Parcel 5 is already a public space — and building a PAC there is theft.

Chelsea
Chelsea
Jul 22, 2017 · 3 min read

For more than a year, there’s been a city-wide debate on what to do with Parcel 5 — a 1.17 acre in the heart of downtown.

The debate didn’t stop when the city of Rochester accepted a proposal, with a hint of controversy, to build a $130 million performing arts center with 150 luxury apartments.

But oddly enough, since that announcement in April, we haven’t heard a peep out of the city regarding the PAC, its funding, or a timeline for moving forward.

Instead, the City has hosted public events on Parcel 5, like Little Kids, Big Rigs.

And the ROC Women’s Music Festival, where they even highlighted the use of Parcel 5 as a public resource.

The City isn’t the only one using Parcel 5 as a gathering space. The plot, which has grown from a little gravel eyesore to a publicly recognizable destination, has hosted countless wiffle ball games between employees of the surrounding businesses on their lunch break — including one attended by Mayor Lovely Warren herself.

And in 2016 and 2017, both the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Fest and Rochester Fringe Festival have hosted major free concerts and performances on Parcel 5.

Events that were really, really well attended and brought a lot of people downtown to spend money at food trucks encircling the lot, as well as surrounding bars and restaurants.

Events that show no sign of moving to a different location, especially since it seems like it will be years before the performing arts center will be built.

Parcel 5 even solves the city’s overblown “where do I park” dilemma for people coming in from the suburbs. There’s 1,800 parking spots directly beneath it in the Midtown Parking Garage — and the management company has offered free parking during events like the Jazz Fest and Midtown Eats.

But instead of a free, open space bringing vibrancy and life to downtown, the City and private developers intend to steal this space for a closed off facility that is only accessible to a few.

Some argue that’s better than a green space, because it would be silly to leave the lot vacant — despite the fact that a performing arts center would only be used for 180 days out of the year.

Some argue that the luxury apartments are needed downtown — despite the fact that downtown currently has a glut of high priced luxury rentals, and a dearth of affordable housing and non-rental condos.

In fact, just in the Parcel 5 area itself, there are at least six developed or planned luxury apartment buildings, not including the new proposal: The Metropolitan, 88 on Elm, The Temple Building, Tower280, Sibley Square, and an unnamed proposal for Parcel 2 by Buckingham Properties and Morgan Communities.

Venture just a few more blocks away and you can live at 933 the U (who is naming these places?!), Charlotte Square, One Eleven on East, or The Residences at the Columbus Building.

If you have the money, of course.

Some argue that we already have parks in the area, and that Parcel 5 simply won’t be used.

That’s a weird argument for a space that’s already being used frequently and enthusiastically by the community despite being a literal gravel pit. It’s hard to imagine that grass would scare people away.

The debate is over. Parcel 5 is a community space — for everyone. And for the City to build there and take that away from the people basically amounts to theft from the people.

Are we the people going to let this stand?

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