Ohio
'More people are coming in': A look back on one year of legal sports betting in Ohio
CINCINNATI — One year after sports betting was legalized in Ohio, local bars and restaurants say they’ve seen a boost in business.
“More people are coming in that didn’t come in before,” said Tome Jolevski, kitchen manager at Patrick’s Sports Bar & Grill in Western Hills.
Jolevski said revenue has gone up since sports betting was legalized. Patrick’s has one sports betting kiosk.
“Some people are staying longer, especially when the games are on,” he said.
Some customers, like Mike Dasenbrock, prefer to bet on the kiosks rather than the online apps.
“I don’t have to give a debit card or credit card,” Dasenbrock said. “Keeps me in control.”
Jolevski said the surge of online betting apps hasn’t taken away business. Instead, it’s helped boost the bar’s sales too.
“Just because we got 20-something TVs and we’ll put different games on all of them,” he said.
It’s a sentiment shared by Billy Watson, owner of Kitty’s Sports Grill.
“Mainly online, on your phone, on the different apps, has helped business, but the machine, not as much,” Watson said.
The kiosk hasn’t produced as much of a business boost as Watson had originally hoped.
Watson said the majority of his customers bet on their phones, as opposed to using the kiosk he had set up.
“Like 95% of them are betting on their phone,” he said.
Statewide estimates through November show a significant gap between taxable revenue generated by online sports betting versus retail betting.
Estimates show retail sports betting generated more than $21 million for the state during that time frame, while online betting generated more than $827 million, according to revenue data analyzed from both the Ohio Casino Control Commission and the Ohio Lottery.
Watson said he has gained new regular customers since sports betting was legalized, including customers from Kentucky who had crossed the river to bet before sports betting was legalized in their state too.
“I was joking with them when it became legal,” Watson said. “Like, ‘I guess I won’t see you guys anymore.’ They’re like, ‘Oh, Billy. You know, we’ll come back.’ So they still come in.”
Both Watson and Jolevski say setting up kiosks has been worth it, but they hope more people consider betting on kiosks in person.
“So you can watch the games, you can mingle with each other,” Jolevski said. “Because it is so much fun to cheer for your teams or other teams.”
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POMEROY, Ohio (WCHS) — A fire destroyed one home and damaged two others Wednesday evening, but then rekindled early Thursday morning and destroyed another home, police said.
The fire was first reported just after 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday night in the 300 block of Wetzgall Street in Pomeroy, according to a press release from the Pomeroy Police Department.
According to police, the fire spread to the two homes on either side of the original home on fire. Firefighters contained the fire and saved the two surrounding homes, but the home that first caught fire was deemed a total loss.
Then, just after 3 a.m. on Thursday morning, the fire rekindled and spread to one of the other homes, resulting in a total loss of that home as well, police said.
Pomeroy police said both homes were occupied at the time of the fires, but all occupants of each home were able to exit their homes safely. Police also said that there were no reported injuries, though both families lost everything they owned due to the total losses of the homes.
The cause of the fire has not been determined, and the incident is still under active investigation by the Ohio State Fire Marshal’s Office, according to police.
What we know about student loans and the Education Department
Will Education Department restructuring affect your student loans? Here’s what we know know.
Student loan borrowers under the Biden-era student loan repayment plan, Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE), may soon have to select a new repayment plan after the U.S. Department of Education agreed to a measure to permanently end the program.
A proposed joint settlement agreement announced Tuesday between the DOE and the State of Missouri seeks to end what officials call the “illegal” SAVE program, impacting more than seven million SAVE borrowers who would have to enroll in another program. The settlement must be approved by the court before it can be implemented.
Ohio borrowers carry some of the nation’s highest student loan debt. Here’s how the proposed change could affect them.
What is the SAVE plan?
Originally known as REPAYE, the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan was created to deliver the lowest monthly payments among income-driven repayment programs. Under the Biden administration, it became the most affordable option for borrowers.
According to USA TODAY, the SAVE plan was part of Biden’s push to deliver nearly $200 billion in student loan relief to more than 5 million Americans. It wiped out $5.5 billion in debt for nearly half a million borrowers and cut many monthly payments down to $0.
But officials in President Donald Trump’s administration claim the Biden plan was illegal.
Why does the Department of Education want to end the SAVE plan?
The DOE says the SAVE plan aimed to provide mass forgiveness without congressional approval, costing taxpayers $342 billion over 10 years. In a press release, the Department said the administration promised unrealistically low payments and quick forgiveness without legal authority.
“The Trump administration is righting this wrong and bringing an end to this deceptive scheme,” Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent said in a release. “Thanks to the State of Missouri and other states fighting against this egregious federal overreach, American taxpayers can now rest assured they will no longer be forced to serve as collateral for illegal and irresponsible student loan policies.”
If the agreement is approved by the court, no new borrowers will be able to enroll in the SAVE plan. The agency says it will deny any pending applications and move all SAVE borrowers back into other repayment plans.
Borrowers currently enrolled in the SAVE Plan would have a limited time to select a new repayment plan and begin repaying their student loans.
The DOE adds that it is working on the loan repayment provisions of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” Act, which created a new Income-Driven Repayment plan called the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP), that will be available to borrowers by July 1, 2026.
How many people in Ohio have student loan debt?
Numbers from the Education Data Initiative show that there are about 1.7 million student loan borrowers in Ohio, carrying over $60 billion in debt. The average student loan debt is approximately $35,072.
Ohio also ranks No. 10 among the states with the most student debt, according to personal finance site WalletHub.
How much money does Ohio get from the Department of Education?
The DOE budget for Ohio for fiscal year 2025 is estimated to be more than $5.65 billion, The Columbus Dispatch previously reported.
President Trump announced his intentions to eliminate the Department of Education earlier this year, meaning that Ohio could lose more than $5 billion in annual funding.
An employee of a Papa Johns restaurant in Cincinnati, Ohio, is accused of shooting and killing a man inside the store on Tuesday night.
Police in Cincinnati said Murphy Tilk, 21, fatally shot 23-year-old Nawaf Althawadi inside the West Price Hill restaurant around 11 p.m., CBS affiliate WKRC reported. When first responders arrived at the restaurant on West Eighth Street, they performed life-saving measures on Althawadi, who died at the scene. Officials said the 21-year-old Tilk, who was taken into custody without incident and charged, is a Papa Johns employee, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Tilk booked into the Hamilton County Justice Center on a first-degree murder charge, the center’s records show. During Tilk’s initial court appearance on Wednesday, he was held without bond. The 21-year-old man has a bond hearing set for Saturday.
Law enforcement has not said what led up to the shooting or if Tilk and Althawadi knew each other. Police are investigating the shooting.
KDKA reached out to Papa Johns on Wednesday evening for comment, but has not heard back.
Papa Johns is a pizza chain with 6,000 locations globally, according to its website. It has 15 locations in Cincinnati.
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