It’s fitting that the fate of Kodak’s massive industrial complex on West Ridge Road, at least for the foreseeable future, will be tied to film.
Monroe Community College
Posted inNews & Opinion
Mind the skills gap
The Buffalo Billion led to some big money, high-profile economic development projects in the Buffalo area. But the region’s leaders say that the effort has also helped workforce development. As the leaders developed detailed plans for investing the state money, they learned that key industries in the region faced shortages of qualified workers. They studied […]
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MCC’s new downtown campus on target for 2017 opening
The first phase of construction at Monroe Community College’s new $72 million downtown campus is three-quarters complete, and the facility is on track for a fall 2017 opening. The new 255,000-square-foot campus will be spread across seven floors in four former Kodak buildings on State Street, bought by the county. The first phase of construction […]
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Anne Kress and the reinvention of MCC
It’s hard to think of another local institution that has more successfully reinvented itself than Monroe Community College. Not long ago, if you were going to MCC, it was often cynically assumed it was because you couldn’t get into a “real” school. MCC has successfully jettisoned that image, and a good deal of the credit […]
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START-UP NY: Big boost or big giveaway?
New York has a problem. The state’s public and private universities produce well-educated students and foster plenty of technological innovation, but out-of-state companies are often the ones to benefit. It’s a trend that state government and business leaders have tried, with limited success, to reverse for years. But some elected leaders and economic development officials […]
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Kress shines and so does the rest of Rochester
If you were heading south on West Henrietta Road yesterday around 10 a.m., you probably saw the dozen or more squad cars belonging to state troopers, and the black, unmarked Silverados stationed in driveways and parking lots. A very alert police dog sniffed the arriving salt-rimmed cars at Monroe Community College’s Applied Technologies Center. The […]
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Bike lane, trail projects receive state funding
For at least the past decade, planners in the Rochester region have made a coordinated effort to connect the area’s many multi-use trails. And one of those efforts recently received a substantial state grant. The state Department of Transportation will give Brighton $1.3 million toward the $1.7 million Highland Crossing Trail project, which will connect a […]
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MCC-Kodak deal finalized
Monroe County Executive Maggie Brooks has sent out a press release announcing that the county has completed the purchase of Kodak properties on State Street, which will be used for a new Monroe Community College campus. The press release says that the purchase was completed this afternoon. The county is paying just shy of $3 […]
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Ren Square buildings likely headed to auction
Monroe County officials are planning to put three buildings up for auction, including two buildings that were once part of the Renaissance Square project. The county plans to sell Gateway Centre, 150 East Main Street; the Edwards building, 34 St. Paul Street; and 37 South Fitzhugh Street. All three were donated to the county by […]
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If MCC flops, will city taxpayers be on the hook?
The lessons of Frontier Field and the soccer stadium have yet to be learned, apparently, says Rochester Mayor Tom Richards. The backers of both projects swore that they could survive on their own steam, only to need taxpayers to bail them out. That history is causing Richards to look at MCC’s planned move to Kodak’s […]
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Morelle steps into MCC fray
State Assembly member Joe Morelle is sharply questioning Monroe Community College’s plan to move its downtown campus. Morelle is not the only local elected official who has been skeptical of the plan; Mayor Tom Richards and County Legislature Democrats have been very critical of it. But Morelle’s involvement is adding to tensions over the plan. […]
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MCC move looks increasingly certain
Last night, the Legislature agreed to let Monroe County buy space from Kodak for a new Monroe Community College city campus. But Legislature Democrats, all of whom voted against the legislation, and Mayor Tom Richards say the county unnecessarily rushed the deal (Richards’ statement is at the end of this blog). The county plans to […]
