Swimming in cash, Onondaga County seeks ways to spend $200 million (Good Morning CNY for June 30)

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Photo of the Day

Two men were reported to be shot - one man in the head - at an apartment complex on the city's Near West Side on Tuesday, June 28, 2022. James McClendon | jmcclendon@syracuse.com

MURDER-SUICIDE IN SYRACUSE: A 21-year-old woman was fatally shot Tuesday night at an apartment complex on the city’s Near West Side by her ex-boyfriend, who later shot and killed himself near the Syracuse airport, Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick said Wednesday. (James McClendon photo)

What’s trending

Onondaga County’s unusual problem: What to do with $200 million?The chief fiscal officer for Onondaga County told lawmakers Tuesday to expect to see more spending initiatives like the county executive’s $5.5 million plan to send $200 checks to senior citizens. County officials are trying to spend down a mountain of cash. In the wake of a pandemic that brought fears of fiscal calamity, Onondaga County, like the city of Syracuse, has instead emerged stronger. County officials are working to develop one-shot spending measures to make use of unprecedented cash reserves that have piled up over the past year and a half.

St. Joe’s merging with Albany hospital to weather financial effects of Covid: St. Joseph’s Health is merging with St. Peter’s Health Partners in Albany to weather the negative financial effects of the Covid pandemic. Trinity Health, which owns both hospital systems, said in a letter to employees that the pandemic’s negative effects “are much greater than anyone imagined.”

1,000 acres of forest to be returned to Onondaga Nation: Centuries after losing nearly all of their land to the state of New York, the Onondaga Nation will see the return of a 1,000-acre sliver of their original, 2.5-million-acre territory. U.S., state and Onondaga Nation officials announced that the nation will be given two heavily forested parcels, one at the headwaters of Onondaga Creek, considered sacred by the nation. It’s one of the largest land transfers made to an Indian nation in the United States, officials said, and the first time that land has been returned directly to a New York tribe.

“It’s like we never left”: Tuesday’s “soft” opening of Clover’s Diner in Skaneateles wasn’t so soft after all. There were customers waiting at the 6 a.m. opening. By 9 a.m., a small line formed of folks waiting to be seated. Scrap metal tycoon and philanthropist Adam Weitsman opened the place to fill the void left when the Hilltop Restaurant — where Weitsman and his daughter Clover frequently ate — closed late last year. Weitsman offered jobs to the Hilltop employees, and many of the old customers returned as well.

Deli on Syracuse’s Westcott Street abruptly closes

Looking Ahead

Live music returning to Dinosaur’s “Boneyard”: Looking for more live music this summer? Dinosaur Bar-B-Que is bringing back live music to its “Boneyard,” the outdoor dining area/beer garden behind the Syracuse restaurant. The first show was Wednesday night. The full lineup for the rest of the summer hasn’t been finalized, but here’s what’s on the schedule so far.

Sports

PACERS PICK UP OSHAE BRISSETT’S OPTION: Former Syracuse star Oshae Brissett (No. 12, right) will return to the Indiana Pacers, the team announced Wednesday after picking up his $1.8 million team option for the 2022-23 season. Brissett, a 6-foot-7 forward, played in 67 games for the Pacers last season (25 starts) and averaged 9.1 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. (AP photo)

Ex-Le Moyne coach to enter College Basketball Hall of Fame: Before coaching at big-time programs like West Virginia and Michigan and long before becoming the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, John Beilein was the head basketball coach at Le Moyne College in Syracuse. Now, Beilein, 69, has been named to the College Basketball Hall of Fame in Kansas City, Missouri.

Another preseason honor for Sean Tucker: Syracuse running back Sean Tucker has made another preseason All-America team. The Walter Camp Football Foundation released its 2022 Preseason All-America teams Monday, and Tucker was on the second team. He’s piled up an impressive number of preseason honors.

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