Days without rain mean tough season for strawberries

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Every year, I take my kids strawberry picking. And while many years we freeze what we can't eat or give away, this year the picking is slim.

A late spring freeze wrecked some berries and this string of sunny days could threaten more.

The longest streak of days without rain in May and June for as long as records have been kept at Cleveland Hopkins airport was 25 days in 1977, according to data from the National Weather Service. We’ve already beat the 2012 streak of 15 no-rain days. Today marks the 17th day without rain and precipitation isn't in the forecast until this weekend.

We went to Vermilion on Saturday and came home with a fraction of the juicy red harvest we picked last year, which makes the strawberries taste that much sweeter with homemade whipped cream and angel food cake.

- Laura

Northeast Ohio weather forecast: Breezier conditions expected

No rain: With 16 days of no rain and a late frost this spring, growing both corn and strawberries have challenges, reports Sean McDonnell. Some farms have already said that they won't have any berries to pick. Some do, but making sure the plants are healthy has meant lots of watering.

Issue 1: In a new court filing, Ohio officials acknowledge they made a mistake in the ballot language they wrote summarizing State Issue 1, the proposal to make it harder to change the state constitution. But Andrew Tobias reports they contend the error -- about the 5% of voters’ signatures needed to get the issue on the ballot -- doesn't matter and defend the measure's overall wording as fair and accurate.

CWRU: Case Western Reserve University has high ambitions for the new, $300 million research building it's planning as the biggest single investment on its main campus in decades. Steven Litt reports the school hopes the new Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building could help it win more grants and boost its rankings, while also helping grow the regional economy, attract and retain star researchers, and open up a walled-off portion of its campus that has long sent a "keep out" message to adjacent majority-Black neighborhoods.

Today in Ohio: The company accused of providing "absolutely terrible" food in the Cuyahoga County jail also profits on the commissary that inmates rely on to supplement their diets – and it just raised prices. We’re talking about the conflict of interest in supplying meals and selling snack food, and the issues disgusting food can cause, on Today in Ohio, cleveland.com's daily half-hour news podcast.

Cleveland-Cliffs: Both of Ohio's U.S. Senators are asking the U.S. Department of Energy to reconsider proposed standards for electrical transformer production that would eliminate the market for grain-oriented electrical steel produced by Cleveland-Cliffs, risking 1,500 jobs at the company's Zanesville Works and Butler Works plants, reports Sabrina Eaton. Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Cleveland Democrat, and JD Vance, a Cincinnati Republican, last week joined more than 40 other U.S. Senators in a letter warning that discontinuing use of grain-oriented steel in electrical distribution transformers, as the rule proposes, would worsen shortages of the devices at a "strategically inopportune time."

Drilling: Fossil fuel companies formally asked the state to open thousands of acres beneath one state park and two wildlife reserves for oil and gas exploration, new filings posted Monday show. Jake Zuckerman reports that public notices on the Ohio Department of Natural Resources website show the drillers’ interest in broad swaths of Salt Fork State Park, Zepernick Wildlife Area and Valley Run Wildlife Area, all in eastern Ohio.

Railroad crossings: The U.S. Department of Transportation on Monday awarded more than $570 million to 32 states for projects that will fix railroad crossings that block vehicle and pedestrian traffic, keep first-responders from reaching emergencies and occasionally cause deadly accidents. Sabrina Eaton reports the Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant Program money from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will be used to add grade separations, close at-grade crossings and improve existing at-grade crossings where train tracks and roads intersect.

Rethinking Childcare: When childcare workers call in sick, this can cause a domino effect that forces childcare centers to turn away kids when they can't meet mandated child-adult ratios on a given day and send parents scrambling for help at the last minute. One Ohio-based company thinks the answer could be in providing substitute workers, Zachary Smith reports.

Parking meters: City Council was expected to approve legislation Monday that would bring smart-parking meters to Cleveland. But it pumped the brakes, at least for now, on another proposal that would allow hikes to the hourly parking rate, Courtney Astolfi reports.

Lake toxins: Lake County hosts 47 facilities that reported toxic releases in 2021 to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, reports Zachary Smith. Combined, these facilities released 962,948.54 pounds of 49 different toxic chemicals into the environment, 14,000 pounds more than in 2020 during the first year of the pandemic, when some operations might have slowed down.

Housing investment: The city of Cleveland has released its plans for investing roughly $50 million in new housing throughout the city. Lucas Daprile has a list of housing projects that are first in line for potential city funding.

Habitat: Cleveland City Council is likely to approve $4.5 million for Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity to build new homes in several parts of the city. Lucas Daprile reports the legislation, funded by American Rescue Plan Act dollars, aims to combine other private and public money to build 400 homes through 2027.

An updated rendering of the proposed expansion at St. Ignatius.St. Ignatius

St. Ignatius: For St. Ignatius High School officials, their planned expansion is not just about having a fancy new building, it is about advancing the school's education mission in the future. Megan Sims reports the school is heading back to the Cleveland Landmarks Commission on Thursday with tweaks to its original plans to demolish its on-campus power plant and Carroll Gym to make way for a 55,000-square-foot addition.

Flats bar: A business owner in the Flats says his landlord, real estate developer GBX Group, is trying to bully him into moving his Frozen Daiquiri Bar & Restaurant, going as far as asking a court to shut the business down and now filing for an eviction. While business has been great so far, the owner said GBX has made it clear that his bar isn't part of its redevelopment plans, reports Sean McDonnell.

Money Talks: To keep his daughter, Parker, interested in his financial lessons, Darnell Mayberry is launching a podcast with her. The platform offers check-in opportunities as Parker matriculates at school, and it provides her an outlet to introduce herself to the world while gaining experience producing content.

Chief judge: U.S. District Judge Sara Lioi will now oversee the administration of federal courts in northern Ohio. Lioi, an Akron-based judge, was sworn in Monday as the district's new chief judge, reports Adam Ferrise.

Car jacking: Three men will each spend more than a decade in prison for an armed carjacking spree in Northeast Ohio, reports Adam Ferrise. U.S. District Judge James Gwin on Monday sentenced Kenneth Franklin, 19, of Akron, to 15 years in prison. Gwin previously ordered co-defendants Donteze Congress, 19, and Thomas Williams, 19, to serve identical sentences, based on their plea agreements.

Drive-by shooting: An East Side convenience store worker who was opening his shop Saturday morning was shot during a drive-by shooting, according to police. Two customers were also struck, John Tucker reports.

Road rage: The State Highway Patrol is searching for a suspect who fired gunshots on the Ohio Turnpike during a road-rage incident. Molly Walsh reports troopers received a call at 7:06 p.m. May 9 from a driver in Erie County who said a man shot at him from a white, four-door sedan.

Ask Lucas: A wife asks Lucas Daprile how to get her husband to work from the office instead of home. Daprile has clever ideas to drive him out, one of which includes a Roomba.

Shake Shack: Shake Shack has opened in Westlake, the burger chain's seventh location in Ohio, reports Marc Bona. The restaurant, at 2209 Crocker Road, is one of only two Shake Shacks in the state with drive-thru.

Grilled cheese: Grilled cheese is good old comfort food, on the menus of everything from bistros to posh hotels. Cleveland.com partnered with Yelp Cleveland to find the best grilled cheese available in restaurants in Northeast Ohio, according to Yelp reviewers.

RV Rocking: Jeff and Patti Kinzbach explain how the Great Lakes area is perfect for RV adventures, especially the Lake Erie islands near Sandusky. The Bayfront RV Resort at Cross View, a new luxury RV and cottage resort along the shores of Sandusky Bay, is a new option.

Parade the Circle: Parade the Circle returns to Wade Oval on Saturday after a three-year hiatus because of COVID-19. The area will be filled with vibrant artistic expression, from giant puppets to colorful costumes created by professional artists, as well as families, schools, and community groups. Paris Wolfe reports the "transformation" theme is a healing concept meant to bring hope, joy and new beginnings.

Don't forget, you can always find the latest Cleveland news by visiting cleveland.com. If you value the hard work of Cleveland journalists, consider becoming an cleveland.com subscriber.

— Curated by Laura Johnston with contributions by Cliff Pinckard

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