After lowering canine euthanasia rates, Syracuse tackles pit bull population
By Christine Oser
January 5, 2018 - 11:04pm
Groups like Second Chance Canine Adoption Shelter and Cuse Pit Crew are working to break down pit bull misconceptions and stereotypes.

The snow had not yet hit, but the sky was blanketed with gray clouds and the crisp December wind was unforgiving on the face. Despite the chill, Freya, a red-colored pit bull, relentlessly chased a red ball three times the size of her head in her play yard. While Freya was happy to be outside with her favorite toy, her tail wagging as she threw up gravel and dirt, the Onondaga County Department of Correction sat just on the other side of the chain-linked fence.

Why we need to think beyond supermarkets when dealing with food deserts
By Caroline Schagrin
December 16, 2017 - 8:22pm
How the closing of a local grocery store in Syracuse highlights the need for healthy food access in low-income communities across the United States.

On a chilly, wet November afternoon, residents of Syracuse’s Near Westside wait in a vacant parking lot to receive a box a free food from the Central New York Food Bank. Murmurs in Spanish, English, and other languages fill the air as residents trickle in from one of the city’s poorest neighborhoods. Many of those waiting demonstrate the struggles they’ve endured. Some are missing limbs. Others lack teeth. Some make their way to the front in wheelchairs and with canes. Others shield their children from the bitter winds under blankets.

The Festival of Trees lights up the holiday season
By Chunzi Shi
December 2, 2017 - 2:19pm
The 32nd annual festival at the Everson Museum of Art is held from Dec. 1 through Dec. 10. This year's theme is tradition.

The Festival of Trees is a holiday event held by the Everson Museum of Art Member’s Council in Syracuse. Volunteers of all ages donate their decorated Christmas trees, wreaths and gift items to be displayed at the museum. Attendees have the opportunity to purchase their favorite trees. This is the festival's 32nd year of operation and all ticket sales support the museum. Its theme is tradition.

Near Westside Initiative faces uncertain future, partners continue green revitalization
By McKenna Moore
November 14, 2017 - 4:47pm
After 11 years of funding, Syracuse University will be pulling its support from the Westside Initiative, an organization committed to revitalizing the neighborhood

When the Near Westside Initiative was founded in 2006, Syracuse University played a large role financially and administratively. Now, SU is pulling its support from the cooperative revitalization effort and taking its funding with it. This could limit future residential rehabilitation and revitalization plans that can be done in the Westside neighborhood. 

SU student raises over $10,000 at F**k Cancer event
By Riley Bunch
November 8, 2017 - 4:51pm
The organization looks to bring the community together to empower those affected by cancer.

On Saturday, SU senior Claire Greenbaum along hosted a F**k Cancer event raising over $10,000 to go towards cancer research with her friends. The Greenbaum family started the F**k Cancer organization in 2010, after losing their mother to ovarian cancer. Claire, has been a part of the organization since the age of 14. The organization is active in the United States and in Canada, where Greenbaum is from. 

Independent candidate Ben Walsh wins Syracuse mayoral election
By McKenna Moore
November 7, 2017 - 2:48pm
Democracy in Action students cover Election Day across Central New York

Ben Walsh, an independent, has won Syracuse's 2017 mayoral election. With 96 percent of districts reporting, Walsh defeated democratic candidate Juanita Perez Williams to become the first independent mayor elected in Syracuse since 1913 on Tuesday. Walsh won with 54.4 percent of the vote while Williams trailed with 37.9 percent.

Nonprofits on Syracuse’s West Side to send donations to Puerto Rico this month
By McKenna Moore
November 7, 2017 - 12:55pm
Syracuse is home to nearly 12,000 people of Puerto Rican descent that, along with other Syracuse residents, are working to gather and deliver donations to the island after Hurricane Maria.

Nearly six weeks after Hurricane Maria decimated the island of Puerto Rico, the effects of the storm are still being felt on the island and in Syracuse. The city is home to nearly 12,000 people of Puerto Rican descent, according to the U.S. Census. These ties to the island have made Syracuse a hub for relief efforts. 

Nojaim Brothers Supermarket owner hopes to bring food service jobs into Syracuse
By McKenna Moore
November 1, 2017 - 3:30pm
The owner of the supermarket wants to work with the Syracuse City School District to bring jobs back to the Near West Side by using Nojaim Brothers Supermarket's building to house the district's soon-to-be-outsourced food services.

Following the closing of Nojaim Brothers Supermarket in October, which resulted in the loss of approximately 50 jobs, owner Paul Nojaim plans to put the building that housed the store to good use. He said that he put his building in a pool to be considered as a location for the central kitchen that will hold Syracuse City School District’s outsourced food services.

In an effort to deter crime, security cameras will be installed in University Neighborhood
By Gabriela Knutson
October 20, 2017 - 1:34pm
A group of landlords, alumni and student organizations teamed up to fundraise $94,000 to monitor the University Neighborhood in hopes of deterring and solving more crime.

Syracuse University’s eastern off-campus neighborhood will soon have security cameras.

The $11,000 security cameras will be scattered around Euclid Avenue between Comstock Avenue and Westcott Street.

“National Grid finished putting up all the mounts like a week or two ago and the final step is this private company that is going to go install the cameras,” said Ben Tupper, a local landlord involved in the effort, adding that the cameras should be up by mid-November at the latest.

Syracuse mayoral candidates share plans to bring jobs to the Near West Side
By McKenna Moore
October 13, 2017 - 1:45pm
Juanita Perez Williams, Ben Walsh, Laura Lavine, and Howie Hawkins explain how they plan to bring jobs back into the city of Syracuse if elected this November.

The main candidates in Syracuse’s mayoral race have similar plans for getting residents of the Near West Side back to work. After the announcement that the Nojaim Brothers Supermarket will close in October, putting approximately 50 people out of work, jobs are an even more contentious issue than before.