Mentor officials will unveil a new, slightly larger-than-life bronze statue of President James A. Garfield at the Mentor Municipal Center on July 3. The work by sculptor Alan Cottrill will be revealed during a public ceremony followed by a free community picnic at the Mentor Civic Amphitheater, part of the city’s Independence Day weekend schedule.

Production is underway in Northeast Ohio on “Fractured,” a psychological thriller filming at recognizable Cleveland-area locations. Jon Abrahams leads the cast alongside horror veterans Felissa Rose and Lew Temple, with former Cuyahoga County Commissioner Peter Lawson Jones also appearing. Residents may see brief parking and sidewalk restrictions near filming sites.

A Brush High School junior traded the track for a patrol car this week, joining South Euclid police for a ride-along after a medal-winning weekend in track and field. Paige Walker also met with a Lyndhurst K-9 handler and her partner, Sonic, for a closer look at the path she hopes to pursue.

A retired Cuyahoga County detective and a new investigative summary are challenging the official account of Dawn Pasela’s 2012 death in Parma. The report alleges key evidence was missed, raises questions about the timeline and claims Pasela feared threats as she prepared to testify about alleged prosecutorial misconduct. Her family continues to push for a new investigation.

Dave Chappelle helped anchor WYSO Public Radio’s future in Yellow Springs, unveiling the station’s permanent new headquarters inside the restored 1872 Union Schoolhouse. The $15 million redevelopment and $3 million community push aim to keep the NPR affiliate rooted locally as public media faces growing financial pressure.

Mentor’s Natural Resources Division is gearing up for its annual Earth Day celebration April 19 at Springbrook Gardens Park. The free event runs 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and features guided wildlife and plant walks, trivia and bingo, a tree planting dedication, a kids scavenger hunt, vendor booths, live steel drum music and food for purchase.

The display, located in a residential yard in Euclid, is rebuilt from scratch each year with a completely new design. Kaselak begins planning shortly after Christmas, sketching layouts, purchasing new inflatables, and carefully color-coordinating thousands of eggs. He spends the winter months assembling and stringing the decorations before installing everything roughly two weeks ahead of Easter.

NASA is launching Artemis II today, sending astronauts back to the moon’s vicinity for the first time in more than 50 years. Behind the headline moment are deep Northeast Ohio ties, with NASA Glenn in Cleveland and the Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky playing key roles in testing Orion and its European Service Module. Here is what to watch as the mission unfolds.

Cleveland leaders are considering a “Pothole Sponsorship Program” that would let residents and businesses fund specific road repairs in exchange for public recognition and temporary naming rights. The plan is still conceptual, with details not finalized, but it is already sparking debate over fairness, priorities and how repairs would be tracked as the city battles recurring damage from freeze-thaw cycles.

Cleveland’s National Air Show board is warning the event cannot continue if Burke Lakefront Airport closes. City leaders are studying a $600 million lakefront redevelopment vision and have asked organizers to consider remote or overwater formats, but the board says Cleveland’s geography and the show’s nonprofit finances make that impossible. The 2026 show is still on.

A major stretch of downtown Cleveland is set for a sweeping asphalt art installation aimed at boosting pedestrian safety. Veteran muralist Ryan Jaenke was chosen to transform parts of the Gateway District near East 4th to East 9th streets, with up to 17,000 square feet of hardscape painted through Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Asphalt Art Initiative. Work is targeted for completion in July 2026.

Cleveland Hopkins International Airport says operations are back to normal after major construction on the lower roadway, reopening all terminal doors for arrivals pickups. The work focused on the RTA-level pedestrian tunnel linking the terminal to the Red Line station, including structural reinforcement, waterproofing and electrical system relocation. More updates are posted on the airport’s website.

A night of new klezmer arrives in Cleveland as the Case Western Reserve University Klezmer Music Ensemble performs original instrumental and vocal works by director Steven Greenman. The program spans compositions from 1997 to 2025, drawing on Eastern European Jewish cultural traditions and the evolving sounds of klezmer and Yiddish music.

A free presentation in Mentor will offer a rare, up-close look at life during the American Revolution. Historian and collector Todd Brighton will showcase original artifacts from his private collection, sharing the personal stories of seven Patriot soldiers. The event is May 20, 2026, at 7 p.m. at the Springbrook Gardenhouse.

Demolition crews have moved in at Cedar and Miramar in University Heights, clearing a 2.1-acre site for a new Aldi. The project will raze the Waterstone Medical Center and a former Huntington Bank branch, with site work expected to take six to eight weeks. City leaders say the store will anchor broader Bell Tower Center redevelopment and traffic signal upgrades now underway.

Cleveland’s child poverty crisis is fueling an urgent demand for family shelter, with The City Mission reporting a wait list of more than 200 women and children. A new partnership with West Park Barber School is offering free haircuts to teen boys at Laura’s Home, adding a sense of normalcy and mentorship as families work to rebuild.

Cleveland’s future WNBA franchise says it completed a major community pledge three months ahead of schedule, hosting 28 events for more than 2,600 girls and young women across Ohio, western Pennsylvania and western New York. The final event was an all-girls youth clinic at Rocket Arena as the team prepares to begin play in 2028.

Sandusky’s Ghostly Manor Thrill Center offers nearly a dozen indoor attractions year-round, from its nationally recognized haunted house to 3D blacklight mini golf, laser tag, a 4D dark ride, a roller rink, an arcade and more. The Epic Pass bundles multiple activities with a meal and an arcade card, giving families an all-in-one option just off Route 250 on Milan Road.

Rosinski, an award-winning choreographer who teaches dance throughout the region, designed both programs to be inclusive regardless of a persons previous experience. The Adult Hip Hop Dance Team includes a mix of professional dancers and people who have never set foot on a stage before joining. They have appeared on "New Day Cleveland" and performed at major local venues such as Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, Public Hall and the Wolstein Center. According to Rosinski, the group

A touring flock of 12-foot-tall “Giant Quackers” rubber ducks begins rolling through Northeast Ohio on March 19, building buzz for the Ohio Rubber Duck Dash Festival in downtown Cuyahoga Falls, April 23-25. The multiday event features a six-story “World’s Largest Rubber Duck,” an All-City Art Walk, food vendors, and a Saturday dash with prizes.