Onondaga County

Is New York State withholding previous CARES Act funding for Onondaga County and the City of Syracuse?  WAER’s John Smith followed up on Congressmember John Katko's request for the state to release funds.  Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul disagrees that's not accurate as the state is $14 billion in the red.  

Opening schools will come with risks, but Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon feels that the community is in the position to handle the coronavirus. The county’s infection rate has been below 1% for over a week now, and has dropped to around half a percent in the last few days.

COVID-19 has changed, sometimes cancelled, some of kids favorite summer activities in Syracuse.The city’s Parks and Recreation Department had to adapt  with new health precautions in place and fiscal strain due to the pandemic. Now, they’re trying to keep some summer activities going in new ways.

Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon is disappointed in many of the county’s school district reopening plans. At a briefing Friday, McMahon said his office had asked schools to at least bring elementary school students back 5 days a week.

Despite some bipartisan calls for state and local governments to be a part of the next coronavirus stimulus package, it’s looking less and less likely that Senate Republicans are going to include them in their bill. Municipalities like Syracuse and Onondaga County have not received any direct federal aid during the pandemic, but they have lost significant amounts of revenue.

The number of young people contracting and spreading COVID-19 continues to increase with summer in full swing. 39% of the 66 new cases in Onondaga County since last Thursday are from people under the age of 30.

New rules from the State Thursday forbid bars and restaurants to sell alcohol without selling food. Specific guidance has yet to be issued, but Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon said he expects to see creative ways to keep business going in Central New York.

Central New York has progressed through the four phases designed by the state to restart the economy. But where do we go from here?

The average of new COVID-19 cases each day went up for the first time last week since Onondaga County began reopening eight weeks ago. County Executive Ryan McMahon said the uptick is largely driven by groups of people gathering without wearing masks or maintaining distance from each other.

People under the age of 29 are quickly becoming a significant portion of new COVID-19 cases in Onondaga County. Summer is typically a season for graduation parties and other social gatherings for young people.