Cleveland/Cuyahoga County

Advocates of a proposed Clinton County casino hit the road this week, speaking with various county commissioners about why they should support the project. Two weeks ago, the casino developers also made a tour of the state, fielding questions in Ohio's major population and media centers.

The $600 million casino, if approved, would be built in Clinton County across from the Caesar Creek Flea Market. It's proposed location would put it right in the middle of what is referred to as "The Golden Triangle" - the 60-mile radius area between Cincinnatti, Dayton, and Columbus.

The casino is anticipated to be a private development project, and would reportedly create 5,000 new jobs with liveable wages. The lowest paying position would start at $15/hour with full benefits.

The casino itself, say developers, would be built with "Midwestern sensibilities." In other words, it will fit in with the landscape. The casino would resemble a country mansion, and be similar in design to the Four Winds Casino in New Buffalo, Michigan.

Features of the casino would include a 20-floor hotel with 1,500 suite style rooms. There would also be eight restraurants available "for the discriminating palate".

Art officials in Italy announced Friday that an agreement had been reached with the Cleveland Museum of Art for the safe return of artifacts that Rome claims have been looted or smuggled out of the country. Under the terms of the deal, the art museu will return 16 artifacts to Italy.

The Culture Ministry of Italy made the announcement on Friday, however avoided giving any specific details as to which artifacts were being returned.

Italy has recently been conducting an aggressive campaign to recover disputed antiquities. Previously they were able to reach agreements with other US museums, including the Metropolitan Museum in New York, and the J. Paul Getty Museum in California.

The artifacts from Cleveland to be returned were "significant", said Italy, but didn't say what they were.

Italy has claimed that ancient artifacts and treasures have ended up in museums and private collections abroad after being looted from archaeological sites and resold with false documentation.

Papa John's estimates that they sold an estimated 75,000 pizzas on Thursday in Ohio during a promotion that offered pizza lovers the chance to snag a pie for just 23-cents. More than 80 Papa John's locations in Cleveland, Akron, Youngstown, Toledo, and Columbus took park in the one-day special.

The promotion netted more than $17,500, with all proceeds going to the LeBron James Family Foundation. Papa Johns also donated an additional $10,000 to James' foundation, as well as another $10,000 to the Cavaliers Youth Fund.

Paja Johns offered the promotion to Ohioans after backing the wrong team in the playoffs, and giving away t-shirts making fun of "cry baby" LeBron James. After numerous complaints, Papa Johns decided on a 23-center special, taking inspiration from LeBron's #23.

Obviously more than just Cavs fans showed up for the special deal, and throughout the day there were reports of long lines, traffic problems, and complaints about long waits.

Cleveland has an overabundance of institutions – from sports to the arts to foundations to establishments of all kinds. We are an institutionally heavy community, the legacy of a wealthy past.

The problem with the blessing of having all these establishments is that they must be fed. The feeding comes from public monies from the local, county, state, federal, and from private funds, all could be used for other needs.

So they sometimes become, instead of assets, burdens to the public.

And we keep adding to the burdens. They’re getting heavier and heavier, especially at the local level.

The latest, of course, is the increase of a quarter percent in the sales tax levied without public input by the County Commissioners for the proposed medical mart and convention center.

Before that it was the creation by vote of a new cigarette tax for the arts.

The question is when do we go over the line in taxing? I believe we passed that line long ago.

Here’s what cigarette smokers in Cuyahoga County alone face.

They have paid $80,358,035.32 in just cigarette taxes for Gateway. Yes, that’s $80 MILLION not counting taxes for alcoholic beverages and not county the sales tax on the total.

They have paid thus far $9,157,105.66 for Browns Stadium, as of the end of last month. The tax started in August, 2005

Members of the Cleveland Browns and Indians front office will battle for supremacy in the bowling lanes on Wednesday. The Tribe leads the brown and orange in the annual event 3-2. The real winners, however, are Big Brothers and Sisters of Cleveland which the fundraiser benefits from the "Bowl for Kids Sake Program".

If you are downtown tomorrow evening from 5:30-8:00 you can watch the friendly rivalry at the Corner Alley which is located at East 4th and Euclid. For more information on the Big Brothers and Sisters Program call 216-621-8223

Tomorrow, May 3rd, marks the return of free comic book day. This is the 7th straight year that the comic industry is luring customers into their stores with free comic books.

This year, expect to see a lot of Iron Man if you visit a comic book store this year. The movie 'Iron Man' is being released to positive reviews and is set to be one of the biggest movies this summer.

Do you feel bad about going to a comic book store and not paying anything? If you answered "yes" you may be interested in a new line of hats that are being launched by New Era brands. The first two hats are hitting stores this weekend and feature Incredible Hulk and Iron Man. The line will also include Captain America, X-Men to Launch Every Few Months Through 2010.

"We're ecstatic to align ourselves with such an iconic brand as Marvel," said Gerry Matos, Senior VP of Marketing at New Era. "With their vast collection of characters and our signature caps as a canvas, we expect the demand for these caps to be high."

Matos added that new hats will be released about every 2 to 3 months.

Here are the local Cleveland comic book retailers that are participating in the annual event:

Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann admitted that he had an affair with a subordinate on Friday at a press conference held in response to an internal investigation of sexual harrassment claims against Director of General Services Anthony Gutierrez.

Results of the internal investigation were released on approximately 9:30am Friday morning.

Dann opened the news conference by first complimenting Assistant Attorney General Ben Epsy on a fair, complete, and thorough investigation. Dann also said that he is "heartbroken by my failure" to recognize and stop problems in his office. Then he admitted to the affair, and apologized to his wife and children.

"I have not conducted my self in a way that is consistent with my values..." said Dann.

Ben Espy, the assistant Attorney General for the state of Ohio, led the investigation. He indicated that he does not have the authority to recommend suspending or reprimanding Dann for his behavior, but did recommend that he receive additional training on proper office procedure.

Espy also cited a hostile work environment created by Gutierrez, one that was rampant with rumor and inappropriate fraternization and "poor judgment" on Dann's behalf.

Attention Wal-Mart shoppers. The retailer has announced that on Sunday, May 18th, their supercenter stores will be giving out free sundaes to mark the return on of summer. The ice cream social will run from 12 pm till 5 pm and include yummy treats such as Hershey's Chocolate Syrup, Breyers Chocolate Crackle, Reddi-Wip Original, and more all for free. So where in Cleveland can you go to get your free sundae? Steelyard Commons is a Wal-Mart Supercenter and is located at 3400 Steelyard Drive.

'Cleveland' is coming to the small screen. Not Cleveland the city, mind you, but Cleveland the character on the cult favorite show 'Family Guy'. The show 'Cleveland' will feature Cleveland Brown an African American man who obviously was named after the famous football team.

Here is the info on the new show that will hit airwaves next fall from TVsquad.com:

While Democratic contenders Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton continue to battle it out John McCain has been touting his policies to anybody who will listen. One of the things that McCain has been speaking about this week is his health care plan and Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean isn't having any of it. He released a statement today that read:

"John McCain's health care proposals are a prescription for more of the same failed Bush policies, not the change America's working families are looking for. As usual, McCain was short on details, but where he did outline a plan for the future he relied on recycled Bush proposals and flawed ideas have done nothing to reduce the ranks of the uninsured or help America's working families find quality, affordable health care. After eight years of Republicans like John McCain sitting on their hands while the number of Americans without health insurance has climbed to 47 million, health care costs have soared, wages fallen, and good jobs have been harder to find, America's working families need a president who understands the challenges they face. John McCain is the wrong choice for America's future."