SUMMIT COUNTY
Apply for judgeship
AKRON: Summit County Republican Party officials are accepting applications to fill a judicial opening in Common Pleas Court after Judge Elinore Marsh Stormer’s Nov. 6 election as the county’s new probate judge.
Jonathan Pavloff, chairman of the county’s Republican Executive Committee, said those interested in the Common Pleas seat should submit a written application and resume no later than 4 p.m. Jan. 16.
The material should be sent to central committee chairman Alex Arshinkoff, 1755 Merriman Road., Suite 250, Akron, OH 44313.
Gov. John Kasich will fill the vacancy by appointment.
For more information, call party official Debbie Walsh at 330-434-9151 or email dwalsh@summitcountygop.org.
AKRON
Meetings with Valle
AKRON: John Valle, Akron’s director of neighborhood assistance, will have office hours at community centers this month.
His hours for the first part of January will be 1 to 3 p.m. Thursday at Northwest Family Recreation Center, 1730 Shatto Ave.; and 4 to 6 p.m. Jan. 15 at Ed Davis Community Center, 730 Perkins Park Drive.
Chili challenge
AKRON: Akron firefighters will challenge other city departments and businesses at the seventh annual Firefighters’ Chili Challenge at 11 a.m. Friday at Lock 3 Park, 200 S. Main St., in downtown Akron.
A panel of celebrity judges will decide the best of the bunch, and all entrants will compete for a People’s Choice award.
A $5 ticket will give each patron four tickets for four cups of chili. Beer, soft drinks, water and coffee will be available.
The proceeds will support Akron Children’s Hospital Burn Unit.
CUYAHOGA FALLS
Taxes simplified
CUYAHOGA FALLS: Cuyahoga Falls residents who did not overpay or underpay city taxes may file online without the additional step of mailing in the return.
Mayor Don Robart announced the enhancement to the city’s online Tax Preparer on Thursday.
Residents can log on to www.cityofcf.com to access the secure Income Tax Preparer. The information input by the taxpayer is available only on the user’s page, and not saved after they log off, according to a news release.
Residents have been filing online since 2004. This is the first year some residents are not required to mail the form to the city’s income tax department for verification.
Special meeting
CUYAHOGA FALLS: Cuyahoga Falls City Council will hold a special meeting at 6:29 p.m. Monday.
The purpose of the meeting will be to elect a council president.
NORTH CANTON
Community forum
NORTH CANTON: The city school district and police department are co-sponsoring a community town hall meeting from 7 to 9 p.m. Jan. 15.
The discussion will be inside Hoover Hall at Hoover High School, 525 Seventh St. NE.
The main topic is safety and security in the schools, with new ideas and current initiatives discussed.
STARK COUNTY
Firefighting grant
EAST SPARTA: The East Sparta Volunteer Fire Department has been awarded a $47,120 Assistance to Firefighters Grant.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency administers the program, which makes federal dollars available to first responders to purchase protective equipment, vehicles and gear.
NORTH CANTON
Arrest at grocery
NORTH CANTON: Police on Saturday arrested a 59-year-old Louisville man accused of stealing $270 in meat from the Washington Square Giant Eagle store on East Maple Street.
Paul A. Hubbard was charged with a first-degree misdemeanor and booked in to the Stark County Jail.
Police also recovered a 2013 Chevrolet Impala that had been stolen from the 4000 block of Everhard Road in Jackson Township on Wednesday. Police impounded the vehicle and are continuing to investigate.
PENINSULA
Civil War talk
PENINSULA: Lake Township Civil War historian John Gurnish will speak on Summit County’s Civil War soldiers during a meeting of the Cuyahoga Valley Civil War Round Table.
Gurnish, a retired Ellet High School history teacher, will speak at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Peninsula Library at 6105 Riverview Road in Peninsula.
A former president of the round table, Gurnish has spent much free time in the past three decades researching local Civil War units.
PERRY
Concerns at plant
PERRY: A nuclear power plant alongside Lake Erie in northeast Ohio can expect continued heightened scrutiny by federal regulators this year.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission told the Perry nuclear power plant operator FirstEnergy Corp. in a Dec. 28 letter that it will do a return safety inspection this year at some point.
The commission says the NRC staff has concluded that the plant hasn’t adequately addressed safety concerns.
Two years ago the commission increased inspections at the plant northeast of Cleveland after four contractors were exposed to radiation.
Akron-based FirstEnergy said the highest radiation exposure to any worker was the equivalent of two or three chest X-rays.
— Associated Press
LORDSTOWN
Fire injures four
LORDSTOWN: Four people were hospitalized late Friday after a small fire at a Northeast Ohio General Motors plant.
GM says operations at its Lordstown complex were back to normal Saturday. The facility was lightly staffed at the time.
The automaker said the fire began just before 9 p.m. on Friday. The company said an early investigation traced the fire to welding work being performed by contractors.
Four people were taken to local hospitals. The company reported three were treated and released, with one remaining hospitalized.
The company said production would resume Monday with regularly scheduled shifts.
— Associated Press