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I don't want to come off as NIMBY-sounding so I will say up front that I don't necessarily have a problem with a performing arts center on parcel 5. In fact, if done right it would be great for downtown and that spot in general. I just take huge issues with putting a slot machine parlor there just to get a "free" PAC, in essence selling out to the Senecas. There are just way too many unanswered questions about this proposal that seem to be going ignored.
Why does Lovely Warren think she's smarter than every other place that has turned over land to the Senecas and she can somehow convinced them to "give it back" if the project doesn't work out? And who is defining failure of the project, is it just going to be that as long as they building something, then it's a success and it stays forever? That's not good enough to me. Why does she say we need to take a risk and do something different there, when in fact she is doing the EXACT same thing places like Buffalo and Niagara Falls have tried to generate jobs? Why all the comparisons to Buffalo as a success, what about every place a casino has failed? And why do they compare the job numbers to real casinos when ours would not be allowed to have table games and that seemingly would drastically reduce job creation? On top of that, they also say no hotel and no signature restaurant, which I think is a good thing, but still, that's less jobs this thing creates. How many people does it take to run a room of video games? Next up, where does RBTL fall in all this if the Senecas build a PAC? They just get forced out and now have to compete with a shiny new building down the road? Not that competition is bad, but if you're just poaching shows from the Auditorium then both sides could come out as losers. One story pointed that Hamilton musical tour is skipping Rochester and "maybe" they would have came if we had a new PAC. Is "maybe" really good enough to go forward with this? What happened to that study that started last summer being done by Lincoln Center? It isn't even done yet, but we're going to push ahead and do whatever we feel like anyway?
I realize that many of these things may be answered going forward, but it sure seems to me that Warren and the city are pushing hard for this Seneca deal ignoring the future consequences, just so they can claim they created a couple jobs. It's just really disappointing to me that our mayor thinks this is the best we can do.
As an outsider, I would be interested in visiting the Performing Arts Center. Casino, not so much. I don't know of anyone young that goes to the casinos here. It would be better to relocate a sporting facility downtown. It would also be nice to have a large park downtown for festivals and such like Canalside.
I think with the casino, it is overkill due to Batavia Downs down the road to the west and the Lago Casino being built to the east.
I wonder if expanding say MCC with a new academic program with a new Downtown faculty, along with the Performing Arts Center and riverfront park could work? It is similar to what was planned for Syracuse's Inner Harbor, which was suppose to have an Onondaga Community College satellite facility there, along with new housing/apartments(which is going forward). Perhaps from there, that could allow for the city to take advantage of StartUp NY(yeah, I know) and create public and private sector jobs in Downtown.
I know people who would go to a downtown casino to play table games every once and a while, which this wouldn't even have. I know absolutely no one who would bother going down there to play video slots for a couple hours. I feel like they are vastly overstating the "entertainment" this "casino" would be bringing.
As far as a large park downtown, I am very against adding more green space just for the sake of it that will sit empty most of the year, just like Canalside looks every time I have been past there. I do however hope that some day the land near the bottom of High Falls can be open to the public and that could be a very nice and truly unique event space for the city. Might not be right in the middle of everything, but it does have plenty of convenient parking with the baseball stadium right there.
I don't even gamble but I think a casino downtown is a great idea. It would help bring people back downtown that normally go elsewhere for fun on the weekends. A casino is more than just for gambling. It has shows, bands, cool bars and other things inside it where people can gather for entertainment. Building something like Jillian's used to be in the 90's except with gambling would be really cool. It had a indoor bowling alley with black lights, pool tables, multiple bars, arcade games, and "hang out" spots with leather couches and chairs in the hallways and corners. It was a really fun place to go on a saturday night.
I don't even gamble but I think a casino downtown is a great idea. It would help bring people back downtown that normally go elsewhere for fun on the weekends. A casino is more than just for gambling. It has shows, bands, cool bars and other things inside it where people can gather for entertainment. Building something like Jillian's used to be in the 90's except with gambling would be really cool. It had a indoor bowling alley with black lights, pool tables, multiple bars, arcade games, and "hang out" spots with leather couches and chairs in the hallways and corners. It was a really fun place to go on a saturday night.
Jillian's sounds similar to Revolutions, which is a spot in Destiny USA in Syracuse. Perhaps it could be a package deal with a casino and a place like Revolutions together. Syracuse | Revolutions
Perhaps this could be a better idea: OOO Cinebowl | Movies They were going to put one in Township 5 in Camillus, but changed their minds.
I just wonder if it necessarily has to be just one thing in terms of development though.
Last edited by ckhthankgod; 06-11-2016 at 09:00 PM..
This is on Parcel 5 correct? I've heard some people want to turn it into a park.
I don't think it's too bad an idea.
Rochester doesn't have a true Downtown Park that you can do things on(Soccer, football, Baseball etc) midtown is big enough to allow recreation while Manhattan square is only usable for relaxation.
It is a good location and there are plenty of other lots good for development (like 1/2 of W. Main Street)
After the concert Saturday I'm really on board with the park idea with a nice stage that can draw in big acts. The key would be constant activity in the summer. I think it would bring a lot of energy to downtown. They would need to find a use for it in winter. I think this is a much better idea that a PAC.
After the concert Saturday I'm really on board with the park idea with a nice stage that can draw in big acts. The key would be constant activity in the summer. I think it would bring a lot of energy to downtown. They would need to find a use for it in winter. I think this is a much better idea that a PAC.
I know Worcester, MA has an outdoor skating rink on its Common (Providence has one on Kennedy Plaza) and During it's "First Night" NYE celebration there is an ice sculpture gallary.
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