Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I have been watching very closely to the city of Rochester's news via the wham-13 and democrat and chronicle websites (hopefully I'm not violating any city-data rules by mentioning them), and I must say that it is quite unsettling to hear of the numerous homicides and other violent crimes that occur in the city.
With that being said, I can't help but wonder if suburbanites on this board frequent the city for leisure?
For those who may not frequent the city for leisurely purposes, therefor deciding to occupy your spare time in the suburbs, what do you do for fun?
Are Rochester natives welcoming to transplants for the most part?
As some of you may know, my husband and I are planning to settle in one of the surrounding suburbs of Rochester, in the very near future, because we absolutely loved what we saw on a recent rip there; but I get the feeling that visits to the city should be In and Out types of trips, if visits to the city are absolutely necessary!
Don't get me wrong, I am in no way unfamiliar with crime, specifically violent crime, as my husband and I both are from Washington, D.C. and have lived in its surrounding suburbs, where there are a plethora of nicknames to signify the crime rate there. However, we don't know a soul in Rochester, and I guess I'm just looking for some reassurance that we're making the right move.
I hope that no one here is offended by this thread. If so, I apologize in advance.
Yea, the news has violent crime, but every city does. Violent crime is down this year compared to last and previous years. And if you are from DC, the crime won't seem as bad. Just stay out of the bad areas and you will be fine.
I live in the burbs and go into the city for fun. I don't have problems. Most everything worth a damn is located in the city. Other than outdoor activities and a couple of restaurants, I don't see much fun in the burbs, unless you are older with children.
In reality, any part of the city you will probably want to visit will be safe (and unlike DC, you probably won't accidently wander into a bad part, as they are mostly "off the beaten path"). Furthermore, driving through any part of the city is safe at anytime during normal hours. Just avoid the areas they refer to as the "Crescent".
While you could just live in the suburbs and probably never travel into the city, you'd be missing a lot by doing so.
If you don't want to be a victim of a majority of the violent crime, just don't get involved in the drug community or go wandering around associating with them. Like anywhere, there is the occassional suburban violent crime, but that is almost never random.
Yeah, there are definitely plenty of folks around here who buy into the whole 'fear the city for it is deadly" mentality in the suburbs; several of then being my neighbors and even family mebers. There are plenty of things that suburbanites can do in the city of Rochester without ever seriously having to worry about randome crime. For the most part, crime in teh city is limited to a few bad neighborhoods in the southwest and northeast sections of the city. The only attraction families may be interested in that is in a bad neighborhood in the city is probably the Susan B. Anthony house. Other than that, it is as others have said; the places people want to go for city-attractions are not near the "dangerous" places.
Fear of the inner city is one of the problems facing Rochester. If more people would visit the attractions there it would help spark a turn around within the city. I'm not saying that suburban families should go take a stroll aroung Ave D or anything, but there are nice attractions like high falls (which I have always wondered why the city can't get that area to be desirable) Genessee valley park, Maplewood area (where I used to run my dog alot when I lived there) and all the attractions on the southeast (Memorial art gallery, Highland park, Eastman House etc.). I have always wished that the city could have done a replacement for Midtown and made it the "it" place to shop. I remember riding that monorail as a kid! I think it is a matter of making it desirable through marketing to visit the city as a whole, not just the park/ east ave areas.
It would be really cool for the city government to establish a touring system for the city of Rochester! Has there ever been a system like this in Rochester before, where visitors and residents alike could see the major attractions of the city with transportation provided? That bring a lot of good publicity and revenue for the area! There is definitely a lot to see and do there, but a tourist wouldn't necessarily know the "inside scoop" on where to go and where not to go.
Well, the are replacing Midtown...with a 200 ft + skyscraper for the new headuqarters of Paetec. Shopping malls are someting that really make more sense in the suburbs IMO.
The southeastern quadrant of the city, which contains many of the best attractions, is very safe (along the lines of Northwest in DC). The northeast quadrant is very safe as long as you stay east of Culver Rd. There is a great public market in the "harder" part of this area but I have never heard of anyone accosted there during daylight hours when the market is open for business. The core downtown area is also safe in the areas you would generally want to be (theaters, restaurants, etc). I do not know the west side of the city well.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Thanks!
