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Across Portage County, taxpayers are financing perhaps dozens of take-home vehicles for city, village, and township officials, according to interviews with a sampling of local governments. It’s a perk their bosses say is necessary to do their jobs properly, even if it would be cheaper just to pay mileage. Often the vehicles are for emergency services personnel.

The weather is warming. The flowers are blooming. The birds are chirping.
Spring, at long last, has finally emerged in Northeast Ohio. And in the spirit of the long-awaited transition to the season of rebirth and happiness, now would be a good time for a lighter Round 2 and to give readers another peek behind the curtain of life as a journalist. Enjoy!

Remembering those we’ve lost in Portage County

With Ohio’s new “permitless carry” law set to take effect June 12, Portage County law enforcement agencies say the new rules increase the risks of their already stressful jobs, prompting them to update their training.

Deerfield Ag Services named the winners of $4,700 in Fair Funding Starter Scholarships for the 2022 fair season. The program is designed to support individual youth exhibitors at the start of their projects and offset some of the initial investments associated with fair livestock projects.

Remembering those we’ve lost in Portage County

As part of our May 3 election coverage, we asked candidates in the county’s two contested races — those for commissioner and auditor — a series of questions to help you cast an informed vote.

The Palmyra Center Hotel was once a luxurious stopover for stagecoach travelers and illustrious 19th century heroes, from Abraham Lincoln to Buffalo Bill. Today, it’s the crumbling structure that haunts the intersection of Tallmadge Road and state Route 225.

Just wanted to share my opinion on the proposed new airport in Portage County. I think it is a very bad idea and not needed. I surely applaud folks who “think big” for the future of our community, but this project does not fit that template. We already have underutilized airports in nearby Cleveland, Akron-Canton, Youngstown and Pittsburgh.

Remembering those we’ve lost in Portage County

Hoping to improve communication with residents and build support for future levies, Waterloo school district will roll out a series of focus groups, surveys and progress reports to parents, as part of its new “three-year strategic plan.”

State Rep. Gail Pavliga has introduced legislation to construct a major airport and transportation hub north of Ravenna, with multiple high-speed rail lines connecting to cities throughout Northeast Ohio.

If you want to know whether The Portager and the people who read it are having an impact in Portage County, just ask any elected official or nonprofit organization. You are making your influence felt through your emails, calls and, crucially, through your donations to the areas that need support the most.

We start off the week in downtown Kent on Sunday, April 17, at the Euro Gyro located at 107 S. Depeyster St. The Host is Nick Fleming. The action starts at 8 p.m. This open mic is for stand-up comedy and music (comedy, seven minutes and music is three songs). Plenty of food and drink are available.

Cleveland Bagel Kent is set to open in the former Starbucks building on Lincoln and Main, known to generations of students and townies as Brady’s.

They know the basics of Python and Javascript. They can automate a SPIKE Prime robot with omnidirectional wheels. They have a fundamental understanding of shipping-receiving mechanics at an Amazon warehouse.

My piece in the March 25 edition of The Portager detailing now-former Ohio State football player Harry Miller’s struggles with depression, highlighted by his emotional March 21 in-studio appearance on NBC’s “Today” show, stressed the importance of society taking mental health seriously to combat the continued increase in suicide rates.

Streetsboro Mayor Glenn Broska will soon be sporting some new wheels — a 2022 Ford Escape — to replace a previous vehicle that was totalled.

Across Portage County, voters will decide on tax questions for schools, funding for police and emergency services, public meeting policies and more. Below we explain what each of these ballot issues is about. You can skim the headings to find issues that pertain to your community and may appear on your ballot May 3.

Streetsboro’s year-long bicentennial celebration kicks into high gear this summer, and city council is making sure to finance the festivities.