951 Park Avenue 

Strolling Rochester's Park Avenue on a warm summers day is an experience that can include dining at one of the area's many fine sidewalk cafes and admiring the elegant homes that line the meandering street. The Park Avenue neighborhood is one of the places most sought after by hardworking young families who wish to live in the City of Rochester.

The 1908 Colonial Revival home at 951 Park Avenue, by the corner of Calumet Street, is a short walk from the majority of cafes and specialty shops on Park. Tall hedges wrap the corner-lot, offering privacy. As one enters through the hedgerow, the well-maintained, beautifully landscaped lawn and garden are revealed.

At the front of the home is a spacious Roman-brick covered porch. The front vestibule includes a tile floor and built-in umbrella closet. The beauty of the hardwood floors, which continue throughout the home, immediately catch your eye as you step from the vestibule. A downstairs powder room, a welcome recent addition to many early 20th century homes, is located near the front entrance.

Each of the downstairs rooms is entered through French doors. Wide oak moldings grace the perimeter of the living room. This room includes a working fireplace, with decorative carvings, for use during Rochester's chilly winter. The expansive dining room has a beamed ceiling and includes a window seat with bay window featuring pink stained-glass roses in leaded-glass top panes. Each window in the home contains the same rose design. Adjacent to the dining room is a sun porch, which is the perfect bright space for a plant room.

A large landing area provides a respite on the stairway to the second floor. Four bedrooms flank the upstairs hall. The first offers a view across Park Avenue and down tree-lined East Boulevard when seated at a convenient built-in desk. The second offers a wardrobe closet and a window seat. A bathroom with a tub and shower connect these two rooms. The third bedroom has a large clothes closet and is equipped to house a washer and dryer behind wooden folding doors. The master bedroom features a large walk-in wardrobe closet and an en-suite bathroom with shower and Jacuzzi tub. This wardrobe closet, which includes a window, is large enough to be made into a small office area if desired. An enclosed sun porch located off of the master bedroom is the perfect spot for an exercise room.

A second staircase near the modern kitchen leads to the third floor, which offers a large room for storage or a recreation area and two rooms that are the perfect size for offices. A bathroom with a stall shower is also located on the third floor.

The asking price of the 3,476 square foot home at 951 Park Avenue is $299,900. Taxes are $8,256. The property includes a separate two-car garage. For more information please contact Sib Petix (585-738-1945) or Len Petix (585-703-9421) of Park Avenue Realtors.

by Padraic Michael Collins-Bohrer

Mr. Collins-Bohrer resides downtown and is a native of the City of Rochester.