The Toledo Blade has filed a formal notice of closing with the state of Ohio, a step its owner was required to take ahead of the newspaper’s possible final edition on Dec. 31, 2026, The Monroe News reported.
The Blade, through owner Block Communications Inc., filed Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification — WARN — and Ohio WARN notices on Oct. 23 with the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, according to The Monroe News. Employers are required to give official notice to government units of a pending facility shutdown, the letter cited by The Monroe News said.
In the letter, the layoff is described as permanent and will affect 116 employees, The Monroe News reported. Affected employees would be terminated within a two-week window following the final date of publication, with no bumping or reemployment rights provided as part of the wind-down, according to the filing summarized in The Monroe News report.
Block Communications announced on Sept. 8 that The Blade would cease publication on Dec. 31, 2026, unless a buyer could be found, The Monroe News reported. The Oct. 23 letter said effects bargaining, severance pay and a possible sale of the company are actions being taken to mitigate or avoid the closure, according to the letter quoted by The Monroe News.
The Blade published its first edition in December 1835, The Monroe News reported. Today, in addition to e-editions and online content, the paper publishes print editions on Thursdays and Sundays, according to The Monroe News.
Block Communications describes itself on its website as a 122-year-old privately held diversified media holding company headquartered in Toledo, with primary operations in cable television, newspaper publishing, high-speed internet and residential telephone services, according to The Monroe News report.
For Toledo readers and advertisers, the filing does not change the paper’s announced timeline: publication continues through Dec. 31 unless a buyer emerges. What happens to the Blade’s name, archives and subscribers if no sale is completed has not been announced in the filing reported by The Monroe News.
Photo: Chris Rycroft, CC BY