Anyone know Rochester, NY?

[HardDrive]

Wife has an amazing opportunity Rochester, NY. I've never been there.

Winters look like a lot of fun...or not.

Gotta be honest, its strikes me as a rust belt city that never came back. I'm sure there are affluent suburbs.

Any input appreciated.

[p911dad]

Rochester was never a rust belt city, it was always a technical industry center (think Kodak, Bausch and Lomb, and many others). When Kodak collapsed, the many, many optical and other engineers let go started small companies that are doing well to this day. It has a lot to offer, including some very good universities, medical center, Lake Ontario, good airport, the Finger Lakes close by, etc. I worked there for many years and really got to like it and the people. The weather is a full four seasons, winter can be long some years. It is also a fairly wealthy place, and some very nice suburbs, mostly on the east side of the city.

[rattlsnak]

Been there many times.. has a cool downtown vibe but you will get a LOT of snow there...They do have airline service obviously, but you will have several more options driving to Buffalo..

[wilnj]

I lived there a little over 20 years ago and I loved it. Even my wife who loathes winter, liked it.

The cold you can get used to, the snow is managed well as long as you don’t expect your small side road to get plowed to bare pavement.

There are a lot of distinct neighborhoods and bike riding through downtown on the weekends was a blast.

The main reason I didn’t stay is the economy is rough. Working in construction, there were few opportunities that didn’t often involve 90-120 minute one way commutes.

[Por_sha911]

Bad: The economy is in bad shape and you are stuck with NY taxes and politics driven by NYC. It has hard winters. Porsche people will have less months to drive without snow or salt on the roads.

Good: The area is beautiful. Great hunting and fishing. Not a horrendous distance from NYC where you can access anything and everything. A great place to retire if you want to be in NY because cost of housing is low.

[ckelly78z]

You will be in the "snow belt", not the "rust belt"...they get lots of November/December lake effect snow from cold air moving over a warm lake Erie.

[svandamme]

Isn't that were Bam Margera and most of Jackass originated from (CKY Camp Kill Yourself)

[svandamme]

nevermind, westchester pa not rochester

[Skytrooper]

I live in the Rochester area . I was born in Canandaigua. There are good opportunities here. The downtown area weathered the blm stuff well and there is not much lingering issues along those lines.

Yes, winters can be harder than some other places. We have not had a "bad" winter in the last 6 years.
It is very green here, not in the recycling way but, very pretty.
The Finger Lakes are a short drive from Rochester and with that come all the watersports. Watkins Glen is just over an hour from Rochester (shorter if you are in the east suburbs). There is plenty to do in these parts year round. Winter is not so bad, you just have to make friends with it. In other words you just need find something, inside or out, to keep active.

I live east of Rochester in the town of Farmington. It is a 20-25 minute drive to downtown Rochester, but still mostly rural. Myself and anther Pelican (white85carrera) live within 2 miles , so you could be among aquaintences.

If you need any assistance, or have any questions please just ask.

[ramonesfreak]

i live there. i have to run to work so i’ll have to write more later. i see you live in Columbus. i’d rather live here. PM me or ask any question here and i’ll answer when i get a second later

[Dpmulvan]

Not much different from where you live now, just a smaller city, higher taxes and everything is illegal. A terrible place in the winter time. If you can escape somewhere sunny and warm around end of feb March you won’t want to hang yourself so much.

[Dpmulvan]

Do have some good golf courses like oak hill cc, country club of Rochester, et.

[slow&rusty]

I've been through Rochester many times, especially when I lived in Toronto and would visit family \ friends in NYC and Buffalo.

Be prepared for harsh long winters, lake effect snow and your car will literally deteriorate before your eyes as they heavily salt the roads for almost 5 months.

Last time I was there, it appeared the economy was struggling after several of the big employers packed up and left, crime was also on the rise, many were worried that it would end up like Detroit or Baltimore. Hopefully things have improved on the economy side.

[wilnj]

Originally Posted by Skytrooper

Winter is not so bad, you just have to make friends with it. In other words you just need find something, inside or out, to keep active.

As an example, one winter we got about 18” on Saturday night. I made first tracks driving to the bar, there was already a couple there that came in on XC skis and a couple snowmobiles showed up later. In town, not in the suburbs.

[white85carrera]

a good handful of Pelicans in and around Rochester. I have been in or around the city 56 years and must say, I dont see me leaving.
Pros:
fresh water is not an issue; Weather is less likely to kill you here-only weather related concern is snow, but dress for the weather, embrace the season and pick the right spot (north or south of the Thruway ridge matters for lake effect snows); Watkins Glen International is only 90 minutes away; the finger lakes region and Letchworth Park are true assets; housing market is stable; Niagara Region PCA is pretty active for P-Car activity; besides ticks and mosquitos not much to worry about related to getting bit by something. healthy white collar job market and good music, food, culture scene. Craft beer scene is strong, getting stronger. big golf town, as mentioned. Toronto is short drive or 15 min flight away.
Cons:
Taxes could be better but honestly, I stopped worrying about it, gubmit gets it one way or the other wherever you are; They salt the life out of the roads in winter and it takes a toll on the vehicles (probably my biggest pet peeve);

[ramonesfreak]

About me: Born in 72 and raised here. Left in 94 and lived in the Cleveland area 4 years then moved to Long Island and then Manhattan until 2004 when I came back here. I was gone for about 10 years. This place best I can tell is better than it ever was in many ways, although for some that may not be saying much

Having spent a lot of time in Cleveland, I sorta think of Rochester as a small Cleveland insofar as it is situated on/around a Great Lake, in this case Lake Ontario. The basic feeling of this place is a lot like Cleveland in every way, just not as big in scale. Unlike Cleveland, the actual City of Rochester is not ON the lake…it’s a few miles south of it. The suburbs, neighborhoods and parks look quite similar to Cleveland. But with the lack of pro sports in Rochester, that ‘big city” feeling isn’t here if you know what I mean

Compared to Columbus, your daily life wont change much. There is really no commute to speak of. Having lived in NYC where I had a 1.5 hour commute to go 15 miles, I laugh when I hear people complain that it took them 20 minutes to get somewhere.

-cost of living is low. Probably the same as Columbus. I bought a nice but small old Cape Cod style house in a decent neighborhood by the lake for $89K. However, if you want to spend $200K to $350K, you could live in a house that in other parts of the country would cost you millions, with a million dollar view to go with it. Again, probably the same as Columbus, although I think the views are better here. Taxes are high here. Don’t know how that compares to Ohio

-Schools (I don’t have kids) but there are some really good public schools and some good private schools like Harley, Allendale, Mercy (all girls), McQuaid Jesuit. I went to McQuaid (all Boys). There are also some good college/Universities – U of R, RIT, Nazareth, St. John Fisher. I went to RIT for undergrad

-Food. Groceries, we have Wegmans. Wegmans was started here. There’s probably no other grocery store in the world that comes close. I think we are getting a Whole Foods soon. We have Trader Joes, though I got my fill of that place when I lived on Long Island and admit, ive never even been to our Trader Joes. You could do worse regarding dining out. We have some decent Indian, Thai, Mexican, Italian etc….restaurants. We have some good BBQ as well and the area is famous for hotdog/burger stands and plenty of high end dining and of course, wings are big here as are “fish fry” Fridays (fried haddock).

Nature – Lake Ontario is right here. I have always either lived right on it, or within a mile or two from it. Its not the ocean but looking out at it, you wouldn’t know the difference. If your into fishing or just boating, this is a good place in the non-winter months. If you are into hiking, cycling, walking, hunting, fishing, camping etc…this area is great. Like anywhere, its up to you to motivate and get out. The things that make this area nice are not always obvious. You have to make the effort and want to do things…which is a quality that is lacking in many who live here – not sure why.

Finger Lakes – they are beautiful and offer some great driving roads with great scenery and there are wineries everywhere with tastings in beautiful settings

Parks- We have some of the most beautiful parks I have seen anywhere

Erie Canal – there is a bike path along the canal that is really nice

Genesee River – fishing….and a nice place to keep a boat

Adirondack Mountains – I unfortunately don’t get the chance to take advantage of this area much. However, it’s a stunning place to vacation

Unlike Ohio, NY is not flat. There are areas that are vast flatland farms just like Ohio. But, its also very hilly and somewhat mountainous throughout. The natural landscape of NY does not get the credit it deserves. Its one of the most beautiful states in the country

You can also get to Toronto in a couple hours and the “Thousand Islands” in a couple hours up by the St. Lawrence Seaway

NYC is a 5.5 hour drive

The thruway “route 90” is right here. If you want to drive to Seattle, just hop on it (ive done it).

Car scene – this area has always been more of a muscle car scene than exotic car scene. Again, no pro sports here so there are no ferrari or lambo or mclaren dealers here. Despite that, I went to a car show last week and there were 2 ferraris and 5 lamborghinis and 2 mclarens. The wealthy here get their exotic cars from Buffalo or NYC- Theres a big British car scene here, or there was. Not many old porsches left but we do have an exceptional indy shop that works on old Porsche/BMW

Weather – with the exception of the occasional lake-effect snow storm, you wont find the weather much different than Columbus. Its hot and humid in the summer. In the winter, its winter. It can get dark – in a seattle gloom/doom sorta way. But, if you have indoor hobbies you will be fine. I spend the winters in my basement music studio screwing around with my guitars etc, listing to music and doing what people do in the winter. If you are into winter sports, we have quite a few mountains to choose from that are within about an hours drive

Concerts- if you like concerts, all the major acts come through here because of Route 90. We have some great outdoor venues…..sort of like Blossom in Ohio, if you’ve ever been there then youll get the idea. Was at one last night for Dead & Company. Very nice.

Record Shops - Collecting records is a hobby of mine and we have some of the best record shops I have seen anywhere, including NYC. We are very fortunate in this respect

Nightlife-I don’t bother anymore. It a young scene. There are some decent places to catch live music for an older crowd that I will go to, plenty of breweries that have great beer and good food with live music

Do I like living here? No, not really. I would rather be in Key Largo. Im a tropical sorta person and I would rather see palm trees and be out fishing for tarpon. That said, there are far worse places to live. You can have a very good life here and be quite satisfied if you are willing to get out and make the most of it and you appreciate how little you have to pay in terms of money and time in order to take advantage of what it has to offer.

Ok, gotta run. Anything else you wanna know just ask.

[GH85Carrera]

Back when Kodak was king, our photography shop had regular visits from our Kodak Technical Rep. He was born and raised there and he said most people in the area wanted a job at Kodak. He said his advice for anyone moving there is to get the biggest most reliable snow blower you can afford. If you have a small snow blower, sell it and get a good one.

They get less than 60 days per year of sunshine. He loved the city, and the area, but when he retired from Kodak he stayed in OKC because he loved playing golf in winter on sunny 45 degree days.

If you are going for a good career job, and plan to stay a while you will likely like it.

[matthewb0051]

Lived in Watertown, 70 miles north of Syracuse for 3 years thanks to the Army. Best assignment ever! (but I also said that about Hawaii, Germany, and El Paso)

I was apprehensive at first about the winters but my fears really were not warranted. It is cold, yes, but not the Artic Circle type I had imagined.

Get a big snow blower with heated handles.

And for God's sake, get a set of Bridgestone Blizzaks on an extra set of wheels. Change them in your driveway in late October and you are all set! Do not for a second think that 'all season' tires can cut it.

Summers and Falls are amazing! But be forewarned... we got snow every year BEFORE Halloween

[ramonesfreak]

^^^ i have never owned snow tires. I have the worlds smallest snow blower - works fine. Depends on how long your driveway is

or do like most of us do and pay $300 for a snowplow guy

[ramonesfreak]

one thing i will add....unlike Cleveland that I keep comparing Rochester to, the city/downtown is not and has never been in my lifetime, the type of City that you park the car and then walk around the city looking for something to do. I was recently in Cleveland and was amazed at how nicely it has been transformed into a great little city where you can walk to shops and eat/drink. Not so here. If you live here, you will NOT spend much time in the actual city/downtown area with the exception of the occasional outdoor concert or specific errand you need to run. This is unfortunate but it is the reality of the place

Even Syracuse and to some extent Buffalo have city centers where you could walk around and find something to do.