degrees. Read more. OVERNIGHT
Guard testing: Cleveland’s National Guard COVID-19 drive-through testing site was overwhelmed with patients only a few hours into its first day of operation and stopped allowing more people in line around noon Tuesday. Julie Washington and Laura Hancock report that hundreds of cars wrapped for blocks around the building by the time it opened shortly after 9 a.m.
Budish plot: When Cuyahoga County Council members criticized Executive Armond Budish in public, Budish hatched out a retaliation plot that would have jeopardized services in their districts, Cory Shaffer reports. Newly released documents include Budish’s handwritten, two-page plan to “fight back” against council, including pulling support for road repair projects and economic development efforts in districts of antagonistic council members, as well as introducing “divisive” resolutions and legislation to council.
Lessons from readers: Even with a booster shot, the COVID-19 vaccine is not a shield against infection. A lot of people have been infected despite getting the shots, Chris Quinn writes in his From the Editor column. He compiles lessons from more than 430 reader emails about breakthrough cases.
TODAY IN OHIO Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish wrote a plan to “fight back” against council members who openly disagreed with him, according to documents seized in a years-long corruption probe. We’re talking about what Budish was plotting, but never carried out, on Today in Ohio, cleveland.com’s daily half-hour news podcast. STATEHOUSE & POLITICS Bernie Moreno: U.S. Senate candidate Bernie Moreno has glossed over his views on LGBTQ non-discrimination bills when asked why his car dealership group came to join a coalition supporting one such Ohio bill. At a forum, Moreno was asked why he signed up his company as a member of Ohio Business Competes, a business coalition formed to advocate for legislation outlawing discrimination against LGBTQ people in Ohio. Moreno seemed unfamiliar with the list or the pending non-discrimination bill, Andrew Tobias reports.
METRO Solar farm: A divided Ohio Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that Cleveland Public Power can buy electricity generated from a Brooklyn solar farm, though the city-owned utility must now prove that it didn’t buy the power solely to sell it to the city of Brooklyn. Jeremy Pelzer reports the court’s ruling marks at least a partial win for CPP over FirstEnergy’s Cleveland Electric llluminating Co., which argued that the Ohio Constitution only allows municipal utilities to buy enough power from outside sources to serve the needs of its residents.
COVID-19 Case record: The state of Ohio on Tuesday set a single-day record in reporting 12,502 new cases of COVID-19. The only higher reports covered two days, following holidays when there was no reporting, reports Sean McDonnell.
Hospitals overwhelmed: The holidays, combined with the fast-spreading omicron variant of COVID-19, are predicted to keep Northeast Ohio hospitals full and caregivers exhausted. Julie Washington reports Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals hosted a news conference Tuesday where they said UH has more COVID-19 positive patients now than ever before, and more than a quarter of Clinic COVID patients are in the ICUs.
Visitation: The MetroHealth System is imposing new visitation limits, starting today, in response to the surge in COVID-19 cases. Patients will be limited to one visitor per day and hours will be limited to 11 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 11 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and holidays, Julie Washington reports.
Vaccination mandate: A federal appeals court recently reinstated the Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccination policy for large private businesses, reversing an earlier court ruling. The ruling by the Ohio-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit was quickly appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which is likely to make the final ruling, Julie Washington reports.
BUSINESS Top Workplaces: The deadline for the Northeast Ohio Top Workplaces 2022 survey deadline has been extended until Jan. 21, reports Alexis Oatman. So far, more than 300 companies in Northeast Ohio have signed up to have their employees take the survey.
Apartments: A New York developer plans to build 184 apartments in an area of downtown Cleveland that connects the Gateway District to Playhouse Square. Eric Heisig reports SomeraRoad aims to erect the new seven-story, 272,000-square-foot building on nearly 1.3 acres on Bolivar Road across from the historic Erie Street Cemetery.
CRIME Bay threat: Two boys have been charged nearly a year after police say they threatened to fire a gun in the high school. After a lengthy investigation, police determined that a boy in Miami, Florida, and a boy in Tuscarawas County were responsible, Kaylee Remington reports.
Head Start case: Lorain County Prosecutor J.D. Tomlinson has concluded that his office cannot defend the 1994 convictions of a man and woman accused of sexually abusing several children enrolled in a Head Start program. Cory Shaffer reports that Joseph Allen and Nancy Smith, who say they had never met before their charges, were convicted in one of the county’s most high-profile criminal cases.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Restaurants react: As a record-breaking coronavirus surge rages in Ohio, local restaurants have been forced to reckon with the virus days before Christmas. Anne Nickoloff reports some eateries have closed their dining rooms and continue to offer takeout, while others have temporarily closed altogether, pausing their business until after the holidays are over or until the new year.
'Wicked' cancellation: Today's 1:30 p.m. performance of “Wicked” has been canceled, Playhouse Square announced on Tuesday. The 7:30 p.m. Wednesday performance will go on as scheduled, Cliff Pinckard reports.
Boat show: The 65th Cleveland Boat Show has been pushed from January to March because of the rise in cases of the omicron COVID-19 variant, Marc Bona reports. The Lake Erie Marine Trades Association said the show has been rescheduled for the I-X Center March 17-20. OTHER HEADLINES Ohio woman, toddler badly burned when home invader throws hot grease on them Read more
Giant Eagle issues recall of more than 50 salad products under listeria threat Read more
Due to COVID concerns, University Heights closes through building, housing departments through end of year Read more
North Royalton School District cancels classes due to teacher/staff absences, some caused by COVID-19 Read more
Beck Center cancels two showings of ‘Elf the Musical’ due to COVID-19 concerns Read more
Broadview Heights introduces ordinance to continue city’s ban on fireworks Read more
Three departing University Heights council members recognized for their service Read more
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