Plain Press

  • Cleveland City Council Ward 7 race heats up

    PHOTOS COURTESY OF RONALDO RODRIGUEZ, JR., LA VILLA On July 14th, Ward 7 City Council candidates participated in a Neighborhood & Community Media Association of Greater Cleveland Community Media Panel discussion with reporters from Tremonster, Plain Press, and La Villa. by Bruce Checefsky    (Plain Press August 2025) Cleveland City Council Ward 7 candidates Austin…

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  • City Record offers descriptions of new Cleveland City Council wards

    GRAPHIC COURTESY OF CLEVELAND CITY COUNCIL At its January 6, 2025, meeting, Cleveland City Council voted 14-2 to adopt a new Cleveland Ward Plan represented in this map. As required by Cleveland’s City Charter, because of reduced population count in the 2020 census, City Council reduced the number of wards from 17 to 15. The…

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  • Voter registration and turnout varies greatly by City Council Ward

    by Chuck Hoven      (Plain Press December 2024) Data from the Cuyahoga County Board of Election’s website shows a smaller percentage of Cuyahoga County’s registered voters chose to vote in 2024 than in the previous two presidential elections in 2020 and 2016. Out of the 894,091 registered voters in Cuyahoga County, there were 587,282 ballots…

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  • Irishtown Bend Park construction underway 

    PHOTO BY BRUCE CHECEFSKY August 25, 2023; Rivergate Park, east bank of the Cuyahoga River, across from Irishtown Bend:  Master of Ceremonies Ward 3 Councilman Kerry McCormack kicked off the announcement of the beginning of the Port Authorities’ riverbank stabilization project for Irishtown bend.  A park is planned for the site once the riverbank stabilization is…

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  • Bea Del Papa honored as Ward 3 Senior of the Year

    PHOTO COURTESY OF THE DEL PAPA FAMILY Thursday, September 15, 2022; Cleveland Senior Day, Cleveland Public Hall, 500 Lakeside Avenue: Ohio City resident Bea Del Papa is honored as Ward 3 Senior of the Year.  (L-R) Tim Del Papa, Bea Del Papa, Chuck Del Papa, and Ward 3 City Council Representative Kerry McCormack.

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  • Renovation updates for Cleveland Public Library’s branches and StoryWalk introduced at Carnegie West Branch

    Renovation updates for Cleveland Public Library’s branches and StoryWalk introduced at Carnegie West Branch by Bruce Checefsky Plain Press, July 20220                             Cleveland Public Library (CPL) ranked fourth among America’s Star Libraries, earning a prestigious Five-Star rating from the Library Journal, the oldest and most respected publication covering library service. The Library Journal index, published annually, compares…

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  • Cleveland City Council weighs proposals to change Cleveland’s tax abatement policy

    PHOTO BY CHUCK HOVEN Monday, May 16, 2022; Cleveland City Council Meeting, Cleveland City Hall, 601 Lakeside Avenue: During the Public Comment period at the Cleveland City Council Meeting, Ward 4 resident David Beach addresses Cleveland City Council on the issue of the reauthorization of the City’s residential tax abatement program.  Speaking of the Justin Bibb…

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  • Transit advocates want to decriminalize fare evasion on RTA buses and trains

    Transit advocates want to decriminalize fare evasion on RTA buses and trains by Bruce Checefsky (Plain Press, April 2022)         In 2017, two transit police officers boarded a Regional Transit Authority (RTA) HealthLine bus and demanded passengers show proof of payment. When Ronnie Williams could not produce a fare card, he was removed from the bus and…

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  • Celebration of Bill Merriman’s retirement as the Chairperson of the Franklin Clinton Block Club and his new role as Chair Emeritus

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  • November 2, 2021: election results

    November 2, 2021: election results Mayoral contest (Plain Press, December 2021) Justin Bibb won the November 2nd mayoral election receiving 36,168 votes or 62.86% of the votes cast. Kevin Kelley received 21,352 votes or 37.14% of the votes cast. The total of 57,520 votes cast in the mayoral contest represents 23.2% of the 247,264 registered voters in…

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