SYRACUSE CITY NEWS

Latest Syracuse and Onondaga County News and Opinion

David Lassman / The Post-StandardAllysa Hart (left) and Nicole Krisop both 14 years old from Perry , N.Y. ride the Himalaya on the midway at the New York State Fair.

Teenagers love the midway at the New York State Fair. They come to socialize and to see the bizarre shows. But the big draw is the rides.

There are 70 rides, and they're not cheap, according to George Weston, midway manager for Strates Shows. The least expensive one cost about $800,000, he said. The most expensive, Top Spin, cost $2.9 million. The most popular rides, he said, are KMG Fire Ball, Top Spin, Zyklon (a roller coaster) the Giant Ferris Wheeland Himalaya.

Which rides are best for thrill seekers? Which are best for screamers? We asked Central New York teenagers to weigh in.

Click the following rides for their reviews:
Enterprise
Himalaya
KMG Fire Ball (two reviews)
Top Spin (three reviews)
Wave Swing
Zipper

Here's more on teens and the state fair:
• Teens love the midway, by Brendan Pitts, a Baldwinsville senior
• Meet, or join the young writers contributing to The Post-Standard and Syracuse.com this year
• A video of the midway by staff videographer Peter Chen
• How much do the rides cost? Read on.

Syracuse, NY -- Four Onondaga County employees were arrested today on charges stemming from a payroll-padding scheme at the county courthouse where they worked as custodians.

Matthew F. Sindoni Jr., 53; Jerome Bowens, 45; Louis J. Hill, 65, and James Racona, 47, all are facing a felony charge of first-degree falsifying business records. Sindoni and Racona are also facing petit larceny charges. Bowens and Hill are facing additional charges of attempted petit larceny.

According to court papers, Sindoni, the custodial supervisor, is accused of allowing the other three custodians to leave work early and of then using their county-issued swipe cards to clock them out of work later in the evening.

Sindoni also is accused of submitting documentation that overtime was needed for work that was never performed. The prosecution contends the scheme allowed the employees to obtain compensatory benefits and inflated payments to which they were not entitled.

Racona surrendered to prosecution investigators this morning with defense lawyer James Hopkins and was arraigned before City Judge James Cecile. Racona was released on his own recognizance and the case was adjourned to await possible grand jury action.

The other three were taken into custody this morning and were being held in the Justice Center jail this afternoon awaiting arraignment in City Court.

Meet London Ladd, an illustrator, living in Syracuse with his wife, Theresa and daughter, Lavanda. He talks about illustrating the book, "MARCH ON! The Day My Brother Martin Changed the World" by Christine King Farris. Ladd also talks about his dreams. Go to his website to see more art: LondonLadd.com
Video by Ellen M. Blalock (7:49)

Sean Cunningham.

Syracuse, NY -- Sean Cunningham's one-minute film promoting New York looks like a different world from the glitz and glamour of New York City.

But that's the idea behind the 23-year-old Syracuse resident's video, "Discover a Different New York." The film was named a Grand Prize Finalist in this year's "I Love NY Short Film Competition."

From a Skaneateles winery to Ithaca waterfalls, Cunningham showcases a montage of sights from Central New York -- all shot in a single day.

"A lot of people, when they think of New York, they think the city," Cunningham said. "I wanted to show the diversity of the state."

Waking at 6 a.m. the day of the shoot, Cunningham met his college roommate -- and star in his film -- M.J. Parish, of Long Island, to catch a sunrise in Ithaca. From there, they drove nearly 200 miles to 10 locations, stopping at Carpenter Falls in Cayuga County, Seneca Lake and wineries in Skaneateles before shooting a sunset at Oneida Lake, he said.

His friends filmed a fake graduation party in Cunningham's backyard on Bellevue Avenue. In the film, Parish's character tells a friend he's moving to New York.

"Big city," the friend says.

In the next shot, Parish wakes up to see Skaneateles Lake whizzing past his car window. The rest of the film is a montage of scenic shots.

Cunningham, who graduated this spring from State University at Binghamton, only had one expense in making the video: gas for his green Grand Prix.

Empire State Development sponsored the contest. Hundreds submitted videos.

The Grand Prize winners video will be shown during a broadcast of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, as well as on JetBlue Airways seatback televisions and the Independent Film Channel, said Thomas Ranese, chief marketing officer of Empire State Development.

A panel of three celebrity judges -- Tina Fey, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Doug Liman -- will select the grand prize winner in early September. Other contest prizes will be awarded to regional winners and student entries, Ranese said.\

Syracuse, NY -- Syracuse police responding to a burglary-in-progress call today at the rectory of St. Lucy's Church saw a partially open door in the rectory's garage and two pairs of legs visible inside, police said.

When they opened the door, they saw a man and a woman standing inside and a wallet and camera on the floor, police said.

Sean and Viola Girvin, both 40 and both of 106 Fairfield Ave., were taken into custody about 3 a.m. and charged with burglary, a felony, and criminal mischief, a misdemeanor.

Inside the garage, police found a car registered to a man who lives in the rectory at 432 Gifford St. and his wallet. The car appeared to have been rummaged through, officers said.

The Grivins told police that they saw three men burglarize the garage and the couple had entered the garage to observe the damage, police said.

The witness who saw made the call to 911 was able to identify the couple as the pair she saw break into the rectory's garage.

Syracuse, NY - Three Syracuse men were indicted today on murder charges in the kicking and stabbing death of an Eastwood man in June.

Joquawn Dixon, 18, of 137 Bennington Drive; Timothy T. Kearse, 18, of 450 Hazelhurst Ave., and Scott J. O'Brien, 19, of 205 Ashdale Ave., all are facing charges of second-degree murder and first-degree gang assault in the June 27 death of Robert Wilkes, 36, of Lillian Avenue. They are accused of acting together to intentionally kill Wilkes by repeatedly kicking him in the head and body and repeatedly stabbing him with a knife or other sharp instrument.

Wilkes was found bleeding in the 2800 block of James Street. Authorities said the defendants were upset with Wilkes for selling them what turned out to be fake cocaine.

Syracuse, NY -- Syracuse police have made an arrest in the Monday night stabbing of a Salina man outside a Ballantyne Road pizza shop, Syracuse police say.

Tyrae Box, 17, of 171 Bishop Ave., was charged with assault and criminal possession of a weapon, both felonies, Sgt. Tom Connellan, speaking for city police, said.

Frank Herzog Jr., 28, of Wright Avenue, Mattydale, was stabbed once in the chest about 11:45 p.m. Monday outside Sabatino's Pizza and Grocery, 121 Ballantyne Road, police said. Herzog was brought to University Hospital in critical condition and underwent emergency surgery to repair a hole in his heart, Connellan said.

Herzog is listed in serious condition today at the hospital, a hospital spokesperson said.

Box and Herzog had an ongoing dispute, Connellan said. Witnesses told police that they saw Box stab Herzog as the two fought outside Sabatino's, Connellan said.

The investigation into the stabbing is continuing, Connellan said.

Reporter Hart Seely of The Post-Standard gets to the meat of the matter with an investigative report on the new Hot Beef Sundae at the 'Shake It Up' food stand in the Dairy Products Building at the 2008 New York State Fair. Video by Steven J. Pallone (4:10)