You likely just experienced the warmest early February day of your life in Cleveland. I doubted the forecast Thursday morning when I got soaked running in the rain. I told my daughter she’d be freezing when she wore shorts to school. But she was vindicated. Across Northeast Ohio, people flocked to parks, played ball in the yard and relished their dog walks. We hope you got out and enjoyed it. - Laura |
Overnight Scores and Weather |
Northeast Ohio weekend weather forecast: What does the weather look like for Super Bowl Sunday? |
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Landry Glavic, 9, of Chagrin Falls, plays catch with his dad, Paul, in Riverside Park in downtown Chagrin Falls on Thursday afternoon. The temperature reached a record of 68 in Cleveland. (David Petkiewicz, cleveland.com) |
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Record broken: The temperature climbed well above predictions to hit 68 degrees Thursday afternoon, setting a record for the date and also marking the warmest early-February day in the city for as long as records have been kept at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. Zachary Smith reports the previous record for a Feb. 9 was 63 degrees, set in 2001 and tied in 2016. Robocalls: Right-wing fraud peddlers Jack Burkman and Jacob Wohl unleashed tens of thousands of robocalls on Black voters in Cleveland and other cities across the country to suppress their vote in the November 2020 election, reports Cory Shaffer. Prosecutors used emails to charge and to eventually elicit guilty pleas and the largest Federal Communications Commission robocall fine in the agency’s history. Today in Ohio: Champaign County GOP Rep. Jim Jordan repeatedly questioned ex-Twitter employees Wednesday about the company’s decision to temporarily block dissemination of a New York Post article about Hunter Biden’s laptop before the 2020 election. Was he grandstanding or did he really want answers? We’re asking on Today in Ohio, cleveland.com’s daily half-hour news podcast. |
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Householder trial: In the HB6 trial, an FBI agent focused on how ex-Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and others personally enriched themselves as part of the alleged scheme. Andrew Tobias and Jake Zuckerman report Householder netted about $514,000, while Matt Borges, a former lobbyist who is on trial with Householder, got $366,000. Two co-defendants who have pleaded guilty and are expected to testify in the case — Jeff Longstreth and Juan Cespedes — got $2.53 million and at least $650,000, respectively. Jim Jordan: U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, a Champaign County Republican, opened the first hearing of a new Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government by alleging a litany of improper political acts by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Sabrina Eaton reports. Democratic U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin, of Maryland, declared the point of the committee was for Republicans to weaponize the government themselves, claiming its name “constitutes a case of pure psychological projection.” Circuit judge: The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved Columbus attorney Rachel Bloomekatz’s nomination to become a United States Circuit Court judge for the Sixth Circuit with support from all its Democrats and opposition from all its Republicans, reports Sabrina Eaton. |
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East Cleveland: East Cleveland Council President Korean Stevenson is under investigation after a city hall security camera captured her entering the clerk of council’s office in December and unplugging the computer while the clerk, whom Stevenson claimed to have fired, worked from home. Cory Shaffer reports the clerk, Tracy Udrija-Peters, was drafting agendas and legislation from a laptop that was connected to the city’s secure server through the desktop computer in her office, according to a copy of her handwritten statement contained in a police report. Gordon Square: The former site of a school in the Gordon Square neighborhood on Cleveland’s West Side is now an opportunity to create a community hub that could include affordable housing or new green space. Megan Sims reports Cleveland has put out a request for proposals to revamp 2.2 acres where the former Watterson-Lake Elementary School sits vacant on West 74th Street. Euclid Beach: A transition from low-cost housing to public parkland is looming closer for the badly aging Euclid Beach Mobile Home Community located between Lake Shore Boulevard and Lake Erie in the city’s North Collinwood neighborhood. Steven Litt reports the nonprofit Western Reserve Land Conservancy, which bought the 28.5-acre property in late 2021 from a Texas developer for $5.8 million, on Thursday announced what it called a recommendation that the property should be added to adjacent disjointed sections of the Cleveland Metroparks Euclid Creek Reservation. West Side Market: Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb on Thursday took another step in the transformation of the West Side Market, announcing the incorporation of a new nonprofit Cleveland Public Market Corp. to manage the 111-year-old institution. He also revealed the names of the 15 volunteer board members who will oversee the market and look for ways to improve it and steer it into the future, Paris Wolfe reports. Theft prevention: Citing a major jump in thefts, Cleveland police officials are handing out free anti-theft devices for residents with 2015 to 2021 Kia or Hyundai vehicles, Olivia Mitchell reports. |
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Weekly COVID-19: The number of new COVID-19 cases in Ohio continued to hover around the 8,000 mark, rising slightly to 8,833 this week from 8,260 cases last week. The last time that the state’s weekly case number was about 8,000 was in April, reports Julie Washington. Smucker’s sale: J.M. Smucker Co.’s catalog of products is getting a little smaller now that it’s selling several pet food brands to Post Holdings in a deal worth $1.2 billion. More than 1,000 employees will be moving from Smucker to a new company, reports Sean McDonnell. |
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Vehicles stolen: Authorities are searching for suspects after several vehicles were stolen Monday morning from a Willoughby car dealership that is across the street from the police station. Surveillance video from Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram of Willoughby shows at least four suspects inside the dealership at approximately 4 a.m., reports Molly Walsh. Prostitution sting: Eleven people who prosecutors say were running prostitution rackets out of massage parlors in four Northeast Ohio cities were indicted Thursday. A Cuyahoga County grand jury handed up racketeering, conspiracy, money laundering, promoting prostitution and possession of criminal tools charges against people associated with New Hi Spa in Strongsville, Helen Foot Spa in Middleburg Heights, Flexology Spa in Willowick and Green Spa in Mentor, Cory Shaffer reports. |
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Valentine’s getaways: February is an ideal time to plan a mini-escape, an antidote for the wintertime blues, a sure cure for cabin fever. Whether you want to ski or spa, explore a city or stroll through a small town, Susan Glaser has 14 options for you. Lizardville: The Northeast Ohio staple Winking Lizard is changing up its Lizardville retail approach after 40 years, reports Marc Bona. Things to do: This weekend looks to be a popular time for date nights. Mike Rose has more than two dozen events taking place, including Ice Fest, a Michael Bolton concert, musicals and plays, sports and Black History Month celebrations. |
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Woman found dead inside of vehicle in Cleveland’s North Collinwood neighborhood, police say Read more Man shot to death in East Cleveland, police say Read more Ukrainian refugees can learn English at the Medina County District Library Read more Medina County libraries host Black History Month events, offer passport services Read more Beachwood council approves purchase of new pool furniture, moves forward on park improvements Read more Parma Heights seeks to shut down late-night lawn mowing Read more Emergency culvert repair closes Donna Rae Drive in Seven Hills Read more |
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