CLEVELAND, Ohio – U.S. Rep. Max Miller paints a dystopian picture of Cleveland, claiming it’s not the same place he visited as a kid and that families are afraid to walk down the street. But is that accurate?
We’re talking about using violence to appeal to the Republican base on Today in Ohio.
Listen online here.
Editor Chris Quinn hosts our daily half-hour news podcast, with editorial board member Lisa Garvin, impact editor Leila Atassi and content director Laura Johnston.
You’ve been sending Chris lots of thoughts and suggestions on our from-the-newsroom text account, in which he shares what we’re thinking about at cleveland.com. You can sign up here: https://joinsubtext.com/chrisquinn.
Here’s what we’re asking about today:
Max Miller is urging Gov. Mike DeWine to send the National Guard into Cleveland, even though violent crime here is falling. How are leaders responding to that call, and what’s really behind his push?
There’s a new bill at the Statehouse dealing with guns and elected officials. What are lawmakers proposing, and what’s driving this?
Jon Husted used a Senate hearing this week to go after the CDC’s handling of the pandemic. What did he say, and how does it fit into the broader fight over vaccines and public health policy right now?
The rules around who can get a COVID-19 vaccine this fall just changed — and they’re a lot narrower than last year. What do Ohioans need to know about the new restrictions, and how might they affect access to the shot?
Ohio’s big teachers’ unions just went to court over changes to the pension board that shift power away from educators and toward political appointees. What’s at stake in this lawsuit, and how did the fight over the retirement system get here?
Cleveland Public Library fell victim to a payment scam last year that nearly cost them a lot of money. What happened, and what changes are being made to prevent it from happening again?
Cuyahoga County just unveiled new renderings for its long-awaited jail project in Garfield Heights. What do the plans look like, and how realistic is that price tag?
Cleveland Hopkins climbed out of dead last in J.D. Power’s airport rankings — but only to second-to-last. What did the survey find, and what does it say about the airport’s chances of improving as the massive terminal rebuild gets underway?
Ohio’s fall foliage forecast is looking unusual this year. What should people expect from the leaf season, and when will the colors peak across the state?
More Today in Ohio
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Read the automated transcript below. Because it’s a computer-generated transcript, it contains many errors and misspellings.
Leila (00:01.416)
Ohio’s teachers just scored a temporary court win in their battle to keep control of the $90 billion pension fund, but lawmakers are not backing down. We’ll dig into what’s really at stake in this tug of war over retirement security. It’s Today in Ohio, the news podcast discussion from cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer. I’m Leila Tassi filling in once again for Chris Quinn while he’s away on business. I’m joined by Laura Johnston, Courtney Astolfi, and Lisa Garvin.
We’ll get to that discussion about the teacher’s pension a bit later in the podcast. But first, Max Miller is urging Governor Mike DeWine to send the National Guard into Cleveland, even though violent crime here is falling. So Courtney, how are leaders responding to that call and what’s really behind his push?
Courtney (00:47.923)
Yeah, Republican Congressman Max Miller, he’s out in Bay Village. He wrote this op-ed on Monday in the Washington Times that was urging DeWine to send the Ohio National Guard into Cleveland to control crime. And Miller contends Cleveland’s crime rates demand this kind of extraordinary intervention. Some of the numbers he cited to justify his demand was that the city, you know, the city’s homicide numbers, he talked about
46 homicides to the first half of last year. And you’re right, Layla, that number is way down, way down from the crime rates we saw, you know, in the years leading up to and to the pandemic. And this year, looking at this year’s numbers, they continue to trend downward. The city had 71 homicides through this week. And last year through this period, it was 86. So we’re down 17 % year over year compared to last year’s already lower numbers.
But Miller’s out here arguing that the National Guard would bring support to secure high crime areas, protect critical infrastructure, and give Cleveland cops a helping hand. He pointed to what Trump did in DC with the Guard, claimed that was successful and wants to see it here. And interestingly enough, Miller wrote in this op-ed that his constituents in the suburbs are afraid to go into Cleveland. He said,
The city he grew up in is unrecognizable. He said families no longer feel safe walking down the street and small businesses are being boarded up. But he didn’t really offer any specifics on where that’s happening or what he’s referring to.
Leila (02:31.154)
Well, so it’s not surprising to me that Miller is misrepresenting Cleveland to score political points with Trump. But when he says that the city of his childhood is unrecognizable, I’d say he’s right. But that’s because it’s far better than it was in the 90s when downtown wasn’t even a destination. Not only is downtown now a vibrant place to be, but
you find connectivity between the different entertainment districts that you didn’t have before. So on a weekend evening in the summer, you’ll find people walking from the warehouse district to East Fourth Street because the spaces in between have actually been activated and the city feels alive in a way it wasn’t decades ago. I mean, yeah, I know there have been recent shootings and there was a shooting in the flats just a week or two ago after that Brown scheme. But generally, even the flats are far more
developed and more beautiful and safer than they were in the 90s when someone would get stabbed and thrown in the river just about every night of the week. And Mayor Justin Bibb has been working really hard to build upon that momentum with his bold plan to move the lakefront forward and to develop there and connect the rest of downtown to that amenity. So, so Courtney, mean, what kind of damage does it do to Cleveland’s image?
when Max Miller paints the city in such distorted terms, just as we’re trying to rebuild its reputation.
Courtney (03:59.465)
Yeah, it is concerning on that front, Layla, because I don’t know, I live in the city. Miller’s comments did not reflect how I feel living here at all. And that misrepresentation though could be dangerous. At the same time, you know, there are homicides in Cleveland in a way that there aren’t in little suburbs like where he lives. So, I mean, you’ve got that nuance at play, but overall would a hundred percent agree with you that Cleveland’s much
Leila (04:07.762)
Yeah.
Courtney (04:28.805)
much nicer in that category now than decades ago. But in response to these comments, like we wanted to know what Mayor Justin Bibb said, of course. you know, he said this in a diplomatic way, but he basically said no way. He said he’s happy with the federal partnerships the city already employs and has long used to tackle crime in Cleveland. And, you know, it’s worth noting here that Miller
Lisa (04:29.43)
in category now than decades ago. But in response to these…
You know the federal partnerships the city always employed and there’s long use to tackle crime and you know it’s worth noting here that Miller urging this action you know it falls to Governor Mike DeWine ultimately about the National Guard here and last week Mike DeWine said
Courtney (04:56.977)
urging this action, you know, it falls to governor Mike DeWine, ultimately about the national guard here. And last week, Mike DeWine said, no, we’re not going to do this kind of thing. When we reached out specifically about Miller’s op-ed, DeWine didn’t change his tune. So it doesn’t feel like the governor has appetite to start moving in this, this direction. Miller says, you know,
that some will argue that this move is an extreme measure. But, you know, local leaders don’t see it that way.
Laura (05:32.111)
Can I jump in here? I am a Max Miller constituent. And he’s saying his constituents of the suburbs are afraid to go downtown. And I was just thinking of all the times that I’ve been downtown in the last year for the Pride Parade or the National Association of Black Journalists Conference, where it was just gorgeous and lovely. And they had all these activations on the mall, all the ball games and the Playhouse Square. And I went to Jolene’s on East 4th this year. And it’s like, has Max Miller been to Cleveland?
Lisa (05:48.704)
gorgeous and lovely and they have all these activations on the mall, all the ball games, play house square and I went to Joe Beans, know, sports this year and it’s like…
Laura (06:00.878)
I mean, we know he’s in DC a lot and he has his house in Bay Village. Before you paint that dystopic brush that makes it sound like it is a ghost town, maybe you should visit the city that you… I mean, even if he doesn’t represent it, the people he represents, they might work there, right? He’s just painting this very broad brush without any, it seems, knowledge of the situation.
Lisa (06:00.968)
Mm-mm.
Leila (06:29.788)
Well, and also how does a National Guard deployment change the feeling of being downtown if the claim is right? And, you know, I agree with Courtney that the better strategy is what Justin Bibb is actually doing, which is deploying police to hotspots, focusing on the few bad actors that cause most of the trouble in the city. That has been very effective at bringing down Cleveland’s crime statistics. And I just think that
Laura (06:36.384)
It makes it scarier, actually.
Leila (06:57.294)
If the claim is that the military presence stabilizes the city, what’s the end game of that? How long does that deployment last? Because members of the National Guard will eventually have to return to their normal lives. And that’s why it’s clear that this is nothing more than a political stunt because of course, crime would come down in an area where there’s a military occupation, but it returns as soon as that ends. Yeah, it’s temporary.
Laura (07:13.603)
Yes.
Laura (07:20.6)
But it won’t happen, and he knows it’s not gonna happen. So it’s just a dog whistle. It’s just like beating your chest for your base.
Leila (07:27.568)
Right. You’re listening to Today in Ohio. There’s a new bill at the State House dealing with guns and elected officials. Laura, what are lawmakers proposing and what’s driving this?
Laura (07:39.321)
Well, I don’t know what’s driving it, Leila, other than the Republicans want to keep loosening gun laws and they’ve been doing that little by little for years or a decade now. But under this new House legislation, state elected officials and judges who have concealed carry permits would be allowed to carry their concealed handguns in the Ohio State House and other government buildings where they’re not allowed to bring this right now. This applies to the statewide officials, judges and magistrates.
any state or local government facility that otherwise bans them. They have to show a valid concealed handgun license. those are not required anymore. So at least they’re getting that. And a photo ID confirming the office that they hold. This does not apply to parking garages, highway rest areas, shelters, or bathrooms. I’m not sure why we think those are accepted, but we’re like, hey, everywhere else is cool. And one of the representatives who sponsored this is we just need to tighten up the personal protection issues
and this is an easy way to do that. Why do we need to tighten up the personal protection issues? What is the problem here?
Leila (08:46.662)
Right. And I wonder if the state house’s security screenings are strong enough to keep weapons out, then why would lawmakers need to carry guns inside at all? I mean, isn’t the whole point of that screening? Well, yeah, right, right. But the whole point of that screening is to make sure that no one is armed once they’re through the door. I’m not totally certain what this is trying to achieve other than to maybe create a slippery slope where we will suddenly see guns in every public building.
Laura (08:56.8)
Unless they’re afraid we have another January 6th, right?
Lisa (08:57.398)
We have another January 6th, right?
Laura (09:15.966)
It’s a very good question. I’m reading this going, I don’t see it. they don’t know if it’s going to pass. just feel, again, we just talked about appealing to the base, right? Maybe this is just that. Maybe this is like further trying to erode gun laws in Ohio where we don’t have a lot of gun laws anyway, because anybody can have a concealed carry gun without a permit.
Lisa (09:16.054)
It’s very good question. I’m reading this going, don’t see it. And they don’t know if it’s going to pass. I just feel, again, we just talked about a feeling for the base, right? Maybe this is just that. Maybe this is like further, further gut laws in Ohio where we don’t see
Leila (09:25.576)
Mm-hmm.
Leila (09:37.042)
You’re listening to Today in Ohio. John Hust had used a Senate hearing this week to go after the CDC’s handling of the pandemic. What did he say and how does it fit into the broader fight over vaccines and public health policy right now? Lisa.
Lisa (09:52.878)
Senator Husted’s comments came yesterday during the Senate Health Education Labor and Pensions Committee hearing, and this was over fired CDC director Susan Monteres, who I might point out was handpicked by RFK and then fired less than a month later. Husted condemned politically motivated decisions by the CDC during the pandemic. He said everyone kept saying it’s based on science, but we now know it was based on politics and special interests instead of safeguarding kids. And he cited some examples.
He says, well, the CDC allowed the American Federation of Teachers to edit the school reopening guidance. He said that we saw lower student test scores and evidence that losses could reduce lifetime earnings for these students. Also pointing to mental health issues, he said suicide attempts rose 51 % for girls 12 to 17. And he said they overstated their public message. He said, we shouldn’t have scared people. We must start leveling with people about what is the truth.
and he’s calling for the return of the CDC’s core mission, which is based on evidence, not ideology. So he’s saying a lot of things that happened during the pandemic, but he’s not really saying that what we did was, don’t know, he’s not really getting to the point.
Leila (11:11.024)
I take a lot of issues with what he had to say. First of all, he’s pointing a finger at the CDC for letting politics override science, but he is playing politics too. He’s framing himself as this truth teller against scare tactics while glossing over the fact that vaccine skepticism has been weaponized by his own party since the very beginning of the pandemic. The danger here is that we’re not just debating public health.
Lisa (11:22.56)
Mm-hmm.
Leila (11:39.271)
We’re rewriting history. We’re turning a national trauma into a partisan talking point. And that erosion of trust in science leaves us far less prepared for the next pandemic. And it will come. And Laura, I think you have said it before that one of the plays straight from the old Republican playbook is always to accuse the other side of the thing that they’re doing. So here we see John Husted politicizing public health while accusing Democrats of doing that. And
Laura (12:00.76)
Right.
Leila (12:08.104)
You know, when Houston says he wants to return to health guidance based on science, not politics, I think that’s what he said, or evidence, not ideology. I mean, yeah, bro, me too.
Lisa (12:14.038)
Evidence, not ideology.
Laura (12:18.334)
Yeah, exactly. Exactly. No one’s disagreeing with that other than probably RFK. You know, they’ve got their own agenda. So this is one of those things that you’re just like, I agree with what you’re saying, but that’s not what actually you’re doing.
Leila (12:34.372)
And go ahead, Lisa.
Lisa (12:34.518)
Well, no, I was just going to say, you know, during that testimony, Monterrez said that, you know, she refused to go along with RFK Jr.’s vaccine recommendations before they were put out, or, you know, based on zero evidence. So she’s fighting for evidence. She’s fighting for science. And they’re like shouting her down.
Leila (12:53.372)
Right. Right. And we have to remember how we even got here. Public health didn’t used to be a partisan wedge. It became politicized the moment Donald Trump decided that downplaying COVID was better for him than admitting his administration couldn’t control it. His base took their cues from that and suddenly masks, vaccines, and basic efforts to slow the spread of infection were about, they became a litmus test of political identity.
That’s how we ended up in this upside down reality where protecting your neighbors was painted as liberal weakness instead of common sense. You’re listening to Today in Ohio. So sticking with the topic of COVID, the rules around who can get a COVID-19 vaccine this fall just changed, and they’re a lot narrower than last year. Courtney, what do Ohioans need to know about the new restrictions and how might they affect access to the shop?
Courtney (13:49.749)
Yeah, they should know that getting a COVID-19 vaccine this year in Ohio and across the US looks a whole heck of a lot different. With these tightened recommendations from the FDA, now shots are limited to adults who are 65 or older and people, you know, of all ages can get them as long as they have like those certain high risk health conditions we’ve heard about now for years with COVID. Things like
chronic heart and lung disease, diabetes, dementia, cancer, weakened immune systems. Those folks of all ages can get them. But this change and everything around it has led to just a ton of confusion. Pulling back the eligibility here has, you know, not only raised questions about who can get it, but also whether you’re gonna need a prescription and whether insurance is gonna cover it or you have to pay out of pocket.
The good news locally is that several popular pharmacies in Northeast Ohio, you know, are offering this vaccine without jumping through a lot of new hoops. Drug Mart and Walgreens, for example, are not requiring proof of an underlying condition to get the vaccine there for folks who are under 65. At Drug Mart, for example, like younger patients are expected to explain why they want the vaccine, such as like caring for
an older relative or someone who’s ill or you want to be protected if you’re going to travel, but they’re not requiring that proof of a condition. At CVS, the landscape’s a little bit different and folks should keep this in mind. Patients who are under 65 at CVS and who don’t declare on their forms any of those underlying conditions, they’re being asked to bring a prescription. So that is definitely an extra hoop to jump through.
if you use that pharmacy.
Leila (15:48.049)
You know what strikes me again is how upside down this is at the very moment that COVID is still, it’s still killing tens of thousands of Americans each year and we’re making it harder to get the vaccine. Last year, anyone who wanted protection could walk into a pharmacy and now you’ve got to be over 65 or have the right diagnosis and younger people are being told to jump through those hoops. So people who are already skeptical are going to see these restrictions as proof that the government doesn’t really think vaccines are important.
And then those who want the shot may give up in frustration. It feels like policy is designed to drive vaccination rates down, not up. Do you think that that’s the point here, Courtney?
Courtney (16:29.041)
You know, we know that the head of HHS is a long time vaccine skeptic, Robert F. Kennedy. We know that there’s been ton of uproar in DC about how he’s been rolling out changes around this and the mRNA research. just, everything he’s doing around vaccines is kind of stirring up all these question marks. On top of that confusion, we’ve got a long awaited CDC
Leila (16:33.308)
Right.
Courtney (16:56.991)
committee meeting that starts today and continues into tomorrow. And that could further shake up the rules and there, you know, that can lead to more confusion. This committee could potentially tighten the rules even further beyond what the FDA laid out several weeks ago. And, and we’re going to have to see how that shakes out. But in the meantime, you know, there’s been a lot of attention on the makeup of this committee. That’s been, you know, quite a bit of a debate and
This week, we saw Kennedy appoint five new folks to this committee. just an interesting side note, we were surprised to see a Clevelanders name on there. Catherine Stein, she’s an epidemiologist and professor of population and quantitative health over at Case Western. She was one of the five picked by Kennedy’s department to serve on this committee. So I don’t know, just wanted to toss that out there for our local folks, but we’re gonna have to see what this committee recommends tomorrow,
all be up in the air again soon.
Leila (17:58.363)
Right. And meanwhile, you know, Houston sat there blasting the CDC for letting politics creep into science, but these new vaccine restrictions are politics baked right into policy. You’re listening to Today in Ohio. A judge just put the brakes on a new law that would have shifted control of Ohio’s teachers pension board away from educators and toward political appointees. Why did the unions go to court and what does this fight mean for the future of teachers retirement funds, Laura?
Laura (18:26.04)
So we’re talking about whether board members should be elected from among the members of these former teachers, retired teachers and current teachers, or they should be appointed by politicians. And a Franklin County judge just blocked this new law that would allow the shift toward the appointments. And that was set to take effect at the end of the month. Now it’s frozen while the court holds another hearing to determine if it should be delayed indefinitely. And that’s all while the case moves forward. And this was a lawsuit brought by the Ohio Education Association, Ohio Federation of Teachers,
in the Ohio Conference of the American Association of University Professors. So this is a good development for their side because it’s going to stop anything from happening. So this is STRS. The board currently has 11 members. Teachers and retirees elect seven. State officials appoint the other four. But lawmakers added four new appointees, phased out four elected members when they passed the operating budget in June.
Like we’ve talked about this so many times, right? All these things shoved into the budget have nothing to do with the budget at the last minute. So they don’t get any public hearings. There’s no scrutiny. There’s no really open debate. It’s just like pass it. It’s last minute. We’ve got to get it done. This happened after years of controversy over board members and management and what direction they wanted to go, who they wanted to invest with. And basically if they could get cost of living increases for teachers, because I think they went six years.
without getting any cost living increase. And look how inflation has grown. So people were really angry.
Leila (19:56.531)
So is this really about stabilizing the pension fund or is it about state politicians grabbing control of billions in teacher retirement money? Because think about it, STRS manages more than $90 billion and that’s one of the largest pools of capital in the state. And whoever controls it wields enormous influence. Teachers and retirees fought really hard.
Laura (20:10.542)
Mm-hmm.
Leila (20:20.808)
to elect reformers who pushed for cost of living increases and greater transparency. And suddenly lawmakers decide the board needs stability by stripping away those elected voices. I mean, is anyone else worried about that? Once politicians get their hands on a fund that big, isn’t there a great temptation to steer investments toward their allies or pet projects? I mean, that is an enormous amount of money and power.
Laura (20:29.057)
Right.
Laura (20:46.222)
Leila, this is Ohio. How could you even question this? We’re taking people’s unpaid funds that belong to them and give them to the Browns to build a stadium. Yes, there are all sorts of questions here. What this does come down to does feel very political that this has been a fight. State Attorney General Dave Yost has tried to get two of the members kicked off the board.
Lisa (20:53.078)
that belong to them and give them to the Browns to build a stadium. I mean, yes, there are all sorts of white engineers. But what this does come down to does feel very political. This has been a fight. Yoast, sorry, the state attorney general, they tried to get two of the members kicked off the board. They got back and forth about this and don’t like it. We also know that Republican state legislators do not like public schools. They don’t like unions, right? We’ve already heard the governor candidate for V. Robert Cromley.
Leila (20:58.152)
Touche.
Laura (21:10.52)
They’ve gone back and forth about this. They don’t like it. We also know that Republican state legislators do not like public schools. They don’t like unions, right? We’ve already heard Governor candidate Vivek Ramaswamy ranting about teachers unions, right? So it’s just become this position that they take that public schools and the unions are bad, which is not based in reality. But yes, they want to appoint their own people. So if they’re appointing them, they’re going to be Republicans.
Lisa (21:23.032)
planting about teaching students, right? So it’s just become this position that they take that public schools and unions are bad, which is not the case in reality. But yes, they want to appoint their own people, so they’re appointed, and they’re going be Republicans, and to oversee this fund. So the lawsuit is interesting. It’s something we talk about all the time.
Laura (21:39.255)
and to oversee this fund. So the lawsuit is interesting. It’s something we talk about all the time on this podcast. The single subject rule, the state constitution says bills must cover only one subject. Clearly a budget does not if you’re shoving all sorts of things in it. And the three consideration rules that every bill has to be considered on three separate days in each chamber. And so while the unions say,
We know there’s a lot of power for the legislature to make their own decisions here and pick the board members they want, but they didn’t do it the right way. And I think you could say that, and we said it on this podcast a lot of different times.
Leila (22:17.628)
Yeah. I worry that when you zoom out, what’s really at stake might be control, that it’s not just teachers, retirements, but there’s precedent that’s building here. If lawmakers can strip elected members off the STRS board and stack it with their own appointees, what would stop them from doing the same to police or firefighters or any other public pension when they don’t like the decisions that are being made?
Laura (22:33.123)
Mm-hmm.
Laura (22:40.268)
Right, that’s a very good point because there are a bunch of public pensions and no one else has this much control seated to the state legislature.
Leila (22:51.9)
You’re listening to Today in Ohio. Cleveland Public Library fell victim to a payment scam last year that nearly cost them a lot of money. Lisa, what happened and what changes are being made to prevent it from happening again?
Lisa (23:06.45)
So according to a financial audit by state auditor, Keith Faber, the Cleveland Public Library has recovered $400,000 that they lost in a vendor scam last June. The audit said that the library did not have the proper internal controls to detect fake vendors, but said they did immediately put in place multiple vendor verification processes after this and change their bank information after a request from a fake vendor. So what happened was a scammer
hijacked the legitimate vendor’s email and then got this payment. So they also immediately notified the legitimate vendor to let them know. So they got a bunch of money back. They got it all back. They got $350,000 in insurance settlement. $46,000 was forgiven by the legitimate vendor and $133,840.
was recovered from that fraudulent bank account and then repaid back to the insurance company. But now the library staff are required to take that free cybersecurity training that’s offered for local government entities.
Leila (24:15.708)
this is so unnerving because this, wasn’t just a small town library running on a shoestring. is Cleveland’s public library and they have a professional finance department and they still almost lost $400,000 because of this simple email scam. And I feel like if it can happen there, it can really happen anywhere. And sure, they got the money back. That’s great. But only because of insurance and lock taxpayers shouldn’t really have to rely on luck to protect public dollars. And I, I just,
Lisa (24:39.562)
Right.
Leila (24:45.02)
feel so uneasy about this, how many other local governments and agencies are sitting ducks for this kind of attack. And it makes me think about what just happened at City Hall in Cleveland. Nearly $100,000 was stolen earlier this year because Cleveland is still cutting paper checks. And that’s one of the most fraud-prone payment systems around. So you put these two stories together and it’s kind of frightening. Our public institutions are wide open to scams that the private sector buttoned up years ago.
Lisa (24:57.802)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Lisa (25:14.144)
Well, we don’t have the expertise. mean, these local governments often don’t have the expertise or the IT people who can see this and keep it from happening.
Leila (25:23.4)
Excellent point. You’re Today
Courtney (25:35.989)
Yeah, these renderings give us our clearest vision yet for this new jail and Sheriff’s Office headquarters plan out in Garfield Heights. The good news is that right now, the budget is holding steady on that $930 million price tag. We’ve been sitting at that estimate for a while. The county’s consultant says we’re sticking with it at least so far. And on the new rendering side, you know, these images really show
sleek and modern structures here for the Sheriff’s Office and what’s going to be a three-story jail. I was most intrigued by some of the renderings of the expanded medical facilities here, which look modern and, in my opinion, are very, very much needed at our county jail. There’s been a back and forth for years now on the number of beds that are needed in the new jail, and that ties into how much it’s ultimately going to cost. But right now,
That’s also holding steady. We’re at nearly about 9, 1900 beds. Now we, like I said, we heard from the County consultant. He said that they are pretty sure that they can continue to hold the budget steady. And he’s still looking at that $930 million estimate. They’re making small tweaks, but they’re confident here. At the same time, we’re hearing continued criticism from Councilman Michael Gallagher.
who pointed out in this recent hearing that the budget was closer to 750 million before council scrapped an earlier site in Cleveland back in 2022. And he’s still quite upset about what in his mind, you know, is a $200 million increase.
Leila (27:16.84)
Well, we know that big public construction projects almost never come in under budget, so we’ll have to brace for the real number. But Courtney, because so much of this story started with your reporting with Adam Furese years ago on the inhumane treatment of inmates at the county jail, I want to ask you this. Even if they somehow, you know, the county holds the line on the cost of building this new facility, you have to ask, are we investing nearly a billion dollars in solving the right problems?
I mean, a shiny new jail won’t fix the systemic failures that landed Cuyahoga County in this mess in the first place. I’m wondering what your thoughts are about, you know, where will the rubber meet the road here? What aspects of this new facility could actually lend themselves to fixing those issues involving inmate treatment?
Courtney (28:04.629)
You know, perhaps from my perspective and everything that happened in 2018 when we had all those deaths, you know, that’s what really helped accelerate these conversations to get a new building. The biggest important piece of it to me is the medical facilities and the ability to treat mental health issues at the jail. You know, the, the physical layout of the downtown jail was not conducive to getting proper widespread medical care.
Leila (28:19.965)
Mmm.
Courtney (28:33.833)
to everyone who needed it. So that’s the huge upshot for us as a county on a new facility is that better, more robust medical care and a building that actually facilitates that kind of care. This new facility is gonna have 26 medical beds in house. That’s a big win over our current situation. There’s also gonna be dental chairs, x-ray facilities, physical therapy space, and that should all help with our staffing bill. So from the county taxpayer perspective,
The idea here is that this is going to make it less expensive to run a better facility that provides better care for the inmates. This is all theoretical. We’re going to have to see how it plays out on the ground, but that’s the theory behind it. But on that broader question, Layla, of doing what we need to do to take care of folks, you know, the conversation about bail reform died on the vine. We pivoted to this conversation about getting a better building in place, but we haven’t addressed root causes that send people to jail.
in a substantial way at all. just kind of let that go and all the efforts now being put into the capital project.
Leila (29:40.765)
That’s great insight. Thank you so much, Courtney. You’re listening to Today in Ohio. Cleveland Hopkins climbed out of dead last in JD Power’s airport rankings, but only just. So what did the survey find and what does it say about the airport’s chances of improving as the massive terminal rebuild gets underway? Laura.
Laura (30:00.111)
So this is actually good news. I mean, it sounds like bad news, but it’s good news. It increased its score from last year by more than 5 % and improved in all categories that were measured. And this is according to JD Power and their North America Airport Satisfaction Survey. 30,000 travelers completed these surveys in 66 US and Canadian airports just over the past, well, between July 2024 and July 2025.
So they looked at ease of travel, level of trust, terminal facilities, airport staff, departure experience, food, beverage, and retail, and arrival experience. so we did get better, and everyone. Our score was 611 out of 1,000. The highest was Indianapolis. But the bad news is once they start the construction on the new terminal, it will get worse because nobody likes to walk through a construction zone. And you know that
Leila (31:04.556)
I shudder to think of it, especially the bathrooms. You’re listening to Today in Ohio. I know we’re going long, just because it’s been such a heavy week of news, let’s end with one that’s a little lighter. Ohio’s fall foliage forecast is looking unusual this year. Lisa, what should people expect from the leaf season, and when will the colors peak across the state?
Laura (31:08.684)
We know how you feel about the airport. Yes.
Lisa (31:30.196)
Yeah, it’s going to be different this year because we’ve had such dry conditions lately. So we talked with forester David Parrott with the Department of Natural Resources and he says that some trees are already turning and I’ve definitely seen that my dogwoods already completely turned. says dogwood, buckeye and walnut are turning now due to stress from the moisture lack. Also drought resistant.
like hickories and oaks may not change until mid October. So he says, basically it’s going to be an elongated season with sporadic color now through mid October. He predicts a peak the week of October 21st in Northern and Central Ohio and Southern Ohio the week of October 28th. And he says, fingers crossed that we get some rain. But as far as that rain goes, Cleveland National Weather Service meteorologist Rick Garuca says,
Long-term chances are not great for substantial rain, at least through the last week of this month. And also we’re going to have above normal temperatures expected. So we’re not going to see that, you know, concentrated burst of color. It’s just going to happen in dribs and drabs through October.
Leila (32:37.232)
All right, I won’t mention the existential crisis of climate change and how that might play into this. We’ll just leave the audience with some positive autumnal vibes. That’s it for Thursday. Thank you so much for listening. Chris Quinn will be back hosting tomorrow. So please join us for another discussion of the news.