RG&E’s Beebee power plant was one of the most formidable structures in Rochester. For half a century, this cluster of buildings covered an 8 acre site along the floor of the High Falls gorge – climbing up the west rock wall and looming hundreds of feet in the air over Platt Street and the neighborhood below…
Letchworth Bridge in southern Letchworth State Park celebrates its 141st birthday this year (built 1875) and will be replaced by a new steel arch bridge about 75 feet to the south. The new bridge will take approximately 3 years to complete. During that time efforts will be made to turn the original bridge into a pedestrian walkway similar to the hugely successful Poughkeepsie NY bridge crossing the Hudson River and gorge—now a New York State Park…
Every so often we’re contacted by a lucky homeowner who discovers a neat little historical treasure hidden away in their basement or roof rafters – usually an old book or a subway token. Then there’s Bill Schmidt. When Bill purchased his home on Lake View Park this summer, he became the lucky owner of an old bell tower from the long-demolished School #7 in northwest Rochester…
Here’s a quick update on a story we brought attention to exactly five years ago. On this empty lot (shown above) once stood 72 Conkey Avenue. The old 19th century Victorian storefront had been the subject of a demolition-vs-rehabilitation debate—one between the City of Rochester and neighborhood resident, Jim Fraser, who has restored a handful of neglected homes in the area. Jim saw 72 Conkey as a diamond in the rough…
About a year and a half ago we shared some photos from inside the abandoned Sykes Datatronics building on Orchard Street (south of Lyell Ave). That building was part of a complex that was home to many different companies from 1915 until Sykes Datatronics (a computer company) left in 1992. Demolition crews have been slowly deconstructing the property since the fall…
Last week, Carnegie Place was largely destroyed by fire. Its life spanned some of the most crucial and drastically changing times in Rochester’s history. I had a chance to stop by after the fire and take some photographs of a building I have always enjoyed; in a part of town that was vibrant and still is the heart of the arts movement in Rochester…
Tucked away in a remote corner of downtown, facing the back side of the Geva Theatre and surrounded on all sides by parking lots, stands this unassuming brick house. In downtown Rochester there are several lonely buildings like this one, still hanging on long after its neighbors have all been read their last rites.
I admire old little structures like this. Maybe it doesn’t have a glamourous story to tell. But it’s stuck it out for the last 150+ years – from Rochester’s boom, all the way through the toughest times this rusty city could throw at it. Whenever I’ve visited Geva Theatre I’ve taken notice of this one and wondered if it would find new life…
Last summer Rochester developer and restauranteur, John Tachin called up RocSubway with a history mystery for us to solve. After four months of digging, we came up empty. But here’s hoping maybe YOU can help us solve the case of the stone lions.
“Double Jeopardy” wasn’t invented by Alex Trebek. It’s actually a procedural defense in our system of justice that forbids a defendant from being tried more than once for the same (or similar) charges. Unfortunately this rule doesn’t seem to apply with historic preservation in Rochester. Because the very same owner of this historic church at 660 West Main Street will, for a second time, ask the Zoning Board for permission to demolish the structure to make way for a discount store.
Dawn Noto is president of the Susan B. Anthony Neighborhood Association. She was concerned about the demolition plans in March of 2013 when the Zoning Board blocked them the first time. This time Dawn says the conditions are no different and the City should be working with the owner on a plan to rehab the church building instead of entertaining his plan for a second time…
Rochester’s beloved Hojack Swing Bridge has been gone for more than a year, but now a new exhibit at the New York Museum of Transportation will honor the history of the former Rochester landmark. The exhibit is a re-creation of the bridge’s control cabin and contains the original steam engine, control devices, and a working model of the bridge…
I was saddened to learn last week about Rochester Gas and Electric Corp’s shortsighted proposal to demolish Beebee Station. If the plans are carried out, Rochester will have a tremendous hole at the center of the city: High Falls. What is most important to realize is that there is another, alternative way forward…
If you’ve ever driven down the eastern end of Lyell Ave., or been to a soccer game at Sahlen’s Stadium, you’ve probably seen an enormous old shell of a building looming in the distance. Many times I had seen it’s old edifice sitting silent and, as I usually do, I wondered what the walls contained, what stories it could tell, and what it once was. That’s why one cool September morning I went to meet with the building and see what it could tell me…
It is through the process of defining what we want as a town that we are becoming a real community. It is through the act of participation that we change.
This is not simply a story of not-in-my-backyard. It is the unfolding tale of how a small community … is rising to its own defense, saying, we believe we have a stake in the future of our own community, which we choose to define beyond our own boundaries of time and space and species…
The photo above was taken in January, 2011. Late last year we looked at the plans for the new public spaces at Midtown Plaza. Work on the site is now progressing quickly – and those plan drawings are becoming reality. The old Midtown buildings are gone. The new Windstream building is mostly complete. And this week, the first street curbs have been installed giving shape to the new Cortland Street. Here’s a birds-eye view of the past 30 months progress…
Oh 1926, it seems like you were only 87 years ago. Oh wait, what, it was only 87 years ago? Ok then. Well, since the Neighborhood of the Arts is receiving so much press these days, let’s take a look at a piece of the neighborhood from then and see what was happening.
Welcoming Costco and RGRTA to CityGate is great. Ignoring walkability and losing all historic buildings isn’t. Our community needs walkable places. We need development that calms traffic and makes walking easy and safe. Moreover, our community needs to preserve its historic fabric. We need development that repurposes old buildings for new uses…
A great deal has already been written about the development planned at 933 University Ave. (see: here , here , and here ). Even so, it is important that we take a step back and really think about the kinds of arguments that are being made. Further, let us consider how the neighborhood could benefit from this development, how George Eastman House can meet its needs going forward (and better integrate with Neighborhood of the Arts, as they express a desire to do), and how to move the entire neighborhood towards the increased success it deserves…
Remember this portrait of Bob Ross we spotted on a rail bridge in Spencerport a while ago? Built in 1924, that bridge once carried freight trains over South Union Street . The Democrat & Chronicle tells us tractor trailers have been hitting the bridge repeatedly for years. So it’s time to come down. Sorry Bob.
Daniel Azzolina has sent in a few photos of the bridge being dismantled. Enjoy…
Okay, so I’m on the fence – sort of. Remember this proposed apartment complex at 933 University Avenue? After the Eastman House and other neighbors complained about the design, Morgan Management went back to the drawing board (or Photoshop or whatever) and they came back with this…
Two important cases will go before the Zoning Board this Thursday: the ongoing saga of one historic church on Main Street, and design concerns regarding the future College Town. Salvation for the church, as well as the promise of a pedestrian-friendly College Town, may hang in the balance.
First, if you’ve been following the story of the little white church at 660 W. Main Street, owner Marvin Maye will make one more appeal to challenge the building’s status as a Designated Building of Historic Value. If he succeeds, he could have a clear path forward to demolish the 140-something-year-old church.* And in its place would go a Dollar General store…
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![RG&E Beebee power station prior to demolition. Rochester, NY. Summer 2016. [IMAGE: Anonymous]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-rge-beebee-station-00.jpg)
![Portageville rail bridge at Letchworth State Park, NY. [IMAGE: Richard H. Jordan III]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/letchworth-portageville-bridge-07.jpg)
![When Bill Schmidt purchased his home on Lake View Park this summer, he became the lucky owner of the bell tower from School #7 in northwest Rochester. [IMAGE: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-school-7-bell-tower-02.jpg)
![72 Conkey Avenue has been demolished. [IMAGE: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/clifford-and-conkey.jpg)
![Abandoned Sykes Datatronics building on Orchard Street. Demolition work has been going on since the fall. [PHOTO: Anonymous]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/return-to-abandoned-sykes-datatronics-building-04.jpg)
![Last week, Carnegie Place was largely destroyed by fire. [PHOTO: PuddleJumper Photography]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-carnegie-building-fire-01.jpg)
![Tucked away in a remote corner of downtown Rochester, facing the back side of the Geva Theatre and surrounded on all sides by parking lots, stands this unassuming brick house. [PHOTO: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/st-marys-place-01.jpg)
![Here's hoping maybe YOU can help us solve the case of the stone lions. [PHOTO: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/benvenuto-stone-lions-rochester-ny-01.jpg)
![The Zoning Board will decide AGAIN whether or not to allow the former Westminster Presbyterian Church at 660 West Main Street to be demolished. [PHOTO: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-westminster-church-660-west-main-01.jpg)
![The control room of the Hojack Swing Bridge has been recreated at the NY Museum of Transportation. [PHOTO: Flickr, M J M]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/hojack-swing-bridge-mjm.jpg)
![RG&E Beebee Station [PHOTO: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rge-beebee-station-rochester-00.jpg)
![Monroe County Tuberculosis Sanatorium, Children's Building. To be demolished. [PHOTO: Albert R. Stone, 1911.]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/iola-tuberculosis-sanatorium-1911.jpg)
![Midtown Plaza site, Rochester, NY. [PHOTO: Earthcam.com Archives]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-midtown-plaza-01.jpg)
![The corner of Atlantic and Anderson in the Holmes Tract. Gleason doesn't want this lot anymore. Maybe we can put it to good use? [PHOTO: Google Streetview]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/filling-in-holmes-tract-01.jpg)
![The abandoned Iola Tuberculosis Sanatorium, Nurses' Building. [PHOTO: Mike Bouwmeester]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-iola-sanatorium-nurses-building.jpg)
![Proposed new development at 933 University Ave. [IMAGE: Morgan Management]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/933-university-ave-06.jpg)
![This old railroad bridge over S. Union Street in Spencerport was removed last week. [PHOTO: RochesterSubway.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-guerilla-art-bob-ross.jpg)
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