Poverty Rate – New York

Posted on March 12, 2012 by townsend

• Poverty rates increase in Central New York, By Paul Riede, March 11, 2012, Syracuse Post-Standard: “While poverty rates are highest in Syracuse, poverty increased across Central New York over the last decade. The U.S. Census estimates 99,000 people live below the poverty line in Cayuga, Madison, Onondaga and Oswego counties. That’s 14 percent of the population, up from 12 percent in 2000. The federal poverty line is $11,170 in yearly income for an individual and $23,050 for a family of four. The biggest increase came in Oswego County, whose poverty rate rose from 14 percent to 17.6 percent. Onondaga’s rate rose from 12 percent to 14 percent. Cayuga’s rate remained steady at 11 percent, while Madison’s dropped from 9.8 percent to 9.4 percent…”
• One step ahead, five steps back: Families struggle to make ends meet as poverty grows in Syracuse, By Paul Riede, March 11, 2012, Syracuse Post-Standard: “The white duplex at 918 Willis Ave. tells much about Syracuse’s Far West Side. It was built in 1920, when the area was filled with blue-collar workers within walking distance of busy factories. Families like that of Theodore Andrusyszyn, who emigrated from Ukraine at the turn of the century, flooded into the neighborhood, taking advantage of the inexpensive housing and nearby jobs. Before his death in 1946, Andrusyszyn lived at 918 Willis and worked at Crucible Steel. Now the house is owned by Michael Adao, who also worked at Crucible – until he was laid off in 2009. Adao, 53, looked for work for a year and a half, then took a temporary job in Baldwinsville that pays a third of what he made at Crucible. He used half the money in his 401(k), imperiling his retirement, and faces major bills from a two-week hospital stay last April. His downstairs tenants are Cynthia Lazore and her two youngest children. In 2008, Lazore, 45, was laid off from a job calling people who were delinquent on their medical bills. She finally landed an $8-an-hour telephone sales job in December but remains in a deep financial hole…”