Onondaga County Executive met with packed room, urging him to veto Republican-led redistricting map or potentially face a lawsuit     By Jeff KramerMaybe in a perfect world, with his self-styled reputation as a “bipartisan problem solver,” Ryan McMahon doesn’t host a standing room only potential super-spreader in a cramped conference room. Maybe he takes charge, as you might expect …

Citizens get free financial counseling and guidance from new program Seriously, you need counseling. Financial counseling to be precise. That’s the premise of a free city service — that every Syracuse resident, regardless of zip code or income level, can benefit from sitting down with a certified financial planning expert. Especially when it doesn’t cost a nickel. “Everyone can use …

The South Side Newspaper Project has partnered with the community paper in Grahamstown, South Africa — Grocott’s Mail — for a journalistic exchange series – Your Town, Our Town. We will share stories between publications to unify, educate and enlighten both communities. Each exchange pair is shown with the same headline color.   | Recognizing Talent Syracuse resident observes Grahamstown …

Sometimes you end up traveling miles to get to know someone who’s been working and living just a few blocks away. Such was the case over the recent winter break for me when I traveled with a team of students from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University to Grahamstown, South Africa, for a two-week visit. Our …

In his youth, Syracuse’s police chief accepted that cops may shoot him — and one day they almost did KINLOCH, Mo. — A 19-year-old Frank Fowler woke up on a summer morning in his small room in his family’s small apartment and approached a big dresser with a big mirror. He’d been living day-by-day, facing the challenges of growing up …

Program gives high schoolers head start toward law enforcement careers Strumming a guitar inside his friend’s home on a spring evening, Ehblue Htoo paused and looked up. “Don’t we need a bass player for Sunday’s service?” he asked his friends and pastor during a weekly youth worship group meeting. His pastor nodded, and Ehblue, known as “Blu” to his friends, …

Neighbors collaborate to develop five-year plan The 2016 State of the City Address given by Mayor Stephanie Miner highlighted “the racial and ethnic lines upon which the scourge of poverty is felt,” citing that 65 percent of African-Americans in Syracuse “live in areas of extreme poverty” such as its South Side. She added, “On the far end of the poverty …

‘Balcon Criollo’ on display through Dec. 11 in the West Side Luz Encarnacion didn’t know anything about baseball before this past summer. Although, you wouldn’t have been able to tell that on the last weekend of July, when famous baseball player Pedro Martinez was inducted into the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Encarnacion traveled to the stadium and stood and …

Annual event marks 150th anniversary of Juneteenth Celebration Grammy-nominated R&B artist Angie Stone will be in Syracuse this Saturday for the celebration of the 150th anniversary of Juneteenth. The event, which commemorates the day slaves in Texas learned they were free two years after emancipation, starts at noon June 13 in Clinton Square downtown and runs until 10 p.m. As one …

South Side native Lazarus Sims strives to restore quality of parks For some on the South Side, a local park is a lot more than a playground. Syracuse has 52 parks across the city, but the South Side is home to Syracuse’s three most spacious parks, including Kirk Park. Funding and resources for the city’s parks have increased in the …