by Sujata Gupta

“Cool” in Rochester is the
youth-oriented Park Avenue area, or the East End-Alexander area on a
summer night, with crowds from clubs and bars spilling out onto the
sidewalks. But there’s lots to experience in the city. And lots of
development under way or in the planning stages. Alongside
large-scale ventures, such as the High Falls entertainment district
and new riverside housing development, are smaller projects. Not even
projects, really, but efforts: the efforts of residents to enliven
their neighborhoods.

Whether you like scoping out
multimillion-dollar ventures or little neighborhood treasures, you’ll
learn a lot about the city by exploring it.

Downtown

Some people would love to dismantle
part of Rochester’s Inner Loop, the highway system that
circles downtown and cuts it off from its surrounding neighborhoods.
But downtown is a neighborhood itself. And while Sibley’s
department store no longer dominates the retail scene, and Midtown
Plaza, the nation’s first indoor mall, waits for redevelopment or
dismantling, other things are springing up or being planned.

The biggest of them is the Renaissance
Square project, the combo transit center, performing arts space,
and college campus. New housing continues to be developed downtown,
the latest being the high-end Sagamore near from the Eastman
Theatre.

There is housing throughout the center
city, however: in historic row houses and contemporary townhouses in
the Gibbs Street area, lofts in converted commercial
buildings, and a good amount of low and moderate-income apartments.

Downtown houses many of the region’s
arts venues, of course — and then there’s the proposal —
conceived by artist Kenichiro Sato — to create a mosaic of
10,000 photographs on a wall of SUNY Brockport’s Metro Center on
St. Paul Street, part of his idea for a Rochester Outdoor Museum of
Art.

On downtown’s northwestern edge, in
the High Falls district, attempts to create an entertainment
district have struggled, but businesses — particularly those with a
creative focus — are being drawn to the area.

On the western fringe is a
neighborhood of historic importance: the Susan B. Anthony
Preservation District, with a beautiful small park and Victorian
homes that include Anthony’s own, now a museum.

Southeast

The efforts of neighborhood
associations and the Landmark Society have preserved much of East
Avenue’s historic appeal, including many mansions and churches.
Nearby Park Avenue, with its cafes, restaurants, and
boutiques, has become the Mecca for 20-somethings. And nestled beside
Cobbs Hill Park on the Brighton-city line is one of the city’s most
charming small neighborhoods, the Cobbs Hill area.

One of the area’s most recent
successes is ArtWalk, an “interactive museum without walls,”
with sculpture and curbside gardens lining University Avenue.
Perpendicular to University is North Goodman, the location of Village
Gate Square and the Arts & Cultural Council. While Village Gate’s
north side already showcases a gigantic mural, look for a new one
soon, the folks at the Arts & Cultural Council hint.

For a different feel, stroll down
Monroe Avenue, with its eclectic mix of attractions. On the
western end: the fine Greek restaurant, the Olive Tree; the popular
bar known as the Bug Jar, and Wadsworth Square, the small Victorian
neighborhood whose attractions include the Abundance Cooperative
Market. Walk the length of Monroe to the Brighton line and you’ll
pass Gitsis Texas Hots, an all-night diner, and Show World, the adult
entertainment business whose owner, angered by neighborhood
activists, painted part of his building bright green. Just before you
cross into Brighton is Cobbs Hill Park, whose hilltop offers
one of the best views of the city.

In the distinctive South Wedge,
neighborhood residents and businesses have preserved not only the
area’s numerous moderate-sized 19th-century houses and buildings
but also its important economic mix. South Avenue boasts a mix of
bohemian businesses and restaurants. Developers recently purchased an
abandoned building and empty lots at South and Gregory and plan a
green grocery store and a commercial-residential mix.

At South and Alexander, artist Pepsy
Kettavong and others have been at work in a small pocket park,
featuring intricate gates. And check out the hip Boulder Coffee Co.
at Alexander and South Clinton, with the phenomenal mural along the
exterior.

The southern part of the city also
includes two of the region’s most important green spaces: Highland
Park, with its extensive collection of lilacs, and the large,
beautiful Mt. Hope Cemetery, where guided tours will take you
past the gravesites of such notables as Susan B. Anthony and
Frederick Douglass.

Southwest

Urban by Choice. That’s the 19th
Ward Community Association’s motto (and also the name of their
merchandise line), and it reflects the pride of the neighborhood’s
residents, who set out more than 30 years ago to nurture a strong,
racially integrated neighborhood. Some of the city’s most active
residents, 19th Warders remain intensely involved in schools,
housing, and community development. For 20 years, they have been
pushing for a “college town” at Brooks and Genesee. That
initiative moved toward reality a few months ago when ground was
broken on the long-awaited Brooks Landing project, which will
include hotels and a coffee shop.

The city’s southwest quadrant
abounds in murals. Black Bart remains the icon of a building
on the corner of Genesee and Columbia Streets, and Jefferson Avenue
boasts perhaps the largest collection of murals in the city,
including a depiction of Noah’s Ark on the side of a church at Cady
Street.

The Corn Hill Preservation
District, bordering downtown, melds new apartments and townhouses
with some of Rochester’s oldest houses. A neighborhood focal point
is Plymouth Circle, with its park and gazebo. Each July, the Corn
Hill neighborhood association hosts one of the region’s largest,
most popular art and crafts events, the Corn Hill Arts Festival.

Along the river, the much anticipated
Corn Hill Landing project is nearing completion. The $20
million project will feature riverfront housing, retail, restaurants,
and office space.

Northwest

Part of the city’s northwest is
dominated by the massive Kodak complex, but there’s more to this
area than an industrial park.

Soccer fans and city officials alike
are eagerly awaiting the completion of Paetec Park, the new
stadium for the professional soccer team, the Rochester Rhinos.
Located near Lyell Avenue, Paetec Park will join neighboring Frontier
Field in creating a sports neighborhood just north of downtown. Also
in that neighborhood: efforts are also being made to decorate
lampposts or create murals, including art projects along the sound
barriers that separate the area from Route 490.

Driving north, you’ll see “In
the Garden,” a muralcreated by local artist Rick Muto
on the post office at Dewey and Lexington Avenues. More art is tucked
away near the Maplewood YMCA: the “Seat of Remembering and
Forgetting.” Park your car, walk down the river-gorge path, and
soon enough you’ll see this seat surrounded by large sculptures
etched with faces and hands. Then wander through the Maplewood
Rose Garden, home to the annual Maplewood Rose Festival.

All the way north, in the Charlotte
neighborhood, is one of the city’s most important treasures,
the port and lake area. The ferry’s gone, but there’s been plenty
to enjoy in Charlotte all along: restaurants, night life, a
lighthouse museum, the landmark Abbott’s custard stand, and Ontario
Beach Park, with its beach, pier, summer concerts, and historic
carousel. And big plans are in the works: a riverside village with
commercial and residential spaces and a marina.

Northeast

Rochester’s northeastern quadrant is
a typical slice of an American city: within a few square miles are
large homes housing upper-income families, solid working-class
neighborhoods, and some of the city’s poorest areas. It’s an area
of Latinos, African-Americans, Polish-immigrant descendants, and
WASPS, of ethnic foods and lovely old churches, of dense residential
areas and the city’s beautiful Seneca Park along the Genesee River
Gorge. And it’s an area served by strong community organizations
like North East Area Development and the 14621 association.

Here, too, are hidden treasures. On
walks along North Clinton Avenue, Albert Algarin, president of
the North Clinton Merchant’s Association, points to bright yellow
and red facades on commercial buildings. These, he says, have been
painted to represent Latin American culture.

Community activists’ efforts may be
rewarded soon with the development of La Marketa, a
long-awaited Hispanic marketplace. Although the city is still
finalizing some details, reports are that ground will soon be broken.

Other things to watch for: mural
artist Shawn Dunwoody’s plan to create, with Avenue D Recreation
Center youths, a relief on the facility’s front wall, and a
proposed biking-hiking trail that will run from near the Seneca Park
Zoo southward to St. Paul and Scrantom Streets.

The northeast area is also home to
what many call Rochester’s coolest feature: the Rochester Public
Market, a bustling indoor-outdoor marketplace offering everything
from fresh fish to imported cheeses. North of the market is Greater
Rochester Urban Bounty, a community-run garden. Some of the
produce is sold at the public market.

Rochester City Living, a program
designed to help those interested in learning more about life in the
city, has a great website for researching different neighborhoods:
http://rochestercityliving.com; 232-4663.

Thanks to the Arts & Cultural
Council for Greater Rochester for helping compile lists of murals
and other city art projects. The agency, along with many neighborhood
groups, also helped fund many of the art projects listed.

This article appears in Mar 21-27, 2007.