Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has awarded 28 water infrastructure projects with nearly $44 million in financial support as part of the second round of funding offered through the new Ohio BUILDS water infrastructure grant program.

Hancock County will receive a $1.8 million grant to replace valves and piping at the feed pump to one of its reservoirs and update treatment for the second reservoir.

“The City of Findlay is thrilled to be receiving $1.8MM from the State of Ohio to make significant investment to our drinking water supply infrastructure,” said Findlay Mayor Christina Muryn.

“These funds are going to allow us to replace valves and piping at the reservoirs which was going to need replaced in the coming years. By receiving this support from the state, at this time, it allows us to make additional necessary investments at the water treatment plant sooner than originally planned.”

The valves and piping at Pump Station No. 1, as well as the two outlet structures, have surpassed their useful life and are in dire need of replacement.

The project will also install a new sodium permanganate feed system at the Reservoir 2 outlet valve, which is used to pretreat the raw water before it is sent to the water treatment plant.

The University of Findlay’s annual Helping Hands Food Drive will be held on Wednesday, November 3rd.

Nonperishable foods and monetary donations will be collected to benefit those who need them most.

Donations will be collected on-campus at the Alumni Memorial Union through a “drive-up and drop-off” process from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Multiple drop-off locations are available including UF’s AMU building, Kroger on 6th St., both Findlay Walmarts, and Brinkman’s on Sandusky St.

The top-five requested items are:

Peanut butter
Canned soup
Canned fruit
Cereal
Bottled juice

All donations go to CHOPIN Hall and will benefit families in Findlay and Hancock County.

In 2020, CHOPIN Hall provided 338,700 meals to those in need.

Last year, the Helping Hands Food Drive far surpassed all goals and collected a record-breaking 165,735 pounds of food.

New this year, student organizations will be participating in a CAN-Struction competition where students will build sculptures out of nothing but non-perishable foods.

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The Interstate 75 southbound exit ramp to U.S. 68/State Route 15 and Lima Avenue in Findlay will be closing for a project to improve surface friction on the ramp.

The Ohio Department of Transportation says the ramp will be closed on Wednesday, November 3rd for pavement grinding to improve friction and skid resistance.

Also, chevron signs will be added to the curves of the ramp. A picture of what the signs will look like is below.

The closure will last approximately from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesday.

The detour will be I-75 south to SR 235 to I-75 north back to U.S. 68/State Route 15.

ODOT recently told WFIN that they would be looking into what could be done to lessen the number of crashes on the flyover ramp.

There have been a number of crashes on the ramp since it opened in November of 2018, particularly in wet weather.

ODOT says, while the ramp is up to standards and meets all safety specifications, measures can be taken to reduce the number of crashes occurring.

Drivers are being reminded to slow down when approaching the ramp, and to not take it too fast, especially in wet weather.

https://twitter.com/ODOT_NWOhio/status/1455555458970931200

Hancock Public Health says it has been receiving a lot of calls about the COVID vaccine for children.

The agency says, while the FDA has authorized the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children 5-11 years of age it must wait for the guidance to come from the CDC before they can administer any pediatric doses to children ages 5 to 11.

Hancock Public Health says once it has received guidance it will have to wait for the Ohio Department of Health to ship the vaccine.

Hancock Public Health says it will notify the public when the vaccine is available and clinics are set up.

The agency is asking people to check back to their Facebook page for updates.

Marathon Petroleum on Tuesday reported a net income of $694 million for the third quarter of 2021.

That’s a big improvement from a year ago when the company reported a net loss of $886 million for the third quarter of 2020.

Adjusted net income was $464 million for the third quarter of 2021, compared to an adjusted net loss of $649 million for the third quarter of 2020.

“This quarter we advanced several key initiatives while remaining committed to improving the aspects of the business within our control,” said President and CEO Michael J. Hennigan.

“We are pursuing a strategic transaction for the Kenai refinery, have added a new strategic partnership to progress our access to advantaged feedstocks across our renewables operations, achieved another project milestone for our Martinez renewable diesel conversion, and demonstrated the sustainability of our cost reduction initiatives.”

“The year-to-date cash flow across the midstream business supported MPLX’s decision to increase its base distribution amount and include a special distribution amount for the third quarter,” Hennigan added.

“Through today, we have completed 25% of our Speedway proceeds capital return program, which puts us well on track to meet our commitment of returning the full $10 billion by the end of 2022.”

https://twitter.com/MarathonPetroCo/status/1455171849906790400

Awakening Minds Art’s 11th Annual Art Auction is being held virtually again this year in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Director Sarah Crisp-Ricker says students of the organization have been able to continue their creativity by meeting with instructors under strict safety guidelines, but this hasn’t stopped their artmaking.

Sarah says the artwork will be available to view at the Findlay Village Mall in the storefront next to Claire’s, during the auction.

The online art auction takes place until 6 p.m. on Friday, December 3rd.

The online auction can be found at awakeningmindsart.org/artauction. Click on the art auction button.

Sarah says winners will be contacted and can pick up artwork on Saturday, December 11th from 12 – 5 p.m. (or another date if necessary.)

Winners will also be able to coordinate their pick of artwork to meet the artist if desired.

“Our annual art auction is such a staple in the community, we just couldn’t let the year go by without one,” Sarah said.

“Being able to showcase the artwork at the Findlay Village Mall allows more people to see the work of our students. The artwork display will have an “About Me” board highlighting each student as well as a QR code that will take the viewer to our auction site for immediate bidding. We recognize that the past two art auctions have been vastly different from past years, but we are confident that our supporters will still participate in our online auction.”

There is also an opportunity to donate to the organization through the auction website.

Election Day is on Tuesday, and while there are no big national or statewide races there are several local races and issues that voters will decide on.

Among the local issues and races, 50 North is asking voters to support the renewal of the Senior Services levy in Hancock County.

50 North says demand for their services has increased by 76 percent since their last levy.

50 North points out, that by 2025, 36 percent of the Hancock County population will be 50 and older.

In the race for Findlay City Schools Board of Education, four people are vying for two positions on the five-member board.

Matt Cooper and Susan Russel are incumbents, and Patricia Klein and Sara Peltier are the other two people running.

In the race for Findlay Municipal Court judge, Stephanie Bishop and Garth Brown are going up against each other for an unexpired term ending on 12-31-23.

Click here for more local candidates and issues.

Polls are open on Tuesday from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Voters are being encouraged to wear a mask at the polls.

The Fostoria Police Division says ProMedica Fostoria Community Hospital is offering X-rays of candy distributed during trick-or-treat in Fostoria.

This comes after police were alerted to tampered candy being distributed during the Saturday, October 30th citywide trick-or-treating.

“Although we only are aware of 2 pieces of candy being involved, we take this seriously and are appalled that anyone would be so demented as to want to hurt children in our community,” said Police Chief Keith Loreno.

He says the candy that was involved had a sewing needle in both and it is unknown the specific street it was distributed.

He says both Fostoria police and ProMedica Fostoria Community Hospital feel that it is best to take every reasonable action possible to keep children safe and to help parents make an informed decision with any candy their children received.

On Monday, November 1st, parents can take candy received during the trick-or-treat in Fostoria to the hospital to be X-rayed for any potential metal objects.

The X-raying will be offered from 9 to 11 a.m. and again from 5 to 7 p.m.

People should go to the main entrance but do not enter the hospital.

The staff will have a portable X-ray machine available to scan the candy.

Due to COVID restrictions, people should follow all necessary safety restrictions on the hospital grounds and follow the instructions of the staff upon arrival.

Anyone who has information as to who may be involved with the tampered candy should call the Fostoria Police Division at 419-435-8573.