David Patch
The Toledo Blade
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Past articles by David:
New Toledo leaf collection plan starts with larger crews
The city of Toledo is using a new scheduling system for its annual leaf-collection campaign, which began Monday. Rather than collecting in order of ZIP-code districts, crews from the Toledo Division of Streets, Bridges, and Harbor will use the city’s more compact street-sweeping districts to schedule their work. “Crews will work together in larger groups this year to complete each map before… → Read More
Lane, ramp closings on I-75 bridge in Monroe extended
MONROE — Lane and ramp closings associated with an emergency bridge repair on I-75 have been extended both physically and chronologically. A problem with beams beneath the northbound I-75 bridge over the River Raisin has closed the right lane and Front Street entrance since late September. Michigan Department of Transportation officials said at the time that the closings could last until around… → Read More
Council will consider studying rail line between Toledo, Detroit
Inspired in part by an analysis recently conducted of potential passenger-train service in central and northern lower Michigan, the Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments is planning a feasibility study for reinstating trains between Toledo and Detroit. David Gedeon, the metropolitan council’s vice president for transportation, said the study would address what such a route’s likely… → Read More
Raffle winner to set sail on Great Lakes freighter
When Gary Murphy won a raffle two years ago that raised money for the National Museum of the Great Lakes, he asked for — and was granted — the right to take the second-place prize instead. After all, the top prize was just money: $10,000. Second prize, however, was a trip for up to six people aboard a working Great Lakes freighter — a voyage for which direct tickets are not sold. “My real… → Read More
Union: TARTA faces morale issues
Forced overtime and frequent bus breakdowns are devastating TARTA drivers’ and mechanics’ morale, the head of the transit agency’s operating-employees’ union wrote in a recent letter asking its top administrator to attend a meeting it pitched as both an airing of concerns and an offering of solutions. But James Gee, the Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority’s general manager, said he had a… → Read More
Sewer work to close intersection of Superior, Jackson streets in Toledo
Relocation of a vent for a sewer shaft under construction since April at Superior and Jackson streets will require closing a portion of that intersection on Monday, city officials said. Underground utilities beneath the intersection have proven to be in the way of where the tunnel vent was supposed to go, forcing the project contractor to move it farther out into the intersection, said David… → Read More
Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority approves bonds for solar project
Construction costs for a solar field at central Toledo’s former Jeep factory site are to be financed by a $3.2 million bond issue the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority board of directors approved Thursday. The 4-megawatt array on about 18 acres in the Ottawa River floodplain that once was the factory’s parking lot is to be built using solar panels and inverters donated to the Toledo Community… → Read More
2nd lane reopening on Anthony Wayne Trail won't happen before winter
Before work to replace the Anthony Wayne Trail’s bridges over railroad tracks near City Park Avenue even began in June, project officials described this season’s construction schedule as aggressive. Now, the goal of having the bridge’s northbound half completed — and a second lane of traffic toward downtown Toledo restored — by late November appears to be dead. That means only a single inbound… → Read More
New I-75 reconstruction phase slated to start Sunday night
While another step toward finishing I-75 reconstruction near the I-475 “Jeep Split” was taken Friday night, the next major stage of Toledo’s main freeway’s rebuilding is slated to get going Sunday night. The overnight lane and ramp closings scheduled to start at 6 p.m. Sunday mark the start of nearly four years of construction between Dorr Street and South Avenue. An upcoming state project to… → Read More
City leaders brace for closing of the Martin Luther King, Jr., Bridge
A trench will be dug across Main Street at the East Toledo end of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Bridge starting Sept. 24 to build a pipe tying the new International Park Storage Basin to the Main Street sewer main using the chamber already built on the roadway's north side, seen here in a drone photo from Aug. 22. THE BLADE/DAVID PATCH Enlarge | Buy This Image With the Martin Luther King, Jr.,… → Read More
What to expect on your commute: The Blade's Road Warrior, 9/16
Each week during the construction season, The Blade’s Road Warrior highlights the major construction projects in Toledo and the surrounding area, noting where delays are worst and where the best alternative routes are. Work officially starts this week on the next phase of I-75 reconstruction in Toledo. Nighttime lane and ramp closings are possible starting Wednesday night between Monroe Street… → Read More
Drones used locally for farming, real estate, and much more
Paul and Deborah Bach first bought a drone because they wanted to keep an eye on the construction of a pipeline in three parts of their farmland outside Elmore, Ohio. And while that quickly helped the Bachs identify several areas where construction activity had damaged their field tile, they soon learned of other tasks for which aerial video is useful. In particular, Mr. Bach has been using his… → Read More
Coast Guard: Pilots of foreign ships may not refuse to work during labor disputes
Reversing a policy statement from 24 years ago, the Coast Guard has told representatives of Great Lakes ports, ship operators, and labor unions it will no longer allow pilots who provide navigational guidance for foreign ships to refuse to work during labor disputes. “The Coast Guard is committed to ensuring safe, efficient, and reliable pilotage service for foreign merchant vessels transiting… → Read More
What to expect on your commute: The Blade's Road Warrior, 9/9
Each week during the construction season, The Blade’s Road Warrior highlights the major construction projects in Toledo and the surrounding area, noting where delays are worst and where the best alternative routes are. A portion of the southbound I-75 service road at the Stickney/Lagrange interchange that didn’t get rebuilt during recent I-75 reconstruction will close Monday so the city can do… → Read More
Large pothole snarls traffic on DiSalle Bridge
For at least the third time since late April, southbound I-75 was jammed through Toledo last week after emergency repairs shut down two of three lanes across the aging DiSalle Bridge over the Maumee River. As had been the case with an incident April 30, the most recent culprit was a large pothole that developed on the right half of the bridge’s southbound left lane, closing the center lane as… → Read More
Stories of success at Boys 2 Men conference
Monjuan Walker, a member of Young Men of Excellence (YMOE) and a senior at Bowsher High School, asks a question during the conference. The Blade/Jetta Fraser Enlarge | Buy This Image As it has in nine previous years, much emphasis was given during the annual Boys 2 Men conference Saturday morning to daunting challenges that face African American children — and especially boys — who grow up in… → Read More
Michigan schools deal with unseasonably warm weather
School started as planned Tuesday in the Whiteford district just over the Michigan border from Toledo, despite unusually hot weather for the time of year. But Wednesday could be a challenge. With Tuesday’s classes convening for just a half day, Superintendent of Schools Valerie Orr said, “We didn’t have to plan for a whole day of school.” What might happen Wednesday, though, remained to be… → Read More
What to expect on your commute: The Blade's Road Warrior, 8/26
Each week during the construction season, The Blade’s Road Warrior highlights the major construction projects in Toledo and the surrounding area, noting where delays are worst and where the best alternative routes are. Short-term pavement repairs will require lane closings on westbound I-475 on Monday night, including closing the ProMedica Parkway entrance there, the Ohio Department of… → Read More
Anthony Wayne Trail bridge replacement project a month behind schedule
In mid-July, the Ohio Department of Transportation said the Anthony Wayne Trail bridge replacement project near City Park Avenue was close to on time, with the Norfolk Southern railroad having just agreed to a demolition plan for the structure over its tracks. By late last week, however, ODOT reported that the aggressively scheduled project was about a month behind, with little progress made on… → Read More
Port Authority agrees to buy One Government Center from state for $1
Michael V. DiSalle Government Center, also known as One Government Center, in downtown Toledo on May 4, 2015. The Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority has a tentative deal to acquire One Government Center from the state of Ohio. The port’s board of directors on Thursday approved a resolution to buy the building from the Ohio Department of Administrative Services for $1, on the condition that… → Read More