Hello all. Let’s get right to it and talk about some news.
President Donald Trump will be in Greater Cincinnati Wednesday to talk about work on the $1 trillion infrastructure revamp he promised during his campaign last year. Trump will be traveling around the country throughout the week to present his vision for fixing a number of major roads, bridges and other infrastructure. No details about his visit have been made public, but Trump is expected to discuss inland waterways during a speech on the Ohio River. He could cite the aging Brent Spence Bridge — which is functionally obsolete and needs a $3.6 billion replacement in coming years — in remarks he’ll give. Earlier this year, the bridge landed on a Trump administration list of priority infrastructure projects. But that was before the president issued an executive order tightening federal aid for cities like Cincinnati that declare themselves sanctuary cities for immigrants.
• Clashes between the media and Hamilton County Court Judge Leslie Ghiz could continue this week in the retrial of former University of Cincinnati police officer Ray Tensing. Local media organizations like The Cincinnati Enquirer and WCPO filed a second lawsuit late last week over restrictions Ghiz has placed on the media, strictly limiting the number of reporters in the courtroom to five and forbidding electronic devices. A federal appeals court ruled that Ghiz was required to hold a hearing on those restrictions, which she did last week before issuing very similar restrictions. The jury pool in the case is down to 107 as court proceedings continue today. The pool for the trial over the shooting of unarmed black motorist Sam DuBose includes just 17 black potential jurors, according to reports from The Cincinnati Enquirer.
• The Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority says it will need $225,000 more next year. The ask — which is a previously planned 6 percent increase over the $4.2 million allocated for the project in the city budget this year — comes as SORTA struggles to get the transit system running at the 10-minute intervals stipulated by the city.
• Can Cincinnati startups fight heroin addiction and overdose deaths? That’s the idea behind an upcoming hackathon by local healthcare startup venture booster Spry Labs. The hackathon, which will run June 10 and 11, aims to bring tech and startup experts together with law enforcement and medical personnel to find ways to better collect and utilize data and information around addiction prevention, response and recovery. The three best ideas will get a cash prize, the chance to present to Microsoft’s Technology and Civic Innovation team as well as Cincinnati City Council and support from Spry.
• I have a decent number of friends who work in Cincinnati Public Schools in some fashion or another, and they tell me one of the most heartbreaking things they face is the reality that the students they serve who get free and reduced lunch often go hungry when school is out. But here’s a potential fix: CPS will offer free breakfast and lunch this summer to eligible students through the federal Summer Food Service Program for Children. Between May 30 and August 4, students 18 and younger can get breakfast and lunch at CPS schools, community centers and other locations around the city. Some individuals up to 21 who are physically or mentally disabled can also take advantage of the program.
