what is rochester like?

<p>what is city life in rochester like? is it nice, bad, dangerous, diverse? and what is the surrounding area around rochester like?</p>

<p>I’ve been living in Rochester for the past 5 and a half years now, and I’ve grown to really like it here. As an undergraduate, I spent a majority of time on campus, so I’ll tackle your second question first.</p>

<p>The University of Rochester River Campus is located in a great spot - it’s on a bend of the Genesee River just two miles south of downtown Rochester. The campus doesn’t have city streets cutting through it, so even though you’re close to downtown, you get a nice “isolated” feeling while on campus. The Genesee River surrounds campus on 3 sides, and the 4th side is bordered by the beautiful Mt. Hope cemetery. The cemetery is large, and it’s a great place to run / walk. </p>

<p>Across the River to the west is the 19th Ward section of the city, and while crime does happen there, it is getting better since the “Brooks Landing Project” began approximately four years ago. The University and the city of Rochester have worked to revitalize the 19th ward, including the construction of U of R upperclassmen dorms (Riverview - the best place to live on campus), a new hotel, U of R office buildings, and some new shops/stores (Boulder Coffee!). A pedestrian bridge connects these buildings to the River Campus, and requires a short walk (10 minutes).</p>

<p>Directly south of the River Campus is the Genesee Valley Park (designed by Frederick Law Olmstead who also designed Central Park in NYC). GVP is a beautiful park with lots of recreational space, including a golf course (cheap!), baseball fields, tennis courts, ice rink, etc. The Barge Canal path cuts through GVP and gives us access to miles upon miles of great biking routes. GVP is a great place to hang out in general.</p>

<p>Adjacent to GVP is the University of Rochester’s Strong Memorial Hospital, School of Medicine and Dentistry, and the School of Nursing. This is literally a 10 minute walk from the freshman dorms, and is a great resource for anyone looking to volunteer or to be involved in medical research.</p>

<p>Past the Mt. Hope cemetery to the east is Highland Park, one of my favorite places in Rochester. Also designed by Olmstead, Highland Park is home to Rochester’s most popular festival - The Lilac Festival. It’s one of the most beautiful places to run, cross country ski, walk, or relax. I love Highland Park, I just skied there last weekend.</p>

<p>To the north, 2 miles, is the city of Rochester. Downtown you’ll find corporations such as Kodak, Xerox, and Bausch & Lomb. You’ll also find the University of Rochester’s Eastman School of Music. The Eastman school was newly renovated, and offers excellent musical performances throughout the year. The new addition is absolutely incredible. I saw the opening dedication concert this past December and truly felt the university’s commitment to our school motto, “Meliora” (ever better), while I was there. </p>

<p>All U of R students / prospective students should check out the new Eastman Evolution.</p>

<p>Downtown also has attractions such as Water Street Music Hall, (this past December I went to 3 concerts there - Fun., Guster, and Dashboard Confessional!!!), and numerous minor league sporting options. Frontier Field (Minnesota Twins farm team) is a great place to go, and the U of R will sponsor 2 games a year for students to check out a baseball game. The Blue Cross Arena is also downtown, where you can see our minor league hockey team (THE AMERKS!) or basketball, lacrosse, and other concerts. </p>

<p>Food in Rochester is incredible, and downtown is no exception. Dinosaur BBQ is a favorite. Check out High Falls while you are there, a 99 ft. waterfall is located right in the middle of downtown. Full many fair and famous streams beneath the sun there be, but more to us than any seems our own dear Genesee.</p>

<p>Check out Rochester, you’ll like it. With 6 other colleges in the greater Rochester area, the city has a lot to offer. It is New York State’s 3rd largest city after all!</p>

<p>wow thank you for such a great response, i appreciate it. I will definately visit rochester, if i get accepted.</p>

<p>The “Roc” is not a bad place; very easy to get around, lots of decent and good restaurants, farmers markets, etc. The campus, as noted, is more isolated from the city than you’d think with it being in a city of 200k with a metro pop of 1M. You can either choose to go into the city - which is very quick - or not, but there is no “college town” right next to campus. You can easily walk to some stores and places just north of the medical area but otherwise you should take a shuttle, ride a bike or be in a car to get further around. It’s a short trip by shuttle bus to Eastman, which is in a neat area, and Park Avenue’s restaurants. It’s also a short shuttle to the big shopping areas just south of UR in the suburb of Henrietta, where all the chain stores are.</p>

<p>I get crime reports for Rochester. The area around school is very safe. Crime in Roc is northwest of downtown and somewhat below it on other side of the river. There is some crime opposite campus across the river but most of it by far is quite a ways off in areas you’ll never visit.</p>

<p>Rochester is not a very dense area. I suppose it hollowed out over the decades after the flour milling business decreased - see the falls to understand why Rochester is there. But it’s not depressed like the rest of upstate; it’s a big tech center and is the world leader in optics, with Kodak (much smaller these days), Xerox and Bausch & Lomb all located near each other in downtown. UR is probably the world leader in optics. So thank George Eastman. Near downtown, out past Eastman are beautiful homes in a lush neighborhood. The town of Brighton, which abuts Rochester and is almost next to UR has one of the best school districts in the country. Because of Eastman, both the man and the school, Rochester has more music culture than much bigger cities.</p>

<p>UR and a developer, Fairmount Properties, are going to put up 400-500k in space, including retail just north of the hospital on Mt. Hope - other side of the cemetery if you’re walking. This won’t be useful to kids now in school, but it bodes well. They also plan more development on the other side of the footbridge over the river.</p>

<p>URGrad2009 gets an award for the longest post I have ever seen on CC… Great information and I can’t say I disagree with any of it.</p>

<p>not a college town. Everyone can spew all these amazing “places” but honestly, the location is horrible, You got a cemetery on one side, a semi-ghetto on the other (19th ward). </p>

<p>Don’t let U of R lie to you with their propaganda. Just last year, a block away from the Riverview dorms, someone was shot while sitting on their porch.</p>

<p>[Security</a> Update: Gun shots heard outside Riverview Complex | Campus Times](<a href=“http://www.campustimes.org/2008/09/11/security-update-gun-shots-heard-outside-riverview-complex/]Security”>http://www.campustimes.org/2008/09/11/security-update-gun-shots-heard-outside-riverview-complex/)</p>

<p>Students get mugged all the time </p>

<p>[Security</a> | Campus Times Blogs](<a href=“http://www.campustimes.org/blogs/2009/02/24/security/]Security”>http://www.campustimes.org/blogs/2009/02/24/security/)</p>

<p>[Sexual</a> assault should appear in security updates | Campus Times](<a href=“http://www.campustimes.org/2007/12/05/sexual-assault-should-appear-in-security-updates/]Sexual”>http://www.campustimes.org/2007/12/05/sexual-assault-should-appear-in-security-updates/)</p>

<p>[Security</a> Update: Rochester local arrested for robbery and accused of punching a student | Campus Times](<a href=“http://www.campustimes.org/2008/12/04/security-update-rochester-local-arrested-for-robbery-and-accused-of-punching-a-student/]Security”>http://www.campustimes.org/2008/12/04/security-update-rochester-local-arrested-for-robbery-and-accused-of-punching-a-student/)</p>

<p>Wow, our first hater in forever.</p>

<p>I suggest following the links. The gun shots were bb’s that some guy was shooting from an air rifle - the kind we had as kids. He said he was shooting at a paper cup. This was across the river in the neighborhood near the apartments. Sexual assaults means student on student issues. Sad but every school has this. One of the other crimes - a robbery on the way to church - was also off campus, several blocks across the river.</p>

<p>There is some crime on campus, like on every campus. Most typical is stuff taken that is left unattended. </p>

<p>As I’ve noted, I get the local police crime reports emailed to me and not much happens around UR. Now if you include Eastman, which is downtown, then of course there is more, but around the river campus very little and almost all of that is some ways over the river. The bb gun shooting I mentioned above was listed in the local police crime reports, though without the detail reported by UR. (I thought it was a real shooting.) There is more crime in the suburbs to the south than around river campus.</p>

<p>I’m not too worried about crime but I am going to visit over spring break. Is there anything I should try to see other than the campus? I’ve never been to Rochester before so I’ll be like a blank slate. Any suggestions?</p>

<p>The city itself isn’t especially scenic, but the trail along the Erie Canal is interesting–though this time of year it won’t be terribly attractive. (Much prettier in the summer when the trees are all leafed out.) </p>

<p>The Memorial Art Gallery (UR’s art museum) near the Eastman House is worth an afternoon–if your interests run in that direction. Perhaps a visit to the Eastman House or Susan B. Anthony House if you like history.</p>

<p>And, as odd as it seems, the Mount Hope Cemetery, It’s next to River Campus and has some famous people buried there. There are tours, but I’m not sure of the schedules.</p>

<p>Dinosaur BBQ is a cultural icon and located near/in downtown. (Ask at the admission office for a map.) There are plenty of very good small restaurants on Monroe and Park Aves. Definitely check some of them out.</p>

<p>And if you’re from somewhere other than upstate NY and have a half day to kill (and have a car)–Niagara Falls is a little over an hour to the west. It is truly spectacular and definitely worth a visit. (Maid of the Mist or Cave of the Winds–both are visit-worthy tourist attractions there.) I went (after I left kiddo off at freshman orientation) and the words ‘a force of nature’ took on a whole new meaning. At the overlook, there is nothing–no fence, no wall, no nothing, separating you from All. That. Water.</p>

<p>George Eastman House is actually a very cool place, as is Artisan Works (one of the coolest places I’ve ever been, and one of the lesser known in Rochester).</p>

<p>Neighborhoods that UR kids frequent are:</p>

<ul>
<li><p>near Eastman and then out along those streets, particularly Park Avenue, which has lots of restaurants and some nice stores. Very pretty area when it’s not winter. </p></li>
<li><p>South Wedge and the lovely named Swillburg (not kidding), which are between UR and Park Avenue. </p></li>
</ul>

<p>Areas to avoid: northwest of downtown is the bad area. Also on the other side of the river toward downtown, especially away from the water, can be sketchy though not so much in the day. No reason to go in these areas.</p>

<p>Things to do. I like walking out on the bridge to see the falls - “high falls.” Rochester was “Flour City” because of the water power. Rochester has an active community wiki at [Rochester</a> Wiki - The People’s Guide to Rochester](<a href=“http://rocwiki.org%5DRochester”>http://rocwiki.org). It has lots of info.</p>

<p>Those are some great ideas. Thank you very much. I’m really looking forward to seeing the school and just experiencing a new place.</p>

<p>Also, Rochester has a large public market which is pretty cool on the big market days. </p>

<p>Rochester isn’t a garden spot but it’s not a bad little city. It’s weird the city isn’t really on Lake Ontario so there isn’t a waterfront like Toronto has.</p>

<p>As for day trips, besides Indian casinos and Niagara Falls - which is definitely cool - on the Canadian side is Niagara-on-the-Lake, an upscaled tourist town on Lake Ontario in the middle of Canadian wine country. Dozens of wineries with tours. Toronto is about 3 hours from Rochester. About the same distance away but south is Corning. Small renovated town, home of Corning Glass - they sold off the cookware company and now mostly make optical fiber. The Corning Glass Museum is really worth a visit.</p>

<p>Rochester’s Public Market was recently voted the #1 large public market in the country. People here are in love with it. I wasn’t sure about the hype at first, but it is a lot of fun during the summer months especially - lots of good people watching, and tons of great and cheap fresh fruit and local products.</p>

<p>I often wonder why the city was developed closer to the water front as well. I assume it has something to do with the role that High Falls played in developing the flour industry in Rochester. Wouldn’t it be nice though - like a Toronto or Chicago - if the city was actually on the lake?</p>

<p>Totally because of High Falls. The Genesee was navigable on either side. I think it’s too bad they cut the height of the falls because the extra feet would have been impressive. It’s still cool, though.</p>

<p>Public markets are incredible places. Much of Baltimore life revolves around the indoor markets. Detroit has the huge Eastern Market - similar to Rochester’s - with a cluster of everything from butchers to oil and nut sellers plus farm goods. Rochester also has a lot of farmers markets, including a nice one in South Wedge next to Boulder Coffee. People don’t realize upstate NY is the biggest farming area in the east.</p>

<p>Speaking of High Falls, does anyone know if the now renamed Genesee Brewing Co. gives tours?</p>

<p>Craving a Genny Cream Ale? I’m not sure, but I’ll see if I can find out and let you know.</p>

<p>I’m pretty sure they don’t because a website called forgottenbuffalo includes a tour of the Rochester plant and it’s headlined “first time ever.”</p>

<p>I found the campus as well as the city to have a very “Midwestern” feeling. Coming from Minnesota, I was expecting it to be very different from my hometown in the MSP Metro. While I was glad to be away from home, it didn’t feel like I’d gone far at all. The scenery is amazing and the people are definitely some of the friendliest that you’ll ever encounter (this is coming from someone who is “Minnesota nice”). Rochester is absolutely beautiful, I really hope you’ll enjoy your trip there :)</p>