“The State of Our City is strong.” Those were the words that Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman said in the State of the City Celebration when asked about the state of Columbus in 2015.

From the format of the State of the City, it hardly seemed like the normal address. It felt more like a celebration of the achievements and accomplishments of an administration, and the work that needs to continue to keep Columbus shining in the spotlight long after Mayor Coleman’s run as Mayor wraps up at the end of this year.

“I think we’re in a renaissance,” Mayor Michael B. Coleman (Democrat) said in the interview-style State of the City Celebration at the Palace Theatre on Thursday in Downtown Columbus. Coleman cited the creation of 40,000 new jobs to the city, and the $ 7 Billion invested into the city.

The program, which started 26 minutes late, began with a moment of silence in remembrance of former Columbus Mayor Dana G. “Buck” Rinehart (Republican), who died on Wednesday, just days shy of his 69th birthday. Rinehart was Mayor of Columbus from 1984 to 1991, and like Coleman, helped develop the city’s growth with City Center Mall, the Short North Arts District, and a development that would later be Easton.

Following the National Anthem and Pledge of Allegiance, The Harmony Project singing the Phil Collins song “Take Me Home”, with a video playing on the screens overhead of neighborhoods throughout the city, to set the tone for what was ahead during the program.

Columbus is the hometown that has gone from “Cow Town” to competing with the likes of Philadelphia and Brooklyn for the 2016 Democratic National Convention. Columbus is the top city for Young Professionals.

Columbus was the top-ranked “Opportunity City” in Forbes Magazine. Columbus was ranked the top city for African-Americans in Ebony Magazine. Columbus received a score of 100 in the Human Rights Campaign Index. Columbus, in the 15 years that Coleman has been Mayor, has grown and made strides.

“The overall news is pretty good.” That was the message that Dr. Bill LaFayette preached at the Creekside Conference and Event Center as the 18th Annual Groundhog Day Economic Forecast Breakfast took place on January 30 in Gahanna.

LaFayette, who is the founder and CEO of Regionomics, an economic consulting firm based out of Columbus, gave the Keynote Presentation to an audience of approximately 200 attendees.

LaFayette gave a presentation, which was very positive and encouraging for the most part on job growth and economic development.

“I’ve been giving these speeches for 15 years now,” LaFayette said. “They’re fun now. For the first time, I don’t have to tell you to ‘brace for impact’. Things are good, both locally, and nationally.”

According to LaFayette’s 2015 Regionomics Columbus Forecast, the unemployment rate in the Columbus Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which covers ten counties, is four percent even, compared to that of Ohio (4.8 percent) or the United States as a whole (5.4 percent). “Hiring has reached a pre-recession peak,” LaFayette added. In contrast, LaFayette added that the unemployment rate numbers only count the people who are actually actively looking for work, as the labor force itself continues to decline.

“The labor force started to fall in the Recession, and has continued falling ever since. The share of people in the labor force is the lowest since the late 1970s,” LaFayette said. “The four percent unemployment rate is real.”

Despite the labor force drop, employment is projected to surpass one million in 2015. 80,600 jobs were added to the Central Ohio region from January 2010 to June 2014, according to the numbers LaFayette presented, with a 9.2 percent increase in jobs.

In regards to the economy for Gahanna, LaFayette said, “The economy in the 43230 zip code (which serves most of Gahanna) is widely diversified, more diversified than in many zip codes in Central Ohio”.

Bryan Curtiss, Writer

Sharing success was the theme of this year’s State of the City Address in Columbus. However, three barriers – homelessness, unemployment, and education, were the focal points of Columbus Mayor Michael B. Coleman’s 15th Annual State of the City Address on Wednesday night.

In what was a reality check for most people in attendance at the Battelle Grand Ballroom of the Greater Columbus Convention Center, the city’s homeless was one of the big topics of the State of the City Address, and Coleman made it a goal to "rebuild the lives of the homeless."

"Columbus is a community of stark and sobering contrasts. Some bask in the glow of our success while others struggle every day just to see the light," Coleman remarked about the homeless population in the city. Columbus has a high poverty rate, with some neighborhoods having over 30 percent unemployment rates. The Median Household Income for Columbus residents is $ 8,000 below National Average.

Coleman then told the struggles of two homeless people living in the Faith Mission Shelter while striving for a better life for themselves. One was of a technical worker who ended up homeless due to loss of income, and another was of a dislocated worker, who chose to stay in Columbus, rather than relocate to another city.

“Sharing our success means ensuring our residents have roofs over their heads and strong neighborhoods to live in,” Coleman said.

"Homelessness is becoming a bigger problem in this city than in this city's history," Coleman added. This winter alone, there have been an estimated 1,200 homeless residents in the city, with approximately 150 of them being turned away from overcrowded shelters, left to "fend for themselves".

Coleman proposed that $ 1.1 Million will be used to combat homelessness, partnering with the Community Shelter Board on the nation’s first case management system of customized intensive individual care.

‘GH’, ‘Americans’, ‘Candelabra’, ‘Newsroom’, ‘Y&R’ Lead Bryan Award Nominations

July 8, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

The 13th Annual Bryan Awards were admitted into General Hospital in Port Charles, New York on Monday night, where the long-running daytime drama received a leading 31 Bryan Award Nominations, including Best Soap, when the nominations for the Bryan Awards were announced live on "The DJBC Happy Hour" radio program in Columbus, Ohio.

GH, which was almost cancelled last year, turned 50 in April, and leads in overall nominations for the second straight year. The show has eight of the twelve Guest Acting nominees for Daytime (four each in Guest Actor and Actress). Not far behind GH in the Daytime races is "The Young and the Restless", which celebrated its 40th Anniversary in March. Y&R has 24 nominations, including three for Lead Actor, and posthumous nods for Jeanne Cooper (Lead Actress) and Bonnie Franklin (Guest Actress) who both passed away this spring.

Joining GH and Y&R in the Daytime Soap category are the other two network soaps "The Bold and the Beautiful" and "Days of Our Lives", which have 18 and 14 nominations, respectively. The online revivals of "All My Children" and "One Life to Live", which debuted in late April, received only one and two nominations respectively.

In the Primetime field, the race is on in the New Series category, as that race appears to be Russians vs. Newsmen, as "The Americans" edges "The Newsroom" as the two most-nominated dramas and first-year programs with 24 and 20 nominations, respectively. "The Americans" is F/X's drama about KGB agents posing as married travel agents in the early 1980s, and "The Newsroom" is HBO's sleeper hit drama about the production of a cable news show.

(GAHANNA, Ohio)- February 3, 2013
In a small Pennsylvania town, Punxatawney Phil forecasted an early spring early yesterday morning and city leaders in the Columbus suburb of Gahanna forecasted continuous economic growth for the east side suburb at the 16th Annual Groundhog Day Economic Forecast Breakfast on Friday.

The breakfast was held at the Creekside Conference and Event Center in Olde Gahanna as Gahanna celebrated its economic success in 2012 and its economic growth for the year ahead.

The City of Gahanna released surveys of the city’s General Fund Revenue from the past year. 62 percent of the city’s funds come from income tax.

For the 2011 year, 35 percent of money was spent on public safety. 16 percent was spent on general government. 15 percent was spent on the city’s Parks & Recreation department. 12 percent was spent on community and economic development, and 11 percent each was spent of public service and transfers, respectively.

In the 2011 tax year, most of the city’s real estate tax dollars went to the Gahanna-Jefferson Public Schools. 17 percent of real estate tax dollars went to the Mifflin Township Fire Department. 11 percent went to Alcohol, Drug, and Mental Health (ADAMH) Services. Seven percent went to Franklin County Children’s Services and Senior Options. Four percent each went to the Columbus Metropolitan Library. Two percent each went to the Franklin County Metro Parks, the Eastland Joint Vocational Schools, and the Franklin County General Fund. The remaining three percent of Gahanna’s real estate tax dollars in the 2011 tax year went back to the City of Gahanna.

Bryan Curtiss, Writer

At 3:00 A.M. Eastern Daylight Savings Time yesterday, bus operators and maintenance workers for the Central Ohio Transit Authority, represented by Transport Workers Union Local # 208 walked off the job, creating the first work stoppage for COTA in 25 years.

For the first time ever, there will be no public transportation service to the Red, White, and Boom fireworks due to this work stoppage.

According to COTA President and CEO Curtis Stitt, COTA negotiated in "good faith" with the Union, but the Union rejected two contract proposals, including one tonight.

When the latest contract proposal was rejected tonight, I was hoping that there would be a definitive answer into why the strike is continuing onward. However, Transport Workers Union Local # 208 President Andrew Jordan did not go into specific details on the 11:00 News tonight.

This is going to be a long and hot summer for COTA riders trying to get around. While some riders are able to get around fine, many riders are disabled and unable to drive.

COTA bus operators on Facebook and on the local Columbus website Columbus Underground voiced their concerns regarding safety and the working conditions on the buses.

In Monday's Columbus Dispatch, Mayor Michael B. Coleman was quoted as saying the strike is "irresponsible" on the Union's part. Mayor Coleman is right. The strike by COTA is irresponsible, at a time where the city has seen its hottest temperature in 13 years this past week, at a time where the heat index is in the triple digits, and at a time where the economy is still recovering from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.

“The DJBC Happy Hour To Offer Wide Variety Of Programs In Spring, Summer Months”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CONTACT:
Bryan Curtiss, Host/Executive Producer
(614) 285-9079
curtiss.bryan@gmail.com

March 16, 2012

COLUMBUS. “The DJBC Happy Hour” will offer a plethora of themed-shows during the spring and summer months of 2012, including a Musical Salute to 1976, a road trip across Columbus, the One-Year Anniversary show, and the 12th Annual Bryan Awards.

April will begin with an April Fools themed show on April 2, which will be full of comedic surprises, and a recap of the 32nd Annual Golden Raspberry Awards. April 9 will be a week of rest due to Easter and to allow more time to work on the two-part One-Year Anniversary Show, set to air on April 16 and 23, which is still under wraps. April 30 will also be an off-week for the show.

The month of May will begin with a two-part musical salute to America’s Bicentennial Year, 1976.

“I want to do a lot of special-themed shows as part of the city of Columbus’ Bicentennial Year,” said show host and executive producer Bryan Curtiss. “Since America’s Bicentennial Year was 1976, I wanted to do a theme of songs from that year, as a kind-of Bicentennial homage.”

Part 1 of that Bicentennial Musical array will air on May 7 and Part 2 on May 14.

The May 21 show, which will also be repeated the following week, Memorial Day, will be a preview of some of the upcoming Summer events, including the 51st Annual Greater Columbus Arts Festival, the Asian Festival, and other city and community events in the early part of summer.

June will be busting out with another birthday-themed show on June 11, and an encore of last year’s birthday-themed show on June 4. The June 18 show will preview more Summer events including the 40th Anniversary of ComFest, tours in German Village and Olde Towne East, and other events.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

CONTACT:
Bryan Curtiss, Host/Executive Producer
(614) 377-9333
curtiss.bryan@gmail.com

January 26, 2012

Columbus Radio Show To Celebrate City’s Bicentennial In Two-Part Show

COLUMBUS. “The DJBC Happy Hour” radio program will celebrate the 200-year history of Columbus in a creative way with a two-part show, on January 30 and February 6.

The January 30 show will take a look back at Columbus’s past, and Curtiss will share some of the history of the city.

The February 6 program will preview upcoming Bicentennial Celebrations, including the Bicentennial Celebrations taking place from February 10 through 15.

“The Bicentennial Celebration is a big collaborative between so many communities and organizations, and this show cannot bypass recognizing the Bicentennial celebration before the actual date of the Bicentennial,” Curtiss added. The actual date of the Bicentennial is February 14, which is also Valentine’s Day.

There will be spoofs of current and former Columbus culture in both programs in sketches that are still in development.

“I got the idea for this when making fake historic commercials for the holiday shows, some of which were about Columbus,” Curtiss remarked. “I decided, ‘Why not make fake Columbus commercials for the Bicentennial?”

Other Bicentennial-themed shows will include “Christmas in Columbus”, which will air sometime in December; the Summer Preview Show, covering Summer Events in Columbus; “Songs from 1976”, which will be dedicated to songs from 1976, the American Bicentennial year, but will feature Columbus-themed clips, and “The 12th Annual Bryan Awards”, which will air over three weeks beginning August 27.

“‘The Bryan Awards’ this year will have references to Columbus thrown into the show, given the city’s 200th year,” Curtiss explained.

The five choices are simple- 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, or 1980s. Which decade do you want to represent next Monday night's show?

EDIT: Voting is now closed. The winner is...you think I'd tell, right? Find out at 8PM tonight.

Voting closes Sunday night at Midnight. And the winning theme will be represented on next Monday's show.

Tonight's show will feature Yuletide poetry and spoken word.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 21, 2011

Community Radio Show To Showcase The Holiday Spirit