Northeast Ohio Archives

‘This is about food justice’: $300k BUILD grant will help create food co-op in Central, Kinsman

By Lee Chilcote ● Health ● May 23, 2023

Groups in Cleveland have been awarded a $300,000 grant from the BUILD Health Challenge to create a community-owned food co-op, healthy foods cafe, farmers market network and other solutions to improve food access in the Central and Kinsman neighborhoods.

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How are companies succeeding at diversity and inclusion? It starts with introspection and reflection

By Mandy Kraynak ● Economy ● November 3, 2022

The median income for white residents in the Cleveland area is more than twice that of Black residents. White workers are disproportionately represented in higher-wage occupations, while Black worker are disproportionately represented in lower-wage jobs. Some Northeast Ohio companies are taking steps to close the gaps.

As Ohio Welcomes Refugees, a Nonprofit Gives Them a Boost

By Aja Hannah & Lee Chilcote ● Economy ● July 14, 2022

With the help of nonprofit US Together, refugees in the Cleveland area work to get small businesses up and running. Funded by the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement, the program has helped more than 30 entrepreneurs.

Op-ed: Benefit cliffing – How the system anchors low-wage workers in poverty

By Nicole Roberts ● Social Equity ● June 28, 2022

In ordinary circumstances, a raise or new job is cause for celebration and pride. However, for the 14.9% of impoverished Ohioans who live in extraordinary circumstances, increased earnings only bring anxieties of possibly “falling off” the income eligibility guidelines and losing the critical supports provided by public benefits.

Who pays property taxes to support services when the economy is dominated by nonprofits?

By Stephanie Czekalinski ● Government ● June 23, 2022

Fifty years ago, when Clevelanders needed to fund schools, pay for parks or expand libraries they relied on booming tax revenue from large companies. General Motors, Republic Steel Corp. and Ford Motor Co. employed thousands of people and provided a tax base to fund services for the community. But Cuyahoga County’s economy has changed.

Color-coded map of Cleveland showing redlining

The debate over tax breaks for nonprofit Cleveland-area hospitals is also about racism and redlining

By Stephanie Czekalinski & Michael Indriolo ● Social Equity ● June 22, 2022

For years, hospitals and public policy wonks have been engaged in an ongoing debate over whether nonprofit hospitals provide adequate benefits to the community to make the tax breaks they receive a good deal for taxpayers. That debate is further complicated by the history of racist policies like redlining that still affect Clevelanders today.

Cleveland nonprofit hospitals get millions in property tax breaks. Many are asking, ‘Is it worth it?’

By Stephanie Czekalinski & Michael Indriolo ● Economy ● June 21, 2022

An Ideastream analysis of Cuyahoga County fiscal records shows that the clinic owned at least $2.4 billion in tax-exempt property countywide as of 2018 assessments. If that property was taxable, it would contribute about $84 million to government coffers annually.

Pride in the CLE returns to downtown on Saturday, June 4th

By Tricia Chaves ● Social Equity ● June 2, 2022

True to its grassroots ideal that Pride is not a moment but a movement, Pride in the CLE begins at noon this Saturday, with a march in downtown Cleveland followed by a festival on Malls B and C.

The road to fixing climate change runs through Northeast Ohio

By Marc Lefkowitz ● Civic Engagement ● March 18, 2022

The biggest culprit of climate change in Northeast Ohio may be our roads, which have expanded despite population declines. After contributing to the problem for decades by funding highway expansions, NOACA, the region’s transportation agency, is now trying to do something about it.

Why has childhood lead testing plummeted in Cleveland, and what can be done about it?

By El Jay'Em ● Government ● January 13, 2022

Mayor Justin Bibb’s office recently posted a position for a senior strategist to oversee the city’s efforts to combat lead poisoning that would report to the mayor. One of the issues the new cabinet member will have to tackle is the plummeting numbers of children screened for the toxin during the pandemic.