Program Directory

 
Feagler and Friends - The Akron-Canton Airport
 
 
 
Newsmaker:

Kristie VanAuken, senior vice president, Akron-Canton Airport

The Akron-Canton airport is on the grow. Randy Babbitt, head of the FAA, was in town this week to present a check for more than $16-million to pay for extension of a key runway. Airport officials say the expansion will enable the airport to handle larger airliners, giving passengers more options.

Roundtable:

Brian Tucker, publisher & editorial director, Crain's Cleveland Business; Greg Saber, freelance journalist; Mark Puente, reporter, The Plain Dealer

No Midair Refueling:

Not unless you're willing to pay extra. Continental Airlines announced this week it's cutting out complementary meals on all but the longest flights. Continental, which operates a Cleveland hub, was the last airline to serve free meals. Customers will still get a free snack and a non-alcoholic drink, but they'll pay for everything else.

No Jail Time for Reporter:

Cuyahoga County judge Shirley Strickland Saffold withdrew her threat to jail Plain Dealer reporter Gabriel Baird for refusing to reveal a source. Saffold made the threat saying she feared a leak of a psychiatric report on accused killer Anthony Sowell might have come from her staff. The Plain Dealer objected citing the journalist's shield law. The judge relented after a colleague on the bench, judge Timothy J. McGinty, identified himself as the source of the report.

Children's Agency Criticized:

A Cleveland mother is charged with abusing and neglecting her severely malnourished children and the local children's services agency is under fire for ignoring the potential for harm and violating a court order forbidding the mother's contact with at least one of her sons. Police jailed Phineas Scovil and her boyfriend after two of her children were found starving. The kids are hospitalized and improving.

Business Hopes to Flush Tax Hike:

Local business groups have teamed to oppose a new tax on storm water. The Northeast Ohio Sewer District plans to use the tax to pay for improvements to storm sewers and other runoff drainage systems. It'll be levied against both residential and commercial property. Businesses say the tax unfairly burdens them.
March 19, 2010