We need a park on the Midtown site
Put a park at Midtown.
No, seriously.
Rochester is teetering on the brink of a revitalization, and there are a lot of factors at play in that.
I’m not going to talk about why Midtown shouldn’t be a casino (and it really, really shouldn’t). There are countless people far smarter than me who have already detailed why that’s a bad idea for a city like ours.
I’m not going to talk about photonics, or transforming Charlotte, or making downtown walkable, or creating well-paying jobs, or addressing our gaping socio-economic or racial divide, or improving our city schools, or when we’ll finally get an IKEA, or whatever you think Rochester needs to be a world-class city again.
I am going to talk about something very simple that we could do that would make a world of difference in the personality and attitude of downtown Rochester, which maybe, just maybe, could make solutions to all of the above a little more effective.
We could put a park at Midtown.
But, they say, a park won’t pay taxes!
Neither would a casino, most likely. The current proposal for a casino which includes a performing arts center is from the Senecas, who are a sovereign nation. Any land they build a casino (or anything) on would be completely tax free.
As for the other casino proposal currently submitted to the city, it’s from our very own Wilmorite developers. You know, the people who negotiated a PILOT agreement with the Seneca County IDA for their current casino, del Lago. Who wants to put money on them doing the same with COMIDA? And we all know what great press COMIDA has been getting lately.
In fact, Wilmorite has already proposed a casino downtown, in 2004, when they owed the city over $13 million in back taxes and loans on the Sibley Building. By 2012, that debt had ballooned to over $20 million, due to (you guessed it!) a failed COMIDA PILOT agreement.
And if you think any major company that develops anything at Parcel 5 isn’t going to try to get a tax break through COMIDA or the state, well, then I have a lovely Fast Ferry to sell you.
But, they say, thousands already crowd the other outdoor stages at Jazz Fest!
Well, you got me there. Despite the Trombone Shorty concert drawing a massive crowd, the other stages at Jazz Fest were well-attended. Although there is the fact that those stages require road closures, which require manpower from the Rochester Police Department and detouring motorists.
Well, I guess if Parcel 5 was appealing as a performance space, more people would utilize it like that. Like how Fringe Fest is putting on an entire weekend spectacular this September at Parcel 5.
It also strikes me as interesting that the city is allowing Parcel 5 to be booked for such outdoor performances, when they have seemingly no interest in any proposals that call for this. *adjusts tinfoil hat*
But, they say, a public music space won’t be compatible with the neighbors!
Who said it has to be music? Put on a play. Do some interpretive dance. Do a “drive-in” movie. Hell, do “Yoga under the stars” or something like that. Another food truck rodeo. Rent out the space for outdoor galas. Have a viewing party for whatever big sports game is happening, like the big cities do. Invite wineries and breweries from the Finger Lakes and Rochester up for a big wine tasting and beer garden event. Do a pop-up craft show. Host your dang corporate lunch ’n’ learn there. I guarantee people will pay way more attention than if they were in fluorescent conference room.
And if it is music, 1) I’d rather stick my head out the window and hear thousands of Rochesterians enjoying themselves and their amazing city rather than the silence of an empty city, and 2) just start the concerts earlier so they’re over by a decent hour. This isn’t rocket science.
But, they say, we already have parks downtown!
Yes, we do! And they’re great. But they’re old. Martin Luther King Jr. Park is horribly inaccessible to anyone with mobility issues, which is a prime reason why ROC Pride moved to Cobbs Hill this year. Even if that wasn’t in question, the fountain there is getting re-watered this year, which is TOTALLY AWESOME, but will cut down on the useable space.
Even parks like Cobbs Hill or Highland pose an issue, as grassy terrain is hard for people on wheelchairs or scooters to navigate.
Rochester has always had a reputation as being an inclusive city, yet so many of our parks, and by extension, festivals, are inaccessible. Why not take the chance to build a truly modern park that everyone can enjoy?
But, they say, Parcel 5 is prime development space!
How much of Rochester is empty buildings right now? I was recently on several floors of the Chase Tower, er, The Metropolitan. They were either completely gutted, or still decked out in all their 80s office glory. Sibley is still mostly empty.
Rochester doesn’t need new buildings. We have so many amazing spaces full of such potential. And you know what would help bring people to live and work in those existing spaces? Vibrant, accessible green space!
But, they say, a park would only be used a few times a year!
You know how they say, “if you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen?”
Well, if you can’t stand the cold, get out of Rochester.
Our winters are not changing any time soon. The snow is not going anywhere. We can’t ignore it. It’s a fact of life in Rochester.
I’d love to pretend my ideas for tackling this are original, but instead, I’ll just point you to this article from the Project for Public Spaces to show you why Rochester needs to get out of this idea that our public spaces are unusable for nine months out of the year.
A frequent mistake made in winter cities is to overemphasize the impact of the weather, using it as a rationale for why they don’t have great public spaces. “When people in a city use the climate as an excuse for mediocrity–and that happens in hot places where we work, too, like Dubai and Tempe, Arizona–” says Nikitin, “then I know the problem is not weather but the need for a bigger vision in that place.”
Montreal has an outdoor electronic music festival in January. What’s our excuse?
Or since we’re all about the craft beer and wine and distilling scene, put an ice bar out there. I love drinking outside in the summer. I’d totally throw on a parka to do it on my birthday in February, if just to say I did.
So, I don’t care what they say. What do you say?
