Local
Residents of the new Kershaw Greene apartment complex say that the lack of sidewalks and crosswalks make it dangerous to walk along SR 682 toward Athens or The Plains. (WOUB)
Visitors to Lake Snowden will find some changes: Hocking College, which owns the facility, removed inflatables from the beach area and now charges a flat fee to enter the park instead of a per-person rate. College President Betty Young said the inflatables had been damaged by wildlife. (The Athens News)
Athens Code Enforcement is hampered by understaffing and nonspecific building codes, says Director David Riggs — but his office records only inspections and violations, not tenant calls about problems with their rental homes. (WOUB)
Athens Rock Camp for Girls has returned after a pandemic-induced hiatus. (WOUB)
Regional
Hocking County prosecutor Jennifer Graham wants to replace the special prosecutors appointed by the Ohio Attorney General’s office to handle the case of a former Hocking County sheriff’s deputy charged with multiple felonies. (The Logan Daily News)
State
An anti-gerrymandering group has gathered over 731,000 signatures for a November ballot initiative that would create a citizen commission for redistricting. (Ohio Capital Journal)
Advocates of a higher minimum wage are targeting the 2025 ballot for an initiative to raise Ohio’s minimum wage to $15. If passed, the initiative would increase pay for 1.2 million workers starting in January 2026. (Statehouse News Bureau)
Ohio’s incarceration rate is higher than the national average — which is already more than four times the highest rate among NATO members. The biennial budget recently signed by Gov. Mike DeWine, includes over $255 million to upgrade state prison facilities to handle high numbers of mentally ill and elderly inmates. (Ohio Capital Journal)
