Last November I had the ridiculously huge privilege to give a talk at TEDxRochester. The gravity of the honor may have been too much for my little brain to comprehend. In fact, when they initially asked me to do it I said “no thanks” – twice. Long story short, I gave in. And I’m glad I did, because the experience was one of those “once in a lifetime” things.
Since much of my talk was influenced by you, RocSubway readers and participants, I thought you’d like to watch (and share) the official video which has just been released. A word of caution: I’m not the most riveting public speaker, but there is lots of good stuff buried within this 12-minute presentation, so watch thru to the end if you can…
“Listed in the National Register of Historic Places and designated a city landmark, the old Federal Building is considered a fine example of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture. No one’s particularly interested in using it, however, because inside it’s dark, gloomy, usually uncomfortable and just plain ramshackle. Blow it up. It’s an ugly thing…and not particularly interesting inside or out…It should be demolished. A modern, tax-producing building would be a better use for the site and would give more new life to that section of downtown…”
I received a message yesterday from a RocSubway reader named Rick U. Rick wanted to share some of his images from Genesee Brewery’s (aka North American Brewery’s) demolition of the once historic Cataract Brewhouse. By now I’ve seen just about all I can stomach of this disaster. I mean, this is how we create jobs in Rochester? Building parking lots on historic buildings? BUT, putting all that aside, this series of images is quite exceptional. And these are just a sampling from a MUCH larger album which I’ve linked to at the bottom of this gallery. Take a look…
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After the Erie Canal was rerouted south of downtown Rochester, the Rochester
Industrial & Rapid Transit Railway (the “subway”) was built in
its place as a link between the five different railroads and interurban trolley
lines that served the Rochester area. As the industrial landscape of Rochester
changed, and highways replaced the railroads, the Rochester subway gradually
became a relic of a bygone era. In 1956 the subway was abandoned and much of
its route was converted into Interstate 490 — built to connect Rochester
with the New York State Thruway (I-90). Read more about the history of the Rochester Subway.
RochesterSubway.com exists to help spark
public dialogue around how we can better connect the neighborhoods of Rochester
NY, surrounding communities, and their cultural offerings. Rochester’s
future is written in her past. Let's rediscover it.
![Mike Governale at TEDxRochester. Mike is a designer, blogger, and founder of a local public transit advocacy group, Reconnect Rochester. [PHOTO: Jeffrey Hamson]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/TEDx-Rochester-2.jpg)
![Old Federal Building (now City Hall). [PHOTO: Richard Margolis]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/rochester-city-hall-richard-margolis.jpg)
![Genesee Brewery, demolition of historic Cataract Brewhouse. [PHOTO: Rick U.- RocPx.com]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/genesee-brewery-demolition-00.jpg)
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