METRO DIGEST || Fund for funerals of 6 teens at $53,430
Fund for funerals of 6 teens at $53,430
WARREN
The total of donations received as of Friday for funeral expenses associated with the deaths of six teenagers in a March 10 traffic accident is $53,430.
Pastor Rick Oaks of First United Methodist Church, one of five pastors in charge of overseeing the money, said the expenses paid out so far are $47,773 and will rise a little.
But a balance of about $5,600 is going to remain in the Huntington Bank account established for the donations.
The traffic accident on Niles Warren River Road about a mile south of downtown was the third large loss of life in the city in less than two years that resulted in the need for donations for burial expenses.
It makes sense to keep the remaining money in the account in case additional money is needed in the future, Oaks said.
Downtown grants
YOUNGSTOWN
The city’s event-grant program is offering financial support to qualified applicants interested in hosting downtown events.
Qualified applicants can receive between $100 and $2,000 for their event. The city has $10,000 budgeted for this with the possibility of increasing it by $4,000, said Lyndsey A. Hughes, the city’s director of events and marketing.
Last year, 11 organizations received a combined $10,000 from the city to assist with a downtown event, she said.
Applications are due to Hughes’ office on the sixth floor of City Hall, 26 S. Phelps St., by April 29. Recipients will be named no later than May 5.
Park roads to reopen
Youngstown
Effective April 8, these roads in Mill Creek MetroParks will reopen to vehicular traffic, park officials said. The roads are: Chestnut Hill Drive, between Canfield Road and the Kirkmere Spur; High Drive between the Kirkmere Spur and West Cohasset Drive; and Calvary Run Drive between Belle Vista Avenue and Milton Avenue.
Columbiana cleanup
Columbiana
Volunteers are needed for Comcast Care Day from 9 a.m. to noon April 27. Comcast employees will spend the day working side by side with volunteers, whether they are families, friends or community partners, to help clean up and beautify Harvey S. Firestone Recreational Park and the Columbiana cemetery.
Volunteers are asked to bring work gloves. A breakfast for the volunteers will be provided in pavilion 4 by Mirror Lake in Firestone Park.
To sign up, contact the Columbiana Area Chamber of Commerce office at 330-482-3822.
View Valley road plan
Youngstown
The Eastgate Regional Council of Governments seeks residents’ input for a public review of the draft of the fiscal year 2014-17 Transportation Improvement Program for Mahoning and Trumbull counties.
A meeting will be from 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday at the Eastgate office, 100 E. Federal St., Suite 1000, in downtown Youngstown.
Copies of the TIP draft are available for review, and Eastgate staff members will answer questions. Copies of the TIP draft also are available for viewing at the Mahoning County engineer’s office, the Trumbull County engineer’s office, at the Eastgate office, and on the www.eastgatecog.org from Thursday to April 19.
The draft includes a description of highway, bridge, and transit improvements scheduled for the next four years for our planning area. For information, go to www.eastgatecog.org or call the Eastgate offices at 330-799-3800.
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