Continuing repair work by CSX on railroad crossings in Findlay this week will close several more city streets.  East Main Cross and Sixth streets remain closed at their respective crossings until Thursday evening. Bigelow Avenue and Pearl Street will be closed at their respective crossings starting Thursday and lasting until July 9.  Access to businesses and residences on all the affected streets will be maintained, but there will be no access across the tracks at any time.

The Hancock County’s commissioners voted today to buy property at 11488 Marion Township 244 for $80,000, as part of the county’s flood mitigation efforts.  The Blanchard River runs through the property, which is owned by Wilbur and Mary Stahl.  About $2.5 million a year is reserved for flood -control by the commissioners from a half-percent, 10-year sales tax increase approved by county voters in 2009.

Governor John Kasich (KAY'-sik) is expected to sign a roughly $71 billion spending blueprint that continues his expansion of the Medicaid health program and provides an income tax cut. But the Republican governor has said he will use his line-item veto authority on some parts of the sweeping measure. His deadline to sign the bill is today.

Blanchard Valley Hospital (BVH) has announced the construction of the new Daniel J. & Maria H. Sak Sleep Wellness Center.  The new center will replace the current BVH Sleep Disorders Center located at 1909 S. Main Street, Findlay.  More than 3,800 square feet of sleep lab and office will be available.  The estimated completion is December 2015.

The University of Findlay announced today that it will join the Great Midwest Athletic Conference also known at the G-MAC effective July 1, 2017.  The G-MAC is relatively new, and is a NCAA Division II athletic conference with member institutions in Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee.  Findlay has been a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Association since 1997.

The Findlay Shade Tree Commission is beginning a strategic planning process to

update its programing to better serve the community.  The long time Adopt-A-Tree program will be transitioned to the new NeighborWoods program.  NeighborWoods enables neighbors to band together to plant more trees in their neighborhoods with Community Foundation financial support and more educational information and assistance to maximize success.  The Adopt-A-Tree program was initially very successful, but response to the program has ebbed in recent years.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol and the Ohio Department of Transportation have announced a partnership for a traffic safety initiative using ODOT digital message boards visible across the state.  The boards will rotate between the year-to-date number of traffic deaths of 2015 and other traffic safety messages.  ODOT and the State Highway Patrol hope to change driver behavior and reverse the upward trend of traffic deaths.