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Intervention sought in SOBE rate increase

The Office of the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel filed a motion to intervene on behalf of SOBE Thermal Energy Systems LLC’s residential customers in downtown Youngstown in front of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, which granted the troubled utility company a huge rate increase. With SOBE’s financial situation in dire straits and potentially facing insolvency, the PUCO voted June 24 for an emergency rate increase with most of its customers paying 93%, effective June 30, and an additional 162% increase for most from November to April. SOBE provides steam heat to 23 buildings, ...

Man missing from Berlin Reservoir campground found dead

BERLIN CENTER — Searchers found the body of missing North Olmsted man Sean Miller near the boat docks off of Bedell Road at Berlin Reservoir sometime after 7 a.m. Tuesday. The Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office issued a notice Monday that the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office and Ohio Department of Natural Resources was looking for Miller, who had been missing since about 2 a.m. Monday from the campgrounds at the reservoir. An autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday, the sheriff’s office advised. Mahoning County deputies, ODNR personnel and the Berlin Fire Department had been ...

Boardman, ABC launch stormwater survey

BOARDMAN — The first phase of Boardman’s $47 million federally-funded effort to eliminate flooding woes is well underway, and now the township needs residents’ input. In collaboration with the ABC Water and Stormwater District, Boardman Township has begun a comprehensive engineering study for the Cranberry Run Flood Mitigation Project. “To ensure the ultimate success of this historic infrastructure initiative, officials are launching a targeted community survey, calling on residents to submit historical flood data, personal accounts, and photographic evidence,” the ...

Arrest made in Boardman shooting

BOARDMAN — The man police say shot at two women and caused a crash on Market Street has been arrested. In a follow-up to a news release sent last week, identifying Eugene G. Thompkins, 35, of Youngstown, as the suspected shooter, Boardman police Chief Todd Werth said that Thompkins turned himself in on Monday afternoon. Thompkins is charged with two counts of attempted murder, four counts of felonious assault and one count of improperly discharging a firearm at or into a habitation. The investigation continues of other involved individuals who were in the vehicle with Thompkins at ...

ASMV seeks teacher mini-grant applicants

Staff report The Autism Society of Mahoning Valley is now accepting applications for its 2026 Teacher Mini-Grants Program, which provides funding to educators serving autistic students throughout Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties. Made possible by the support of Associated School ...

Jurors sent home before trial starts in felonious assault case

YOUNGSTOWN — Micheal A. Hewlett, 47, was about to go on trial Monday on a charge of felonious assault, but the jurors were sent home before hearing any evidence. Visiting Judge Andrew Logan said he could not discuss the reason to avoid tainting future jurors. Hewlett is charged with felonious assault in a July 4, 2023, incident in Youngstown in which he is accused of stabbing a man at a home on Southern Boulevard. A judgment entry filed Monday in the case states that a panel of jurors and one alternate were selected Monday morning. But prior to opening statements and witness ...