Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon asked Friends of the Zoo officials to donate $1 million toward the county’s aquarium. When Friends officials gave a lukewarm response, pressure mounted, they said.
Onondaga County
The aquarium gets a new name and new donors — as Onondaga County Legislature Democrats try to curtail McMahon’s power
For the last year, Chief Fiscal Officer Kristi Smiley has been able to accept donations on behalf of Friends of the Aquarium without approval by the legislature. Democrats proposed legislation to change that.
‘What I needed was here’: How Ruthnie Angrand became Onondaga County’s poet laureate
Angrand brings together a complex range of influences – from her Haitian-American identity to her background as a classically trained singer – in her spoken word poetry.
Stewards of Onondaga County’s now sold film hub funneled $5.7 million to the aquarium to be a ‘marquee sponsor’
Some Onondaga County Democrats believe the money breaks a commitment to stop using public funds on the aquarium. The county executive’s spokesperson said the funds were generated through a private sale.
Onondaga County Legislature votes to cap gas sales tax in June
The Onondaga County Legislature’s gas sales tax cap will start June because such a cap cannot begin until the start of a financial quarter.
Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon has kept the county in a state of emergency for nearly three years. Why?
McMahon has hundreds of times renewed two executive orders barring outside municipalities from funding housing for migrants in Onondaga County. That’s “unconstitutional,” says an NYCLU lawyer.
With power in the Onondaga County Legislature, Watts begins planning path forward on county’s housing crisis
Tuesday’s housing summit hosted a bipartisan group of elected officials from across the county. Legislature Chair Nicole Watts hopes it will be a launchpad for a months-long planning process.
New York AG’s office bars former Onondaga County jail medical provider from NY jails
Over twenty months, there were four deaths in their care at the Onondaga. County jail. The AG said they violated New York “corporate practice of medicine” laws.
Onondaga County begins using AI to translate, transcribe and summarize 911 calls
County officials say the technology might limit burnout among call takers, but AI researchers are skeptical.
Onondaga County legislators approve industrial wastewater district for Micron
All but two Onondaga County Democrats voted to approve the wastewater district, though they expressed skepticism about the vote over what they deemed a lack of information provided by the county.

