Latest news with #Marion
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Voters decide in November whether a commission is formed and who's on it
Marion residents who are interested in being part of a charter commission voters will see on the November ballot have about a week to gather petition signatures and file to run to be a commission member, should the measure pass. Marion's City Council has passed the charter ordinance that has been up for debate since April. On Monday, council unanimously approved putting issue on the fall ballot. What happens next? Candidates for the commission For the next week or so, community members who live in Marion can collect signatures to run for a charter commission seat. Candidates must file a petition with betwseen five and 30 signatures. The Marion County Board of Elections will certify the signatures. Petitions are due to the Marion County Board of Elections by 4 p.m. Monday, Aug. 11. The board will begin certifying petitions at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 13. There is a $15 filing fee. Petitions can be picked up at the Board of Elections office or printed from the Ohio Secretary of State's website. Use form 3-P. During a meeting Thursday morning, the Board of Elections Director Cindy Price said the sooner the public files petitions, the better it is for her office. "We're not talking about things that are just for our convience, just to make it easy for us," Lynn Zucker, board chair, said. "We're talking about things we have to deal with statutorily on the other side and things that have to be done. There's, like I said, a lot more that goes into taking care of all this than most people realize." The commission must have 15 members. If 15 community members do not file to run for the commission, City Council can nominate electors to fill the ballot. Those nominated will not be required to pay the filing fee. Signatures that were collected before July 29 will not be valid. If candidates have signatures collected prior to July 29, they will need to begin circulating a new petition. When do I get to vote on the charter? In November, voters in the city will decide if a charter commission is formed and who will be on the commission. Regardless if voters say yes or no to the charter commission, they will vote on the 15 people to make up the commission. If the majority of voters vote no on the charter commission, then no commission will be formed, and the charter process will end. If the charter commission passes, the 15 candidates with the most votes will make up the commission, which is charged with drafting the charter for the next year. The commission will create a draft of the city charter, which will be mailed to voters before to voting in November 2026. When does voting begin? Here are some important dates for the general election cycle: Aug. 6: The Marion County Board of Elections drop box opens for absentee ballots Sept. 19: Military and overseas absentee voting Oct. 6: Deadline to register to vote Oct. 7: Early in-person and absentee voting by mail begins Nov. 4: General election day Nov. 8: Absentee ballots returned by U.S. mail must be postmarked no later than Nov. 3 and received by boards of elections by Nov. 8. This article originally appeared on Marion Star: City charter commission makes it to November ballot: what to know Solve the daily Crossword
Epoch Times
14 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Epoch Times
The Heroism of a Swamp Fox: South Carolina's Francis Marion
Back in 1959 to 1961, Walt Disney Studios put out an eight-part miniseries called 'The Swamp Fox,' episodes loosely based on the exploits of South Carolina's Francis Marion during the Revolutionary War. In those days, every Sunday evening Disney himself hosted most of the shows, and in his brief introduction to the first of the series, 'The Birth of the Swamp Fox,' he set up the dire situation in the spring of 1780 when the American colonies seemed on the brink of defeat, as the British aimed to divide the colonies by attacking from the south. 'In this darkest hour of his country's need,' Disney said, 'The Swamp Fox had been born, and he and his hardy band of freedom fighters were on the move. To the American patriots who lived and fought throughout those uncertain days, Colonel Marion was a hero second only to George Washington. Even after the fighting ended, and our new nation began to expand westward, the legend of the Swamp Fox was told and retold around a thousand campfires. The result today is that there are 17 counties and 29 cities and towns scattered throughout the United States that proudly bear the name of Marion. … America's Robin Hood of the Revolution, the Swamp Fox.'
The Citizen
17 hours ago
- General
- The Citizen
Kindness fuels the steps at Jeppe High School for Girls' Run for a Cause
Kindness fuels the steps at Jeppe High School for Girls' Run for a Cause Jeppe High School for Girls is calling on the community to lace up their takkies and join the annual Run for a Cause on the school's lower grounds on August 16. This year's event carries a heartfelt message: kindness fuels your energy. 'Every step is in support of the people and organisations that matter most,' said Sadé Marion from the school's marketing team. 'Whether you're walking with family or running the full route, you're part of something bigger.' The 5km run or walk is open to all, and participants are encouraged to dedicate their efforts to a cause close to their hearts. 'When we move with kindness, we move with purpose,' added Marion. After crossing the finish line, runners and supporters can look forward to the Grade 9 Market Day, a vibrant showcase of young entrepreneurship, school spirit, and community fun. Tickets are R70 and can be purchased online via Quicket (Site admin fees apply).
Local France
19 hours ago
- General
- Local France
Meet the dogs who help keep French trains running on time
One of the most common reasons for delays on French trains - and city public transport like the Paris Metro - is bagages oubliés (forgotten luggage). Forgotten or abandoned bags can lead to the train being halted or a platform or even part of the station being closed while security checks are done. The security aspect is taken seriously - France has, after all, been the subject of several major terror attacks over the last 20 years - but it's also the cause of significant delays each year, which is why all trains have notices and announcements reminding passengers to take all of their belongings with them when they get off. Despite the reminders, 9,000 items were abandoned either in stations or on board a train in the first six months of 2025. Advertisement But in the last year, SNCF says that it has reduced delays due to forgotten luggage by 30 percent - representing 2,300 hours of delays - thanks to the deployment of teams of sniffer dogs. First introduced in train stations in 2023, there are now 64 teams of chiens renifleurs (sniffer dogs) and their handlers working on the French rail network, including 39 in the greater Paris Île de France region. The dogs are trained to detect explosives or weapons, and they are used to check out abandoned bags to see if they contain any potentially dangerous items. If the dog signals the presence of explosives, the démineurs (bomb disposal teams) are called in the station is fully or partially closed, leading to significant delays on the rail network. If, however, the dog indicates no problem, then agents know it's probably just a rucksack full of sweaty clothes, and no closure is necessary. The French media site RMC spent a day at Gare du Lyon on patrol with Marion and her dog Meco and Yannick and his dog Tokyo. You can watch the teams at work here .
NZ Herald
24-07-2025
- Science
- NZ Herald
US city sheds light on the cost benefits of municipal mood lighting
The new lights are directed downward and emit warmer light than many LEDs. Compared with the old orange lights, the new lights appear brighter when fully turned up, but shields can be added to the fixtures to curb what is known as 'light trespass'. Robinson said he also plans to dim the new lights between 11pm and 4am, which will save energy and money, and, according to the city, cause less harm to migratory birds, urban wildlife, and humans. Thanks to urbanisation and electrification, light pollution is growing globally by nearly 10% a year, according to a 2023 study. Many areas are over-lit, which wastes energy, obfuscates starry skies and messes with the circadian rhythms of plants, wildlife, and people. Pittsburgh officials had long planned to swap out the city's old streetlights, but for years they didn't have the budget to adopt the types of LED streetlights that other cities were beginning to install. That turned out to be a good thing. The first generation of LED streetlights led to lower costs and energy savings but also heightened exposure to glare and harmful blue light. In 2016, the American Medical Association warned that blue-rich LED streetlights suppressed melatonin and contributed to sleeplessness, poor daytime functioning and obesity, while also disorienting birds, insects, turtles and fish species that need darkness at night. Some research suggests that bright city lights worsen air pollution by hindering night-time chemical reactions that clean the air. The city of Pittsburgh included new streetlights in its 2021 budget and not long afterwards passed an ordinance that follows guidelines from DarkSky International, a non-profit organisation focused on fighting light pollution. One feature of the new lights that complies with DarkSky International's recommendations is a relatively warmer hue. Night-time LED lighting around warehouses and in prison yards often emits bright, cold blue-rich light that can have a colour temperature of 5500 kelvins and up. DarkSky International recommends streetlights with warmer tones and a maximum colour temperature of 3000 kelvins. Pittsburgh's new lights are 2700 on the Kelvin scale. 'We leapfrogged the LED blue-light phase,' Marion said. According to the city, the new lights will last at least four times longer than the ones they're replacing, saving the city nearly US$500,000 in maintenance costs annually. Because it's using less electricity to run the lights, the city estimates it will prevent 12,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year. 'It's practical and pragmatic because of its simplicity and its impact,' said Grant Ervin, Pittsburgh's former chief resilience officer. One of the biggest proponents of Pittsburgh's dark-sky lighting ordinance is Diane Turnshek, who teaches astronomy at Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh. Turnshek, 70, who grew up in New England, remembers easily seeing the Milky Way as a child. The city skyline in Pittsburgh. Photo / Danielle Amy, the New York Times Over time, she grew dismayed by the fact that her astronomy students couldn't readily see dazzling starry skies and that light pollution often wasn't considered an environmental concern. She was determined to raise awareness about the problem and ways to address it and worked with the city of Pittsburgh to pass the ordinance. 'It's such an easy fix,' Turnshek said. 'You turn them off. You use them appropriately. You don't use them when you don't need them. Change is instantaneous and saves you money.' The prospect of dimmer streetlights is often met with public resistance because of the belief that artificial lights increase night-time safety. While people may feel safer with more light at night, that doesn't necessarily correlate with crime statistics, said John Barentine, a consultant and former director of public policy for DarkSky International. US cities and towns often vastly exceed recommended levels of illumination, creating glare that can be blinding, he said. Lower-income neighbourhoods with more people of colour often had brighter lights than more affluent, white neighbourhoods, he said. 'We're arguing in favour of public safety by preserving and enhancing night-time visibility through better lighting design,' Barentine said. 'We're actually doing people a favour by bringing the light levels down, because we're helping the eye to operate most efficiently under night-time conditions. We're aiding vision, rather than taking something away.' Still, there are limits to the benefits. Avalon Owens, a research fellow at the Rowland Institute at Harvard University, said that even warm, dim artificial light is usually too bright for most nocturnal insects, which have eyes that are thousands of times more sensitive than those of humans and are most active a few hours after dusk. Motion-activated lighting is also preferable, she said. But shielding lights from natural areas does reduce some negative impacts on insects and the species that rely on them, Owens said. LEDs also use less power, generating fewer greenhouse-gas emissions, and climate change is one of the biggest threats to biodiversity. 'It's a matter of minimising harm,' Owens said. Pittsburgh also has about 3450 LED streetlights with colour temperatures of 4000 kelvins that will be swapped out for the new, warmer versions. The US$15 million project is expected to be completed in 2027. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. Written by: Cara Buckley Photographs by: Danielle Amy ©2025 THE NEW YORK TIMES
