Appalachia First

06/17/2026

A bill awaiting Gov. Mike DeWine's signature would strip ORCA, the org that manages Baileys Trail System, of $750,000 in funding. The proposed cut comes after lobbying firm Sunday Creek Horizons declined a new contract with ORCA, and Mayor Steve Patterson stepped down from ORCA's board and pulled Athens from the organization. Link in comments.

06/17/2026

Nobody works harder to stay out of Athens than its own mayor

Hello from the World Cities Summit in Singapore! Stay tuned for more photos and highlights from the conference over the next few days.

06/02/2026

Just a few weeks after passing another new income tax onto voters (barely passed), Athens Mayor Steve Patterson is galavanting around France on another International “Work Trip” (Boondoggle).

This guy uses his passport more than the city uses its credit card. Maybe he’s going over to try to find the $700k he accidentally sent to the wrong person.

Who’s paying for this trip? City of Athens,