Latest news with #Hardin
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Council OKs millions to help Columbus' less fortunate
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Columbus City Council has approved millions of dollars to help the city's most vulnerable. More than $4 million has been approved for almost 200 units of affordable housing across two complexes, two examples of how the city is getting creative to meet the extreme demand for housing. 'We think that affordable housing is a top one, two and three issue in our community,' Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin said. 'As rents continue to rise, we want to make sure that we can make sure that Columbus stays affordable for all of us.' Columbus approves $23M for improving cybersecurity infrastructure One development will be built on the near east side and will have 84 units. Rent will be restricted to 60% of the area median income. U.S. Census data for Columbus says that income would be a little more than $39,000 annually. 'It's all about housing innovation for affordability,' Hardin said. 'This is a local company that is building the houses in a modular factory right here in Columbus. So, we're hiring local folks to build housing quicker, which means it's more efficient and it saves money.' The second development that received a big chunk of funding is 88 units in Harrison West. Rent will also be restricted to 60% of the area median income. Structures already exist at this site, so the funding will be used for redevelopment and preservation of the existing buildings. 'We are not building new affordable housing here,' Hardin said. 'We are making sure that the naturally occurring affordable housing is able to stay. We're coming in, we're renovating.' Central Ohio organization on edge after 'big, beautiful bill' passes Hardin said the keyword for this legislation is innovation. 'We're really excited about this model of renovating and yet holding the costs so that the rent does not go up for the folks that are living there,' Hardin said. The money comes from bond dollars. This fall, the city will have a bond issue on the ballot for half a billion dollars for affordable housing. Also on Monday, council approved hundreds of thousands of dollars to increase access to food and addiction recovery. Half a million dollars will be allocated to a new residential addiction recovery campus. The organization building the space, called The Refuge, has been in operation for years, providing faith-based recovery services to men. Three hospitalized after Delaware County trench collapse The new space will be in the Hilltop and will centralize services, including group counseling and mental health services. It's a project that has been in the works for years. 'This is an investment in the Hilltop, like, we want to create a campus because we love the Hilltop and what it's done for us and we love how our guys partner with community organizations,' The Refuge Chief Development Officer Austin Hill said. 'This is a long time coming and we're excited to actually see it happen.' On the east side of Columbus, $2 million was approved for the Eastland Prosperity Center. The Mid-Ohio Food Collective is working on a massive space that will offer access to food, a health care center in partnership with Ohio State University, and additional support. Construction is planned to start this summer with a tentative opening date in the middle of next year. 'The Eastland community is one of the most underserved areas within the entirety 20 counties that we serve,' Mike Hochron with the collective said. 'In fact, many people in Eastland are driving all the way down to Grove City in order to access food, and it's really important that we make food accessible where and when people need it.' Resources from the Mid-Ohio Food Collective can be found here. Resources through The Refuge can be found here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
USA Today
12-07-2025
- USA Today
Arkansas officials blame prison employees for 'Devil in the Ozarks' escape
Officials said a kitchen supervisor left Grant Hardin alone on a loading dock and a tower guard let him out the gates. Corrections officials say two Arkansas prison employees errantly helped Grant Hardin, the former police chief convicted of murder and rape, escape from a prison in May. A kitchen supervisor, who left Hardin unchecked on a loading dock, and a tower guard, who let him out of the gates, have been fired, according to Benny Magness, chairman of the state Board of Corrections. Magness attributed Hardin's escape at the North Central Unit, in Calico Rock, to "human error." Hardin evaded capture for 12 days in nearby woods. 'All the stars somewhat had to line up for Hardin, and two employees violated policy that allowed this to happen,' Magness told state lawmakers in a July 10 hearing. 'The policies were in place. This should not have happened.' On May 25, a kitchen supervisor allegedly left Hardin, 56, alone on a loading dock. Hardin is accused of changing into a fake law enforcement uniform, which was colored with Sharpie markers and included an old kitchen apron to mimic a vest. Authorities say he made a homemade badge from a can lid, button and Bible cover. He had stashed away his fake uniform in the kitchen's chemical storage area, where he had supervised access as part of his kitchen job, Rand Champion, a spokesperson for the Department of Corrections, said in an email. Then, the guard atop the tower opened two back gates letting Hardin out, without checking if he was actually an officer, Magness said. Hardin also brought wooden pallets he fashioned into a ladder and a box with food, Champion said. Hardin was captured in a sweeping manhunt on June 6 about a mile-and-a-half from the facility. The fired officers' names weren't released. Hardin was serving an 80-year combined prison sentence. He first pleaded guilty to the 2017 murder of James Appleton, a water department employee. Following his conviction, DNA evidence connected him to raping a teacher at gunpoint at school in 1997. He pleaded guilty to the rape charges. Hardin faces a felony charge related to his escape, court records show. He has pleaded not guilty. A jury trial has been scheduled for the fall. Jeanine Santucci of USA TODAY contributed to this report.
NBC News
11-07-2025
- NBC News
Arkansas prison employees fired after 'Devil in the Ozarks' escape
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Two employees at an Arkansas prison where an inmate known as the ' Devil in the Ozarks ' escaped have been fired for policy violations, corrections officials said Thursday as they faced questions from lawmakers who said the escape points to deeper problems. The head of the Arkansas Board of Corrections told state lawmakers the violations allowed Grant Hardin to escape from the Calico Rock prison wearing a makeshift law enforcement uniform on May 25. But officials have said there was no evidence employees knowingly assisted Hardin's escape. One of the fired employees had allowed Hardin onto an outside kitchen dock unsupervised and the other employee worked in a tower and had opened the gate Hardin walked through without confirming his identity, Chairman Benny Magness said. 'If either one of them would have been following policy, it wouldn't have happened,' Magness told members of the Legislative Council's charitable, penal, and correctional institutions subcommittee. Hardin was captured 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) northwest of the Calico Rock prison on June 6. Authorities said he escaped by donning an outfit designed to look like a law enforcement uniform. Magness said the outfit was crafted from an inmate uniform and kitchen apron dyed black using a marker while a soup can lid and a Bible cover were fashioned to look like a badge. Lawmakers said the escape pointed to systemic problems beyond the two employees — including how Hardin was able to fashion the fake uniform without guards noticing. 'I think we've got major issues here that need to be dealt with,' said Republican Sen. Matt McKee, who co-chairs the subcommittee. Hardin, a former police chief in the small town of Gateway, near the Arkansas-Missouri border, is serving lengthy sentences for murder and rape. He was the subject of the TV documentary 'Devil in the Ozarks.' After his capture, Hardin was transferred to a maximum security prison in Varner, a small community about 65 miles (125 kilometers) southeast of Little Rock. Hardin has pleaded not guilty to an escape charge and is set to go on trial in November. Hardin held a job in the kitchen in the prison and had not had any disciplinary problems during his time there. In addition to the uniform, Hardin fashioned a ladder out of wooden pallets that were on the dock and also took peanut butter sandwiches from the prison to survive on after his escape, corrections officials told lawmakers Thursday. Hardin planned to use the ladder to scale the fence and escape if the gate wasn't opened for him, said Dexter Payne, director of the division of correction. 'There are a lot of things he did unnoticed and unaware,' Republican Sen. Ben Gilmore said during the hearing. 'I don't think you can blame just two people for that.' Members of the panel also said Hardin's escape points to the need to scrutinize a classification system that placed a convicted murderer in what's primarily a medium-security facility. Payne said a critical incident review of the escape planned later this month may determine if other employees will face firings, demotions or disciplinary actions. It also will determine what other policy changes may be needed, he said. State Police is also investigating the escape to determine whether any laws, policies or procedures were violated in the escape. Col. Mike Hagar, the head of state police and secretary of public safety, said the final report on the investigation may be completed within 30 days. Thomas Hurst, warden of the prison —formally called the North Central Unit — said State Police was not notified immediately of the escape though local police were, blaming it on a miscommunication. 'There's nobody that's more embarrassed about (the escape) than me,' Hurst said. 'It's not good. We failed, and I understand it.'
Winnipeg Free Press
11-07-2025
- Winnipeg Free Press
Arkansas prison employees fired after ‘Devil in the Ozarks' escape
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Two employees at an Arkansas prison where an inmate known as the 'Devil in the Ozarks' escaped have been fired for policy violations, corrections officials said Thursday as they faced questions from lawmakers who said the escape points to deeper problems. The head of the Arkansas Board of Corrections told state lawmakers the violations allowed Grant Hardin to escape from the Calico Rock prison wearing a makeshift law enforcement uniform on May 25. But officials have said there was no evidence employees knowingly assisted Hardin's escape. One of the fired employees had allowed Hardin onto an outside kitchen dock unsupervised and the other employee worked in a tower and had opened the gate Hardin walked through without confirming his identity, Chairman Benny Magness said. 'If either one of them would have been following policy, it wouldn't have happened,' Magness told members of the Legislative Council's charitable, penal, and correctional institutions subcommittee. Hardin was captured 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) northwest of the Calico Rock prison on June 6. Authorities said he escaped by donning an outfit designed to look like a law enforcement uniform. Magness said the outfit was crafted from an inmate uniform and kitchen apron dyed black using a marker while a soup can lid and a Bible cover were fashioned to look like a badge. Lawmakers said the escape pointed to systemic problems beyond the two employees — including how Hardin was able to fashion the fake uniform without guards noticing. 'I think we've got major issues here that need to be dealt with,' said Republican Sen. Matt McKee, who co-chairs the legislative panel that oversees corrections. Hardin, a former police chief in the small town of Gateway, near the Arkansas-Missouri border, is serving lengthy sentences for murder and rape. He was the subject of the TV documentary 'Devil in the Ozarks.' After his capture, Hardin was transferred to a maximum security prison in Varner, a small community about 65 miles (125 kilometers) southeast of Little Rock. Hardin has pleaded not guilty to an escape charge and is set to go on trial in November. Hardin held a job in the kitchen in the prison and had not had any disciplinary problems during his time there. In addition to the uniform, Hardin fashioned a ladder out of wooden pallets that were on the dock and also took peanut butter sandwiches from the prison to survive on after his escape, corrections officials told lawmakers Thursday. Hardin planned to use the ladder to scale the fence and escape if the gate wasn't opened for him, said Dexter Payne, director of the division of correction. 'There are a lot of things he did unnoticed and unaware,' Republican Sen. Ben Gilmore said during the hearing. 'I don't think you can blame just two people for that.' Members of the panel also said Hardin's escape points to the need to scrutinize a classification system that placed a convicted murderer in what's primarily a medium-security facility. Payne said a critical incident review of the escape planned later this month may determine if other employees will face firings, demotions or disciplinary actions. It also will determine what other policy changes may be needed, he said. 'There's nobody that's more embarrassed about it than me,' said Thomas Hurst, warden of the prison, formally called the North Central Unit. 'It's not good. We failed, and I understand it.'
Miami Herald
10-07-2025
- General
- Miami Herald
Wife and daughter of a key FIU dean are among the missing in Texas floods
The wife and daughter of William G. Hardin III, dean of the College of Business at Florida International University, are among the dozens of presumed dead after catastrophic flooding swept through Central Texas in the predawn hours of July 4. According to multiple sources, including a letter from the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida and a statement from The Webb School, a private college preparatory school in Tennessee, the Hardin family's home in Hunt, Texas, was washed away by floodwaters while the family was inside. Dean Hardin survived the disaster, but his wife, Alyson, and their daughter, Josephine, were lost and are presumed dead, the bishop wrote. William 'Bill' Hardin has been dean of FIU's College of Business since May 2021. 'This is an unfathomable loss for the Hardin family, for All Saints [Episcopal Church], and for our diocese,' wrote the Right Rev. Peter Eaton in a message to parishioners. Alyson had served as senior warden at All Saints, Fort Lauderdale, and was a longtime leader at her church, the diocese and a trustee of the University of the South in Sewanee, the Episcopal college where Josephine was an undergraduate. 'The bodies of Alyson and Josephine have not yet been recovered,' Bishop Eaton wrote in his July 6 statement. Josephine, a 2015 graduate of The Webb School and an attorney at Huff Powell Bailey in Atlanta, was known for her work in medical malpractice and long-term care defense. She was a 2023 graduate of Emory University School of Law. 'Our hearts are with the Hardin family as the search for Josephine '15 continues,' read a statement from Webb School. 'Please keep them in your thoughts.' Alyson Hardin was a financial consultant with Equitable Advisors, based in Fort Lauderdale, per her LinkedIn page, and was deeply involved in community and church life, according to Bishop Eaton's statement. More than 100 confirmed dead As of Thursday, at least 120 people have been confirmed dead from the flooding, including 27 children and counselors at Camp Mystic, a girls' Christian camp that sits along the banks of the Guadalupe River. The river rose to 26 feet — the height of a two-story building — in about 45 minutes in the early morning hours of July 4, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said during a news conference. Authorities are searching for more than 170 people who were still missing as of Thursday. The Hardins are not the only South Florida family who lost loved ones in the central Texas floods. The twin 8-year-old granddaughters of Miami childhood education advocate David Lawrence Jr. died in the floods. Hannah and Rebecca were among the girls staying at Camp Mystic. READ MORE: Granddaughters of Miami childhood education advocate David Lawrence die in Texas flood Hunt, a community in western Kerr County, is where Miami-Dade Fire Rescue's Urban Search and Rescue Florida Task Force One is deployed alongside federal, state and local emergency responders near a vacation camp along the Guadalupe River. 'Please keep him [Bill Hardin], his family, and everyone touched by this disaster in your thoughts and prayers,' FIU President Jeanette M. Nuñez wrote in a July 5 email to students and faculty.
