Events this week — what's on, where, and how to get in.

Fall Festival at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo — 1 Conservation Pl., Saturday, Oct. 3 and Sunday, Oct. 4, 10 AM to 3 PM. Free with zoo admission.

Creature chats, local vendors, pumpkin bowling and corn hole around the grounds. Details

Wednesday, September 30

Laurie Woolever — Everson Museum auditorium, 401 Harrison St., 7:30 PM. Free, RSVP required. The Chittenango native co-wrote two books with Anthony Bourdain. Reserve a spot

Thursday, October 1

Julia Kunin gallery talk — Everson Museum, 401 Harrison St., 6 to 7:30 PM. Pay what you wish. The ceramic sculptor on her solo show. Details

Friday, October 2

RetroGameCon — The Oncenter, 800 S. State St., Friday 2 PM through Sunday. A three-day video game expo. Tickets

Fright Nights — 1 Lepage Pl., 7 PM, Fridays through Sundays until Oct. 31. $45 at the door, less online. Five haunted attractions on one ticket. Tickets

Saturday, October 3

Great Cortland Pumpkinfest — Courthouse Park, Cortland, Saturday 10 AM to 7 PM and Sunday 10 AM to 4 PM. Crafters, a midway and live music for its 29th year. Details

Syracuse Peace Council 90th Anniversary — Pebble Hill Presbyterian Church, 5299 Jamesville Rd., 5:30 PM. $30 to $60 with dinner, $10 to $50 for the talk only, sliding scale. A conversation with Pulitzer-winning Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha. Details

Sunday, October 4

Syracuse International Film Festival: 35mm to Animation Day — The Palace Theatre, 2384 James St., doors 10:15 AM. $15 a block, $45 all day. Ends with Beavis and Butt-Head Do America on 35mm film at 6:30 PM. Tickets

An Enchanted Morning with CNY Ballet — Landmark Theatre, 362 S. Salina St., 10 AM to noon. Ballet story time, a short performance and a costume parade, for ages 2 to 12. Details

Tuesday, October 6

Grow-NY Networking Night — INSPYRE Innovation Hub, 235 Harrison St., 4:30 to 7 PM. Free, RSVP required. Networking around the finalists in Grow-NY, a food and farm startup competition. Register

Wednesday, September 30

Harmonic Dirt & Friends — The Whiskey Coop, 120 Walton St., 6 to 9 PM. The Central New York band fronted by Mike Gridley and Susan Coleman. Details

Selwyn Birchwood — The 443 Social Club, 443 Burnet Ave., 7 PM, 18+. Blues guitar with funk and Southern soul in the mix. Tickets

Friday, October 2

Harmonic Dirt — Freight Yard Brewing, Clay, 6 to 9 PM. Details

Mojo Combo CNY — The Fitz, 321 S. Salina St., 8:30 PM. Free, never a cover. Details

Saturday, October 3

Kaki King — The 443 Social Club, 7 PM, 18+. The guitarist Rolling Stone called "a genre unto herself." Tickets

Keller Williams — Middle Ages Music Hall, 120 Wilkinson St., 8 PM, $30 plus fees, all ages. A one-man looping show, folk to funk to bluegrass. Tickets

Sunday, October 4

Oktoberfest with Fritz's Polka Band — the Loading Dock at Middle Ages Brewing, 120 Wilkinson St., 4 to 7 PM. Free, all ages. Polka classics and rock-infused jams. Details

LaFayette Apple Festival, Oct. 10 and 11, $8 cash at the gate, kids 12 and under free. Tickets · Bert Kreischer, stand-up comedy at the Landmark Theatre, Oct. 11. Details

One food or drink spot a week — what's new, what's worth the trip, and what to order.

Attilio's 313 N. Geddes St. — Italian, lunch now, dinner from Tuesday, Oct. 6

Attilio's has moved to 313 N. Geddes St. after nine years on James Street, where it opened in fall 2017. It started on N. Salina St. in 2009.

The new spot opened for lunch on Tuesday, Sept. 29, serving 11:30 AM to 4 PM, Tuesday through Friday. Dinner starts Tuesday, Oct. 6: 5 to 9 PM Tuesday through Friday, and 4:30 to 9 PM Saturday.

The midday menu on their site covers appetizers, salads, soups, sandwiches and entrées. Entrées run $19 to $25 and come with a side salad or a cup of soup.

The menu calls out two house dishes: the Original Vodka Chicken Riggies ($22), rigatoni with chicken and hot cherry peppers in a homemade vodka sauce, and Julie's Signature Pasta Pie ($20), capellini in a light alfredo baked in a mushroom crust.

We haven't been to the new location yet, and we're looking forward to trying it. Reservations are on their website.

A deeper look at one person, place, or project in Syracuse.

Rev. James Mathews has been pastor at St. Lucy's, the Catholic church on Gifford Street, for 35 years. He turns 90 in less than four months, and he retires as pastor on Jan. 1.

The church dates to 1873. Its first pastor, the Rev. John J. Kennedy, had nearly gone blind and vowed that if his sight returned, he'd dedicate a church to St. Lucy. Architect Archimedes Russell designed it, and some 10,000 people turned out for the cornerstone.

Mathews grew up in Solvay and was ordained in 1962. Starting his 26th year at St. Lucy's in 2017, he told CNY 55, "It's some kind of record for me. I don't keep a job that long." He stayed nine more.

On Thursday, Sept. 24, the parish held a fundraiser in the parish hall, and it turned into a surprise for him. Lee Davis came up with the idea, and Corinne Driscoll helped organize it. Mayor Sharon Owens attended, proclaimed the day Father Jim Mathews Day, and held up the new sign: the 400 block of Gifford Street is now Father Jim's Way. In the proclamation, she said he helps anyone experiencing hardship, "regardless of religious affiliation."

"I'm grateful for all the people here, every one of them, for what they've taught me," Mathews said. "They have been my teachers." Parishioner Mary Keough said simply, "St. Lucy's changed him," and retired police detective Jim Glavin recalled Mathews once saying he never fully understood what it meant to be a priest until he arrived there.

Mathews also hosted the conversations at St. Lucy's that, by the parish's account, grew into the Near Westside Initiative, which teamed Syracuse University, nonprofits, companies and government agencies with neighborhood residents.

Help from St. Lucy's programs goes to whoever needs it on the West Side, whatever their faith. The food pantry is set up so people choose their own groceries, the way they would in a store. Bread of Life serves a homemade lunch to anyone who comes in hungry for food or company. The Agape Shop, in the basement of the old St. Lucy's school, sells donated clothing, shoes, household goods and toys at minimal cost. Catholic Worker on Wheels brings hot breakfasts to people who are homeless, and the Christmas give-away reaches roughly 350 West Side families.

St. Lucy's is at 432 Gifford St. Its outreach page lists each ministry and a contact for anyone who wants to help.

Coverage from Sean Kirst in Central Current, with history from St. Lucy's and CNY 55.

Construction and development around the city, in plain English.

On Monday, Sept. 28, the Common Council voted unanimously to revoke the Westcott Theater's special use permit, which let the venue at 524 Westcott St. host live music and other events that draw large crowds.

An 18-page city report cited a pattern of violence, crowd-control problems and alleged permit and licensing violations. Reports of fights and disturbances rose sharply in early 2025 and spilled into the street after events, and at recent hearings councilors heard police reports of shootings and stabbings at the venue. The city also closed the theater for a week in June 2025 over fire and other code violations and for not having an entertainment license.

"Nobody wants to see live music leave Westcott Street. That would be crazy. It's been there forever," said District Councilor Jimmy Monto. "However, nobody also wants to see bullets flying on Westcott Street or stabbings inside of establishments."

Owner Daniel Mastronardi left the chamber without speaking to reporters. He has said the Westcott "is not always being treated fairly." A judge had earlier ruled the theater could keep operating while its legal case with the city proceeds; none of the coverage says how Monday's vote affects that case.

Council President Rita Paniagua: "This is not a vote against the arts or against having a theater at this location. It's about ensuring that a venue we value also lives up to the responsibility to the community around it."

No conditions or timeline for reopening were set. Monto called the vote a reset, with the hope that concerts and other events can resume, and councilors and the mayor planned to meet with event promoters Tuesday about keeping every venue safe. We're hoping for the same: a resolution that works for the neighbors and brings live music back to Westcott Street.

Coverage from WAER, WRVO and CNY Central.

One neighborhood at a time — what's there, what's changing.

South Salina Street runs north to south through the middle of downtown. This Block covers three blocks of it, from Washington Street down to Onondaga Street.

The Landmark Theatre at 362, between Fayette and Jefferson, opened as Loew's State on Feb. 18, 1928. Marcus Loew, who founded the Loew's theater chain, spent $3.4 million building it. It nearly came down in the 1970s before a citizens' campaign saved it.

A $1.5 million restoration, backed by a $500,000 state grant through Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli, stripped decades of soot from its walls and ceiling. A colorist identified 30 colors originally used in the hall and its proscenium, the arch that frames the stage.

Café Kubal, on the Jefferson corner at 401, sits in the store Dey Brothers built in 1894. The company had opened its first S. Salina store in 1883.

200 block (Washington to Fayette)

300 block (Fayette to Jefferson)

400 block (Jefferson to Onondaga)

History from CNY Central, Central Current and the Landmark Theatre.

Local sports — what just happened and what's next.

Syracuse at UConn. The Orange (1-2) come off a bye after losing 27-13 at Pittsburgh on Sept. 17. They play Saturday, Oct. 3 at noon in Storrs, on CBS Sports Network. The Orange's defense ranks sixth in the country in passing yards allowed, at 134.7 a game. Preview

The Crunch open on the road. Friday, Oct. 2 at 7 PM and Saturday, Oct. 3 at 3 PM, both at Laval. The home opener is Saturday, Oct. 10 at 7 PM against Belleville. Schedule

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— Salt City Club Team