Syracuse's June graduation rate ahead of Rochester, below Buffalo

SYRACUSE, N.Y. --

The Syracuse City School District is gradually improving its
graduation rate.

Syracuse's district-wide graduation rate for students completing high school in four years in June 2014 was 51.1 percent, up from 48.8 percent the prior year.

Outside of the city in Onondaga County, Fayetteville-Manlius had the highest June graduation rate at 98 percent. Jordan-Elbridge had the lowest at 78 percent.

The New York State Education Department released statewide graduation data for the 2013-2014 school year today.   The department releases total graduation rates for June and for August - which includes students who graduate after attending summer school.

Statewide, the June graduation rate was 76.4 percent, an increase over the previous year's 74.9 percent. The August statewide rate was 79.1 percent.

Syracuse's August 2014 graduation rate was 55.7 percent, up from 51.9 percent the year before. 

"We know we have a lot of work to do," said Sharon Contreras, superintendent of the Syracuse district. "Having a graduation rate of 56 percent (in August) is not something that we're proud of. But we are proud that we're moving in the right direction." 

Syracuse's improvement in its June graduation rate (51.1 percent) puts the city schools ahead of Rochester's graduation rate (43.4 percent) but behind Buffalo's (52.8 percent) .

The June graduation rate improved for all Syracuse city high schools except Fowler.

Here is a comparison of Syracuse high school graduation rates in June 2013 and June 2014: 

• Corcoran 59 to 62

• Fowler 32 to 30

• Henninger 45 to 49

• Institute of Technology at Syracuse Central (ITC)  74 to 76

• Nottingham 54 to 60

Including August graduates rates boosts each of the schools by several percentage points.

Syracuse's district drop-out rate also improved, from 18.6 percent in 2012-2013 to 16.5 percent in 2013-2014.

Look up school district graduation rates across New York

Look up individual high school graduation rates across New York

Contact Dave Tobin anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3277

Ceremonies to be held simultaneously in Syracuse and at Arlington National Cemetery

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Remembrance services for the victims of Pan Am Flight 103 will be held Sunday in Syracuse and in Arlington, Va.

Both ceremonies will begin at 2:03 p.m. Dec. 21- the exact time and date of the crash of Flight 103 in 1988. The ceremonies will honor the 270 people who died when the jet was blown up by a bomb over Lockerbie, Scotland.

Thirty-five students studying through SU's Division of International Programs Abroad (now SU Abroad) died in the tragedy.

In Syracuse, the chaplains of SU's Hendricks Chapel will conduct a remembrance service in the chapel at 2:03 p.m. Following the service, those in attendance will proceed to the Wall of Remembrance, located in front of the Hall of Languages, where a brief memorial statement will be offered by Hendricks Chapel Dean Tiffany Steinwert. The Crouse Chimes will sound 35 times.

At Arlington National Cemetery, a service at the Pan Am 103 memorial cairn will take place simultaneously. That service is organized by the Victims of Pan Am Flight 103 families group.

Representatives from SU and members of SU's 2014-15 Remembrance Scholars cohort plan to attend.

Contact Dave Tobin anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3277

Chief Paul Linnertz gives a status report to city councilors.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Fire trucks in Syracuse arrive at emergencies three minutes and 37 seconds after being called, on average -- a response time that has not changed significantly since city officials made the unpopular decision last year to close a neighborhood fire station.

In the 18 months since city officials closed Fire Station No. 7 on East Fayette Street and cut the number of firefighters on each shift, the fire department has not lost a step, Fire Chief Paul Linnertz said Wednesday to members of the city council.

"There has not been a negative impact,'' Linnertz said.

Linnertz, who spoke at a meeting of the council's public safety committee, said the average response time during the first eight months of 2014 was 3 minutes, 37 seconds. That compares with 3:28 in 2013, 3:19 in 2012 and 3:21 in 2011, according to data from the Onondaga County 911 center.

Linnertz and Mayor Stephanie Miner cut expenses in May 2013 by closing Station 7 and reducing the number of firefighters on each shift from 69 to 65. The strategy sparked protests from firefighters, neighborhood groups and several city councilors.

Former Councilor Pat Hogan, who challenged Miner in a 2013 primary for mayor, announced his campaign outside Station 7. To this day, some firefighters grumble about the cutbacks.

But Linnertz said response-time data show that "residents of the city of Syracuse continue to receive excellent fire protection and first responder EMS care, in a timely manner.''

To compensate for cuts in staffing and apparatus, the department has stopped responding to non-life threatening medical calls. That cuts the overall number of calls and helps firefighters maintain prompt response times for fires and serious medical emergencies, Linnertz said.

The department's medical director, Dr. Joseph Markham, helped devise new protocols under which firefighters no longer respond to minor medical emergencies. Since the new system was implemented in July 2014, firefighters have responded to 42 percent fewer medical calls, Linnertz said.

The fire department now responds to an average of 60 total calls a day, compared with 85 a day during the first six months of 2014, he said.

"Calls for simple fainting, early stages of childbirth, general illnesses, allergies, headaches and other similar situations do not require the response of the fire department because an ambulance is already responding to the call,'' Linnertz said. "We will always respond to more serious life threatening calls, like difficulty breathing, chest pains, and unconscious persons.''

Union officials don't like the new policy. Paul Motondo, president of Local 280 of the International Association of Fire Fighters, said screening out minor medical calls is a disservice to taxpayers. People with minor emergencies are now waiting longer for help, until an ambulance arrives, he said.

"What does that do for the citizens? What does that do for the taxpayers?'' Motondo said. "The men and women (of the fire department) didn't have a problem responding to those calls.''

When Linnertz began his career as a firefighter in 1985, each shift had 83 firefighters on duty, he said. That number has dropped to 65.

He told councilors that he is confident the fire department will maintain its elite ISO Class 1 rating from the insurance industry. "It's very manageable for us,'' he said.

Contact Tim Knauss anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3023

SFD Response Times

A woman couldn't fit her donation, which weighed almost 7 pounds, into a red kettle so she brought it to the Salvation Army office in Syracuse.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The Syracuse Salvation Army received a donation far too large to fit in one of its holiday red kettles earlier this week: A solid bar of silver.

A woman, who wanted to remain anonymous, walked into the Salvation Army office in Syracuse and handed the bar of silver to an employee. The solid bar of silver, which weighs a little less than 7 pounds, is worth between $1,500 and $1,700.

"The interaction happened so quickly and the Army employee who accepted the donation was so stunned that we wanted to properly and publicly show our gratitude for such a rare gift. This wonderful donor found it in her heart to donate to the Army at this time of the year and we are very grateful," said Captain John Luby, executive director of the CNY Region of The Salvation Army.

Luby said the generous donation will help offset lower than usual donations this holiday season.

The Salvation Army produces the area's largest holiday donation program, the Salvation Army Christmas Bureau. The give-away, which takes place Monday at the Oncenter in Syracuse, will provide Christmas dinner, a week of food and presents for 6,721 children this year.

Syracuse.com and The Post-Standard raise money for the Christmas Bureau through the Old Newsboys fund. Donations can be made online to that fund or directly to the Salvation Army.

Contact Marnie Eisenstadt anytime: email | twitter | 315-470-2246.

Critics say the SUNY research is partially funded by profit-seeking companies

Syracuse, N.Y. -- Critics of genetically modified organisms are criticizing SUNY ESF's announcement that it had genetically engineered an American chestnut tree resistant to blight.

"Genetically engineered chestnuts and other trees are an unnecessary, undesirable, and hazardous product of the techno-obsessed mindset that assumes genetic codes are like Lego sets that can be engineered to our specifications," said Rachel Smolker, a member of the Campaign to STOP Genetically Engineered Trees, in a statement issued today. "The impacts of these engineered chestnuts will be completely unpredictable."

After 25 years of research, scientists at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry announced last month they had created a new strain of blight-resistant American chestnut that could restore the once-abundant tree to the forest. Researchers said they had inserted a wheat gene that could help chestnuts withstand the blight that wiped out up to 5 billion of the trees in the United States.

The Global Justice Ecology Project has also criticized the SUNY-ESF research, saying it had been supported in part by corporations who want to profit from genetically engineered crops, including Monsanto and ArborGen.

"A look at the partners and funders of this program at SUNY ESF over the years reveals some very disturbing bedfellows," said the group's executive director, Anne Petermann, in an article titled "This Holiday Season say NO to GMO Chestnuts."

ESF's American Chestnut Research and Restoration Project website lists Monsanto and ArborGen as donors.

The latest criticism follows a letter to the editor to Syracuse.com last month, in which Martha Crouch, a biologist with the Center for Food Safety, said release of the tree in the wild is premature.

"The researchers' dream could become a nightmare if something goes wrong," Crouch wrote. "Genetically engineered trees will be difficult to recall once they spread."

One Washington Post columnist has come to the defense of the SUNY ESF research, saying the restoration of the tree could provide an important source of food in the nutrient-rich nuts -- the kind that used to be roasted like in that Christmas song.

"It wasn't created for personal profit or for the benefit of corporations or farmers," wrote columnist Tamar Haspel. "It contributes to a wholesome, healthful diet. And it's intended solely for the public good."

The SUNY-ESF project needs the approval of several federal agencies before trees could be planted in the wild. That process could take five years, said the lead researchers, Charles Maynard and William Powell. In the meantime, SUNY ESF is seeking tax-deductible donations to plant up to 10,000 chestnut trees.

Contact Glenn Coin: Email | Twitter | Google + | (315) 470-3251

"It's full bore ahead, and hopefully, our guys can deliver, and in 12 months, we'll be open," Lago's developer Thomas Wilmot said.

SENECA FALLS, N.Y. - Construction equipment moved today onto the Seneca County site where the Lago Resort & Casino Hotel will be built, Thomas Wilmot said today.

The structural steel is bought. Contracts already are let for the foundation and roof, said Wilmot, the head of Wilmorite, the real estate and mall developer behind the project.

Digging for the $425 million project begins on Friday.

"They are moving equipment on the site as we speak," Wilmot said this afternoon at a celebratory rally at the Finger Lakes Regional Airport, one day after the state chose Lago as one of three full-scale casinos to open in New York.

Wilmot, who has been trying to open a casino for decades, still has to obtain a license from New York for Lago and to fight off legal challenges from Tyre residents opposed to his plans. He conceded today that work would pause for the Christmas holiday.

"The following week we'll really get rolling," he said. "It's full bore ahead, and hopefully, our guys can deliver, and in 12 months, we'll be open."

Lago will cover 85 acres along Route 414, just north of the New York State Thruway and off Exit 41. In addition to slots and table games, the resort will have five restaurants - from steak to seafood, Wilmot said. It's 207-room, four-star hotel will be run by Lago, rather than a hospitality chain.

And Lago will boast a 2,200-seat theater, adding another live performance venue to the Finger Lakes and Central New York. There are no plans for a bingo hall or poker, he added.

"We believe this facility will be comparable to what you will see in Las Vegas," Wilmot said, though its style will fit in with the architecture style of the Finger Lakes, he added.

Wilmot received a standing ovation in the packed airport hangar, where about 150 supporters, union members and local politicians gathered. The crowd had expected Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who was taking a victory lap around the state. A snowstorm east of Syracuse forced the governor to cancel the Seneca County leg of the trip.

Cuomo began promoting expanded gaming when he first took office in 2011. During the next three years, he won support from the New York State Legislature and ultimately the state's voters for the expansion.

Finally, on Wednesday, a siting panel under the New York Gaming Commission recommended three proposals win state-issued casino licenses in Seneca County, Schenectady and the Catskills.

Wilmorite worked on the Lago proposal for about two years. It grew from a $350 million to $425 million project during that time, he said today. The hotel shrunk from 400 rooms to 207, because local officials worried it would create too much competition with existing hotels.

Wilmot acknowledged some of Lago's neighbors, including an Amish family, are concerned about the project. Wilmot said he's tried to meet with some of those future neighbors to no avail.

"It's a very small group," he said. "We're talking maybe 10 families in the area that are opposed to this."

A group called CasinoFreeTyre says it's collected more than 200 signatures opposed the project. The town of Tyre, Lago's future home, has 858 people, according to U.S. Census estimates. The area is a mix of farms, wineries, golf courses, outlet malls, and small hotels.

Seneca County, the town of Tyre and its planning board all endorsed the plan, Wilmot said today.

On Wednesday, the CasinoFreeTyre's lawyer said it was considering suing the state for recommending a license for Lago because the project grew after winning the government approvals.

Wilmot believes the resort will attract many of its visitors from the Rochester area, but he also expects people to come from Buffalo to Syracuse. He expects the resort to have nearly $300 million in gross revenues when its fully built out, with about 80 percent of those receipts coming from the games.

New York currently has gaming in casinos owned by Native Americans and video gambling at harness tracks. Wilmot said today he's confident the addition of three casinos to New York won't overburden the market. He said recent casino failures in New Jersey won't ripple into Upstate New York. Atlantic City came to rely on commuting gamblers from Philadelphia. When casinos opened in Pennsylvania, he said, the New Jersey strip lost its customers.

Wilmot expects gamblers at Lago to be a mix of day-time visitors and overnight travelers.
And it's possible the casino could eventually get bigger, depending on demand.

"If we're open and on Friday night every slot has a fanny sitting in front of it, we'll have to expand," Wilmot said, laughing. "I hope we have that problem."

So does Mike Davis, the president of the Finger Lakes Building Trades and member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 840. Currently, the local has 55 members out of work, Davis said.

But the union is gearing up for work at Lago, said Davis, who's been meeting with Wilmot since February to talk about the project. Davis lives about three miles from the future casino and said he'll be driving by it every day.

"I can't wait till it's built," Davis said. "I'm going to have dinner there every Friday night."

Contact Teri Weaver anytime: Email | Twitter | 315-470-2274

He wore a black mask and had a gun when he stole narcotics from The Medicine Place. Watch video

PHOENIX, N.Y. -- A man is in jail after he stole narcotics from a pharmacy in the town of Phoenix earlier this month, police said in a news release.

Cody Michael Hall, 22, of 744 County Route 10 in Pennellville, was arrested by Phoenix and state police officers around 11:45 a.m. Thursday on Route 31 in the town of Cicero.

Police said Hall wore a mask and brandished a black handgun while robbing The Medicine Place around 4:45 p.m. Dec. 9 at 464 Main St.

Hall was charged with felonies for first-degree robbery, first-degree criminal use of a firearm and fourth-degree grand larceny. He's also facing a misdemeanor for fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

He was arraigned in the town of Schroeppel Court and sent to the Oswego County Jail in lieu of $50,000 cash bail or $100,000 Bond.

Contact Jolene Almendarez anytime: 315-418-8746 | Email | Twitter | Facebook |

His command covers seven counties in Central New York.

CENTRAL NEW YORK -- New York State Police announced a new Troop D commanding officer Thursday evening.

Major Francis S. Coots, 53, of Syracuse, was promoted to the position after more than 30 years with the force. His new command covers seven counties in Central New York including Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga and Oswego -- that encompasses 167 towns, 89 villages and five cities.

Coots became a trooper in 1983, serving Troop E, before being promoted to sergeant eight years later. He has served as a captain and Zone 1 commander in the town of Marcy in Oneida County since 2005, officials said.

Coots is a Framingham, Massachusetts native. He is married with three children, four step-children and six grandchildren.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Police are at the scene of a shooting near West Onondaga Street in Syracuse Thursday night, a 911 dispatcher said. Syracuse police and Rural Metro Ambulance responded to the call at 8:32 p.m. An area around an apartment complex on White Street, near the intersection of Rich Street, is taped off. Visit Syracuse.com for more informaiton about...

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Police are at the scene of a shooting near West Onondaga Street in Syracuse Thursday night, a 911 dispatcher said.

Syracuse police and Rural Metro Ambulance responded to the call at 8:32 p.m.

An area around an apartment complex on White Street, near the intersection of Rich Street, is taped off.

Visit Syracuse.com for more informaiton about this developing story.

Time Warner Cable says cable sports programming costs have risen 91 percent since 2008.

Syracuse, N.Y. — Time Warner Cable says its new, $2.75 monthly sports programming surcharge will only partially offset "dramatically" increasing costs of providing sports programming over its cable network.

"The rising cost of sports programming isn't new, but it's escalating dramatically," Time Warner Cable spokesman Scott Pryzwansky said in an email to Syracuse.com. "Since 2008, our cost for cable sports programming has gone up by 91 percent, and we think that it's important to show customers the impact of these rising costs through a specific item on their bills. The new fee will only reflect a small portion of the escalating costs we are now paying for sports."

ESPN, the mother of all sports channels, charges cable providers an average of $6.04 a month per subscriber, making it by far the most expensive channel for cable providers to broadcast, according to SNL Kagan. And the media research firm estimates the cost will rise to more than $8 a month by 2018.

Those fees do not include carriage charges for ESPN2, which average 74 cents a month per cable subscriber, according to SNL Kagan.

Time Warner notes that some of its competitors, including DirecTV and Verizon FiOS, already charge specific fees for sports programming in many markets.

Time Warner's sports programming surcharge is to cover the fees that cable sports channels such as ESPN and regional sports networks charge for the right to carry their channels and is not related to sports programming from broadcast channels, Time Warner said.

However, Time Warner a year ago began charging customers a $2.25 monthly "broadcast TV" surcharge to offset what it said was the rising cost of retransmission fees — the charges it pays to local broadcast stations to retransmit their over-the-air programming, which includes a lot of sports. That fee is rising to $2.75.

Time Warner customers cannot drop cable sports channels and opt out of the new surcharge. Pryzwansky said the company's contracts with the major cable sports channels require it to make the channels part of regular programming packages that all subscribers receive.

"We're working to make our channel options as flexible as possible to meet consumer demands for greater choice, but the fact is most of the networks we carry won't allow their channels to be offered on a stand-alone basis," he said.

The spokesman said about 75 percent of customers with standard TV service or above will not immediately see the sports programming surcharge because they are in promotional package pricing. They will start seeing the surcharge on their bills when their promotional pricing deals end, he said.

He said the company's increase in the monthly fee for the HBO movie channel from $14.95 to $16.99 will only affect customers who get HBO on an a la carte basis. The vast majority of Time Warner customers who subscribe to HBO get it as part of a package price, and package prices are not changing, he said.

Pryzwansky said Time Warner's equipment fee increases, such as the hike in its monthly Internet modem lease from $5.99 to $8, are needed to pay for the cost of the equipment and associated operational costs. Time Warner has invested more than $233 million in network improvement and reliability across its Northeast markets over the past year, he said.

Contact Rick Moriarty anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3148

Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple said the boy, Kenneth White, was being watched by the 19-year-old daughter of his legal guardians

BERNE, N.Y. -- Authorities haven't ruled out a custody dispute in an abduction that sparked an Amber Alert Thursday in Upstate New York after a 5-year-old boy was grabbed by two men wearing black ski masks.

Kenneth White. An New York Amber Alert has been issued after White was abducted from his Albany County home on Dec. 18, 2014.State Police 

Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple said the boy, Kenneth White, was being watched by the 19-year-old daughter of his legal guardians when the men entered the house, pinned the woman to the floor and took the child at about 1:30 p.m. Thursday.

They left the home in the Albany suburb of Berne in a large black pickup truck, touching off the alert.

Apple said the caretaker and two other small children were left unharmed.

He said Kenneth's mother lives elsewhere in New York, his father in Massachusetts.

Apple said a motive isn't clear, but it may involve a custody dispute.

Here is a New York State advisory on the Amber Alert.

Eight children were found dead on Friday inside a home in a northern Australian city, police said.

SYDNEY (AP) -- Eight children were found dead on Friday inside a home in a northern Australian city, police said.

Queensland state police said they were called to the home in the Cairns suburb of Manoora on Friday morning after receiving a report of a woman with serious injuries.

Police said when they got to the house, they found the bodies of the children inside the home. The victims range in age from 18 months to 15 years.

The woman, believed to be in her 30s, is receiving treatment for her injuries, police said. They said they had no further information, including how the children were killed.

Dozens of police have swarmed the home.

Bill and Hillary Clinton, Stephen Baldwin and other celebrities have spent time in Skaneateles.

SKANEATELES, N.Y. -- Former baseball player Derek Jeter has purchased a house on Skaneateles Lake, at least according to a nationally known gossip column.

The former New York Yankee bought a house in the "tony upstate (and hard-to-pronounce) enclave of Skaneateles," The New York Post's Page Six said.

Everyone in Skaneateles is buzzing about the news, a local told Page Six. People have also been trying to figure out which house Jeter bought. Several real estate brokers refused to provide information.

County property records do not list anyone named Derek Jeter as owning a home in the town of Skaneateles, though it is not unheard of for celebrities to purchase homes for themselves using other entities.

Jeter was in Central New York on Dec. 10 to speak at Hamilton College.

The moderator at the event said Jeter seemed to be letting his guard down recently and talking more about private matters in his life. But Jeter disagreed, saying there are new avenues of his professional life he is open to sharing but emphasized that there is a boundary between everyone's professional life and private life.

Bill and Hillary Clinton, Stephen Baldwin and other celebrities have spent time in Skaneateles.

Central New York will start the day off Friday with scattered light snow and freezing rain in the morning.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Central New York has some lousy weather including freezing rain Friday and rain next week before temperatures drop and create snow around Christmas.

Central New York will start the day off Friday with scattered light snow and freezing rain in the morning. The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory for all of Central New York until 7 a.m. Friday, warning of possible icy roads.

High pressure will build over the Northeast heading into the weekend, bringing mild and dry weather. Sunshine is expected and temperatures will reach the low 30s.

Next week will also start off dry, Time Warner Cable News reported. But rain will return to Central New York by Tuesday, though temperatures will reach the low 40s. Colder air pushing into the region will probably drop the temperature enough to make snow on Christmas Eve.

Christmas Day is expected to be cold, snowy and windy.

Your Forecast

• Friday: Cloudy. Snow possible in the morning and afternoon. Northwest winds of about 10 mph. Freezing rain and snow possible in the evening. Highs near 30. Lows in the low 20s.
  
• Saturday: Partly sunny with northwest winds of about 5 mph. Highs in the low 30s. Lows near 20.
  
• Sunday: Partly sunny. Highs in the mid 30s. Lows in the low 20s.
  
• Monday: Cloudy with a chance for rain, freezing rain and snow in the evening. Highs near 40. Lows in the low 30s.
  
• Tuesday: Cloudy with a fair chance for rain, freezing rain and snow during the day and evening. Highs in the low 40s. Lows in the high 30s.

You can also follow us on Facebook or visit http://www.syracuse.com/weather/ for more on the weather.

To send in weather info, or especially photos: Use the Twitter or Instagram hashtag: #cnyweather Also, please let us know where the images are located.

We crunched the numbers so you don't have to. Here's what we found

Syracuse, N.Y. -- If you're going to hire someone to plow your driveway, is it cheaper to pay one price for the entire season or for each time the driver plows?

"Per plow. That's the easiest question in the world," said Keith Dart, who's been plowing driveways for 16 years in the Skaneateles area.

Dart is right. After analyzing snowfall totals and plowing rates, we came to the same conclusion:

Per-plow is cheaper. Seasonal contracts are more expensive.

Our informal survey of contractors and customers in Syracuse and its suburbs showed that you'd pay $51 more per year for a contract than per-plow during an average winter.

There are plenty of other factors that go into the decision, of course. Your actual cost would depend upon the details of the contract, including the exact cost per season and per plow. It depends on how much snow you get and how big your driveway is. Some people like the peace of mind of knowing exactly how much they'll pay per year. Others are willing to gamble on a mild winter.

Contractors say their customers generally prefer seasonal contracts. Todd Abery, owner of AAA quick plows and lawns, in Clay, said 195 of his 200 customers sign up for the annual contract, which is about $300.

"It's easier to pay one price, and it seems to be less for them to worry about," said Abery, who has five trucks and hires four sub-contractors. "They won't have to worry about getting a huge bill if we get a lot of snow."

Here's what we found out in our survey. (You can read our complete assumptions and calculations below):

• Average seasonal contract: $339

• Average seasonal cost, per plow: $288

The difference: $51 less per year paying per plow.

We figured that under a seasonal contract with a three-plow-per-day maximum, your driveway would be plowed an average of 18 times a season. With an average per-plow price of $16, those same number of plows would cost $288.

This analysis comes with a whole bunch of caveats, of course. What really matters is how much a contractor in your area would charge you for the whole season versus how much he'd charge you per plow. We sampled mostly city and suburban Onondaga County residents and plow operators, and rates might vary in outlying areas.

Below are the assumptions and calculations we used. Let us know what you do: Seasonal or per-plow?

• Snowfall: Data from the Northeast Regional Climate Center show that from 2004 to 2013, Syracuse had an average of 120.9 inches of snow between Nov. 1 and March 31 -- a typical length for seasonal plowing contracts.

The snowfall totals come from Hancock International Airport. If you live in the hills of Pompey or Cazenovia, or closer to Lake Ontario in lake effect country, you'll get more snow.

• Costs. We talked to several contractors (many didn't return phone calls) and a dozen or so homeowners in Syracuse and its suburbs. Prices per season ranged from $275 to $400, with an average of $339. The average cost for a per-plow agreement was $16 per plow.

• Inches per plow. Plowing contracts usually kick in at 3 inches, so we counted every day on which at least 2.9 inches (accounting for rounding errors) of snow fell. Over the past 10 years, that happened 128 times, or an average of about 13 times per year.

Plowing every 3 inches is better for homeowner and contractor, said Rufino Ramos, who has plowed driveways in Syracuse since 2008.

"If you let it build up you have a problem," Ramos said. "The snow compacts, it gets heavy, and it's tough on the equipment."

• Plows per day: We took those daily snowfall amounts and estimated how many times a contractor would plow your driveway under a seasonal contract. Most contractors start plowing when the snow hits 3 inches. Some contractors plow a maximum of two or three times per day, and others have no limits. We used a maximum of three per day, the most common number in contracts. That means any snowfall over 9 inches in one day would be plowed at most three times.

Using the 3-inch threshold and the three-plows-a-day maximum, we calculated that a driveway would be plowed about 18 times under a seasonal contract.

• Driveway size: We assumed a standard suburban driveway, which is about two cars wide and two cars deep. Bigger driveways, or steep driveways, can cost more to plow.

Contact Glenn Coin: Email | Twitter | Google + | (315) 470-3251

The men -- 30-year-old Tarus Scott and 27-year-old Genard Dupree -- were arrested Tuesday on grand theft charges.

screenshot from WPIX video 

LAKE WALES, Fla. (AP) -- Authorities say a man faked a heart attack inside a Florida Wal-Mart store so his friend could steal toys.

The men -- 30-year-old Tarus Scott and 27-year-old Genard Dupree -- were arrested Tuesday on grand theft charges.

The Polk County Sheriff's office says the men filled a shopping cart with a motorized power wheel Barbie car, Leap Frog tablet and a Barbie Glam vacation house. They walked through the store together.

Video surveillance shows Dupree on the floor near the store entrance, clutching his chest. As concerned citizens checked on him, Scott walked out of the store with the cart. Once Scott was outside, Dupree got up and walked out. They left in a silver SUV, but deputies caught up with them.

It's not known whether they have attorneys.

U.S. options for responding to the hacking attack are limited. Bringing the shadowy hackers to justice appears a distant prospect.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Suspicions that North Korea was behind a destructive hacking attack against Sony Pictures and a threat against movie theaters are intensifying calls for tougher U.S. steps to cut that country's access to hard currency and declare it once more as a state sponsor of terrorism.

At first glance, U.S. options for responding to the hacking attack are limited. Bringing the shadowy hackers to justice appears a distant prospect. A U.S. cyber-retaliation against North Korea would risk a dangerous escalation. And North Korea is already targeted by a raft of sanctions over its nuclear weapons program.

"We don't sell them anything, we don't buy anything from them and we don't have diplomatic relations," said William Reinsch, a former senior Commerce Department official who was responsible for enforcing international sanctions against North Korea and other countries.

But the U.S. isn't powerless if it concludes Pyongyang was behind the hack that has prompted Sony to cancel its Christmas Day release of the movie "The Interview."

While U.S. officials are saying privately that they believe North Korea was connected to the attack, the White House has not said so publicly. On Thursday, presidential spokesman Josh Earnest declined to blame North Korea, which has denied responsibility. He said he did not want to get ahead of investigations by the Justice Department and the FBI. Evidence shows the hacking was carried out by a "sophisticated actor" with "malicious intent," he said.

Rep. Ed Royce, R-Calif., chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he did not doubt North Korea was involved. He called for tougher U.S. sanctions to cut Pyongyang's access to hard currency, by excluding from the U.S. financial system banks in other countries that hold North Korean funds.

"This is not a just a corporate security issue," Royce told The Associated Press. "It is an act of aggression against the United States by a foreign government. "

Legislation for such banking sanctions, sponsored by Royce and the committee's top-ranking Democrat, passed the House in the summer but was not taken up by the Senate. Current sanctions principally aim at preventing North Korea from trading weapons and acquiring nuclear and missile technology.

The Obama administration has been reluctant to embrace Royce's approach. The biggest impact would be felt by banks in China, complicating U.S. efforts to curry better ties with Beijing.

Evans Revere, a former State Department official and specialist on Korea, said if U.S. officials connect North Korea not only to the hacking attack but the threats to carry out 9/11-style attacks against movie theaters, a case could be made to put North Korea again on a list of state sponsors of terrorism. That designation now is held by Iran, Sudan, Syria and Cuba. North Korea was on the list for 20 years until it was taken off in 2008 by the Bush administration during nuclear negotiations. Royce said putting Pyongyang back on would be warranted.

While North Korea has denied it was involved, its government issued a statement earlier this month describing the hack as a "righteous deed." The movie, a comedy, is about a plot to assassinate North Korea's totalitarian leader, Kim Jong Un.

U.S. detective work pointing to North Korea appears so far to be largely circumstantial, based on subtle clues in the hacking tools left behind and the involvement of at least one computer in Bolivia previously traced to other attacks tied to the North Koreans. Still, the evidence has been considered conclusive enough that a U.S. official told the AP that investigators have now connected the attack to North Korea.

Earnest said the investigation was progressing. He said President Barack Obama's national security advisers were considering a range of options for a "proportional response."

Victor Cha, who served as Asia policy director in the George W. Bush White House, said despite the long history of censuring North Korea over its weapons development, there's no diplomatic playbook to follow in a case like this. "On the nuclear and missile side we have established a pattern of interactions between states on how to respond, but in the cyber world there's no rules right now," he said.

Washington struggles to keep its interaction with North Korea on an even keel at the best of times, through periodic nuclear and rocket tests and dire threats of military reprisals. The U.S. retains nearly 30,000 troops in neighboring South Korea.

Multination talks aimed at getting North Korea to give up its nuclear arsenal in exchange for aid have stalled for several years, and Pyongyang has been frustrated by what it considers a U.S. reluctance to engage in dialogue. The animosity has built as the U.S. has supported a U.N. inquiry into North Korea's dire human rights record.

Dozens of police descended on the home, and crowds of locals stood outside the police barricades, some of them wiping away tears.

SYDNEY (AP) -- Eight dead children and a woman suffering from stab wounds were found inside a home in a northern Australian city on Friday, police said.

Police believe the 34-year-old woman with chest wounds is the mother of seven of the children, and the eighth child is believed to be one of her relatives, Detective Inspector Bruno Asnicar said. She was receiving treatment for her injuries and was in stable condition at a hospital.

Queensland state police said they were called to the home in the Cairns suburb of Manoora on Friday morning after receiving a report of a woman with serious injuries. When police got to the house, they found the bodies of the children inside, ranging in age from 18 months to 15 years.

Asnicar declined to say how the children died.

He said he didn't believe there was a multiple murderer still at large and that police were talking to the woman. Asked if she was a suspect, he said officials have not yet identified any suspects and were questioning everyone who had contact with the family in the past 2-3 days.

"As it stands at the moment, there's no need for the public to be concerned about this other than the fact that it's a tragic, tragic event," Asnicar said. "The situation is well controlled at the moment. There shouldn't be any concern for anyone else out of this environment."

Lisa Thaiday, who said she was the injured woman's cousin, said one of the woman's other sons, a 20-year-old, came home and found his brothers and sisters dead inside the house.

"I'm going to see him now, he needs comforting," Thaiday said. "We're a big family ... I just can't believe it. We just found out (about) those poor babies."

The street has been cordoned off and a crime scene will remain in place for at least the next day, Asnicar said.

Dozens of police descended on the home, and crowds of locals stood outside the police barricades, some of them wiping away tears.

"These events are extremely distressing for everyone of course and police officers aren't immune from that -- we're human beings as well," Ascinar said.

The tragedy comes as Australia is still reeling from the shock of a deadly siege in a Sydney cafe earlier this week. On Monday, a gunman burst into a cafe in the heart of the city and took 18 people inside hostage. Two hostages were killed along with the gunman after police stormed in 16 hours later in a bid to end the siege.

"The news out of Cairns is heartbreaking," Prime Minister Tony Abbott said in a statement. "All parents would feel a gut-wrenching sadness at what has happened. This is an unspeakable crime. These are trying days for our country."

The new breeds will be eligible to compete in many AKC-sanctioned dog shows next year, though not in the Westminster Kennel Club show until 2016.

NEW YORK (AP) -- A Spanish farm and fishing dog, a Sicilian rabbit-hunting breed, an Italian sheepdog with a distinctive matted coat and a rugged South African watchdog are joining the American Kennel Club pack.

The kennel club announced Wednesday that the Spanish water dog, the Cirneco dell'Etna (cheer-NAY-koh-dehl-eht-nah), the Bergamasco and the Boerboel (BUHR'-buhl) will become recognized breeds Jan. 1.

They'll be eligible to compete in many AKC-sanctioned dog shows next year, though not in the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club show until 2016.

The newcomers range from medium-sized, curly-haired Spanish water dogs to the big, mastiff-style Boerboels. The Cirneco dell'Etna is keen and sleek. The sociable Bergamasco is hard to miss with its long locks.

With them, there will be 184 AKC-recognized breeds. Criteria include having several hundred dogs of the breed nationwide.

Emma Czornobaj was convicted by a jury on two counts of criminal negligence for causing death and two counts of dangerous driving causing death.

MONTREAL (AP) -- A Canadian woman who caused a fatal traffic accident after stopping her car to help ducks on a busy highway was sentenced Thursday to 90 days in prison and a 10-year driving ban.

Emma Czornobaj was convicted by a jury on two counts of criminal negligence for causing death and two counts of dangerous driving causing death. The 25-year-old was charged in the deaths of Andre Roy, 50, and his daughter Jessie, 16.

The sentence, handed down in Montreal, also prohibits her from driving for 10 years and stipulates she must do 240 hours of community service.

After Czornobaj stopped her car in June 2010 to rescue ducklings on the side of a Montreal highway, a motorcycle carrying the victims slammed into her vehicle.

Czornobaj's lawyer, Marc Labelle, said he likely wouldn't appeal the 90-day sentence. Her defense team argued she should only get the community service.

Pauline Volikakis, the wife and mother of the victims, said the family was hoping for a significant sentence and got it.