Cover Story
A landlord’s victim fights back and blazes a trail for tenants
She lives with mice, buckling ceilings, and shoddy walls. But Linda Barger sued her landlord for repairs and won, becoming a pioneer for Rochester tenants’ rights.
Court ruling temporarily hobbles Police Accountability Board
Rochester’s new Police Accountability Board was dealt a setback Tuesday with a court ruling that severely, but temporarily, curtailed its powers.
Elizabeth Paul selected as Nazareth’s next president
Paul said the two colleges are similar and face headwinds in what she calls a “challenging time in higher education.”
The F Word: Parkinson’s just got a little cooler
I’m certainly not in the “we’re not handicapped, we’re handi-capable” camp, nor do I want to give Parkinson’s disease too much deference in my life. But my jittery friends Ozzy Osbourne and Neil Diamond recently added their names to the list.
Sunday’s Grammy winners included works featuring RPO, super-producer Bob Ludwig
The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra with conductor Ward Stare, and Eastman School of Music graduate and sound engineer Bob Ludwig, were a part of two winners at Sunday’s 62nd Annual Grammy Awards.
State auditors warn that RCSD budget is still $40 million short
Despite cost-saving measures already taken by the Rochester City School District to close its budget gap, including the laying off of scores of teachers, the state Comptroller’s Office warned Thursday that the district is on track to finish the academic year with a $40.5 million deficit. State auditors, who have been digging into the district’s…
Construction starts on Irondequoit Community Center
Town Supervisor Dave Seeley said the project should provide momentum for future development around the former Irondequoit Mall.
Cuomo’s budget proposal would fund climate, conservation initiatives
Governor Andrew Cuomo’s budget proposal includes a conservation bond act, $9 billion for offshore wind development, and a requirement for transit agencies to electrify their bus fleets.
One step at a time
The plot of “Anastasia” centers on street sweeper Anya’s attempt to prove she’s the missing Princess Anastasia Nikolaevna Romanov, who allegedly escaped her Russian royal family’s execution. On stage at The Aud through January 26.
Mayor Lovely Warren backs plan for RCSD monitor
The governor proposed the position, which would provide oversight of the Rochester school district and the Board of Education, as part of his executive budget.
Rochester RazorSharks say pot and pro sports are a slam dunk
The Rochester RazorSharks, the city’s minor-league basketball team, have agreed to actively advocate for the legalization of cannabis in a deal thought to be the first of its kind.
A Hellenistic adventure
The mini-Mediterranean escape of Kainos restaurant at Corn Hill Landing can serve as a nice respite from Rochester’s howling winter winds. The Athena Blueberry Salad brings summer back, and the Poseidon platter is a mariner’s dream catch.
WORKSHOP | Adulting Class
Stew is a dish that everyone craves this time of year, but it’s uniquely difficult to find on a takeout menu. Fortunately, Genesee Country Village offers an opportunity to learn to make your own at this farm-to-table workshop in its “Adulting Class” series. Historic specialty cook Peggy Roll will teach attendees to create an old-fashioned…
SPECIAL EVENT | ‘A Little Secret: Speakeasy Soiree’
This month marks 100 years since the start of Prohibition, and the Rochester Cocktail Revival crew is throwing a party to celebrate the anniversary. Fortunately, this time around, revelers can enjoy their gin fizzes and sidecars in dapper attire without keeping watch for the fuzz or the Feds. Stay for the live jazz, DJ Chreath,…
LITERATURE | ‘On Our Way Home from the Revolution’ book launch
Author Sonya Bilocerkowycz found herself in Ukraine during the 2014 revolution and subsequent conflict with Russia. During her time there, she was witness to history and met a host of unusual characters. Her book, “On Our Way Home from the Revolution.” ties these narratives together with her own family’s story. The launch of this book,…
Album review: ‘Superette’
5Head ‘Superette’ Self-released facebook.com/5headmusic It’s like trying to pick your favorite child when you’ve got only one life preserver. The children in this hypothetical exercise are the 13 tracks on 5Head’s new CD “Superette.” The problem here is that I can’t pick just one. 5Head has managed to run the engine clean, despite some grit…
THEATER | ‘Dixie’s Tupperware Party’
This is, with the possible exception of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” the only theatrical work I am aware of that started as a real-world dare to try selling Tupperware in drag. Dixie Longate did just that, then wrote a show around it, and has been touring the country in character since 2007. It’s a no-frills affair, featuring…
FILM-SPECIAL EVENT | ‘Black & Female in ROC: The Remix’
The second installment in a two-part series curated by artist and community organizer Rachel DeGuzman, “Black & Female in ROC: The Remix” will be held at Visual Studies Workshop this week. The first installment included a discussion focused on the experiences of elders from Rochester’s black female community. Continuing this dialogue, DeGuzman worked with videographer…
Joywave: satirical and sci-fi
Joywave is a rock band that embraces bounding, life-affirming electronic beats — with a self-awareness that sometimes approaches self-parody. The Rochester product plays the ROC Dome Arena on Friday, January 24.
Yes, we canned
Friday, January 24, is the beer can’s 85th birthday, and some of the first cans were manufactured in Fairport. This calls for a toast.
OPERA | Eastman Opera Theatre
Neither opera written by each composer — presented by Eastman Opera Theatre in its winter double bill — are well-known. Antonio Salieri’s “Prima la musica e poi le parole” (First the music and then the words”) and Mozart’s “Der Schauspieldirektor” (“The Impresario”) were premiered at the same 1786 competition in Vienna, and both works center…
AMERICANA | Aaron Lipp & Brian Williams
Multi-instrumentalist Aaron Lipp has a consistent angle he uses to wrangle all he explores: It’s bluesy, and country-politan, and it’s aaalright. Lipp moves between electric and acoustic guitars with a fluidity that’s loquacious and loose — he makes it look so damn easy. He’s played keyboards for Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad and Robert Randolph,…
INDIE POP | Julian Lynch
Julian Lynch is best known as the guitarist in the band Real Estate, Lynch’s formidable solo discography features lush chamber pop that might best be described as “synthetic-orchestral.” Though the music is often instrumental, Lynch’s use of ethereal of Garfunkel-esque crooning injects a sense of stability into deceptively dense and busy arrangements. Lynch’s most recent…
JAZZ | Mike Melito Trio
From the popular to the obscure, Mike Melito knows jazz classics so well that he can step into any situation. So it’s not surprising that he’s been the drummer of choice when jazz luminaries like Benny Golson, James Moody, Barry Harris, Eric Alexander, and many more have come to town. Over the years, Melito has…
CHORAL | First Inversion
Conductor and Eastman School of Music alumnus Lee Wright started the choral ensemble First Inversion in 2014 as a way to bridge the invisible divide in the local community between Eastman vocalists and singers who performed outside of the confines of the institution. In the years that have followed, First Inversion has gained recognition as…
Album review: ‘Something to Prove’
The Byways ‘Something to Prove’ Self-released bywaysroc.com There’s a lot of “wanna” — actual and implied — on The Byways’ new EP “Something to Prove.” It’s acoustically based, and hits its stride immediately on tunes like “Man I Wanna Be.” It all circles back to the quartet’s principal songwriter and quarterback Alex Goettel, and the…
Feedback 1/22/20: High-speed rail, climate change, ‘Parcel 5 Park’
CITY welcomes your comments. Send them to feedback@rochester-citynews.com with your name, your address, and your daytime phone number for verification. Only your name and city, town, or village in which you live will be published along with your letter. Comments of fewer than 500 words have a greater chance of being published, and we do…
Council approves PAB appointments
City Council made the first nine members of the Police Accountability Board official, though a court case challenging the board’s legality is still pending.
Cuomo’s budget proposes legalizing cannabis, trimming Medicaid spending
Governor Andrew Cuomo’s $178.6 billion budget proposal, which he released Tuesday, also includes his plans of how to deal with the state’s $6 billion dollar budget deficit.
Whatchagonna do?
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence are back at it in “Bad Boys for Life.” The “Bad Boys” films had something of a fascistic streak, with a celebration of police brutality, militarization, and misanthropic cruelty played for laughs.
Genesee, Young Lion team up to create Valentine’s Day chocolate stout
A pair of cupids in Young Lion and old Genesee Brewery aim to release their new chocolate stout on Valentine’s Day.
KOPPS: pop plus
KOPPS is a three-pronged attack of techno-fection, but it’s not so sugary as to gum up the works in its live show, plethora of catchy singles, or the numerous music videos that capture the band’s intense visual irony.
CITY’s comments are back
Ten months ago, CITY disabled the comments function at the bottom of articles on its website after the platform became a disheartening, sucking, swirling eddy of insults. For years prior to being dismantled, the comments section had simultaneously served as a marketplace of ideas, an exchange of information, and a self-moderated town hall. There were…
Marriage story
In “Slow Food” there’s a deeper dig on the psyche behind the simple concept of eating a meal at a restaurant with a partner. Themes of hunger (both real and imagined), anger, mental health, fidelity, dependence, and manipulation come to the fore as a triangular power struggle between the characters takes place.
The F Word: Grandpa Presley
Celebrating what would have been Elvis Presley’s 85th birthday this past week, it’s getting harder and harder to keep up his legacy amid the fried banana and peanut butter sandwiches, and virtually everything from his square movie catalogue.
92nd Academy Awards nominations
The Academy Awards nominations are out. Adam analyzes the nods: this year only narrowly escaped being another #OscarsSoWhite situation, and women filmmakers were entirely snubbed for the directorial award.
