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📢 Local Events from Mentor & the Area: MentorLocalBuzz.com/Events!

📰 Local News: ⛽ Ohio’s 90-Day Gas-Tax Holiday Starts Sunday

🚧 Brookview Lane to Close Overnight Oct. 5–19

🗳️ Monday Is the Deadline to Register for November Election

🍽️ Dinner RESCUE: Sheet-Pan Timing: Get the Main and Vegetables Ready Together

🏈 Sports: 🏈 Mentor’s 21-Game GCC Winning Streak Ends in 56-30 Loss

🏈 Lake Catholic Blanks Elyria Catholic 35–0 in Homecoming Win

🤔 Trivia Question

🤣 Something Funny

Contact Mentor Local Buzz - [email protected] - 440-256-6115

Mentor-area drivers could begin seeing some relief at the pump Sunday as Ohio begins a 90-day reduction in its state gasoline and diesel taxes.

Gov. Mike DeWine signed House Bill 519 on Thursday, Oct. 1. According to Ohio General Assembly records, the temporary change begins Sunday, Oct. 4. Ohio’s normal state tax is 38.5 cents per gallon on gasoline and 47 cents per gallon on diesel.

Technically, the taxes are not eliminated completely. During the temporary period, they fall to one-hundredth of one cent per gallon — essentially zero.

Drivers should not necessarily expect every Mentor-area station’s posted price to fall by the full tax amount immediately Sunday morning. The Associated Press reports that previously taxed fuel already in station inventories, wholesale prices and other supply-chain factors can affect how quickly the change becomes visible at the pump.

The legislation also provides state general-revenue money to replace transportation funding affected by the temporary reduction.

➡️ So how much could a typical fill-up save, why might one station’s price change before another’s, and what taxes will drivers still pay? We break down what Mentor-area drivers should watch for beginning Sunday.

Drivers near Johnnycake Ridge Road should be prepared for a temporary closure beginning Monday as work continues on Mentor’s new fire station.

The City of Mentor says Brookview Lane will be closed nightly at its intersection with Johnnycake Ridge Road from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m., October 5 through October 19.

The closure is related to construction of the new fire station on Plaza Boulevard.

Drivers should also be aware that intermittent daytime closures may occur between October 5 and October 19, so anyone who regularly travels through the area should plan accordingly.

During closures, affected motorists should use Mustang Lane as the alternate route.

The notice is especially worth keeping in mind for residents traveling through the area during the evening or early-morning hours.

Source: City of Mentor

Lake County residents who are not yet registered to vote — or who need to update their registration — have until Monday, Oct. 5, if they plan to vote in the Nov. 3 general election.

The Lake County Board of Elections lists Monday as Ohio’s voter-registration deadline. County boards of elections and the Ohio Secretary of State’s office will remain open until 9 p.m. that day.

Already registered? Residents can also check their voter information to make sure their name and address are current, particularly if they have moved or changed their name.

The deadline comes just before voting begins across Ohio. Early in-person voting and regular absentee voting by mail begin Tuesday, Oct. 6.

For Mentor residents, the November ballot includes state and local contests and issues. Among the local items is Mentor Schools Issue 5, a five-year, 3.5-mill operating levy proposed by the school district.

➡️ Planning to vote this November? Click through for the official registration links, Lake County’s complete early-voting schedule, where to vote early and the other key dates to know before Election Day.

Two dinners show why one-pan cooking gets easier when the slowest ingredients start first.

Sheet-pan dinners sound wonderfully simple: put dinner on one pan, slide it into the oven and let the heat do the work. The catch is that chicken, potatoes, carrots, broccoli and chickpeas do not cook on the same schedule.

That is where one small skill changes the whole meal: sequencing.

Instead of adding everything at once, start the ingredients that need the most time, then add quicker-cooking foods later. You still get one-pan cleanup, but you are no longer asking broccoli to survive as long as a potato needs to become tender.

This week’s Dijon Chicken Thighs with Carrots and Potatoes begins with the vegetables. After a 15-minute head start, the chicken joins the pan with a tangy Dijon-honey coating. From there, a food thermometer—not guesswork—determines when the chicken is safely cooked.

The Roasted Chickpea, Sweet Potato and Broccoli Bowls use the same idea in a meatless dinner. Sweet potatoes and chickpeas begin first; broccoli joins for the final stretch so it can brown at the edges without turning limp.

Piece size matters, too. Cut each ingredient into fairly consistent pieces, give the food room on the pan and check each component for its own sign of doneness. A timer tells you when to look. Tenderness, browning and temperature tell you when dinner is actually ready.

That is the better promise of a sheet-pan meal. Everything does not have to start together to finish together. That small change makes the meal feel much more predictable.

Choose the chicken dinner or the chickpea bowls, then use the complete timing plan on the website to see exactly what goes into the oven when—and how to adjust when one part of dinner needs a few extra minutes without overcooking another.

➡️ Choose the dinner that fits tonight, then follow its complete timing plan for exact quantities, step-by-step sequencing, substitutions and what to do when one part of the pan needs more time.

Mentor’s long run of success in the Greater Cleveland Conference came to an end Friday night as Strongsville defeated the Cardinals, 56-30, at Strongsville.

The Mustangs jumped ahead 14-0 before Mentor got on the board with a 40-yard field goal. Strongsville stretched the lead to 20-3 before sophomore quarterback Corbin Bissett scored on a 12-yard run, cutting the deficit to 20-10. The Mustangs answered again and took a 28-10 advantage into halftime.

Mentor continued fighting in the second half. Bissett connected with Jeremiah Claridy for a 28-yard touchdown, and Braylon Callahan added a 3-yard scoring run to bring the Cardinals within 41-23. But Strongsville kept finding answers, eventually pushing the lead to 56-23 before Mentor added a late touchdown.

The loss drops Mentor to 5-2 overall and 3-1 in the GCC and, according to The News-Herald, ends the Cardinals’ 21-game conference winning streak. It was also Strongsville’s first victory over Mentor since 2008.

Mentor will try to bounce back Friday, Oct. 9, at Shaker Heights.

➡️ There was much more at stake Friday than one game — read how Strongsville took control, what Mentor was able to answer with, and what the loss means as the Cardinals enter the final stretch of the regular season.

Lake Catholic put together its most complete performance of the season Friday night.

The Cougars shut out Elyria Catholic 35–0 in North Coast Conference play, improving to 4–3 with their second straight victory.

Lake Catholic overcame two touchdowns being erased by penalties on its opening possession before quickly taking control. Giovanni Magistrelli broke a 38-yard touchdown run, while quarterback Max Pisano connected with Guy Dominick for a 42-yard score as the Cougars built a three-touchdown first-half lead.

According to game statistics reported by Ben Hercik of The News-Herald, Lake Catholic finished with 404 yards of offense — 244 passing and 160 rushing. Pisano threw three touchdown passes, including two to Dominick, while Magistrelli scored twice on the ground.

The defense was equally impressive, holding Elyria Catholic to just 65 first-half yards and preserving the shutout with a goal-line turnover late in the game.

Lake Catholic has now outscored its last two opponents 62–13 after last week's 27–13 win over CVCA.

Up next: The Cougars host Padua Franciscan Friday, Oct. 9, at 7 p.m.

➡️ The 35–0 score tells only part of the story. See how Lake Catholic's balanced offense, disruptive defense and growing confidence combined for its strongest all-around performance of the season.

🐝 Buzz Fact: Worcestershire sauce has been around since the 1800s, proving that humanity has spent nearly two centuries agreeing that dinner sometimes needs a little mysterious brown liquid to pull itself together.😄
Answer: Google

Busted! Dogs going for the food!