What Happened Now? A Cleveland Newsletter
Issue 827: June 26, 2025
"What Happened Now?" is a lively roundup and analysis of the top stories of the day in Northeast Ohio from News 5's Joe Donatelli. It’s like getting the news from a friend who will not be riding Siren's Curse.
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This doesn’t happen very often: Last night, a woman was shot to death in Chardon. From what little we know, it sounds like the man police later arrested had a prior relationship with the woman. Investigator Tara Morgan is on this story today and will have more tonight. Tragedies like this are a sad reminder that gun violence can happen anywhere – something people in Chardon already know.
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The budget bill is headed to the governor’s desk: Ohio being Ohio, the budget was finalized in the middle of the night while no one (except reporters like Morgan Trau) was looking.
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In other big statehouse news: Ohio Senate Bill 1 opponents don't have enough signatures to fight the higher-ed, anti-DEI law, according to a report in the Akron Beacon Journal. It will go into effect on June 27.
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Strings were attached, says Ronayne: Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne says the owners of the Browns offered the City of Cleveland money to help develop the Downtown lakefront but made that offer contingent on getting the county’s help paying for a new stadium in Brook Park. Ronayne shared that tidbit during a news conference about the state budget, which has been optimized for a Browns move to the suburbs. Ronayne was responding to a question from News 5’s Michelle Jarboe about critics who say he should soften his opposition to the Brook Park project and sit down with Haslam Sports Group and Cleveland officials to negotiate a better exit deal.
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Board of Elections says Cleveland Heights mayor recall petition has enough signatures to move forward: For weeks, dozens of Cleveland Heights residents have taken to the streets to collect signatures to remove Mayor Kahlil Seren from office. On June 30, the Clerk of Council is set to certify verification. Then the mayor will be officially notified about the recall.
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The City of Cleveland is now requiring out-of-town landlords to have local representation: Signal Cleveland has a story about how exactly that works.
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Ideastream interviewed the only person running against Mayor Justin Bibb: Find out why LaVerne Gore (who is no stranger to many of our ballots) thinks she should be Cleveland’s next mayor here.
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The Eddie Van Halen of cellists is coming to Cleveland: You already know who I'm talking about because there is only one Van Halen-level cellist. Yo-Yo Ma is playing with the Cleveland Orchestra on November 6.
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Morning TV gold: Good Morning Cleveland reporter Mike Holden – whose live hits are always great – rode the new Siren’s Curse at Cedar Point, and naturally this happened.
