Signing Off On a Campaign

Driving through the neighborhoods of Syracuse, you might not be able to tell that an election was over. Many campaign signs endorsing candidates for mayor, school board, and common council are still in place. But eventually the signs do have to come down.

City Clerk John Copanas said no specific, strictly enforced law exists concerning the taking down of campaign signs. But he said the general time frame to get rid of signs is a week or two. Signs in the public right of way (from the sidewalk to the street) will be disposed of by garbage men. Copanas said a family can keep a sign on their lawn if they want to: "it's private property, and we can't do anything about that."

When reached by phone, the Miner campaign said they plan to collect the signs, but they believe most people will want to keep these signs as a commemorative memento, due to the historic nature of the election.

In comparison, Steve Kimatian's campaign manager Fran Coudriet said campaign volunteers had began taking down signs during the day after the election. Coudriet said "we plan to have all signs down by the weekend." He also said the campaign volunteers planned to recycle the signs, which are made of recyclable materials. A final option for the signs, according to Coudriet, was to give them to some non-profit groups. These groups will put stickers over the signs in order to re-use them for other candidates.

Beloved Pets

In September 2006 Gina Embriadi's dog Mugsey passed away. Instead of putting him in a traditional urn, she came up with an alternative. "I didn't want to bury him cause of him being out in the cold out there. As foolish as that sounds. I was not ready not to hold him again, at all," said Embriadi. So she decided to put his ashes in a cuddly urn. "When my dog passed away I was totally devastated and I came across a photo with this dog laying on the back of my couch and that's when it hit me," she said. From then on she started her business 'Beloved Pets'. "You can have a replica that resembles them or any stuffed animal that's significant to you. It can be a personal one that you enjoy or if you have children, one that they're really close to. If they lost a beloved animal, their ashes are placed there." Gina says that each animal is special and she treats them as if they were her own. "Each one of these are passionate to me. When I do an animal, when I make a cuddly urn, I put my heart and soul into it," said Embriadi. Gina hopes, that by word of mouth, she will able to reach out to those grieving over a lost pet. http://www.belovedpetsbygina.com/ http://www.otrib.com/community/

More People in CNY Are Using Pawn Shops For Extra Cash

With the holiday season just around the corner, many Central New Yorkers are finding ways to make a little extra cash. One way some people are doing it is by pawning off their personal items.

At Big Mike’s Swap Shop in Mattydale, owner Mike Getek says it’s been a busy time for his store. Customers come in trying to sell everything from stereos to jewelry and everything in between. For a typical stereo, you can get between $20 to $30, but for jewelry you can make even more.

“Gold is up to its highest point right now,” said Getek. “It’s at $1,080 an ounce for gold. That’s for 24 karat.” All jewelry is measured by weight, whether gold, silver or diamonds.

So with all these items coming in, Getek’s store isn’t only busy with people wanting to sell. An equal number of people are also now using pawn shops as a way to find discounted gifts before the busy shopping season begins. Either way, pawn shops have become a new trend during the tough economy, and Getek expects to stay busy through Tax Day.

Find a pawn shop near you: http://www.pawnshoplistings.com/

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Celebrating Beer Week

Syracuse Beer Week gives residents a chance to taste and experience local, regional and national beers once a year. Restaurants from all over the city participate, allowing beer-lovers to taste all sorts of varieties of their favorite beverage.

The idea for Syracuse Beer Week started last year, and according to Event Coordinator Brian Duprey, was based off of Philadelphia’s own form of beer week.

Many of the events are free to the public, which allows people to try a broad range of beers without hurting their wallet. However, according to Michael Yorton from the Blue Tusk and Adam Eagen from Empire Brewery, people still make room for plenty of beer in their budgets, even during tough economic times.

“I actually see it as a sign of people being more sensible,” Yorton said. “Maybe instead of buying a $100 bottle of wine, you can buy an amazing bottle of beer for $5.”

Beer Week allows restaurants and breweries around the city to promote their products and attract new customers. This is especially important for local breweries like Empire and Middle Ages. The week allows them to showcase their full range of home brews, and seasonal beers. However the events only run until Saturday, and then it’s back to a normal schedule for all the local breweries.

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October's Auto Sales Increase

After a tumultuous year for the auto industry, October has been a good month for car and truck sales. According to Autodata Corporation, sales are up from September by 12 percent. Analysts say the willingness to spend is a sign of a bettering economy.

The most profitable company for the month was Hyundai, who saw a 49 percent boost in sales. Nissan came next with a 5.6 percent increase. General Motors saw a 4.7 increase.

Kevin Wiggins, Sales Manager of Fuccillo Hyundai, says sales of hard commodities like cars are a good indicator of the economy. He says his dealership has seen a lot more activity in the past month. "You can see it in the number of phone calls, the number of people coming into the dealership," said Wiggins.

Lucino Plaza, of Syracuse New York, just bought a car at Fucillo. He says in light of the recession, the combination of price and beauty of the Hyundai Sonata convinced him to buy. "We've been struggling, but I guess everything is going to get to normal very soon. My job is getting better, it's getting busy. That's why I'm able to afford this car that I got now, the Hyundai Sonata," he said.

While the auto industry is showing signs of growth, the future is still uncertain. Unemployment rates reached a 26 year high at 9.6 percent, and are expected to rise to 9.9 for the month of October.

Wiggins says he is optimistic though, and he believes the auto industry will rise at least 20 percent in the next few months. "As people in our neck of the woods get out of the winter months and the economy gets better, we'll see more people coming into the dealership."

Library Uses Books To Battle Budget Deficits

At 10 a.m. Wednesday morning, a crowd of approximately 15 people gathered at the back entrance of the Baldwinsville Public Library. When the doors opened, some headed straight to the computers, but others were enticed by the posting on the door that reads: book sale.

While it may seem ironic that a library is selling books versus lending them, library director Marilyn Laubacher said this is a common fundraiser.

The books are donations from members of the community and books that have been taken out of circulation. The sale sells books for as little as $1.00 and for the last two days, they sell books by the bag.

Deborah Pinker bought books on Tuesday and returned to the sale on Wednesday for a second helping. "Yesterday probably [bought 12 books]. Today, I don't wanna count yet, probably at least 20," she said.

The price is a big attraction, especially in tough economic times.

"Usually, when the economy is bad, library use goes up because people don't go to buy books as much as they used to," Laubacher said.

The Baldwinsville Public Library circulation is up by as much as 10 percent from last year, but funding is down.

"The cuts that are being made at the state level will affect us because libraries all belong to library systems in New York state, " Laubacher explained.

Most of the library staff is volunteers and delivery services, as well as cataloging, will suffer. Some residents in Baldwinsville see the book sale as a way to preserve their library.

"This is a good fundraiser, having a sale like this, and as more people begin to learn about this, you can only expand and contribute constantly to the library, which is a good thing. Besides, it makes people more aware of a resource available in their community," John Pelligra, who bought various books on art and travel, said.

The library estimates this book sale will generate about $4,000 in funds that they will distribute among various resources.

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Tire Prices Rise Just in Time for Winter

Syracuse, N.Y.--It sounds like a pun. Inflation is bad for tires.

On average, the price of an individual tire is up $2 from last year. Chinese made tires have seen a more significant price increase because of a 35 percent tariff on foreign manufacturers passed by the federal government in September. Chinese tires make up 17 percent of all tires sold in the United States each year.

Some retailers also attributed the price increase to rising transportation costs and the fact that more expensive tires are being put on passenger cars by the original manufacturer. As a result, it is more expensive to replace those tires when they wear out.

With winter just around the corner, many Central New Yorkers have yet to buy snow tires. Local retailers say this year they see a noticeable increase in people "shopping around" for tires rather than buying.

One employee at Kost-Tire Muffler at Syracuse says the price of snow tires also might be increasing as a result of a higher demand for them among Canadians.


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Learn more about the tires shown in this story here.
Watch KUSA's Kevin Torres' story on tires.