LIMA – The Lima News will make several changes in the coming weeks to adapt to readers’ habits and focus on the future.
For 139 years and more than 51,000 editions, The Lima News has been committed to providing top-tier news and information. Keeping with the changes in today’s world, the news-gathering organization will shift its focus to publishing news, sports and features online first seven days a week on LimaOhio.com, which will require a subscription. Current print subscribers have digital access included, while online-only readers can purchase it for $12.99 a month.
Printed editions of the newspaper will be delivered only on Wednesdays and Saturdays beginning May 20, Publisher Todd Benz said.
“Existing subscribers will continue to have access to news seven days a week on LimaOhio.com. Readers shouldn’t expect anything less from the newsroom,” said David Trinko, editor of The Lima News.
“The Lima News’ mission hasn’t changed,” Trinko said. “We’ll continue to cover the news of the day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, and get it to subscribers in a way that will keep you informed. If anything, this gives us a chance to adjust how we do things to get information to you even more quickly.”
The printed editions, which earned Ohio’s top general excellence award in two of the last three years, will offer highlights of that coverage so print subscribers can keep abreast of the most important news of the week, Trinko said. Subscribers will receive their first weekend edition on Saturday, May 20.
New daily emails will be rolled out in the coming weeks, so subscribers can check their inboxes to see the happenings of the past 24 hours and keep on top of their favorite topics and features, including comics, puzzles and obituaries.
The Lima News was only one of a handful of newspapers in Ohio that continued to print seven days a week, as inflation drove up the cost of ink, paper and gas, Benz said.
At the same time, more people went online for their news, with the number of people using LimaOhio.com exceeding the number of print subscriptions for a decade.
The newspaper will also move its physical presence back inside the city limits of Lima, to the Enterprise Building, 205 W. Market St., Suite 100, Lima. Customers will be able to pay their bills and place advertisements from the new location in Lima’s re-energized downtown starting Monday.
“This is an exciting time for Lima and for The Lima News,” Benz said. “We’re thrilled to be part of the rebirth of downtown Lima. We’re also focused on the most important part of our job, delivering news and advertisements that people want in a format they want.”
The location change brings The Lima News back downtown. It had a location on High Street until 1995, when it moved into a 52,000 square foot building at 3515 Elida Road. The business has required less physical space since June 2017, when the printing press sustained heavy damage while printing the newspaper and eventually was dismantled.
“The sign in front of the building on Elida Road for years said, ‘The Information Center,’” Benz said. “That’s still who we are. We’re a place the community trusts for news and advertising, and we’ll do everything we can to maintain that trust as we shift our focus from print to online for our subscribers.”
Readers with questions about their subscriptions or how to activate their LimaOhio.com access can call 419-993-2000. Subscriptions are $12.99 a month for digital-only access and $19.99 for print and online access.
