Young People in Rochester/Upstate (Buffalo, Greece: home, job market, neighborhoods)
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It seems to me that one of the biggest problems that Rochester (and most of Upstate NY) has is its ability to attract young people to the area--and keep them here! I've seen this in statistics, as well as the attitudes of my classmates here at the University of Rochester. I'm in my junior year, so many of my classmates are beginning to think about what's to come after graduation. When I talk to people about their future plans, a fair number of them tell me that they certainly don't intend to stick around the area once their time here is up. And of course, many are shocked to hear that I'd actually like to stay in Rochester/Upstate.
Now, granted I've lived in Rochester (Greece) my entire life, I am somewhat biased in my desire to stay here. However, it is disheartening to see such a negative view of the city. And while the economic conditions certainly are not the most attractive, what's concerning is that they will not improve unless there is some sort of influx of talent and youth in the area.
So how can we spark some sort of interest in the huge pool of graduates from Rochester colleges to stick around and begin to revitalize this city? A tough question, I know, but I just want to hear some opinions.
As an aside--if there are any other Rochester/Upstate college students on here, what do students at your school (or others) think about the area?
There are plenty of young people that want to stay in the area. No offense to your classmates but college kids in general are not the best judge of character of an area. Its disappointing that so many college kids are ignorant to the local area that they are in. I'm not talking about just this area. In traveling for work and coming across college kids in places such as Boston, Ct, DC, etc, I have heard some unfair generalizations about these places. I want to smack some of these kids upside the head after hearing some of these stupid remarks.
I think its a case of the kids being away from home for the first time. I remember I did not like the local area my college was in until I went out on my own and saw what the area had to offer. Many of these kids will complain but will do nothing to go explore the area they are in.
What this area, or any area with a college needs to do is heavily promote programs to get the kids into the local areas. Locally the UR kids need to realize there is much more to the city than A-street and the East End. Also some of these kid need common sense to not believe every rumor they hear about crime.
Most importantly , to keep people here, there needs to be jobs. In past years the job market hasnt been the best but has been steadily improving with more and more options out there for college graduates.
Yeah--it's really too bad that instead of having something positive to say about the area, a lot students love to spew the fact that Rochester is the "murder capital of the state." I wish many would take a look around for themselves before they stigmatize based on the few things that they hear.
i live in LA now and grew up in a small town in upstate but i never spent much time in rochester. i am considering moving back to new york and looking into park ave in rochester. what is the city like for young people? are there restaurants where it's easy to get a waiter job? what is the music scene like? are there young people in bands or is it just older guys in bands? recording/rehearsal studios?
i live in LA now and grew up in a small town in upstate but i never spent much time in rochester. i am considering moving back to new york and looking into park ave in rochester. what is the city like for young people? are there restaurants where it's easy to get a waiter job? what is the music scene like? are there young people in bands or is it just older guys in bands? recording/rehearsal studios?
Everything you mention is here in Rochester, but as in all cities, your attitude will make the city great or terrible. There is far more things to do than you will even have time to experience. Especially in the summer, there are free concerts everywhere and you may experience a conflict of which band(s) or festivals to pursure. Many new, young garage bands all the time. Rochester has a large arts scene and all types of resturants. Park ave is nice, with many resturants and shops. From Park ave you can go south to the trendy Monroe ave area, north to the Artwalk, East ave and museum district, or west towards the East End entertainment (bars) district and downtown. South Wedge is another neighborhood to consider.
Probably the biggest problem in Rochester is that there is no master plan or vision of who we want to be. If we had a plan, everyone could get on board and contribute in their own way. Most development is individual large projects with well conected developers that have no tie in with the rest of the area. Because these projects are not comprehensive, the citizens protest against them and nothing gets done. We pay a lot in taxes and then get nothing in return. One of Rochester's most recent and exciting projects -the Fast Ferry- was run out of town as nobody could grasp the concept of forging a closer connection with Toronto. And it was a measilly $30 million. Had the state paid for the ship, it would have broke even. No other transportation project breaks even. Again, we desperatly nead a master plan for metro Rochester so we can all get excited about it and get on board.
I am a born and bred Rochesterian and just finished up at RIT. For 5 years I have had to deal with outsiders talk about how there is nothing to do here and how crappy it is blah blah blah. As Garmin mentioned, most of these kids never even bothered looking around the area! The most some of these kids would travel is to the hot spot bars and clubs because apparently thats the only thing worth doing when you're in college. On the other hand, the kids who did go out and explore actually like the place... imagine that. Due to my career I could get placed anywhere in the country, but that includes Rochester! I would love to stay here and get a place down towards Honeoye or Avon. Rochester has everything I need... it really does, not only that compared to everywhere else its pretty darn cheap to live here. If you have thick enough skin to deal with the winters then your all set!
I am a born and bred Rochesterian and just finished up at RIT. For 5 years I have had to deal with outsiders talk about how there is nothing to do here and how crappy it is blah blah blah. As Garmin mentioned, most of these kids never even bothered looking around the area! The most some of these kids would travel is to the hot spot bars and clubs because apparently thats the only thing worth doing when you're in college. On the other hand, the kids who did go out and explore actually like the place... imagine that. Due to my career I could get placed anywhere in the country, but that includes Rochester! I would love to stay here and get a place down towards Honeoye or Avon. Rochester has everything I need... it really does, not only that compared to everywhere else its pretty darn cheap to live here. If you have thick enough skin to deal with the winters then your all set!
I totally agree. I think people judge the area based on the area of town they lived in and have never really been able to get to know other parts of their metro area. For instance, you probably have people that grew up in say Fairport, that have no clue about what's on the other side of town or what other communities have to offer, because they stay in the Eastern suburbs for everything or limit where they go outside of that comfort zone. I see this in my area and in others as well. So, they really don't even know the area they live in totally before judging it.
It's the same way with suburbanites judging the city they live outside of. They have a generalized view of that city, eventhough you could find plenty of nice neighborhoods within that city. it's like they believe only what the news shows them or go by a reputation of one part of the city and run with it to make the whole city seem that way.
I've been to alot of cities..(job as a pilot requires tons of travel)..And Rochester is just as good as many of them. Granted we don't have an infrastructure like Seattle or San Fran. And don't have the tourist draw like an Orlando. But we do have a great number of summer things to do. Finger lakes, sports, close to Canada, fairly cheap cost of living.
Unfortunately the leaders of ROCH have no idea what it takes to get a downtown vibe going. Many cities have an entertainment "district" that draws people just to shop or dine. We have East End and Monroe ave that unfortunately are just a college scene filled with typical bar fights and too young of a crowd. (I'm only 32 and went to these places also. But when you hit the later 20's your perception does change). We had a good area down by High Falls that attracted all sorts of different people. Unfortunately the place is completely shut down. It is one of the nicest natural locations to promote a city "district" and Roch. does not utilize it. Or under develops it. Or lets the other side of the river look like crap and expect people to not notice or care about the element that come across the pedestrian bridge.
Places like Austin, San Antonio, San Jose and other mid-size cities have used alot of finacial resources to increase their entertainment venues. Rochester seems to do everything on a half-scale. Everything seems to end up being done half-assed.
plus like every other city, government is fairly corrupt and expects know one to notice.
The winters don't help much either.
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