I barely needed maternity pants when I registered my son for childcare, nabbing the last spot for seven months in the future. When the day came, I lugged my chunky 11-week-old in his carrier, toting a diaper bag of hard-pumped bottles and paying $250 a week for the necessity. I wondered how on earth we were going to manage. But if I wanted to work, he needed care. Twelve years later, childcare has only become harder to find, and more expensive. The pandemic devastated the industry and spotlighted the necessity of care for so many families, as women dropped out of the workforce en masse. As society regroups from the pandemic, as businesses search for employees and cities want workers back in offices, childcare has become a major talking point. We’re asking you to join the conversation. - Laura |
Overnight Scores and Weather |
Cavaliers at Charlotte Hornets: Cavs wake up in the fourth quarter, stun Hornets with 114-108 come-from-behind win Northeast Ohio Monday weather forecast: Cold, snow and rain |
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For decades, childcare has been an individual family burden. But since the pandemic, our patchwork of providers has reached a crisis. How can we help? |
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Childcare crisis: Childcare has reached a crisis point, cripplingly expensive and increasingly difficult to find. For decades, it’s been a private burden parents – most often moms – bear. We should all work together to create a system that works, writes Laura Johnston. FirstEnergy execs: With the conviction of former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder, a gaping plot hole in the biggest corruption scandal in Ohio history grew even more pronounced. FirstEnergy Corp. as a legal entity has admitted to paying $60 million in bribes, but its former executives have not. Jake Zuckerman and Jeremy Pelzer ask why? Some experts said the executives likely are next on the indictment queue. Others suggest the U.S. Department of Justice is unwilling to go after a company that earns $11 billion in annual revenue. Young gambling: The prefrontal cortex of young people’s brains has not yet developed, leading them to make irrational decisions driven by emotional or social situations rather than carefully considered choices based on logic. That’s a problem when it comes to sports betting apps on phones, reports Gretchen Cuda Kroen. Today in Ohio: A jury convicted ex-Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and lobbyist Matt Borges in a $1.3 billion bailout bribery scheme. We’re talking about the reaction from fellow politicians and what the case shows about how the state legislature works on Today in Ohio, cleveland.com’s daily half-hour news podcast. |
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Householder loose ends: After the guilty verdict in the Larry Householder trial, a number of issues remain unresolved in the House Bill 6 scandal. Jeremy Pelzer reports on multiple tentacles of the scandal. For example, Attorney General Dave Yost filed a civil lawsuit seeking unspecified damages against major figures in the HB6 scandal. Yost on Thursday again asked the judge to resume it. Chuck Jones: One day after a jury convicted ex-Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder of taking a bribe, former FirstEnergy CEO Charles “Chuck” Jones in a statement Friday denied breaking either the law or company policy, reports Jake Zuckerman. Abortion judge: Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Sharon Kennedy has appointed a state appellate court judge who says he served on an advisory board of a crisis pregnancy center as a fill-in justice on the state’s “heartbeat ban” abortion case. Laura Hancock reports Ohio 12th District Court of Appeals Judge Matthew Byrne, a Warren County Republican, would replace Ohio Supreme Court Justice Joe Deters because he was named a defendant in the case while he served as the Hamilton County prosecutor. Train derailment: Gov. Mike DeWine on Friday expressed “serious concerns” about delays in removing more than 24,000 tons of contaminated soil around the East Palestine train derailment site, saying it was being held up by “red tape.” Jeremy Pelzer reports that DeWine said the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s approach of requiring “pre-approval” for the disposal and transport of contaminated soil and liquids from East Palestine “is an additional step above and beyond all other applicable safety management regulations.” |
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HHS levy: Cuyahoga County overspent $5 million of its Health and Human Services levy dollars last year and is on track to overspend again this year, raising concerns about the future of the funding and all the services it subsidizes. Kaitlin Durbin reports that if spending trends continue, the county may be forced to shrink support to services for alcohol and drug addiction, children and MetroHealth -- or break a promise to voters by seeking to increase, rather than just renew, one of its HHS property tax levies. Gordon Park: The city of Cleveland will consider adding the portion of Gordon Park that’s south of the Shoreway to the city’s long-term lakefront lease with the Cleveland Metroparks, reports Courtney Astolfi. The northern portion of the park, along Lake Erie, was part of a 2013 deal that saw the city lease its lakefront parks to the Metroparks for 99 years. South of the Shoreway, operation and care has remained the responsibility of the city. |
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Greyhound terminal: Downtown Cleveland’s sleek and iconic Greyhound terminal, designed in the 1940s, was sold for $1.7 million this year and its future use as a transportation center is likely in jeopardy, Susan Glaser reports. The new company is studying the Cleveland property and other newly acquired land, but has no plans to operate it as a bus terminal. UH app: University Hospitals is discontinuing its MyUHCare patient portal and is transitioning patient records to UH MyChart, reports Julie Washington. UH is switching its electronic health record system to a different system. COVID map: Cuyahoga County and several surrounding counties were designated yellow for moderate COVID-19 spread on the latest U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention map, reports Julie Washington. Sherwin-Williams: A California woman sued Sherwin-Williams and accused the Cleveland-based paint giant of tacking on a 4% surcharge at the checkout line. Adam Ferrise reports the lawsuit accuses the company of using the surcharge to make it appear prices remain low, while secretly charging people more to make up for supply-chain issues that have caused prices for goods to skyrocket in recent years. Expensive homes: A home in Shaker Heights nabbed the most money of any home sold in Cuyahoga County in February, reports Zachary Smith. The Tudor-style mansion located near the Shaker Heights Country Club sold Feb. 17 for just over $1.25 million. |
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Jan. 6: A former U.S. Marine from Wellington is accused of assaulting five police officers during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Michael Mackrell is accused of attacking three Washington, D.C., Metro police officers and two U.S. Capitol officers. His son was previously charged with storming the Capitol and attacking an officer, reports Adam Ferrise. 7-year-old killed: A 7-year-old boy died in the hospital after being shot Saturday afternoon in the city’s Clark Fulton neighborhood, reports Kaylee Remington. The shooting happened about 2 p.m. at a home on West 30th Street. |
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Cassata cake: We all know it: layers of tender yellow cake separated by a sweet pastry cream, a layer of fresh strawberries, all covered in sweet cream frosting. But the Cassata cake Cleveland loves is nothing like the centuries-old traditional recipe that originated in Sicily. Yadi Rodriguez and Brenda Cain are looking for the best version in Cleveland. House of the Week: A North Park Boulevard home in Cleveland Heights is "a fairytale Tudor castle with all the comforts of modern-day living.” Built in 1925, the home comes with eight bedrooms, seven bathrooms (five full) and a price tag of $975,000, reports Joey Morona. |
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Man charged with aggravated murder in the killing of two men in Akron, one in Copley Township, police say Read more Female suspect in 2022 Akron murder arrested in Mexico Read more Shaker Citizens for Fair Ticketing launch signature drive to get police reforms on ballot Read more Medina County Parks, Cleveland Natural History Museum are partners Read more Mayfield Heights dentist Calabrese makes another return trip to help Belize City’s children in need Read more |
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