Latest news with #ShannonHardin
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Columbus City Council votes to create new LGBTQ+ affairs commission
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Columbus City Council took the next steps last week to approve the creation of a new LGBTQ+ affairs commission. Introduced by Council President Shannon Hardin, the legislation passed 9-0 on July 14 to establish an advisory commission representing the city's lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community. The commission will be made up of 13 members serving staggered three-year terms, with six appointed by council, six by the mayor and one chosen jointly. Watch a previous NBC4 report on the commission in the video player above. Groveport Madison prohibits cell phone use during school day ahead of statewide ban Densil Porteous, executive director of Stonewall Columbus, celebrated council's approval of the commission as 'a resounding recognition of our community's visibility, our vibrancy, and our ongoing need for structural support.' 'In a time when queer and trans people, especially trans youth, are facing renewed attacks across the nation, local action matters. Representation matters,' Porteous said in a statement. 'To be clear: this is not the end of the work. It's a new beginning. A foundation on which we will continue to build.' The unanimous vote marked a historic moment for council, which, more than 40 years ago in 1984, struck down a proposal that would've expanded discrimination protections to include sexual orientation. To demonstrate the city's progress toward inclusivity, Harden played a video from that 1984 meeting, which showed speakers decrying gay people as 'not made' by God and 'homosexuality' as 'an unclean, unsanitary practice.' While Columbus later enacted discrimination protections for the LGBTQ+ community, Hardin said he showed the clip because 'people that forget their history are doomed to repeat it.' Harden serves as the council's first openly-gay president and announced the commission in June for LGBTQ+ Pride month. Why Cuyahoga could be first Ohio county to ban anti-LGBTQ+ conversion therapy 'It seems that too many of us have forgotten our history and, at the state and federal level right now, we are repeating demonizing people just for who they are,' Hardin said during the July meeting. 'There is still work to be done and there's still fights to be had and I'm proud to put this legislation forward.' The commission comes as many institutions are withdrawing their support for the LGBTQ+ community. Ohio State University, Ohio University, the University of Cincinnati and others have shuttered their LGBTQ+ programming to comply with state and federal legislation eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Large corporations operating in Ohio, including Walmart and Nissan, rolled back their sponsorships of the Columbus Pride march and festival. Ohio's Statehouse has also passed or advanced a series of legislation opponents deem 'anti-LGBTQ+,' like a provision in the state budget a provision in the state budget defining gender as two sexes, a law banning certain healthcare for trans youth, and a bill to celebrate 'Natural Family Month.' Other directives include separating bathrooms based on students' 'biological sex,' and a proposal that LGBTQ+ advocates say will outlaw drag queen shows in public. Councilmember Lourdes Barroso de Padilla argued anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric spurred from these and other measures is why the commission is needed. Columbus restaurant says it was targeted in ICE raid 'At a time when people are literally fighting for their existence, and we have a national administration that makes it harder for us to stand for our people, this is a way for us to enshrine a group of people that will always have a seat at the table,' Barroso de Padilla said during a July 10 hearing for the commission. Dara Adkison, executive director of TransOhio, also spoke during the July 10 hearing and said, 'We know that trans people and other minorities are being significantly targeted right now,' given the more than 940 bills 'targeting the trans community' proposed in state legislatures nationwide, 118 of which have passed. 'These laws are targeting our ability to exist in public, to get an education, to have identity documents, to get healthcare, to use the bathroom,' Adkison said. 'Knowing that any community that is going to enshrine a commission, to bring voices to the table, is hopefully going to help dissuade the greenlit discrimination, fear, and stress that the current legislature is proposing.' Columbus' commission marks the second in Ohio after Cincinnati City Council voted in March to create an LGBTQ+ commission. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Council OKs millions to help Columbus' less fortunate
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Columbus City Council has approved millions of dollars to help the city's most vulnerable. More than $4 million has been approved for almost 200 units of affordable housing across two complexes, two examples of how the city is getting creative to meet the extreme demand for housing. 'We think that affordable housing is a top one, two and three issue in our community,' Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin said. 'As rents continue to rise, we want to make sure that we can make sure that Columbus stays affordable for all of us.' Columbus approves $23M for improving cybersecurity infrastructure One development will be built on the near east side and will have 84 units. Rent will be restricted to 60% of the area median income. U.S. Census data for Columbus says that income would be a little more than $39,000 annually. 'It's all about housing innovation for affordability,' Hardin said. 'This is a local company that is building the houses in a modular factory right here in Columbus. So, we're hiring local folks to build housing quicker, which means it's more efficient and it saves money.' The second development that received a big chunk of funding is 88 units in Harrison West. Rent will also be restricted to 60% of the area median income. Structures already exist at this site, so the funding will be used for redevelopment and preservation of the existing buildings. 'We are not building new affordable housing here,' Hardin said. 'We are making sure that the naturally occurring affordable housing is able to stay. We're coming in, we're renovating.' Central Ohio organization on edge after 'big, beautiful bill' passes Hardin said the keyword for this legislation is innovation. 'We're really excited about this model of renovating and yet holding the costs so that the rent does not go up for the folks that are living there,' Hardin said. The money comes from bond dollars. This fall, the city will have a bond issue on the ballot for half a billion dollars for affordable housing. Also on Monday, council approved hundreds of thousands of dollars to increase access to food and addiction recovery. Half a million dollars will be allocated to a new residential addiction recovery campus. The organization building the space, called The Refuge, has been in operation for years, providing faith-based recovery services to men. Three hospitalized after Delaware County trench collapse The new space will be in the Hilltop and will centralize services, including group counseling and mental health services. It's a project that has been in the works for years. 'This is an investment in the Hilltop, like, we want to create a campus because we love the Hilltop and what it's done for us and we love how our guys partner with community organizations,' The Refuge Chief Development Officer Austin Hill said. 'This is a long time coming and we're excited to actually see it happen.' On the east side of Columbus, $2 million was approved for the Eastland Prosperity Center. The Mid-Ohio Food Collective is working on a massive space that will offer access to food, a health care center in partnership with Ohio State University, and additional support. Construction is planned to start this summer with a tentative opening date in the middle of next year. 'The Eastland community is one of the most underserved areas within the entirety 20 counties that we serve,' Mike Hochron with the collective said. 'In fact, many people in Eastland are driving all the way down to Grove City in order to access food, and it's really important that we make food accessible where and when people need it.' Resources from the Mid-Ohio Food Collective can be found here. Resources through The Refuge can be found here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
07-07-2025
- Yahoo
Juvenile dead, 5 wounded in mass shooting at house party on Columbus' Southeast Side
A juvenile is dead and five other people were wounded in a mass shooting at a house party in the early hours of July 4 on Columbus' Southeast Side. Columbus police Sgt. Joe Albert said police received a report of multiple people who were shot at 2:40 a.m. in the 800 block of Wilson Avenue, just south of Livingston Avenue. A police dispatcher said that a total of six people were shot after an altercation at a house party erupted into gunfire. When officers arrived at the home, they found three people suffering from gunshot wounds, while three other victims took themselves to local hospitals, Albert said. The six victims consisted of two juveniles and four adults, Albert said. Columbus Division of Fire medics took one of the juveniles to a local hospital, where they later died at 3:09 a.m., Albert said. The conditions of the other victims were unavailable as of later that morning, but their injuries were not life-threatening, a dispatcher said. Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin took to X to condemn the shooting and urged residents to celebrate safely as the community enters the Fourth of July weekend. "I'm angry and heartbroken that yet another life was taken and five more people were injured in a shooting on the South Side last night," Hardin said. "This kind of violence never has a place in our city — yet it keeps happening." Other details about the shooting, including possible suspects, were not immediately available. Columbus police homicide detectives continue to investigate. Authorities say they will identify the victim who died at the hospital once they have notified the family. Reporter Shahid Meighan can be reached at smeighan@ at ShahidMeighan on X, and at on Bluesky. This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Southeast Side mass shooting: 1 person killed, 5 others injured
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
COTA expands late-night service in Columbus, moving towards 24-hour transit
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The City of Columbus and COTA leaders announced Friday its taking another step toward becoming a 24-hour transit system and are now expanding its late-night service past midnight. COTA used to offer the midnight service before the pandemic, but for the first time in five years, they've brought it back. 'This is the first step towards fulfilling the promises we've made, and it starts with really expanding and improving our current service,' said Monica Tellez-Fowler, CEO of COTA. CEO of COTA, Monica Tellez-Fowler, and Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin wore their 'Midnight in Motion' shirts to make this announcement. 'Think about the single parent who gets off after midnight, the nurse coming home from the hospital, the young entrepreneur who works late. This is for them. We see you and we're making improvements to support your schedule,' said Tellez-Fowler. This late-night expansion is one of the first tangible moves from the LinkUs initiative, a 25-year plan. This past November, voters approved the comprehensive mobility and growth strategy plan. The initiative helps position COTA to become a 24-hour transit system. Boy back home after recovering from severe dog attack 'This is what Central Ohio Transit is now going forward, and we look to expand more,' said Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin. With the passing of Issue 47, it will increase COTA's total share of sales tax from 0.5% to 1%. That sales tax increase began in April. The LinkUS initiative will expand COTA's services and create more than 500 miles of bike paths, sidewalks, and trails across Franklin County by 2050. 'We get to now have a first-rate, top-of-the-line transit system that serves all of our residents throughout our community,' said Hardin. This late-night expansion will include most downtown lines. Lines 1 through 11 and CMAX will have lineups available at 10 pm, 11 pm, and midnight. Additionally, 17 crosstown lines will now operate past midnight to better connect customers across the region. 'It was always about people, making sure that they had access and opportunities to get to where they need to go, be that nighttime activities or work or back home,' said Hardin. These changes will only take place Monday through Saturday. According to COTA, Sunday evening hours will remain unchanged for now. These late-night hours begin this Monday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Apartments for homeless, mentally ill planned at former Camp Shameless in Columbus
In September 2022, Columbus cleared a homeless camp called Camp Shameless on the Near East Side despite small protests on the front lawns of city officials' homes, including that of City Council President Shannon Hardin. Hardin acknowledged to The Dispatch that the camp removal was traumatic for the homeless residents, many of whom were moved into motels. He said it was a tough moment for a council that cares about the dignity of all people and getting people housed. Now, Hardin says Columbus City Council is responding to residents' advocacy by supporting the construction of permanent supportive housing for people struggling with homelessness. The housing will be located on the former location of Camp Shameless at 897 E. Mound St. "This legislation is a big deal," Hardin said. "We as a city are meeting the ask of the advocates and we are working to fill a growing gap ... I am so proud of this project and we have to do more like this." Back in 2022, advocates with First Collective, the operator of Camp Shameless, called on the city to put housing on the empty lot owned at the time by the Columbus Land Bank, according to Hardin. Some told The Dispatch at the time they'd like to see tiny homes built. On Monday, the Columbus City Council unanimously approved using federal dollars to allocate $2.75 million toward the construction of 110 one bedroom, one bathroom apartments at two permanent supportive housing projects: a 50-apartment project called Knoll View Place at the former Camp Shameless location on Mound Street, and a 60-apartment project called Scioto Rise Place at 42 W. Jenkins Ave. Both will be three-story buildings. Residents making between nothing and 30% of the area median income will be able to access the apartments. The majority of the apartments will go to people who were formerly unhoused and the rest will go to individuals who struggle with severe mental illness and are at risk of becoming homeless or institutionalized. The money comes from a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development program funded by the American Rescue Plan called HOME-ARP. At a future meeting, the council will vote on spending about $1 million more of HOME-ARP funding for four years of supportive services for residents at these two locations. Community Housing Network is building these two projects and will provide the services, including crisis intervention, conflict resolution, daily assistance and referrals to other agencies for other needs like medical and dental help. Ryan Castle, chief real estate development officer with Community Housing Network, said CHN starts with housing because it meets a basic need, and then people can begin addressing other issues in their lives that make stability challenging. Castle said Knoll View Place will cost about $16.9 million in total to build and Scioto Rise Place will cost about $19.3 million. CHN will get the rest of the funding from other sources, including federal tax credits. Advocates with First Collective did not respond to The Dispatch's request for comment Monday. About 20 people lived at Camp Shameless for about six months in 2022. First Collective volunteers aided the residents. The city decided to clear the camp after First Collective began building a wooden structure cemented into the ground on the property. In other action Monday, Council voted to allocate about $100,000 of HUD dollars to support the construction of a single-family home on Eureka Avenue in the Hilltop to be sold to a first-time buyer earning 80% or less of the area median income. More city hall news: City stepping in after DOGE funding freeze hits tree planting efforts Government and Politics Reporter Jordan Laird can be reached at jlaird@ Follow her on X, Instagram and Bluesky at @LairdWrites. This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Supportive housing planned at former homeless camp site in Columbus
