<p>(sorry if this turns out to be a double thread, I think my time ran out the first time....thank goodness for ctrl c hehe)</p>
<p>I haven't made a deposit yet (clock is ticking...) but Rochester is on my narrowed down list of choices. There's just one issue that I'm a little iffy on...and that is the location and safety of the area/city. The campus seems to be fine, and I saw quite a few patrol cars sitting around. During one of my visits there I even took the provided city bus tour which showed some lovely areas of Rochester. But....on the other side of the river from the campus where my family and I stayed overnight, it seems to be a different story....if you catch my drift. Looking at some statistics, Rochester seems to have a high rate of crime too (higher than NYC)...which freaked out my mother completely and just made me a little iffy as I said before :p. In fact, our car was scratched in the hotel parking lot, and it looks like a long key scratch (not too bad though, shallow). </p>
<p>I know that most cities have a "bad area" or "bad side" and I'm sure the students are fine as long as they walk in groups and stay out of places where they are not welcome. In my imaginary college experience though, I pictured myself being able to safely walk around off campus and go for nice walk, get some fresh air, etc. So, too idealistic? :p</p>
<p>If anyone familiar with the Rochester area or current students would like to reassure me or tell me that I'm overreacting, I'd be much obliged :). Safety wasn't much of a priority when I first started looking at schools but now that the time to choose is basically NOW, I have decided that I would like to make it to my college graduation in one piece ;). Thank you in advance!</p>
<p>I think Rochester is a pretty safe school/town, just don’t mess with people and they won’t mess with you… You can see at least 2 blue light emergency phones from any point on campus, and if you call them security should be there in 90 seconds. I do think that it is a little weird that you are looking at a school’s safety because it really isn’t a publicized problem. Just a question, are you from a city?</p>
<p>Crime hasn’t been a problem for my d. It’s as safe as a school in a city can be. There are plenty of nice places to walk (the campus itself is beautiful, and many kids like walking through the Mt. Hope Cemetary that borders campus).</p>
<p>You have to use “street smarts”, just as you would anywhere - and by the way, that includes suburban and rural schools, too. Learn the area, keep your wits about you, pay attention to where you’re going and who’s around you, if you go off alone make sure that someone knows you’re going and when you anticipate being back, etc. You should be fine.</p>
<p>Basically as Chedva has said, you are only as safe as you are smart. But this problem will occur with most colleges unless you go to college in the middle of nowhere. I have gone here for 4 years and nothing has happened to me- but I don’t walk around in the middle of the night and I am constantly aware of my surroundings after dark.</p>
<p>The reason why safety is not a publicized issue is that the University suppresses it. When I visited and took a tour there was nothing bad said about Rochester the city. When I came to school I learned that the district right across the river, the 19th district, is a ridiculously dangerous area. I would never leave campus at night unless I was going directly to the place with a large group. Don’t let anyone try and trick you into thinking it is safe - it isn’t people get mugged all the time, and sometimes people come on to campus from the city. (A little bit like trinity college in hartford in that way)</p>
<p>It will really give you a new perspective of the “safety” issue…as well as many other “fear” issues. </p>
<p>I have been at UR for 3 years and have lived in Rochester for the past 9. I have never found safety to be an issue. I have walked to the 19th ward and back many, many times. I love the city and I like walking up to the Ford St. bridge to enjoy the river reflections and Rochester’s “semi-skyline” at night. </p>
<p>Like any other place where there are people, bad things will happen because there are people there. In fact, I’ve gotten my very nice bike stolen just last semester in the middle of the day (even though it was locked up).</p>
<p>In general, UR security patrols are so saturated that you couldn’t walk through the campus without seeing at least 2-3 patrol cars. Security cameras hand on every corner and “Blue Lights” (with phones connected to security) are omnipresent. (It’s actually quite liberating to get away from this “Orwellian” settings and just take a quiet walk…yes, across the “infamous” bridge ;)) </p>
<p>So, if you’re really paranoid about safety, UR-provided security is superfluous. But, the point I’m trying to get across, that we needn’t be so paranoid, it’s actually a lot safer than the media would have you believe!</p>
<p>Every city, big and small, has its “bad” neighborhoods. The U of R is not in nor is it adjacent to a bad area. Use common sense when going off campus and you will not have any problems. I would not let my S go there if I had safety concerns. It is too bad you had a bad experience with the vandalism. That could happen anywhere, like a mall parking lot.
I don’t think the University suppresses the safety thing. They were quite upfront about it when asked when we visited. Contact the City of Rochester police department if you need more information.</p>
<p>The 19th Ward is literally right next to campus and is notoriously dangerous - I dont understand why these people are trying to tell you isnt dangerous - they are pretty naive if they think it isnt dangerous - think south central LA during the 80s and 90s</p>
<p>You are wrong, it is the Corn Hill, good section of the city. Stop providing misinformation.
The Area</p>
<p>With around 22,000 residents, the 19th Ward in the Southwest quadrant is the largest neighborhood of the city. The Southwest Quadrant is also known as Sector 4, and contains 4 other neighborhoods in addition to the 19th Ward. Many people not familiar with the Southwest area of the city confuse the two. This page covers only the 19th Ward proper, for more information on the general area, see the page for Sector 4.</p>
<p>The 19th Ward is bordered, clockwise from its northern edge, by West Avenue, Genesee Street, Scottsville Road and the Erie Canal.</p>
<p>The 19th Ward is an area of many tree-lined streets filled with one and two family homes and a scattering of small apartment complexes. The neighborhood prides itself on its racial, ethnic and economic diversity; university professors, students, city officials, and some of the cities poorest families all live in the 19th Ward. You will even find a religious compound and a retirement home in close proximity, both on Thurston Road.</p>
<p>As with the other major living areas in Rochester, the 19th Ward/Corn Hill area is well serviced by the city bus system and comprises three exits on Interstate 390 (17, 18B and 19). It is close to RIT, the University of Rochester, University of Rochester Medical Center, St. Mary’s Hospital and the Greater Rochester International Airport. It is also bordered, at least in part, by Genesee Valley Park, the Erie Canal and Genesee River.</p>
<p>As you can see, much of maligned 19th ward information is old. Again, check with Rochester Police to get current stats. It also across the river, which is wide and deep.
There are a lot of security cameras and patrols between the campus and the bridge across the river as well.</p>
<p>A Bad Reputation</p>
<p>The neighborhood has a bad reputation through much of Rochester and particularly on the River Campus of the University of Rochester. Much of this stems from gangs that claimed territory on Thurston Road, Genesee Street, Chili Avenue and Arnett Boulevard in the 1980’s and 90’s. However, the Rochester Police Department cracked down on them and all of the major gang violence ended in 1997 with a series of high profile arrests.</p>
<p>Since then, the community association has helped organize a neighborhood watch and a group of citizens monitor the city’s criminal courts to ensure that verdicts are fair, but also benefit the safety and security of the neighborhood. The NET office on Genesee Street is also available to all residents, including renters, to ensure that city housing codes are maintained. And the city government has partially funded a number of improvement projects to improve the storefronts of businesses.</p>
<p>The last major hotspot for violent crime was the corner of Brooks Avenue and Genesee Street, by the pedestrian footbridge, where UR students were occasionally mugged. As a result of increased police patrols and development of the Brooks Landing Project, this problem has mostly evaporated.</p>
<p>Investment by Rite Aid, Unity Health and particularly the University of Rochester and the City have also driven a small increase in the value of real estate since 2000, spurring additional improvements, particularly on Brooks Avenue, Genesee Street and Plymouth Avenue, especially during the latter half of the decade. Long deferred improvements to the roads and buildings along Plymouth Avenue, Genesee Street and the eastern terminus of Brooks Avenue have resulted in a marked improvement in the appearance of the neighborhood and the up to 18% increase in real estate values has remained stable through the 2007/2008 collapse of the national real estate market.1</p>
<p>You can give all this history and facts, but all someone has to do is read the newspaper and watch tv to see whats going on. The campus newspaper, which comes out weekly, reports almost every week different crimes committed against students by residents of the city of rochester. Also, on the news there are always stories about violent crimes going on in the city - i realize that in every big city there will be crime, but much of the crime takes place in the nearby 19th ward</p>
<p>LOL! You know, ruthless, people say the same thing about the town I live in. (And it’s about the same size as Rochester.)</p>
<p>When I was briefly living in Boston, my H’s chemo nurse kept asking if we felt safe living in the town we do. She asked about the rampant crime, the meth trade, the transvestite prostitutes that–according to her–must be hanging out in front my house every day and night. And all this from a women who lived in the one of most dangerous neighborhoods in the Boston area! (We were appalled that such a nice young woman would be walking around alone at night there!) </p>
<p>DH and I laughed and laughed–turned out the nurse had been waaaaay too much Cops on TV. </p>
<p>Yeah, both Rochester and my hometown have bad neighborhoods. In both towns, the bad neighborhoods are near/adjacent the college campuses, but my d’s (both of them–the one attends UR and the one who attends the local state U) have been on and around the local state U campus–yes, even at night-- since there were in middle school. Neither one has been robbed or raped. Neither D has had a bike stolen, a laptop snatched, a cellphone pickpocketed (in fact, older D has had her phone returned to her more than once after she’d lost it on campus…) or a purse snatched.</p>
<p>There is crime everywhere. Use common sense and you’ll be OK.</p>