This week on News Man Weekly, Carl, Zac and Hayden gear up for Election Day and recap a weekend of sports fandom, trick-or-treat and November weather. We also look at the latest Richland County headlines, including the completion of a major broadband expansion in northern Richland County, county commissioners pushing back against proposed budget increases from the prosecutor's and sheriff's offices, and a Bucyrus business owner's guilty plea in a nearly $900,000 COVID relief fraud case.

Then, we welcome Allie Watson of the Richland County Foundation and Alex Dorsey of the Windsor Companies for an in-depth conversation about Downtown Forward, an ambitious $25 million redevelopment project aimed at transforming 14 historic buildings in downtown Mansfield. We discuss plans to create new apartments, revitalize commercial spaces and bring more residents and activity to the city's urban core. 

We also tackle some of the biggest questions coming from the community: Will local residents be able to afford the apartments? Where will everyone park? What happens to existing businesses? And how will the project be financed? It's a conversation about the challenges, opportunities and long-term vision behind one of downtown Mansfield's most significant redevelopment efforts in decades.

This episode is powered by the great folks at Relax, It's Just Coffee.

Relevant links:

• News of the Week: Charter wraps up $15 million northern Richland County broadband effort, exceeds initial target
• News of the Week: Bucyrus business owner pleads guilty to role in obtaining over $900,000 in pandemic funds
• News of the Week: Rising felony caseload prompts 16-percent budget increase request from Richland County prosecutors
• Downtown Forward: $30.1M redevelopment takes key step with port authority
• Downtown Forward: Project in Mansfield gets $5 million in historic tax credits for redevelopment
• Downtown Forward: $25M vision set to spark a new era in Mansfield
• Downtown Forward: Visit the Richland County Foundation's website
• Downtown Forward: Visit the Windsor Companies website
• Elections: Find all Richland Source's election preview stories and our election night liveblog
  
  

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