I want to say I enjoyed this, you did a good job, but as someone who lived the first 30 years of my life in my hometown of Rochester, this was so depressing. I was always downtown in the late 1960s all through the 70s and in the early 80s. It is not an exaggeration at all to say that all the areas you showed here used to look like Manhattan back in the day. Tons of people everywhere, vibrant shops and restaurants and three major department stores as well as midtown plaza, which they have since torn down. I worked at many of the restaurants and they were incredible. The top of the plaza had a supper club with first rate name performers, I worked there also. Sibley's department store which is the one that takes up an entire city block on main street, was just as good as Macy's or Bloomingdale's. During the holidays, main street was jammed with thousands of people and the Christmas decorations were incredible. I know it's probably hard to imagine what I'm saying when you're walking around that largely deserted city. I see lots of ghosts as you're walking the streets, I don't mean that literally but figuratively. So many great wonderful memories. I moved to South Florida 35 years ago, and do you want to hear something really crazy? We are probably going to move back to Rochester next year. We've had four great homes down here in South florida, now have our first condo that we bought 3 years ago and we're 5 minutes from downtown Delray Beach and the ocean. I know, it sounds like paradise. And I do love it. But we have a shitload of equity in our condo, we're both pushing 70, both not in great health, and my two sisters and other family and several of my lifelong friends are all up in Rochester and I miss them. It's going to be tough leaving florida, not so much the place but the handful of people here I have made into my family. But it's getting incredibly crowded, and incredibly expensive. The traffic has become a nightmare and there's more people moving here everyday. So, though I lament the death of downtown rochester, it looks like we very well may move back there next year. Winters are going to freak me out lol, always hated them. I'll just stay in and bake bread and make soup I guess. Lol. Anyway, sorry for this long rambling comment, I did enjoy this and you did a great job.
I would stay far away from Rochester. Smartest thing you ever did was move away. I moved to Colorado 4 years ago and wow! What a difference in living. I do miss Wegmans but that's it. No work, the winters are the worst, ghetto, #1 in murders, ide stay away. Ide definitely move out of that dummy state Florida for sure. Not to mention all the blue hairs in Florida. That's where old folks from Rochester go to die. The country is alot bigger and has more opportunities
I grew up in the city of Rochester and moved to Irondequoit, which is a small suburb just a few miles east of the city. These days I avoid the city as much as possible. It's run down, crime is out of control, and most of the businesses that sustained the city have moved away. It's sad to see how far this once great city has fallen My advice to anyone thinking about moving back to Rochester is to reconsider. The city is just a shell of what it once was and continues to decline.
@@roadshow69 that's depressing to hear. It was such a great City at one time. I've pretty much given up on the idea of going back there, I would love to be around my family and close friends more, but after living in South Florida for 35 years I don't think I could stand Rochester. I think I would need major medication to tolerate it LOL.
@@cookingartguy2170 It really is sad to see. I lived on Rustic St. in the Clifford/Goodman area. My friends and I used to take a city bus to Midtown Plaza and spend the better part of the day at the Plaza and the Main St. shops. I wouldn't even want to drive through that area now. My old neighborhood is now dirty and unsafe. It's hard to believe, considering it was such a great neighborhood to grow up in, where everyone looked out for each other. BTW: I spent most of this past April staying at a condo in Boynton Beach and had a great time. I certainly wouldn't mind living there. Maybe you could invite your Rochester friends for a visit and they'll move to Florida when they see what they're missing. 😁
I used lived In Rochester My ex husband got a job offer from Eastman Kodak in 1982. It was a very rich town back then. It was Small city but very beautiful but the winter was very Cold so much snow I remember those icy roads and snow plow trucks everywhere. the vehicles get so rusty bc. of Salty roads during the winter. back those days the Downtown was very popular and busy city. Especially during Holiday seasons.Friends and I used took our kids to see the big Christmas tree at the sibleys building. Good old days. I move to Texas in July.2012.No more snow. But I do Miss snowy days sometimes especially when it comes wits holidays.
Aww I visited for the first time in July 2022 to visit my Bf and I enjoyed my time in Rochester. It's a little cute small town City. It was too hot for me but overall it left a good impression on me and I'll be back there again end of Jan 2023! Very excited 😊 🤗
It’s so depressing seeing downtown Rochester in such a sad state. I literally get emotional watching this. Empty buildings, zero retail, not a soul walking down Main Street. What you didn’t experience firsthand is the widespread childhood poverty, forgotten lost souls roaming the streets and uncontrolled violent crime. My hometown is in shambles. It’s a beautiful city that deserves so much better. I left not too long ago for better opportunities out of state and although I’m still a young man, I hope that I live long enough to see Rochester bounce back. I know they’re trying. The East End at the beginning of your video is being transformed, but will it be a successful effort is the question. I would love to return to my home, a revitalized version of my home, before I die.
@@charlesbaldo Damn, that's who's left? Used to be packed with fun peeps. I guess my gang and I (13 of us), who lit out to California from '76 to '82, weren't the only ones who bailed. We made the best of life in The Neighborhood, though none of us returned.
@@clifford7594 I think this video was taken early in the morning maybe on a Sunday. I live and work in Rochester and it has a lot more activity during a business day than that. But it is a quiet city. I just got back from NYC two days ago, and it was nice to see green, clean and calm again. For the record he got a lot of the buildings wrong. Especially on chestnut street. I worked at RGE right across from the Cadillac and that parking lot would be full on workdays. I could go on, but to be honest, I like a quiet city that's well maintained with lots of classic architecture.
Sometime around 2011 I drove around Lake Ontario with an ex. We went from Toronto to Kingston to Syracuse to Rochester to Buffalo to Niagara and back to Toronto. (Way less interesting than we thought itd be.) Ive lived around the States but Rochester was particularly really depressing then. Abandoned houses with boarded up windows everywhere. Empty lots where ruined houses had been torn down. It was like Kodak left and the town was just decaying. (Sort of like Buffalo but worse.) You can imagine though back when it was having a boom and could have grown to becoming a great city.
Memories. My friends and I would jump down into the old subway and walk as far as we could until we could not see each other and the sound of rats. It was fun (circa 1978).
Lived All my life in Rochester 12:10 they filled the subway with garbage 13:05 they never take the Christmas lights down, just turn them on during holidays
Can or do you have video in downtown Buffalo, Ny ? Would love to see that! Amazing architectural features/ buildings and a beautiful city with a beautiful waterfront. That is if you are in the area, of course! I did visit Rochester, Ny many times back in the 80’s . Thanks for sharing this video! Nice video. Rochester has changed quite a bit! Hopefully Rochester will go through a revitalization of the downtown area.
I'm from Rochester and I grew up in Syracuse and I visit in Rochester to see my family in Rochester but Rochester and Syracuse are places to live but it's need help avoid crimes and drugs and alcohol and rebuild homes for people to live and Syracuse is smaller than Rochester to me, and sime part of Rochester clean and some part Rochester not clean and it's the same thing goes for Syracuse
honestly, Rochester could make that tunnel under the bridge into transitional housing for the homeless!! Or at least studio apartments. I know it would be noisy, but it couldn't be worse than the Go train tracks right outside your balcony. At the new condos across from Fort York in Toronto!! Balconies are literally 10 feet away from the Gardiner
I have explored the abandoned subways, I live in Rochester. They are practically transitional housing for homeless, I was shocked at a whole community of people who live there
You needed a guide to tell you the actual purposes and history. Almost everything you said was wrong. Such as never any boat slips or docks between the dam and High Falls. Had you walked a little further on Court St, you would have come onto a bustling restaurant hence all the cars parked on the bridge. The water coming out from under the library was actually a mill race. Used today as the library air conditioning…don’t ask me how that works. On Chestnut St, the building you said that appeared to be disused is the backside of the Eastman School of music, school library and rows of stores and restaurants. The list goes on and on but I think you got the idea.
It’s nothing here don’t move it’s depressing super expensive best advice if you’re here for collage it’s reasonable but get your degree 📜 and leave to much crime here
