Ballroom loss

Ballroom loss
YOUNGSTOWN -- The loss is estimated at $500,000 in Monday's fire that destroyed the Idora Park Ballroom, the fire department said. The department continued to list the cause of the blaze as undetermined. Vagrants may have been occupying the building, the department said. The department's estimate of the 91-year-old landmark's value was higher than that of the Mahoning County Auditor's Office, which placed its market value at $119,000.
Lisotto matter
YOUNGSTOWN -- Judges from Mahoning County Common Pleas Court have asked the Ohio Supreme Court to appoint a visiting judge to preside over possible charges against Judge Robert G. Lisotto. A special prosecutor will decide whether to charge Judge Lisotto for accepting football tickets from a lawyer who had cases pending before him. The local judges excused themselves from the matter, citing a conflict of interest.
Painkiller stolen
YOUNGSTOWN -- A gunman robbed a South Side pharmacy of the prescription painkiller Oxycontin, which has recently become a major drug being peddled on the street. Entering through the back door at 9:15 a.m. Tuesday, the robber, brandishing a .38-caliber revolver, handed a male pharmacist at Dilts Pharmacy, 100 E. Midlothian Blvd., a note demanding the drug in four different dosages, then threatened to kill a female store employee, the pharmacist told police. The robber, wearing a blue bandanna covering his face and believed to be in his mid-20s, fled with 200 Oxycontin pills, stumbling and dropping the gun in the median as he ran across Southern Boulevard, the pharmacist told police. Police recovered the loaded gun and a store security tape, but new snowfall quickly obscured the robber's footprints and a police dog lost the robber's scent on East Ravenwood Avenue. Police believe the robber got into a car on Ravenwood. The gun had been reported stolen many years ago.
First Night contest
YOUNGSTOWN -- First Night Youngstown is having a contest to design the logo for the 2002 celebration.
The logo must reflect Youngstown, the family, the arts and a celebration, plus incorporate the words "First Night Youngstown 2002." The logo should be a four-color design that reproduces well in black and white and can easily be enlarged or decreased in size.
The logo will be used on the 2-inch by 3-inch entrance badges, posters and all public relations promotions. The winner will have his name displayed on the badge, poster and other places. The artist's biography will be included in the event program. Deadline for entries is April 15. For more information call Karen Wilson at the Youngstown Area Arts Council or Arlene Thompson at the city council office.
Youth detainee escapes
AUSTINTOWN -- A 13-year-old boy on his way to a youth detention facility in Grove City escaped from his caretakers and eluded police for more than two hours before being recaptured in Ames Department Store on Mahoning Avenue. The two child-welfare caseworkers escorting the boy on his trip from Columbus pulled off the highway at about 2 p.m. Tuesday to take a break at the McDonald's Restaurant on North Canfield-Niles Road, reports say. There, they removed the boy's ankle shackles so he could use the restroom, and he ran out the restaurant door.
Plumber's fraud alleged
AUSTINTOWN -- The son of an 83-year-old township resident told police that a local plumber fraudulently charged his mother $1,002 for repairs to a toilet that were incorrectly done, according to reports. The plumber, against whom several complaints have been lodged with the district board of health, charged $800 in labor for about one hour's work, the son told police.
Food drive
HARTFORD -- Cub Scout Pack 90 is collecting nonperishable food items to be distributed to needy families. Collection boxes are in place through March 31 at Hartford Elementary School, state Routes 7 and 305, and at Meloni's Market, state Routes 7 and 87, Vernon. The food collected by the local pack will be distributed through Hartford Community Church to 115 families in the Hartford, Vernon, Kinsman, Fowler and Brookfield areas. March is National Scouting for Food Month for the Boy Scouts of America.