Community Corner
🌱 Grand Jury Indicts Company, Owner And Foreman + WIC Formula Waiver
The quickest way to get caught up on the most important things happening today in Lakewood.
Up and at 'em, Lakewood! It's Friday, so let's get you started with everything you need to know going on in Lakewood today.
First, today's weather:
Becoming windier, very warm. High: 86 Low: 75.
Here are the top three stories in Lakewood today:
- The Cuyahoga County Grand Jury indicted the owner and foreman of the Atlas Masonry Restoration and Maintenance for the roles they played in the Marine Towers West apartment building partial parking garage collapse in December 2021. The company owner, 55-year-old Elmer Mekker, and the foreman, 52-year-old Charles Hawley, were charged with one count of inducing panic. Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O'Malley said, "It is a miracle that the recklessness displayed, not only by Atlas Masonry but the owner and foreman in charge, did not result in serious injury or death." (Cleveland 19 News)
- Athletes feel safer and are back on the basketball court a year after the two shootings that took place at Madison Park in Lakewood. Angela Steiner and other members of Lakewood formed the Madison Court Community Coalition to improve the area around the court. Steiner told 19 News, "I felt like it was a personal attack against me, and a personal attack against Black and brown people making broad-based assumptions that didn't need to be made." (Cleveland 19 News)
- The Ohio Department of Health requested that the federal government give low-income mothers more choices in selecting baby formula. The ODH has asked for waivers that will allow those enrolled in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) more flexibility in the midst of the formula shortage. Normally, WIC sets strict guidelines on which brands and how many can be purchased at a time. (ideastream)
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Today in Lakewood:
- Karaoke Fridays!!! At The Velvet Dog (9:00 PM)
- About James Davis At Improv Comedy Theater & Restaurant (7:30 PM)
- Funny Bus Comedy City Tour - The Cleveland Bucket List At Collision Bend Brewing Company (6:30 PM)
From my notebook:
- Meet Crash, Lilac, and Athena, just a few of the pets eligible for fostering or adoption in Lakewood area animal shelters. View photos, specs, and learn more at the link. (Lakewood Patch)
- Lakewood City staff installed a new all-weather turf surface on the Solstice Steps. The updated surface will provide additional traction for Lakewood Park visitors and reduce the amount of mud and dirt tracked on the steps. (Cleveland 19 News)
- Come out to the Benefit Concert for Northeastern Ohio Coalition for the Homeless at Five O'Clock Lounge tonight and tomorrow night beginning at 7:30 p.m. The local music ensemble, Drumplay, will celebrate the life of the late Daniel R. Thompson, a local poet and advocate for the homeless. (clevelandscene.com)
Alrighty, you're all good for today. See you all tomorrow morning for another update!
— Carla Varner