The annual spring crop of orange barrels has sprouted, and it is growing all around our region. Each year, motorists dread the beginning of construction season - even though they have complained for weeks about the deteriorating condition of the roads. Construction zones mean detours and ...
You've done it again, Eastern Ohio! One week ago today, we appealed to the public on page 2 of this newspaper, asking for donations to a toy drive to benefit the Martins Ferry Police Department. The effort was a part of our Business After Hours event, held in conjunction with the Martins ...
This week is a special one that helps us recognize one of the most important resources any community can have. First observed in 1958, National Library Week is marking its 60th anniversary and is typically observed during the second week of April each year. It is sponsored by the American ...
Last week, some organizations that help ensure local residents receive the care they need got a little help of their own. The Belmont County Board of Commissioners approved one-year contracts with 21 emergency medical service providers, most of which are volunteer fire departments. It is an ...
Believe it or not, spring has arrived. Yes, the season officially arrived a couple of weeks ago, though you wouldn't know it by looking out your window or walking out your door. At this writing, the temperature in Belmont is just at the freezing mark. Snow and rain - or some combination of ...
With headlines about international espionage, alleged infidelity, phone scams and threats of violence dominating the news these days, Americans must be asking themselves this question: "Who can we trust?" While the answer to that question is far from simple, one way to help solve the dilemma ...
When was the last time you really took a day off? My husband, Mike, and I both have jobs that sometimes demand we work odd hours. We often find our selves at work at 10 or 11 p.m. or on a weekend. For that reason, our days off are not always the traditional Saturday and Sunday. And when we ...
In many public schools, the only option for teachers when a student complains of not feeling well is to call parents or guardians and send the youngster home. Jefferson County Health Department officials want to change that. During their meeting last week, Buckeye Local Board of Education ...
Just because something is possible does not mean it is a good idea. But companies developing artificial intelligence programs have made a great deal possible, and too many government entities are failing to ask whether the ideas are good. Approximately 75 percent of state testing for Ohio ...
It’s time for parents in the Ohio Valley — and across the nation — to have a serious talk with their children. No, we aren’t referring to that dreaded conversation about the birds and the bees. And we aren’t talking about going over the basics, such as “look both ways before you ...
It seems Eastern Ohio has been in the spotlight again in recent days, capturing the attention of politicians and industrial heavy-hitters. Last Monday, the Statehouse was buzzing with anticipation as Gov. John Kasich prepared to officially announce a "major international partner" for the ...
It has been known for nearly a year that state officials were negotiating with American Electric Power to create a new state park in Eastern Ohio. During his State of the State speech this week, Gov. John Kasich made it official. Kasich also put some icing on the cake, revealing the new ...
For about three weeks, an untold amount of methane leaked from an XTO Energy well pad near Powhatan Point. On Wednesday, the company and Belmont County officials announced the good news that the well had been plugged. Area residents who had been unable to occupy their homes and others in the ...
It seems we Americans are dissatisfied with our representation in Washington, D.C., and our chance to do something about it is quickly approaching. A new study by researchers at Stanford University and the University of California-Santa Barbara with the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public ...
It may not always be easy to see, but people all around us are working to better our communities all the time. Sometimes, these people are elected officials, working in response to a public outcry or in an effort to fulfill a campaign promise. We expend a lot of energy being critical of these ...
Someone violated the trust of Harrison County's taxpayers last year. In September, Janel McGowan-Banks, a former probation officer for the county, pleaded guilty to theft in office and tampering with records. Information released by Auditor of State Dave Yost states that his office ...
Regardless of how you feel about new restrictions on gun ownership, ask yourself this: Who would be enforcing them? Would it be the same FBI that failed to act on warnings Nikolas Cruz was dangerous, allowing him to slaughter 17 people at a high school? How about the FBI that cleared ...
Tension was high in the Bridgeport Exempted Village School District on Monday. Do you have to ask why? Yes, someone, perhaps a student, made a threat involving a gun. Though the school complex remained open, the law enforcement presence there was supplemented with additional officers ...
The makeup of the St. Clairsville Police Department is changing, and the city administration should make every effort to ensure those changes increase safety and benefit residents. During the council meeting Tuesday, it was announced that Meghan Shaw has been hired as an administrative ...
I write a lot about the beauty of our region, but I have seen some ugliness here lately - and it’s had nothing to do with mud or flooding. Two things are at the root of the animosity I have seen among area residents - the school shooting in Parkland, Fla., and the well pad explosion and ...