LIVERPOOL — As 2022 comes to a close, let’s reflect on the notable events, people and news of the last year:
Micron to build in Clay
Arguably, the biggest news of 2022 was Micron Technology’s announcement that it will build a massive semiconductor chip plant at White Pine Commerce Park in the town of Clay.
“This is our Erie Canal moment. Just as the original Erie Canal did centuries ago, this 21st century Erie Canal will flow through the heart of Central New York and redefine Upstate New York’s place in the global economy for generations to come,” U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer said.
Micron will invest as much as $100 billion over the course of two decades to build the “megafab.” The project will create 9,000 direct jobs for Micron and over 40,000 jobs in related industries in the community.
To create a pipeline for its workforce, Micron is forming partnerships with K-12 schools as well as the area’s colleges and universities. The company also plans to set up training centers to recruit and educate employees from different socioeconomic, racial and cultural backgrounds.
In addition, Micron pledged to spend 30% of construction expenses on New York State Certified Minority/Women Owned Business Enterprises and Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Businesses.
President Joe Biden visited Syracuse to celebrate Micron’s announcement. He delivered remarks Oct. 27 at Onondaga Community College.
“I hope you feel what I feel standing here today: pride,” Biden said. “Pride in what we can do when we do it together to build a better America … proving to the world that our best days are ahead of us.”
Economic ups and downs
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the boom in the housing market continue to impact the local economy.
“What used to take me 10 hours a week to order food for the district is taking me 30 hours,” said Annette Marchbanks, school lunch director for the Liverpool Central School District. “Sometimes I don’t know until [the shipment] comes in and they just no-stock me and I don’t have anything.”
Chief among the items in short supply were meat and grains, but paper trays, plastic cutlery and soup cups have been hard to come by as well.
In response to supply chain woes, the USDA released an additional $1 billion in Supply Chain Assistance funding to purchase fresh fruit, frozen vegetables, dairy products and ground meat.
While the housing boom has been beneficial to those selling their homes, it has caused home values to skyrocket, leaving many taxpayers with sticker shock when they received their 2022 property assessments. Faced with backlash from angry homeowners, the towns of Salina, Lysander and Van Buren all voted to end full-value property assessments starting in 2023.
“The way assessments are done in New York is crazy and the state needs to do something to fix it,” Salina Supervisor Nick Paro said. “When there’s taxing entities [like school districts] that cross town lines, that causes inequities.”
Local orgs celebrate milestones
A number of institutions in the northern suburbs celebrated milestone anniversaries this year.
• The Gathering Place: In its 175 years of existence, this place of worship has gone by many names — Plank Road Baptist Conference, North Syracuse Baptist Church and finally The Gathering Place — but a few things have stayed constant: “The ability to stay true to the foundational elements of the church, following the Lord, and following His work,” Lead Pastor Rob Burns said.
• North Area Meals on Wheels: What began in 1972 as a project of the North Area Pastors’ Association with just three or four clients has blossomed into an enterprise serving 291 senior, disabled or homebound clients. NAMOW, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in August, has 12 paid staff and over 300 volunteers. In 2021, the NAMOW team prepared and delivered 122,732 meals across northern Onondaga County.
“Every person that helped with something was a link in a very important chain,” said Linda Jackson, a longtime NAMOW volunteer and former director of the organization.
• Plank Road Quilt Guild: The queens of quilting celebrated their 40th anniversary this past summer. The Plank Road Quilt Guild, a jovial group of 60 members, meets twice a month at Cicero United Methodist Church.
“It’s a wonderful way to be creative and express yourself,” Carol Gerow said of quilting. “Even if two people make the same pattern, it doesn’t turn out the same.”
The guild has a heavy focus community service as well. Members have sewn quilts for Sleep in Heavenly Peace and Honor Flight Syracuse.
Movers and shakers
Village of North Syracuse icon Diane Browning died Feb. 6.
Browning served on the village board from 2003 to 2020, including two years as mayor in 2010 and 2011 and two stints as deputy mayor. She also served as a senior advocate for the town of Cicero and was a board member for North Area Meals on Wheels.
“She was my dear friend and my mentor, and she definitely will be missed,” said current Deputy Mayor Patricia Gustafson.
In 2008, Browning reflected on the village she’d lived in for 52 years.
“I love the small-town atmosphere, it’s just a small community that you get to know your neighbors,” she said. “I like being there for the community, serving the people of North Syracuse and being part of making decisions for the community.”
Kevin Toms is well on his way to achieving his goal of raising $20,000 for Griffin’s Guardians by the time he graduates from Cicero-North Syracuse High School. Kevin, 15, hosted his third annual Can Crush Cancer can and bottle drive for the Cicero pediatric cancer nonprofit in October.
Between cash donations and bottles and cans, Kevin collected $5,170.50 — until an anonymous donor topped off the total in December, bringing 2022’s final amount to $6,423. In three years of fundraising, Kevin has amassed nearly $14,000 for Griffin’s Guardians.
Griffin’s Guardians was founded in memory of Kevin’s childhood best friend, Griffin Engle, who died at age 7 after battling a rare brain cancer.
“We’re very thankful to the Toms [children]. What great parents they have to get their kids to this level at such a young age. They’re driven to help others,” said Rita Griffin, grandmother of Griffin Engle.
“I’m grateful to the community for believing in the work,” she said. “I think we definitely have evolved over the years and hopefully we’ve shed a light on the stigma of mental illness.”
2022 in high school sports
Sports Editor Phil Blackwell rounded up the highlights for the Northstars and the Warriors:
• Basketball: With an epic triple-overtime win over CBA and a come-from-behind victory over West Genesee, Liverpool’s boys basketball team claimed the sectional Class AA championship in March. The Cicero-North Syracuse girls basketball team, led by Alexa Kulakowski and Alita Carey-Santangelo, won both sectional and regional titles to advance to the state final four in Troy.
• Softball: After a dramatic extra-inning victory over Baldwinsville in the sectional final where it was down to its last strike but rallied to win, the Liverpool softball team made it all the way to the state Class AA championship game in June before taking a 4-2 defeat to Monroe-Woodbury.
• Football: For the fifth consecutive year, the Cicero-North Syracuse football team earned the sectional and regional Class AA championships in November, avenging an earlier defeat to CBA in the sectional final and routing Corning in the regional final. The Northstars fell in the state semifinals to eventual state champion Buffalo Bennett.
• Field hockey: In November, C-NS’s field hockey team got to the brink of its first-ever state Class A championship, rallying from 2-0 down to beat Rome Free Academy in the sectional final. The Northstars topped Greene (2-0) and Clarence (3-1) to reach the title game on Long Island before falling 2-1 in overtime to Northport in the championship game.
• Soccer: A goal by Dante Melfi in double overtime helped the C-NS boys soccer team beat West Genesee 1-0 for the Section III Class AA championship in November. Then the Northstars beat Shaker 2-0 to reach the state semifinals before falling to eventual state champion Scarsdale.
