Episode 34 - 20 May 2022 News Roundup

Discover Dayton

Full show transcript available at discoverdaytonpodcast.com. Today’s Friday, May 20th, 2022, and it’s time for your weekly News Roundup episode, where I read the news so you don’t have to. A lot happened this past week, including stories about an uptick in Covid cases, an EPA report about our local waterways, and new inductees into the Dayton Walk of Fame. There’s also a lot happening in the future, so you won’t want to miss this episode. Things going on today actually start about 30 minutes from this episode’s release, so tune in and listen now!
Transcript: Hello and welcome to the Discover Dayton podcast, the show that’s all about the Gem City’s past, present, and future. I’m Arch Grieve and I’m your host, and today’s episode is the weekly news roundup for Friday, May 20th, 2022. A lot happened recently, including stories about an uptick in Covid cases, an EPA report about our local waterways, and new inductees into the Dayton Walk of Fame. You won’t want to miss it as there’s a lot happening today, including in about 30 minutes from this episode’s release, so tune in now! To start off this week’s news I’d like to say Happy National Bike to Work Day! If you’re listening to this before 7:00-9:00am you still have time to make it to the Five River MetroParks Bike to Work Day celebration, which is happening this morning. The first 500 riders to register and check in at the event receive a gift, and you can pre-register now online at MetroParks.org. The event takes place from 7:00-9:00am at the RiverScape Metro Park on Monument Ave. and features a free pancake breakfast, live music, a bike expo, and more, so hopefully I’ll see you there! Well in a reminder that Covid-19 is still unfortunately with us, Coronavirus cases in Ohio have been going up steadily for the past 6 weeks in a row, with weekly cases being over 15,000, as reported about a week and a half ago. That’s up a lot from where they were at the beginning of April, when the state averaged a little over 3,500 cases per week. According to the Ohio Department of Health, over 7 million Ohioans have gotten at least one shot, but only 3.56 million have received two shots and a booster. If you remember a while back me talking about Dayton Public Schools possibly reopening the World of Wonder school to serve students who are learning English as a second language, well that plan is now official after school board members voted unanimously to do so this past Tuesday. The school will be open to students in grades K-6 who live in Residence Park, but also open up to 12th grade for English language learners. Superintendent Lolli explained that the school will have separate English-native and English-learner classes, but that those will be combined during lunch, recess, and possibly classes like art and extracurriculars. Also in DPS news, if you’re interested in mentoring a Dayton Public School student, DPS is starting the Transform Career Mentoring Program, which will match about 100 high school students with local mentors. Mentors will be matched with 10th and 11th graders to help them with decisions on things like colleges and careers and mentors and mentees are expected to connect for a minimum of five minutes per week. The locally-organized TEDxDayton event will be taking place on October 14th, which is a ways out, but more pressingly they are now accepting applications for speakers. TED is a nonprofit dedicated to spreading ideas, and TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, and Design. So, if you’re interested in being a TEDx speaker, you can apply at tedxdayton.com. Applying is no guarantee to speak, and I would know because I’ve applied and not made it in the past, but a volunteer-run committee will review your application if you apply and then may invite you to audition. If selected, they’ll work with you to prepare to tell your story, so maybe give it a shot! The Ohio EPA recently released a report about our local waterways that said that they’re about as healthy as they were two years ago, although that’s not necessarily a great thing. The report is required by the Clean Water Act to be released every two years, and in it they explained that in terms of local waterways, the stretch of the Great Miami from Tawawa Creek in Sidney to where Mad River joins it in Dayton is classified as “not impaired,” but that from Dayton to where it enters the Ohio River it is impaired by polychlorinated biphenyl, or PCB, a toxic industrial chemical that does not go away easily. The Mad River and Little Miami are also considered impaired by PCBs, although the Stillwater is not. In good news, one section of the Little Miami is being delisted because it meets a different set of cleanliness goals, so it’s not all bad news at least completely. A local Dayton couple is suing rapper Travis Scott after they allege that his Astroworld musical festival last fall resulted in the death of their unborn child, as well as 10 people who also died. The couple, Shanazia Williamson and Jarawd Owens, filed suit against Scott, the festival organizers, and the security companies that were hired, and are seeking over $1 million in damages. They explain in their suit that Williamson was trampled and crushed during the event, which resulted in her unborn child’s death. So far, over 700 other concert-goers have filed suit as well, and Rolling Stone reports that nearly 5,000 people suffered some type of injury. Scott denies responsibility and has performed this month for the first time since the tragedy, which also resulted in the death of a UD student, Franco Patino, of Illinois. His family is also filing suit against the rapper. There were protestors at the Ohio Statehouse on Saturday protesting against the likely adoption of abortion bans by the Ohio state legislature. Those protests were joined by others, including in Xenia and one here in Dayton at the Courthouse Square, where hundreds gathered to protest against abortion bans. In the wake of the leaked Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, many states such as Ohio are considering banning abortion, and in Ohio the bills that seek to do just that are Senate Bill 123 and House Bill 598. Ohio’s version of the abortion ban, if it passes, which seems likely, will outlaw abortion except in cases where the mother’s life is in danger or to prevent irreversible bodily impairment of the pregnant person, but no exceptions in the case of rape or incest. Well it will be at least another year until marijuana is legalized in Ohio fully as state officials recently settled a case with the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol, who had been pushing to have their signatures accepted on this year’s ballot for voters to weigh in on. In exchange for delaying until 2023, the coalition will not have to re-collect signatures again for next year and the state will accept the over 140,000 signatures they’ve already collected. The Carillon Historical Park here in Dayton has some new exhibits you might want to check out now. There is now a new industrial block of buildings on the grounds where you can see an expanded print shop, a new demonstration foundry, a soap shop, and a landscaped plaza where Carillon will hold programs for children. The Gem City Letterpress Company was the first hands-on experience the museum offered to visitors back in 1988, but it’s now expanded and will be joined by the new Rubicon Foundry and Air City Soap Company. Paper printing was a big business in Dayton years ago, and Dayton History's Vice President, Alex Heckman, explained to the Dayton Daily News that due to Dayton’s location next to the river, there were a lot of of paper mills here in the 1930s, in fact 25 out of Ohio’s 36 paper mills were in Dayton, and because it was easier to do the printing next to where the paper mills were, there were 77 paper printing companies at one point as well. If you’re interested in getting involved you can volunteer at Carillon as well, simply call volunteer coordinator Kay Locher at 937-293-2841 ext. 102. For more information about the museum, visit daytonhistory.org. The Dayton Playhouse is bringing back its annual event, FutureFest, for the first time since the pandemic, the event where they produce six previously unproduced plays over the course of three days. FutureFest is a nationally-recognized all-volunteer event, and they received 378 play submissions this year. They have their six finalists who will be performing at the festival selected now, and at the festival those plays will be judged by professional adjudicators. One of the plays is particularly timely, and is called “Griswold,” which is about Estelle Griswold of the Supreme Court case Griswold v. Connecticut, which enabled unmarried couples the right to obtain birth control. You can learn more at wordpress.thedaytonplayhouse.com. Salem Avenue in Dayton is now undergoing what will likely be over a year-long reconstruction process on the strip between Riverview and North Avenues. A reconstruction is not a simple repaving and actually involves much more work, hence the length of the project. Traffic will be down to a single lane during the construction process, so city leaders urge people to find alternate routes. The rebuilding is overdue, however, as some sections of the underlying base pavement are reported by the city to be over 100 years old. Once reopened, the road will have five lines, with two on each side and a center lane in between, as well as a two-way 10-foot wide cycle track. This is just phase 2 of the entire project, and the final phase 4 is not expected to be done until the end of 2025. The Dayton Walk of Fame recently inducted some new members, including one of my favorite local bands, Guided by Voices. The walk began in 1996 and recognizes individuals with outstanding achievements in the arts, education, invention, community or military service, philanthropy, and more. The inductees this year as follows: Phyllis G. Bolds - a black woman who graduated from Dunbar High School in 1950 and went on to become internationally-known for her work in aircraft dynamics. Neal Gittleman - artistic director and conductor of the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra for almost thirty years. Roger Glass - president and CEO of Marion’s Piazza who is known for his philanthropy work, including helping to found Equitas Health. A.B. Graham - who was considered the founding father of 4-H youth programming. Sharon Rab - the founder and co-chair of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize. Guided by Voices - known as the “forefathers of lo-fi rock,” who are headed by frontman Bob Pollard. They’re still active of course and just this past March released Crystal Nuns Cathedral. The inductees will be formally inducted and honored at a luncheon at Sinclair in October. Visit daytonregionwalkoffame.org for more information. Well if you’re into BBQ then you’re gonna want to hear this next story, but a Dayton woman, Erica Roby, recently competed in World Championship BBQ Cooking Contest in Memphis, Tennessee, where she took fourth place in a competition that the USA Today calls the “most prestigious BBQ contest.” She came in fourth place for ribs out of 104 teams. Roby also competed in the Food Network’s season 2 of BBQ Brawl, which she won. If you want to try her BBQ, she plans on cooking for the Yellow Springs Juneteenth Celebration this year as well as having some local popups in August. You can find her on Instagram at @bluesmokeblaire. Also in related news, I will be having an interview with AJ Bauer coming up soon, and he’s the owner of Smokin BBQ in the Oregon District, so if you’re a fan of BBQ don’t miss that one! Well apparently there’s a thief in Dayton who is in possession of a key that can, quote, “unlock all Dayton-area mailboxes,” who has been stealing checks from people. So far the Montgomery County Sheriff’s office has reported that at least 26 checks have been stolen from outdoor mailboxes since February. US Postal Service spokespeople say that there is an active investigation that is ongoing, and while they argue that mailing checks is still secure, the sheriff’s office is telling people they should go inside the post office to mail checks for the time being. And finally in our news stories for this week, I actually just got back from a week of birding in northern Ohio, Illinois, and Iowa, which I mention because while I was gone apparently the bird flu popped up in Dayton. The Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza virus has been found in birds locally, which can infect chickens, duck, geese, pheasants, quail, and guinea fowl, and there is no cure. It can infect humans, so City Manager Shelley Dickstein warned recently in a commission meeting for people not to handle dead birds, so stay safe out there if you come across one. And now for local events happening soon: Well today, Sideshow, one of the Dayton Yellow Cab’s annual shows, is coming back this month today and tomorrow after taking several years off due to Covid-19. This year performers will include Far From Eden, Tino, Nautical Theme, Snake Oil Revival, and more. Ticket information is available at yellowcabtavern.com. If you’re looking for something fun to do with friends tomorrow that has an opportunity to win prizes, then you’re in luck, because there’s a downtown Dayton scavenger hunt going on, which is being put on by the Downtown Dayton Partnership. The scavenger hunt takes place from 11:00am-5:00pm and starts in the Oregon District but will lead you all over downtown Dayton. Answers will be recorded on a clue sheet, although some hunt locations will require you to text photos of the things you find. The 1st place prize is $300 cash, so nothing to sneeze at. There is a $10 registration fee per team, although in return you receive $10 in Downtown Dollars, which you can use at any participating downtown business. All teams also get entered into a raffle prize drawing as well. There’s no limit on the number of people per team. Visit downtowndayton.org to sign your team up and learn more. Well if you’re in town on Sunday, May 22nd, which happens to be my birthday, then you can go to the Branch and Bone brewery’s Brunch with Chef Dane event, which is happening from 12:00pm noon until they run out. They’ll be serving up dishes like donut breakfast sandwiches, country ham, polenta eggs, and more. Visit branchandboneales.com for more information. Also on Sunday, Carillon Historical Park hosts its annual “party in the park” event, AKA Fleurs de Fete, from 1:00-4:00pm. The event features over 200 wine samplings and food from local eateries, in addition to live music. Pre-sale tickets are $70 and you must be 21 or older to purchase tickets. Visit daytonhistory.org for more event information. Another thing happening Sunday is the FreenCommunity Art Workshop: Peace Pole event. For this event the Dana L. Wiley Gallery is teaming up with Front Street for a workshop that allows people to paint a wooden tile that will placed on the Peace Pole at the Dayton International Peace Museum. Materials are provided and the event is free and open to everyone and goes from 2:00-4:00pm. The event takes place at the Dana L. Wiley gallery at 1001 E. Second St, and you can sign up on the Dayton Peace Musem’s Facebook page at facebook.com/daytoninternationalpeacemuseum. Also on Sunday there’s an event being put on by the Dayton Woman’s Club, which is the Founders’ Hall of Fame High Tea event. This event is $25 and features a guest speaker, T. Douglas Toles of Toles Media, who will be talking about Dayton’s Founding Mothers. It goes from 3:00-5:00pm on Sunday and you can learn more at daytonwomansclub.org. Once again on Sunday, Dayton’s Bach Society will be performing “Renewed,” a tribute to Paul Laurence Dunbar. This event features three world premiers of works set to Dunbar poems by composer Adolphus Hailstork and the winner’s of the Bach Society’s Young Composers Competition. Tickets are $25 and can be found at bachsocietyofdayton.org. Standup comedian, actor, and TV show host, Donnell Rawlings, will perform at Wiley’s later this month on May 27th and 28th. Tickets go for $45 and can be purchased online at wileyscomedy.com. Next Sunday May 29th at Carillon is the Dayton Heritage Festival, which goes from 12:00-8:30pm. It’s free for Dayton History members and $12 per adult or $8 per child. The event celebrates Dayton’s history and features special activities, costumed interpreters, and more. Also on Sunday May 29th, downtown’s Bozack’s Cocktail Lounge is hosting a Beards, Brims, and Bourbon event. Tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the door, and more information can be found at facebook.com/bozacks. Also happening Sunday, although a bit pricier, Master Mixologist Mike Jones will be leading a workshop entitled Cocktail Basics Part II: The Cheat Code, where he will explore cocktail basics and explain how to design and craft your own drinks. Tickets are $150, and the event takes place from 4:30-6:30pm at the 1eleven Flavor House downtown. Visit 1elevenflavorhouse.com for more information. The following Monday, May 30th, the Dayton Track Club is hosting a Memorial Day 5K at the Eastwood MetroPark from 9:00am to noon. Race entry ticket are $30, and participants do receive a t-shirt. Visit daytontrackclub.com for more information. Also happening next Monday is an ethnic cheese and dessert workshop at Evans Bakery, which is partnering with St. Anne’s Cheese Company, who I recently had on the show, so check out Episode 27 with Annie Foos to learn more about that, or visit stannescheeseco.com. The cost is $29 and it goes from 11;00am to 1:00pm. The event on May 31st will feature Jewish food, but the June 11th event will feature Turkish food. All right well that’s about it for this episode, although before I go I recently saw another podcast doing this and thought it was a great idea, so if there’s someone or some organization that you’d like me to interview, I’d like to hear from you. Please call me at 513-400-3538 and leave me a voice message explaining who you would like me to contact, why you want me to have them on the show, and one question you’d like me to ask them. I’m anxious to see where this leads, so I hope you’ll call! Thanks so much for listening everyone, and stay funky, Dayton.