Cover Story
Standing up for city schools
These parents see themselves as urban dwellers and they want their children to have the same experience, and that includes the city’s public schools.
Buffalo stews over mayoral control
It was one of the fiercest political debates Rochester has had in recent years. In 2009, the city was embroiled in a divisive wrangle over whether to dissolve the Rochester Board of Education and hand governance of city schools over to then mayor Bob Duffy. The issue sparked protests outside City Hall, led to a…
Gillibrand calls for funding change for bridge repairs
Elected officials have spent quite a bit of time over the last few years trying to draw attention to bridges that need repair. Late last month, for example, a group of Republican Assembly members joined Monroe County Executive Maggie Brooks and Gates Supervisor Mark Assini next to the I-390 bridge over Trolley Boulevard in Gates.…
North Winton meeting on Aldi
The North Winton Village Association will hold a special meeting at 7 p.m. on Thursday, June 11, concerning the Aldi store planned for North Winton Road at Blossom Road. Representatives from Aldi and City Hall will speak about the proposed development. Some residents oppose the Aldi proposal, saying that the store would be a poor…
WEEK AHEAD: Events for the week of Monday, June 1
Gregory Weykamp, president of Edgewater Resources, will give a presentation at tonight’s meeting (Monday, June 1) of the Charlotte Community Association. Edgewater is the developer of the controversial Port of Rochester project. The presentation is at 7 p.m. at the Robach Center, 180 Beach Avenue. Edgewater plans to develop the port primarily for housing and…
Your weekend in art: May 29-31
With beautiful weather forecasted for a good part of the weekend, the time is ripe for a day trip to the lovely Finger Lakes region. Maybe there’s a wine tasting, a drive through the sweetly rolling farmlands, or checking out some art. Here’s a few suggestions to get you started. For more events, check out…
County, local governments present efficiency plan
Many Monroe County homeowners ought to get a check from the state this fall to help cover any increases in their local property taxes. If that sounds confusing, that’s because it is. Last year, the State Legislature passed a two-year Property Tax Freeze Credit. The state, however, has an income tax and not a property tax,…
Rally will address district’s high suspension rates
The activist group Metro Justice will hold a rally today at 6 p.m. on revisions to the Rochester school district’s Code of Conduct. The event, which will be held prior to the school board’s monthly business meeting, will take place at district headquarters, 131 West Broad Street. The rally is intended to urge board members…
Schneiderman proposes wide-ranging ethics reforms
Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has released a package of reforms for the State Legislature. The proposed legislation is probably dead on arrival, however, since it includes public financing of campaigns. Schneiderman unveiled his End New York Corruption Now Act this morning. It’d give the attorney general’s office the ability to investigate and prosecute public corruption,…
ALBUM REVIEW: “Go Green with the Lustre Kings”
The Lustre Kings “Go Green with the Lustre Kings” Wild Boar Records lustrekings.com With a punchy upright slap from the doghouse, Albany road dogs The Lustre Kings launch into a 14-track killer crosscut of American rockabilly on “Go Green with the Lustre Kings.” And this is a pure as it gets, folks. In many instances,…
ALBUM REVIEW: “Say Goodbye”
The Blind Owls “Say Goodbye” Cliff House Records Say hello to Corpus Christi’s The Blind Owls with the bands most excellent release “Say Goodbye.” Darlings of this year’s Lilac Festival, the band tore it up Fab Four style with a rough and raw rock ‘n’ roll attack — it’s more like the Fantastic Four come…
Feedback 5/27
We welcome your comments. Send them to themail@rochester-citynews.com, or post them on our website, rochestercitynewspaper.com, our Facebook page, or our Twitter feed, @roccitynews. Comments of fewer than 350 words have a greater chance of being published, and we do edit selections for publication in print. We don’t publish comments sent to other media. How much…
Chili ponders farming’s future
Just under a quarter of Chili’s land is active farmland or undeveloped land that could be farmed. The number of agricultural operations has grown in recent years, too, but so has the amount of land taken up by housing and commercial development. As a whole, the approximately 6,000 acres of agricultural land in Chili aren’t…
Filling the loop
First in an occasional series. Sections of sewer pipe, each about the size of a Smart car, lie end to end on the now-closed portion of the Inner Loop — snaking under the East Avenue-Broad Street exit sign before disappearing around a curve. The pipe started going in last week, says Paul Winterkorn, senior construction…
Urban Action 5/27
This week’s calls to action include the following events and activities. All are free and open to the public, unless otherwise noted. Transportation talk The Rochester Regional Community Design Center will present “Transit Revolution,” a talk by Norman Garrick, at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 3. Communities across the country and around the world are…
Balancing act
East/West Kitchen’s take on fusion is unexpected: Vietnamese meets Russian meets American. This seems to be a result of its owners’ respective heritages and backgrounds — Alex Zapesochny brings Russian influences; Thuan Pham and Tai Lee bring Vietnamese flavors. It’s also co-owned by Andrea Lanphere, and her son, Keith Finch, is the executive chef. A…
ROCKABILLY | Brian Setzer Trio and George Thorogood
I thank and blame these two men for everything I knew and used in my former career as a guitar slinger. Brian Setzer turned me on to Gene Vincent and Eddie Cochran, and George Thorogood hipped me to Bo Diddley and Hound Dog Taylor. I was never the same afterwards. The three-time Grammy-winning Setzer is…
ART | Obscura Day
Atlas Obscura is an online guidebook that showcases engaging places from around the world. Locations include the dreamy “Book Mountain” in Spijkenisse, Netherlands, which is located in a transparent glass pyramid; Mexico City’s creep-show “La Isla de las Munecas,” an island filled with hundreds of hanging, decomposing, decapitated dolls; and the Styrian Armoury in Graz,…
HARD ROCK | Iron Reagan
I wouldn’t classify it as thrash, per se, but Iron Reagan is right on the brink between thrash and good ol’ hard rock. The Richmond, Virginia, band doesn’t waste any time with some songs clocking in at 33 seconds. The album “Tyranny of Will” is out now on Relapse Records. Iron Reagan plays with Angel…
FESTIVAL | Greek Festival
It was just this year that I learned the proper pronunciation for “gyro.” You can learn it as well, and eat one or two at this year’s Greek Festival. Of course, there is plenty of other traditional Greek fare to munch on — Souvlaki, anyone? After you eat, get even more into the Greek spirit…
JAZZ | William Parker, Daniel Carter, Federico Ughi, and Watson Jennison Quartet
Bassist William Parker and multi-instrumentalist Daniel Carter (saxophone, flute, trumpet) have been major figures in avant-garde jazz since the early 1970’s. Italian drummer Federico Ughi moved to New York in 2000 and was quickly welcomed into the experimental scene. When they visit the Bop Shop on Sunday, they’ll be joined by another multi-instrumentalist, Toronto’s Watson…
COMEDY | Dave Attell
If there’s one thing you can be sure of about Dave Attell’s stand-up shows, it’s that nothing is off limits. The veteran comic doesn’t shy away from the offensive, and his thoughts can tend to be just a tad bizarre: Steve Irwin didn’t just die, but was murdered after the crocodiles put out a hit…
ROCK | Joe Brucato & The Joyous Noise
Award-winning singer-songwriter Joe Brucato’s backing band, The Joyous Noise, is tight, precise, and energetic, giving space to the passionate soaring voice of a singer that is possibly one of the finest rock vocalists to emerge locally. The Joyous Noise is an all-star group featuring drummer Levi Bennett, Mark Terranova on bass, guitarist Mike Gladstone, and Brucato’s…
ART | “Sculptural Trilogy: Metal, Glass, and Wood”
The diversity of artistic expression in just three sculptural media is explored in the current show at Nan Miller Gallery (3000 Monroe Avenue). On Wednesday, May 27, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., the venue will host an opening reception for “Sculptural Trilogy: Metal, Glass, and Wood,” a new show featuring the art of a…
CLASSICAL | “An English Springtime” with the RPO
What better way to follow up a Rochester Lilac Festival than with a Rochester Philharmonic English Springtime? The RPO offers that opportunity this Sunday afternoon, in the orchestra’s last Hochstein Performance Hall concert of the season. Guest conductor Daniel Meyer, who led the RPO in March’s “Music and the Dance” concert, will return to lead…
FASHION | “Recycled Runway”
Can fashion make an ecological difference? Can materials saved from the landfills be fashionable? The creative folks involved in the annual “Recycled Runway” event say yes. The show — which is The ARTS Council of the Southern Finger Lakes’ signature fundraising event — will be held on Saturday, May 30, from 8 to 11 p.m.,…
ROOTS | Nikki Hill
Less than 30 seconds into Nikki Hill’s 2013 album, “Here’s Nikki Hill,” and you’ll see why she gets trucks of praise showered on her — even Frank De Blase won’t stop, saying she’s “one of the best roots-rock singers I have ever seen,” ranked up there with Wanda Jackson, Barbara Pittman, and Etta James. Hill…
FOOD | Devour Rochester Wine & Culinary Classic
The Memorial Art Gallery will host its second annual Devour Rochester Wine & Culinary Classic this Saturday, May 30. More than 25 regional wineries, breweries, distilleries, restaurants, food trucks, and vendors will be on hand for sipping and sampling, including Heron Hill Winery, Cider Creek Hard Cider, The Owl House, Eat Me Ice Cream, and Le Petite…
AMERICANA | The Primate Fiasco
The Primate Fiasco is something else. Is psych-Dixieland an established genre yet? Banjo played with a spacey touch, funky tuba and sax, a groovin’ accordion, and a washboard and drums to hold it all down — The Primate Fiasco could be millionaires after busking on the streets of New Orleans. But while listening to the…
Rule breaker, fun maker
“This is probably my last solo show,” says photographer Dan Neuberger of the current exhibit of his work at Image City Photography Gallery.” I’m 86, and shows are a lot of work and expense. So I decided to show my favorites — the ones that I’m particularly fond of.” Born in the former Yugoslavia (now…
Tempted
I’m telling you, nostalgia ain’t what it used to be. Playing “Remember When” is a waste of air. Pining for long gone bands is futile. So let’s squash the commiserating so we can rave about The Temptators. Shout Bama Lama! For those of you who like classic transistor pop and rock, The Temptators is your…
Fall from grace
Craig Wright’s “Grace” had a modest Broadway run a few years ago, and Out of Pocket’s presentation at MuCCC suggests why it was modest. Despite interesting ideas and moments, it doesn’t convince as a whole. However, at MuCCC, “Grace” gets a production that at least shows the play to good advantage, and shows off some…
Film Review: “It’s All So Quiet”
The early scenes in Dutch filmmaker Nanouk Leopold’s “It’s All So Quiet” are unsparing in their depiction of caring for an elderly person no longer able to care for themselves. In Helmer’s case, however, as he painstakingly moves his father from the first floor to a second-floor bedroom, the entrenched passive-aggression is palpable, with far…
Our school-reform quest
“We don’t blame teachers or anybody for the current situation. We do blame longstanding systematic, social, and economic issues.”
Film Review: Tomorrowland
It’s no secret that our world can be an overwhelmingly cynical place. As a society we’ve become so entrenched in negativity and pessimism that it’s easy to become disillusioned with where we’re headed. This mindset has extended even to the way we imagine our future: Once, we dreamt of a great big, beautiful tomorrow, but…
