Latest news with #DowntownDaytonPartnership
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Local artists aim to inspire with new downtown mural
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — Courthouse Square in downtown Dayton has some new artwork thanks to collaboration between area artists and the Downtown Dayton Partnership. The project happened over eight days and began with the Downtown Dayton Partnership hiring Atalie Gagnet to design the piece. Gagnet says the piece was inspired by poetry from Dayton's Poet Laureate, Sierra Leone. The artist then went to work on building out her team. Her first teammate on the project being frequent collaborator Jenny Ustick. Mural project brings new art to downtown Dayton 'I wanted to bring in Jenny and suggested we collaborate with local poet laureate Sierra Leone who enlisted other poets to join her in a poetry piece to inspire the design.' The project was completed pretty quickly thanks to additional support from Maggie Leadman, Stephen Slaughter, Sean France, Jim Gagnet and Matt Lynch. The team navigated weather impacts (hi rain) and logistical issues to bring the piece to life. The work put into the project — including at least one 5 a.m. painting session where the only light available was from headlamps — was worth it for a number of reasons. 'Aside from the important message painted and the inspirational poem, courthouse square needed more love,' Gagnet says. The poem written in the mural reads: 'Peace is a verb. First to be sought within, then to be actively shared with others.' 'Downtown Dayton needs more public art,' Gagnet continues. 'The city getting ready for visitors showed us that, that city beautification is powerful to instill pride. The piece has a strong message that I hope will inspire.' Of course, the project was worth it too because it was an opportunity for Gagnet and company to work together again. When asked what she learned about herself during the process of completing the mural, Gagnet's answer was simple. 'We were reminded how well we complement each other, sharpening our problem solving skills.'A lot of effort went into representing the themes relevant in the epigraph. 'There are frequent references to growth, and to nurturing, often calling upon images of the natural world as metaphor. The design takes this into consideration in its palette of blues and greens. 'There are a few elements symbolically and graphically relevant to NATO itself, as well as the Dayton Peace Museum.' She says that the origami doves tie back to the Dayton community and the city's role in the Peace Accords. 'The repeated, mirrored dove forms signify sharing and connecting, while the centered, symmetrical design underscores the importance of seeking peace within,' Ustick adds. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
I-Team: ‘It's important that this event go well;' millions spent on security as NATO comes to Dayton
The State of Ohio is spending millions of dollars to protect our community during the Spring 2025 NATO Parliamentary Assembly. The event starts on Thursday and runs through Memorial Day in downtown Dayton. According to data News Center 7 got from the Downtown Dayton Partnership, on average, downtown has 180,317 visitors per week. The Downtown Dayton Partnership says that number includes residents, employees, and visitors and says it defines downtown Dayton as a 0.5-mile radius from 6 N. Main Street. The News Center 7 I-Team's lead investigative reporter, John Bedell, looked into security measures, the public money price tag and talked to some of the people impacted by the changes people will notice downtown put in place for the NATO event. [DOWNLOAD: Free WHIO-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Earlier this month, we talked to Lewis Roberts in the middle of one of his regular walks through downtown. His normal route takes him through RiverScape MetroPark. TRENDING STORIES: 10-month-old K-9 puppy finds missing 5-year-old girl NATO: What you need to know; Road closures, detours, and parking Local man dead after car overturns, hits ditch 'It's good to keep this old body moving,' Roberts said with a laugh. On that same day, we met Jessica Nenn, a downtown resident, sitting on a park swing enjoying RiverScape – and the view along the banks of the Great Miami River on a sunny Friday afternoon. 'It's beautiful,' Nenn said. 'It's peaceful in the evening time after work.' Beginning today, enjoying RiverScape won't be possible for a few days. The park will be contained within a secure perimeter, part of the security measures for the NATO event. People will notice things like barriers and fencing around the border of the NATO village. It's a roughly 16-square-block area of downtown Dayton with restricted access and increased security. 'We know there's a lot of opportunists who will come here that necessarily aren't coming for positive reasons, and we have to keep everyone safe,' Dayton City Manager Shelley Dickstein told the I-Team. The Ohio State Highway Patrol is providing state troopers to help the Dayton Police Department with security. That way, Dayton officers can handle their normal daily patrols across the community while also having to focus on the NATO event for several days. 'The security plan, which is being funded by the state, largely depends on a large number of (state troopers) coming from (the) Ohio State (Highway) Patrol who will come in and work NATO village for us and do the security at the other ancillary sites along with Dayton PD,' Dickstein said. 'So we will still have full coverage of the rest of the city – for our policing, for our fire, for public works. So we're pleased about that.' In an interview with the I-Team about state aid for the NATO event, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said, 'I don't want to talk about the numbers (of state troopers), but we're going to put whatever number of people in there that are necessary.' Event planners have told the I-Team that NATO does not reimburse host cities for expenses related to the event. But $2 million from the federal government will help support holding the NATO assembly. Additionally, the Ohio Controlling Board approved releasing $4.3 million through the Ohio Department of Public Safety to help the City of Dayton and Montgomery County with costs associated with safety and security for the event. $2.8 million of that will go to the City of Dayton 'to reimburse costs incurred for policing, fire, public works, and equipment expenses.' $1.3 million to provide security for the event went to the Ohio State Highway Patrol. And $100,000 each went to Montgomery County and the Ohio Emergency Management Agency (EMA) for county and state emergency operations center activation costs. Federal, state, county, and local leaders have spent months planning for the event. 'From the beginning, it was always framed as the federal money would go towards the program, along with business sponsorships – our local business community is really stepping up and sponsoring a lot of the programming activities,' Dickstein said. 'And the state would take care of the security.' Aside from the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Gov. DeWine told the I-Team the Ohio National Guard will be involved. 'We've got the highway patrol,' DeWine said. 'They have air assets, they have ground assets, of course, intelligence units. So they're going to all be involved. We also have the National Guard. The National Guard, again, has other expertise in different areas. We probably won't go into the details. They have specialized expertise, and they're going to be very much involved.' During the interview with the governor, Bedell asked DeWine what he thought when he first learned the NATO event was coming to Dayton. 'Well, I think it was great news, and this is a big event,' DeWine said. 'We like to have big events in Dayton. But it's also a security issue. And so as the governor, that's one of the things I first started thinking about. I think about you've got people from dozens and dozens of countries, important people, coming to one place, coming to Dayton. So, you know, that was my first thought: how are we going to handle that? The security.' The I-Team asked Dickstein that same question. 'Oh, I thought it was an exciting opportunity,' she said. 'It's not every day that somebody comes to us and says, 'hey, Dayton's going to get a chance to be on the international stage and have an international spotlight.' Of course, there are a lot of questions and a lot of, 'oh, OK, and what does it entail? And when is it happening? And what do we have?' You know, all that preparation. But it ultimately is a great opportunity for Dayton.' Dickstein said later in that interview with the I-Team: 'It's important that this event go well for Ohio, too. I mean, Ohio is under the international spotlight. So we are very pleased and excited for the partnership with the state, and we couldn't have done this event without it.' In all, Gov. DeWine told the News Center 7 I-Team, 'seven or eight different state agencies, different departments' will be involved in securing the event. The NATO village closures will interrupt downtown life in spots, like the hustle and bustle of a pizza shop. Wednesday is the start of a six-day break at Flying Pizza at the corner of First and Main Streets. 'I guess we get a vacation,' Tony Graci, with Flying Pizza in downtown Dayton, said. 'If there's no foot traffic, if customers can't come in to pick up their pizzas, that's tough. So, we don't really want to be in here for that time.' Flying Pizza isn't the only business within the NATO village to close during the NATO event. Right across the street, Hotel Ardent and Bistecca will be closed to the public during the event. A spokesperson who said they handle public relations for the hotel and restaurant told the I-Team in an emailed statement: 'In support of the upcoming NATO Parliamentary Assembly, which will take place in Dayton from May 22 to 26, and in coordination with relevant authorities and security measures, Hotel Ardent and Bistecca will be temporarily closed to the public during this period. We view Dayton's selection as host for this important international gathering as a positive and exciting opportunity for the city and region. While this temporary closure may affect public access, we are proud to play a part in supporting a secure and successful event.' People who enjoy visiting and live in downtown Dayton will have to navigate the road closures and extra security measures for a few days as officials work to protect the event and our community. 'It shouldn't bother you to find a new route,' Roberts said. 'It shouldn't take you long. You know, Dayton is not that large.' Nenn, whose downtown apartment is within the NATO village boundary, said, 'As citizens who live here, we'll just have to try to make it work.' [SIGN UP: WHIO-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
I-TEAM: How much is being spent to protect Dayton during NATO event? Tonight on News Center 7 at 5
The State of Ohio is spending millions of dollars to protect our community during the Spring 2025 NATO Parliamentary Assembly. The event starts on Thursday and runs through Memorial Day in downtown Dayton. [DOWNLOAD: Free WHIO-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] The News Center 7 I-Team's lead investigative reporter, John Bedell, looked into security measures, the public money price tag, and talked to some of the people impacted by the changes people will notice downtown put in place for the NATO event, tonight starting at 5:00 on News Center 7. TRENDING STORIES: Patients, families left without answers after Kettering Health cyberattack STAY INFORMED: Local school districts delayed 2 hours due to fog A 24-year-old man enrolled in an Ohio high school; no one caught on for months According to data News Center 7 got from the Downtown Dayton Partnership, on average, downtown has 180,317 visitors per week. The Downtown Dayton Partnership says that number includes residents, employees, and visitors and says it defines downtown Dayton as a 0.5-mile radius from 6 N. Main Street. [SIGN UP: WHIO-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘First Bloom' to clean-up Dayton ahead of NATO assembly
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — Ahead of the Dayton NATO Parliamentary Assembly, the city is hosting a beautification event. The Downtown Dayton Partnership posted an update to their social media, announcing 'First Bloom,' a clean-up and beautification event happening on Apr. 26. The event will see a day of flower planting, painting, graffiti removal and more throughout the city. Food, giveaways and other entertainment will be available to those volunteering their time that day. Click here to learn more. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Dayton is cleaning up downtown ahead of NATO assembly in May
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — With just over 100 days to go until international delegates arrive in Dayton for NATO's Parliamentary Assembly, the city is working to deliver some much needed cosmetic improvements. City officials say that plans are underway to bring flowers and better lighting to areas of downtown Dayton ahead of a major influx of visitors. Portion of downtown Dayton becoming 'NATO Village' in May All throughout downtown, workers are making improvements to buildings and roads like Main Street and Third Street. The city says the operation to revitalize the downtown space includes addressing sidewalk conditions and modernizing road signs. 'What's really different this year is that we have a bigger focus on lighting and making sure that the banners are telling a story,' said Kristina Scott, vice president for strategy, Downtown Dayton Partnership. City leaders say renovations are also happening in downtown spaces like the Schuster Center. Many of these improvements have been in the works for years. 'The Convention Center has been making millions of dollars of investment in improvements, and it looks great inside,' said Scott. Officials have also invited the public to help take part in activities like painting and road clean-up to further the appearance of public spaces as the city prepares to receive thousands of international delegates and visitors. The public clean-up is scheduled for April 26. Unique performance announced ahead of Dayton's NATO assembly Local leaders planning the event add that it was necessary to include the local community for such a large-scale endeavor for the city of Dayton. 'We have an opportunity to clean up the streetscape at Third and Main to make sure that the sidewalks are safe,' said Scott. 'And to just put a shine on the entire downtown here in the city, so that we are ready for the world stage.' City leaders add that there could be more updates to signage and other downtown landmarks ahead of the event in May. Leaders add that these improvements will have a local impact to residents for years to come. 'It's really important to us that NATO is an opportunity for us to spruce up downtown, to make some improvements,' said Scott. The NATO Parliamentary Assembly is scheduled to take place over the Memorial Day weekend. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
