PORT CLINTON CHAMBER CANCELS SUNSET CRUISE

The popular Port Clinton Sunset Cruise on Thursday, July 9 on the Jet Express has been cancelled by the Port Clinton Chamber Board of Directors due to COVID-19 restrictions. The Chamber thanked the Jet Express and the Catawba Island Club for their sponsorship.

The Chamber is planning to continue the cruise in 2021 on the second Thursday of July. The Sunset Cruise tours the Lake Erie Islands and the Catawba and Marblehead peninsulas.

DR. AMY ACTON STEPS DOWN AS DIRECTOR OF THE ODH

Gov. MikeDeWine announced that Dr. Amy Acton is stepping down as director of the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) and will serve as his chief health advisor. Lance Himes, who previously service as director of the ODH, was named interim director.

“Let me say how very grateful I am for Dr. Acton’s selfless and tireless service to the people of Ohio as our ODH director,” said DeWine. “It’s true that not all heroes wear capes. Some of them wear a white coat embossed with the name Dr. Amy Acton.”

Dr. Acton had taken a comprehensive and holistic approach to addressing health and well-being for all Ohioans, said Dewine. In addition to advising on health issues, she will continue to focus of the COVID-19 crisis.

OHIO WORKS TO ALLEVIATE SHORTAGE OF ‘PPE’ SUPPLIES

State governments all around the U.S. have struggled to maintain a supply of PPE (personal protective equipment) for doctors, nurses and first responders throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Ohio officials report having distributed more than 30 million pieces of PPE, mostly to county emergency management agencies.

The PPE includes donations, FEMA and JobsOhio purchases, and purchases by state agencies such as the departments of Administrative Services, Health, and Public Safety using federal CARES Act funds.

The Ohio Bureau of Workman’s Compensation has sent more than 1.5 million face coverings to employers to support worker safety.

Ohio is looking at a long-term solution to PPE supply chain issues, including longer-term contracts for ventilators and N95 masks.

ODJFS RECEIVES EMPLOYMENT, TRAINING GRANT

The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) will receive an $8.5 million federal Employment Recovery National Dislocated Worker Grant to help employ workers who lost their jobs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and to help employers rebuild their workforces.

The ODJFS will work with Ohio’s Office of Workforce Transformation to facilitate the programs through local OhioMeansJobs centers to distribute the funds to Ohio’s local workforce areas.

OHIO TAX CREDIT AUTHORITY CREATES NEW JOBS

Ohio has announced its new Ohio Credit Authority to provide assistance for 17 projects set to create 1,943 new jobs and retain 2,247 jobs statewide. The projects are expected to result in more than $107 million in new payroll and spur more than $252 million in investments across Ohio. Those projects can be found online at governor.ohio.gov.

GOJO TO EXPAND OHIO PRODUCTION OF HAND SANITIZER

Hand sanitizer has continually been in short supply around the Buckeye State because of the COVID-19 pandemic. GOJO, an Akron-based manufacturer that is part of the Ohio Manufacturing Alliance working with JobsOhio, will help relieve the shortage by expanding its production to new Ohio plants in Navarre and Maple Heights. The project is expected to create 200 new jobs.

ERIE COUNTY JUDGE ALLOWS KALAHARI RESORT TO REOPEN

Erie County Common Pleas Judge Roger Binette allowed Kalahari Resorts in Sandusky to reopen with his court judgment on Friday, June 12. Binette said that Ohio had overstepped its bounds by closing the waterpark without proper vetting for Ohio Department of Health rules.

The outdoor waterpark planned to open last weekend, the same day Kalahari planned to reopen its hotel. The indoor waterpark is slated to open on June 19, the date statewide for Ohio amusement parks to reopen.