Saddest thing is that two of the huge companies that turned Rochester, NY into a powerhouse, Kodak and Xerox, simply saw their demise coming and just let it happen to themselves and the city. Kodak had developed a digital camera as early as the mid-seventies but kept focussing on film instead of improving digital. Xerox already had developed a graphic computer interface also in the mid-seventies but its management would not know what to do with it, so they sold it to Apple.
Apple did not buy the Xerox computing machine Steve Jobs saw in Palo Alto. Jobs and Co. saw the possibilities that could come with a graphical user interface and recreated it in their own labs.
@@gj1234567899999and now you know why they insist now on having that MBA. They know people unencumbered by what they are taught aren’t bound by those things. People like Jobs weren’t geniuses in the way we think, rather his approach was one where barriers weren’t seen as stopping points but things overcome.
Unlike Buffalo and Syracuse, Rochester had a lot of educated job postings, so to shoot themselves in the foot like that is all the more terrible. Schenectady similar screwed themselves over with GE spreading themselves thin.
Good video! But you are pronouncing Rochester wrong. ;) you are pronouncing the "Roc" and saying "Rock-chester". No one who lives here pronounces it that way. ;) we say "Raa-chester"
Rochester is also where one of the most recognizable pieces of modern clothing, the hoodie, was created. It was created by Champion to be sold to upstate and western NY laborers for winter. There's nothing more people from Rochester like than complaining about the cold and construction, so we came up with a remedy.
Wow I didn’t know that about hoodies! Sort of irrelevant but Hickey Freeman clothing company is still around as well, my grandma worked there in the 50s as a secretary and I heard countless stories about her HF days lol.
I think they just like complaining. Never been to an area that complained so much about everything. An outsider observation: everyone in WNY craps on one another, but then goes around asking why everyrhings covered in crap. Alot of "everyone else is doing it," mentality.
@@stevarino1989 Hickey Freeman made their last suit in Rochester just about a week ago. The Hickey Freeman line is a licensed brand owned by the Authentic Brand Group. That company decided to no longer work with Hickey Freeman and will now work with another company that will produce a cheaper suit in Mexico.
Left in 2013. One thing I miss are the parks. Roc area parks are awesome and underappreciated. Summer months can be beautiful. Winter not so much. You don't realize how blue skies are supposed to be until you leave Rochester.
I moved to Florida for a little while and when I came back you feel the dark gloom because winters are too long. However we don’t get terrible weather and dangerous animals.
I left in '95 and have only been back four times. Twice for funerals. All the people I grew up with are gone, no one I went to school with stayed. As soon as we got our piece of paper we were gone. I can't say that I love the place, because each time I've gone back I've wondered what kept me there for so long, but I can see how many folks would love it. One thing that I can say is that throughout its history, Rochester has repeatedly been able to reinvent itself. It wouldn't surprise me if in 20 years it would again be the vibrant place it was in the 1950s.
Coming from the PNW (not Portland), the parks are probably the most disappointing for us. From Buffalo to Rochester, everything just feels over industrialized & busy-- Living in a "rural" community here feels like living in a city!
Everywhere has its weather and climate problems. If you grow up there, and are used to winters, Rochester is ideal. No fires, earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, or droughts. Fresh water sources forever. Absolutely perfect summers. Frankly, the winters keep away the weaklings and parasites (you can't hide under the bed and wait for the snow to melt; it's shovel or die).
Loving this series and I was waiting for this one as I live in Rochester 😁. Fun Fact: Rochester was so bustling in the early 20th century it used to have a subway up until the 1960's.
The Rochester subway, really cool place, used to check it out as a teenager in the 80's. My dad actually rode it as a kid in the 50's. There was also an open air trench part on the northwest side of town up til the 80's, then they filled it in. I-490 is in what was the eastern open air part. It was underground downtown. Originally, it was the Erie Canal.
I like Rochester. I used to live in Toronto, and I had to go there one day to do some paperwork at their airport. I went for a nice drive and ended up there. It seemed strange, like "What's this city doing here?" The Kodak museum was quite nice. I got a cheap buffet lunch at a mall, which was fun. I drove around downtown a little to check it out. I liked how the Kodak plant smelled like developing chemicals and stunk up the whole area. It was a nice drive home, taking a very quiet highway along the lakeshore. I couldn't believe how quiet it was.
I had a teacher that worked for Kodak and he told my class that they had the digital camera ready to go but upper management prevented it from going public sooner
Kodak's bread and butter was always their film and film processing. Some called it and large chemical factory that sold cameras on the side. Digital photography has no use for such chemicals.
This video was well done. I remember some of the glory days of Rochester. Visited Midtown Plaza when it was still alive. The one thing you really failed to mention was the high crime rates and poverty that followed the loss of low skill manufacturing jobs. The status quo at the time was not interested in serving the people as seen by some of the disastrously planned projects and lack of investment in infrastructure.
I’ve owned a second home in upstate NY now for long enough to tell you what’s really wrong with Rochester even though I’ve never been there. I was going to say it starts in Albany, but I think that’s wrong. It’s cultural, and it gets reflected in the politics. It’s simply not enough individualism. Great communities, but they have such little regard for the individual. No one should have had to help those workers, but those workers were failed by their culture. The ones who weren’t, left I supposed. It seems it’s generational. Rinse, repeat. And oooh brother, I’m only saying this anonymously. I am hiding behind this screen. People up there turn into a nasty pack on outsiders. Nope, you better show up with lots of money and want to spend it in a way THEY approve of, or just stay away. I wouldn’t open a business up there unless I had nothing to lose. Now, where the politicians make it worse is they constantly appease the mobs with laws which any idiot should see will not work in any way other than to bother the conscientious folks who likely were not the problem to start with. If a law has a chance of an effect, it will still fail because it will not be enforced at all on the locals or anyone who has a relationship with a lawyer and pushes back. Our country is supposed to work on the premise that a person with a good idea who’s willing to put in the effort can make new businesses and services, but I just think NY is no longer a place where that’s likely to happen. I’m not trying to change it. I’m too old for that. I’m not sure I even recommend anyone younger trying. I’d tell folks to look for opportunities where you can find them and if that means leaving, pack up and get out.
Im in Binghamton 2hrs South. We had IBM and shiiit was goin onnn! I worked there for 18 yrs. But ya > crime. Backwards looking projects and no infrastructure. Sad Stuff. If it werent for 'politicians' I bet we could control our destiny better.
I have lived here for 71 years and I could never figure out why the city never took advantage it's location on the Lake Ontario shoreline as other cities on the lake did to bring in tourism. Also the Erie Canal runs through the city and it was never really developed to bring in tourism. They used to skate on the canal in downtown Rochester in the winter. The canal boats could have a port in downtown Rochester but there is nowhere to go. Our big beach for years was a smelly dirty place you could not stay there for more than 20 minutes. My parents forbid me to go there as a teenager. It has since been cleaned up but we can't seem to have it more than a destination for city area locals to swim and picnic and boat. Restaraunts come and go. The old iconic carousel is the biggest draw for young families. In the old days,before my time, there were, I think, 3 amusment parks we have one left further down the shore. I won't even talk about the Rochester Fast Ferry fiasco. There used to be nice hotels for people,not now. A trolly used to run along the shore and the rail bed divides the lake from the roads and homes and it has long been abandoned and it could have been developed and people enjoy rides from Hilton to Sodus or even uo to the 1000 Islands along the lake with stop offs along the way for different attractions in different towns along the route that would have been a boom to each of their economies. Seems to me the city fathers missed the boat and it would cost a fortune to ever get the once thiving city back. Crime has taken over and murder rate per capita is worse than Chicago. The days of Christmas downtown looking at window displays in department stores the Midtown clock and Christmas mono rail my boys road on, have long since been forgotten. Sad to have the city in such decline. They moved all the stores and activities inland to the suburbs. Now they can't get the people back.
unfortunately they messed up the fast ferry to canada. that would have helped put Rochester on the map. still an awesome place to live. beautiful surrounding areas and cheap cost of living. plenty of opportunities if you’re willing to work
Not sure if you’ll see this: but the city is trying to bring more people in. My wife and I are moving there as part of the RoC Remote program. Excited to move there and help the city grow. 😊
@@scsextra Hope you like it in the city. I know they are trying to being people in. Problem is not much there anymore shopping is all in the suburbs. Restaurants are few there Planetarium,Margaret Strong Museum and the Farmer's Market downtown are nice. But crime these days keeps me from going into the city.
I lived in New York City for 10 years. I grew up in Rochester and I just moved back 3 years ago. I don't want to be in any other city than Rochester. We lost our prosperous industry but we're growing in culture currently, I love it. I think the city will bounce back fine, I'm biased of course but there's a lot to love about Rochester post -milling/kodak
i grew up in upstate n.y. at one time Buffalo was one of the biggest cities in the country now its not even in the top 100 they all great cities in upstate but now gone, politics always ruin everything!
Another negative factor about Rochester and it’s suburbs was that the highway network was always screwed up and under construction. They would start new expressways and never finish them. During the 60s and 70s the north-south segments of the Outer Loop were separate highways on both sides of the city and they had the exact same highway route number- NY Route 47. NY Route 104 remained under construction for who knows how long. That whole metro area was a tangled up confusing mess when it came to traffic arteries.
@@JR3714 yes ,,shortly after they built it the changed it. It was 1 of the most f'd up roads I ever encountered , an i grew up in the NYC/TRI STATE AREA
I recall my father telling me the democrats in Albany, purposely routed the Thruway south of Republican led Rochester, while going through Syracuse & Buffalo which were in Democrat hands. Somethings never change.
I remember in the 2000s Rochester really pushed to organize a ferry service to Toronto to try and attract Canadians who wanted to avoid the longer route through Buffalo and the NY State Parkway that hugged the southern shore of Lake Ontario. Unfortunately, it simply didn't work out
I remember when they completed the outer loop, everyone was excited, finally we could get across town easy. And yes, road construction is perpetual in Rochester, the weather does really punish the infrastructure. They start in one part of the city, and by the time they have re-built everything, the place they started needs fixing again. Then every couple decades the state of NY changes their mind on what they want to do with all the roads.
I grew up in Rochester in the 1960s. I have nothing but great memories of my childhood in the city. I went through grade school, high school and even two years of college there. I met my first love. I got my driver’s license. My very first job was during the summer of 1971, when I worked at a marina on the banks of Irondequoit Bay. I was age 16. It was an adventure! I came of age there. Then, one day in the summer of 1976, I packed my little Ford Pinto with all my worldly possessions and headed south. I was 21 and in pursuit of a career flying airplanes in more southerly climes. I guess, I was one of the 18% you mentioned, which left during the 1970s. I was treated well in my new pursuits. My parents eventually moved from the city, as did my siblings. I lost touch with old friends. But I made new ones. Life took me away from my boyhood home and left me with fewer and fewer reasons to return. Then, an opportunity arose. I returned for a half-day in 2018 while visiting nearby Syracuse. I even took the time to shoot some footage for a couple of video projects while there. I couldn’t help noticing that forty-two years had taken a heavy toll on the city. It had declined. The streets were poorly maintained. Cracked and pockmarked. Neighborhoods I once roamed as a child, I now felt unsafe in. The city was a shell of its former self. Great gaps existed in the landscape where Kodak Park and other businesses once were. Empty storefronts were everywhere with “For Lease” or “For Sale” signs. Kodak was gone. Xerox was gone. Bausch & Lomb, gone. Frenches Mustard, Nalgene, Ragu, Fanny Farmer and so many, many more companies…now gone. Then in 2020, my old hometown was suddenly appearing in the national news, and not in a good way. Rochester was at the center of major BLM movements and working hard to defund their police department. The city was gripped by riots, protests and chaos. I sat there, watched and wondered, “What in the heck happened to this once great city?!” Politics? Moral decay? Changes in attitudes? Changes in people? Likely all of these things and more, all mixed together to produce the very worst in outcomes. But I really don’t know for sure. What I do know is, another trip to Rochester is unlikely for me. I prefer to let the city remain a pleasant memory from my past, rather than mar those memories with the shattered reality of what it has become.
Lovely comment. Perhaps it is best to remain an pleasant memory, and locations evolve over time, and cities like Rochester will be effectively replaced by other great places.
Well said. I grew up in the 2000s/2010s in nearby Syracuse, so have never known a thriving upstate NY. The only good memories of the area are from the beautiful upstate nature areas that are so abundant, but never from the cities themselves (also briefly lived in Rochester and also had a negative impression). Now that I've moved, I will never live there again, and I can easily say it was one of the best decisions I've ever made. I worry for my parents who have retired in the area.
Well done. It brings back fond memories. I worked for Eastman Kodak from 1972 until 1975 right out of college. Had a wonderful time living in Rochester. The weather didn't bother me at all since I was from Brooklyn. Those were some great times, living in Rochester and working for Eastman Kodak. Well done story. I thank you.
I used to visit Rochester a lot about 5 years ago. There is definitely a fair share of rough neighborhoods, but there are still plenty of nice areas. But it's evident that its glory days are long gone
Things not mentioned in this video. Rochester has some of the best colleges in the country. UR, RIT, St. John Fisher, heck, even the community college is very good. Rochester also has some great neighborhoods, bars and restaurants. The winters are horrible, and yes, the manufacturing has left, but its still one of the better smaller cities. Underrated airport as well.
That airport was a gem! I went to visit so I can experience it for myself vs reading youtube comments putting the fear in me lol. It was wonderful and the people were delightful! So yah I just ignore the negativity lol.
I like to say Rochester is the 2nd most happening city in New York State. It might be very far behind #1, and perhaps it says more about the sad states of Buffalo, Syracuse, Albany, etc... BUT Rochester does actually have a fair amount going for it!
@@briancastro8973 Buffalo is actually a hidden gem of culture of all kinds. The Albright-Knox museum was recently named one of the "world's greatest places" by Time magazine. If anybody local hasn't been there for awhile, in the last 10 years the former "gallery" has had millions of dollars invested and is showing some of the best more important artists in the world. It was worth a visit before (much larger than the Memorial Art Gallery in Rochester) but now it outshines our MAG by far!
Besides Kodak and Xerox. There was Bausch and Lomb, Gannett (USA Today), Rochester Products ( carburetors for GM) and Dupont to name a few. You could get Genny Cream Ale 6 packs for 99 cents and Rolling Rock Ponies were a quarter at Ronnie's Suburban Inn. The Penny Arcade had great bands. The House of Guitars was always a fun adventure and had the silliest commercials (Hop Hop Easter Bunny). Always a large supply of great pizza shops, including Sicilian pizza. It was great to be young and always had unlimited parking lots to do doughnuts in the snow with rear wheel drive.
@@Musicdudeyoutub Then tell me what really happened. I used to live there but I moved away years ago so when I see a story on the news that mentions Rochester, I read it. Are you saying that I can't trust journalists?
I grew up between LeRoy and Batavia in the 1960's and thought Rochester was wonderful but there were problems with redlining and situations like the Cornhill incident that were deeply disturbing. The area has such a rich and beautiful history as part of the underground railroad and the woman's movement, among just a few, and is in a beautiful and rich part of the country. With each company that outsourced it's product more and more peoples lives were negatively affected and that happened to Batavia also, when companies like Sylvania left. What business has failed to realize, is that when they decide to go overseas, communities die. Where I lived, in the area surrounding Rochester, parents drove into the city for work and it supported the surrounding area. We weren't rich but that middle class environment flourished. We went on vacations, had good holidays and birthdays, were clothed and fed, went to the dentist and the doctor and we had a future. The lines between rich and poor were not so obvious. When the businesses left, the line became much greater and the city began to decay.
@SHAK3 N Everything is relative. And every time you feel sorry for yourself there will always be someone who has it less. But see back in the 60's lower middle class people still had those things they needed to be happy. That was before trickle down and the slow removal of businesses and jobs. So that's exactly my point. When everyone is paying their fair share of taxes, everyone can live a comfortable life. We had hardly anything. My dad worked two job and my mom worked and she also made our clothes. We had an old car, but we didn't know we were poor because, in THOSE days, the basic things were there for everyone. There wasn't a sharp divide between rich and poor, the middle class flourished. You've made my point.
Despite their vast population size difference, both Rochester and Batavia are struggling cities today facing uncertain futures. Whether or not both cities can jump start their economies and revitalize themselves remains to be seen.
Born in Rochester. Downtown in the 50's and 60 was so wonderful, especially at Christmas. Went to Aquinas, MCC and RIT. Worked for Kodak as an accountant, then owned my own businesses. Rochester, the people, the parks, it was a dream. The city has changed unfortunately but my heart ill always be there.
Rochester is still a very special place. For a city of this size we have a lot of culture and a lot to do. I moved away for several years. While I was living out of state, any time I ran into other people from Rochester we always talked about how much we missed it and of course how much we missed Wegmans. You don't know how special Rochester is until you move away.
I agree but sometimes it's hard not to things of the negative parts and realize why we left. I definitely miss all the spring and summer festivals. Lilac, Greek, Italian, German for example always a great time.
@@eyeameye9565 thats a lie! We beautifil parks....beautiful homes and you ger alot of house for your money. Yes we have areas that are not the best....but in my travels our so called hood looks better tham many other major cities hood. We tend to forget...the world has also changed due to horrible gov practices. Rural areas are the biggest dump.
I worked for a company in the late 1960s that relied heavily on business from Xerox; digitalization of the copiers was one nail in the coffin of my employer which I'd left to join the Army. An irony of history is that Kodak was the first to invent a digital camera.
Moved to Wisconsin in 03, but we return every year to see family and friends....and to go to Wegmans to by some Zweigles and bring them back here...MMM MMM Good!
there are no Wegmans here in the capital district but when i went to Super Dirt Week in syracuse i always made a point to go to Wegmans i always bought a big bag of potato chips cooked in olive oil!
When I was in fifth or sixth grade, a teacher asked the class “how many of you have a parent at Kodak?” And everyone raised their hand. Then “How many have both parents at Kodak?” I was one of five proud to raise my hand again. Then just a few years later in 10th grade: “How many of you have a parent at Kodak?” And I was one of ONLY THREE KIDS who could say we still had one parent there. That’s what happened to Rochester. Kodak just dumped everyone. And soon enough I had neither parent there. But I got to hear at the dinner table for several years all about how the Kodak higher ups were making the dumbest possible decisions, selling off technology and departments that might actually make money in future while investing in obsolete products.
hahah when I was in kindergarten here, in Caledonia NY I was the ONLY child, whose dad did NOT WORK at Kodak, and I felt embarassed to say I remember, well, my Dad just owns his own business, hahaha no kidding. NOW hahahahah ain't nobody work there.
I feel like businesses ultimately destroy cities. They come in and take advantage of the tax breaks and give jobs, but then when the incentives are gone - as they were knew before they came - they leave and leave thousands of people unemployed. The only benefit is to the employer. it just makes me sad
@@GorgieClarissa Possible, though not quite what happened with Kodak - Kodak was founded in Rochester, back in the 1800s. Rochester was always the Kodak town, and a ton of local buildings/organizations were built from donations by its founder. It wasn’t that a temporary incentive ran out, it was that eventually leadership passed to morons. A short-sighted focus on what’s the biggest profit now rather than best position for the future, coupled with a view of the world disconnected from reality led them to shoot themselves in the foot repeatedly. The R&D Kodak had COULD have had them at the forefront of digital cinema, digital photography, government tech, and even Harry Potter merchandise. But the higher-ups sold all that off (or straight up trashed it) because they thought they were getting a great deal from some fool and that the future was really in printers…
Grew up there as a kid in the 80's. When companies began laying off people it was a dark time for many. I remember watching channel 10 news with Janet Lomax and the late Gabe Dalmath as they reported the thousands being laid off. What put it into context for me as a kid was my 4th grade class starting the year with 30 students and ending with 19. 11 kids and their families moved because of the layoffs. I still have family there and visit often but I do not miss living there.
I lived right across the lake in Oshawa, Ontario. When the weather conditions were just right we could pick up WROC (NBC), WHEC (CBS), and WOKR (ABC) on our old antenna. Otherwise, it was only the Buffalo network affiliates we could watch
@@mrs.walton9251 you really can never go back. remember the way it was. The cold will get to you I moved back 20 years ago and my hands cracked the pain was unbearable. I am now in VA. Atlanta may be my next move.
I was a teen there in the 80's, moved away in 94. To be honest, I kinda miss it now, not so much the city itself, but I miss that part of New York State. I have been on the west coast, so-cal and the pnw. I hate the west coast. I am sick of pine tees. i miss the trees of the east, I miss the seasons of the east. The west sucks. southwest, northwest, it all sucks. Portland sucks so bad, it makes Buffalo & Rochester look good.
Rah-Chester is the correct way to to say it ! Kodak and Xerox was a huge industry and many came from all over to work. Rochester was a beautiful city at one time especially when industrialization came into play. Sadly there are many abandoned and run down areas in between some nice places.
Rochester and its surrounding suburbs are still a wonderful place to raise kids and enjoy family life. We have one of the best public and private educational systems in the country - from pre-school through college. We have a world renowned Children's Museum of Play as well. There are so many beautiful parks and the summer months keep us at home because they are wonderful (mostly). There are 2 amazing amusement parks within a short distance. We have great concert venues and theaters and a great Art Museum. There is also the Eastman School of music which routinely graduates future Emmy and Oscar winners. We don't have hurricanes, tornadoes, big earthquakes and our winters have gotten much milder over the last 20 years. Buffalo gets most of the snow these days. Winter is long and grey but that's what vacation is for! The downtown area of Rochester is like any other big city, there are good areas and not so good areas.
It’s so interesting how a lot of stuff was invented in Rochester or was headquartered here. Like Kodak, Xerox, the original Garbage Plate, white Zweigles hot dogs … It is sad about the decline of Rochester especially considering what I’ve heard about how amazing Downtown was back in the day, but not all of it is bad. We still have all the parks and places to eat and craft beers and of course the lake.
I scouted the San Francisco Bay Area in the early 70's, and a dozen of us moved there within the decade. Most of us stayed, a few moved elsewhere, and none of us moved back to Rochester - a great small city on a bleak, unforgiving frozen tundra. I've only been back once, about 30 years ago, hit all of my favorite places, and was done in three days.
Rochester’s location is definitely not a bleak frozen tundra like you falsely claim. It is beautiful rolling scenic country with a beautiful moderate four season climate. The San Francisco Bay Area is chilly and breezy most of the year.
@@r.pres.4121 I lived in Rochester for 14 years, and saw snow in September, October, November, December, January, February, March, April, May and June - every month except July and August. Moderate four seasons? Moderate? We named the four seasons Mud, Humidity, Color and Ice. Rochester has the most overcast days and the most days with precipitation in the United States. Having lived in 13 cities in 4 states, I've never experienced weather as extreme as in Rochester. I remember a rain storm turning into an ice storm, resulting in all of the branches of all of the trees falling off due to the weight of the ice encrusting them. We ain't got that here. I've lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for 40 years, which is recognized as having a Mediterranean climate. And we have micro climates here. That is, it can be foggy and cool in San Francisco in the summer (only) and it gets warmer (@ one degree per mile as you head out in all directions) - and no humidity. I haven't perspired in 40 years. Tomorrow's November, when we can expect to experience the first brief rainstorms blowing by, cooler temperatures (lower to mid-60's), no fog, robins gorging themselves on pyracanthus berries, more red than yellow leaves left on the hardwoods, acorns falling from the oaks, and the first blades of green grass appearing. Those are my personal observations. We'll welcome some rain, everything will turn green, and everyone will be happy about this.
It’s November. Hasn’t snowed yet and it’s still in the upper 60s low 70s. Perfect fall, spring and summer. Our winters have been mild, not really ramping up until January. At least we won’t be running out of water. We don’t deal with hurricanes, earthquakes and extreme droughts. Our gardens flourish. Green and lush.
@@goshen7334 Still plenty of rain, I see, with freezing temps due on Tuesday. Long term forecast says it'll average 39 degrees in Rochester this month and 33 degrees next month - then getting crazy cold in January and February. Higher precipitation too. Then there's the wind chill factor. And the Arctic Vortex. Perfect. For you, maybe. I live on an unshakeable serpentine mountain with reservoirs so full that they're spilling over the dam, and our abundant farmers markets remain in full swing. I never turn the heater on, and we have no air conditioners here. Stay warm and be careful out there.
I lived here most of my life. It's sad to see how it's changed through the decades. But she could come back with the right moves. She's got so much life left in her. So much more history to her than you even mentioned in your video.
Lots of violent crime, drugs, corrupt leaders, and a failing school school system. Malls, restaurants and extensive heath care worker firings have suffered severely and some did not recover from extensive lockdowns. Huge exodus from NY in the past few years.
So true. I grew up in the Rochester area and most of my family still live there. They complain about the crime all of the time and most of the public schools are horrible.
I tried to stay in Pennsylvania, but by 2004, I couldn't anymore. If I had stayed, I would consider myself lucky If I was able to land a dead end job, that had lasting qualities.
@@anderander5662 The lady who has been running things since he left is arguably worse. Nothing has improved. I moved in 2021 and will never look back.
@@RunninUpThatHillh Well, maybe not. Many people are fleeing NYC because it's become too expensive and too dangerous. Rochester could benefit from this current dynamic if planned accordingly. Make Rochester a haven for remote employees with affordable rents and mortgages and investing in small businesses. There are people that like the city life, but one that is affordable and safe with an American home town feel to it, and Rochester could be that place.
@@RunninUpThatHillh decades of piss poor politicians like Lovely Warren , Chuck Schumer Adam Bello and Joe Morrelle have wrecked it . VOTE THE BUMS OUT ON NOVEMBER 8 T H
@@RunninUpThatHillh SEPARATING THE STATE FROM THE CITY WOULD SUCK THE LIFEBLOOD OUT OF UPSTATE NY. BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD IDEA. NYC SUPPORTS UPSTATE BY WAY OF THEIR DYNAMIC ECONOMY.
I lived in Rochester for two years in the early 1980's. I worked for Flanagan's on Maple St., advertising department. I remember some friendly people and a lot to do for a young person. The problem with an area like that is the weather, I remember driving around 390 with 30 mph winds, temp. below zero and snowing so hard you couldn't see the road. I moved south, seems you would have to have really good job prospects to keep people there. The year I left 85' the sun never came out in Feb., not once. The average temp. was 12. Need I say more.
Should have been here February 2015. It's the coldest February on record. Temperatures were above freezing for 5 hours on a single day for the entire month.
What part did you go through? The state pours money into projects, so some parts look really nice. Although I don’t know how much Syracuse get from the state.
I lived in rochester till Aug, '21. Almost 45yrs and I'll never move back. Miss the friends and family, but not what criminal governors and mayors have done to it. It used to be unsafe to drive around late at night in the city... Ave D, Wilkins, driving park, meigs st... I'd only go to high falls area with a group of friends, and only time I'd go to a wings game would be day time or July 4th for fireworks, and amerks games at the war memorial weren't much better... and this was 20+yrs ago... Can't do any of that today and feel anywhere near remotely safe. Had the highest homicide rate per 100K residents in the country last year, and have already passed their '21 record of murders... Moved to an area where I have more than a dozen friends and family just from rochester within about 3 hours of me, none are interested in going back. A friend moved about 20mins from me this spring, and my sister is looking to move her family close to the area as well. What was once a great area, and something I tried to be proud of, has really gone downhill thanks to having no intelligent or productive leadership. It's very much a shame, as places like Nick Tahou's, Char Broil, Schaller's, Bill Gray's, Caraglio's, and Windjammers in Charlotte are places that deserve better. I'd mention Abbott's, but there's one close to me which was opened by another former rochesterian, as were a few bills bars close me.
@@TheLoanSoldier I'm in Fort Mill, SC. I know friends and family members who are looking at FL and TX as well. I have a cousin who bought a house last year but now wishes he didn't so he could leave. The sad thing is many people don't realize how different, and better, it is outside of ny. Only good reason to stay is to vote out all the worthless criminals, but nyc has so much power, you're just at their mercy. The overwhelming majority of the state votes different than nyc.
Please stop the excessive hyperbole. The crime rate and homicides are the product of the inner city drug trade which you shouldn't be around. No one is being robbed at Amerks or Red Wings games. This thinking is what killed Rochester. Y'all destroyed Irondequoit with the unfounded rumors of rapes at the mall there. but when it's all said and done the city is just too black for you guys. It's what you want to say but can't.
@@Andre14615 so the homeless guy who attacked the Amerks patrons last year which led to the evacuation of all the homeless people living in the parking lot? How about the guy who was set on fire on Lyell Ave? Car jackings at gun point? Bank robberies? Running red lights on Lyell and Mt. Read and flipping vehicles with kids in them, killing a baby? The crime rate and homicides are a product of a terrible school system, that would now rather teach sexual preferences and climate change over personal finances, entrepreneurship and/or trades; ya know, the things that will actually set our kids up for their future?
@@TheLoanSoldier again this is excessive hyperbole when those few incidents happen over a period of years like in any other city or burb. I'm a school teacher in the Rochester City School district we don't teach anything about sexuality so please get off your Trump talking points and stop making up things to fit your agenda. The fact remains that crime is deep within the inner city and that people who aren't searching for drugs will be nowhere near it for the most part. Drug dealers are robbing and killing drug dealers. Nobody cares about Bob from Pittsford unless he's doing something incredibly stupid that makes him a target. Stay away from drugs and for the most part you stay away from crime in Rochester. These are the truths
Great video. I've lived here my whole life thus far and it's sad how much my city has declined over the years. Thankfully the part where I live is still decent and hopefully one day the the city will bounce back. Keep up the great work
I live downstream in Binghamton. 2 hrs south. Been to Rochester many times. Crazy to think BOTH of our cities have declined in the past 20 years. You had Kodak > We had IBM....which are both gone now. Im not sure either city will ever truly bounce back ; but I know the people are strong.
@@micahjared8082 Definitely, I remember as a child even in the mid 90s Rochester flourished with businesses. With Jesus/God anything is possible though
Last time i checked it was still here If you couldn’t tell I live in Rochester. I’ve always loved the city and it’s in a slow comeback. We had a new train station built in 2017 to replace the old amshack, the former Xerox tower is under a renovation and some people already live in the building, and a new state park is going to be built at High Falls. Also, the population is slowly increasing too.
Having grown up in Brighton and working in and around Rochester (including for Wegmans), I remember those "glory days" that seem now a thing of the past. It may not die away, but I doubt it will ever thrive as it once did. Thanks for the brief history. You might check out the ties to the Erie Canal project, women's suffrage movement and spiritualist enclaves, among other novel things it will always be remembered for. Check out the Frank Lloyd Wright house that he disowned since they sold off some of the land it was situated on.
Sad to hear. I have fond memories of my years at the University of Rochester, tanning on Durand Eastman Beach and riding the old wooden roller coaster at Seabreeze amusement park. I can't believe almost fifty years have passed.
Something that I love about Seabreeze is that the lines aren’t too long like the huge amusement parks, especially if you go in the evening. You can ride as many times are you want.
@@MsMockingbird06 I recently watched a video of Seabreeze. It's amazing how much it's grown since the 1970's. But I agree with you, one can spend half the day in lines at the mega-parks.
@@phantomspecter6223 I just checked Google to see if the Gyrosphere ride was still there. Sadly, it isn't. It was a Scrambler inside a big inflatable dome with laser lights inside that played “Fire on High” by ELO. Did you ever ride it?
Lotta folks left NYS for job opportunity and were not afraid to leave family & friends … I left right out of college with a degree recognizing that a degree opens a lot of doors for job opportunity … the construction trades in the mid-seventies were dominated by Italians and if you weren’t of the same ethnic heritage you stood a snowball’s chance in hell finding a job that nepotism hadn’t already filled … major industry left for cheaper labor in the South or Mexico that wasn’t unionized … VW , Trico , Pillsbury , Bethlehem Steel , Ward Hydraulics , all left for cheaper labor and less corporate taxes … however , outfits like Wegmans and Genesee Beer have prospered by delving into new markets and the political landscape has changed to becoming more business friendly with lower corporate taxes … Lake Ontario has been evolving as a cleaned-up lake with some of the best fishing in the nation … if you focus on the positive and have the ambition , you can change a region for the better … Rochester , NY is one of the BEST places to retire in the country !!! … and , even young people are moving back to being employed in the burgeoning craft beer and restaurant scene where a lot of us old white-haired folk spend our time and money !!!😊
I grew up in Penfield for my high school years. My Dad worked at Sibley's during the late 60s. I remember that bonus time at Kodak was a boon for retail. We moved in 1971. Glad we did by the sounds of it.
I first visited Rochester in May of 2014 for my cousins wedding, I am from Vegas. I always thought of Rochester as a small town in Western NY, so I was shocked to see how big the downtown area is, damn near the size of downtown LA, with the tall buildings and such. We spent 2 days exploring downtown and some parts of it reminded me of Detroit with how absolutely empty and eerie it was.
Rochester is the original home of the Sacramento Kings. They were originally the Rochester Royals, and were one of the best of the original NBA teams, even winning a Championship in the 50s. This is why the Sacramento Kings are credited with having an NBA title.
According to my Dad, Kodak's near obsolescence wasn't due to tech change so much as REFUSAL to change. They are starting a slow comeback, though not sure how. Rochester still does medical research too.
Great video with so much vivid details. The plight that is described in this city has actually happened to many cities especially in the south where I live. Many of our once booming factory towns are now ghost towns. Filled with crime and infested with drugs. This seems to be a common theme across many places in America.
It’s very unfortunate that companies like Kodak, Xerox and such didn’t want to adapt to times changing. Kodak had digital tech in the 70s but made a fortune on film so they stayed that way. GM fell on its face due to over paid employees at the time. Now people get paid the same wages they did 20 years ago roughly.
No. GM fell on its face because of the company's shortsighted focus on profits over quality throughout the 70's and 80's. American drivers turned to imports. Fortunately, American business practices have improved significantly, and GM cars today compete well on quality. It's worth noting that America is also home to the world's most innovative car company Tesla.
Sad thing is they could've revamped stuff like Kodak going into digital and digital filming and maybe partnering with cellphone industries, xerox could've partnered with computer programs like PDF and maybe work with innovators developing 3D printers, American Railroad could've upgraded many railroads with speed trains and expand it throughout NY and beyond, and so on. Had the cananda ferry idea not fall, that could've been a good idea or if not in Rochester than buffalo. Even the hydropowering with the falls could've been revamped again at least for downtown with things going green. There were so many opportunities to evolve with the times while keeping the charm of Rochester but the ball was dropped somewhere in between
You have a vision of what might have been. I have to wonder why no one foresaw or followed up on these ideas that might have rescued Rochester. Then again, in the wake of suburbanization and outsourcing, perhaps reviving cities like Rochester wasn't considered worth the effort. The day of the center city is passed.
@@karenryder6317 I am still shocked that Sears, a company that used the 'new' Postal Service to propel itself into the 1900s, failed so miserably to compete with Amazon, a company that used the new Internet service to propel itself into the 2000s. IRONY.
I spent a night in Rochester New York. I thought the city had a lot of cool buildings and the waterfall was awesome. But it definitely was a dying rust belt city.
My family was made by Kodak, my mom and dad were both packaging engineers for Kodak. My family was also destroyed by Kodak. Early 2000’s both mom and dad laid off, we went broke, fighting and blaming, followed by divorce…we lost our home, even worse, we lost our family…I was truly excited when Trump was in works with Kodak to manufacture pharmaceuticals, but some idiots ruined what I thought might be a revival for us…anyways…just one thing that I felt was missing from your video is that Kodak actually invented the digital camera. Yup. But they thought it was useless, so they sold the idea away. Imagine being that stupid. It’s like Blockbuster refusing to buy Netflix. I’m just rambling. But I was touched by your interest in something that has been the center of my life. Thank you.
@@tjewett1967 😂 you’ve only proved what sort of person you are, and nothing about my family. Pay attention folks👆🏽These liberal elitists not only have no ability to understand the struggles of working class Americans, but they have no desire to show understanding. They don’t care about you or your families. This is exactly why Trump won 2016 and why he (or someone like him) will win again. Let the REEEs begin 😂
@@xcala3038 I have no idea what you’re trying to say. But I just noticed that Tracy deleted her comment. Maybe she realized how insensitive and evil it was.
I've lived in Rochester since the year 2000. I came here 'temporarily' from NYC to help a good friend of mine deal with an end-of-life illness so he wouldn't have to move back home with his mother. The situation was urgent- aggressive lymphoma with a bridging liver tumour. The Drs gave him 3 months at best. 3 months became 6 months and now he's gone on to have a significantly longer lifespan than predicted. He did not seek treatment for his cancer- he'd been in remission before and it came back. To this day no one can figure out why he lived. I didn't care why just glad he lived. In the meantime, I'd already stayed here much longer than expected and was keen to go back to NYC, even though my friend decided he wanted to stay here. Just before I went back, 9/11 happened, so I decided to stay here a bit longer until I felt it was 'safe' to go back. I got a job, met a guy... and the rest is history. It's a nice place to live. Ppl are generally friendly, there's lots of nature hikes and trails nearby, so you have the advantage of living a city life but are also close to a whole lot of natural splendor. It's a great place to live if you're in the medical field in any way. There are good schools like RIT, Eastman School of Music, St John Fischer University, and there's a even Journeyman Carpenter's union here that serves Western and Central NY. Wegmans supermarkets are the absolute best of anywhere I've ever lived!! There are some nice historical things to visit here too. We have a large Deaf community here and I find the city to be culturally diverse, though not so much in the suburbs. K-12 chools are good in the outlying districts but the actual RCSD is horrible. It's not NYC, but it's nice and a good place to raise kids.
Agree. It was clean when I went. Yes. They have poorer parts but the outskirts had nice homes that weren't too expensive. I liked it more than the Albany area for sure. Albany doesn't even have a Wegmans.
Rochester tried to improve tourism in 2004 and aggressively promoted a cross Lake Ontario ferry between Rochester and Toronto (The "Spirit of Ontario"). The project was almost doomed from the start (from the ferry itself being damaged on its way to Rochester to Toronto "dragging their feet" on building a ferry dock. Ultimately the ferry and its operational costs became too prohibitive and the project was cancelled after only operating for a short time.
If you think Rochester is in horrible shape, take NY Route 31west to both Lockport and Niagara Falls. Both Lockport and Niagara Falls are deteriorating ghost towns that are barely getting by and there seems to be no end in sight to their decline. At least Rochester has universities, medical equipment companies, and even though it is much smaller it still has Eastman Kodak. Both Lockport and Niagara Falls have virtually nothing. They have lost almost all their industry and their city populations continue to decline.
I grew up in Rochester and am one of those people who left the city, reducing its population by one. One important industry the video failed to mention is the Rochester Telephone Corporation, which later became Frontier. It was one of the the largest independent telephone company in the country, not part of the Bell/AT&T system.
..Bausch and Lomb across from Genny Plant ,St.Pual BBlvd. no mention that Kodak sold us out for EPA Regs. Eastman Fine Chemicals now.. they moved the aqueduct awhile ago, and renamed the War Memorial, airport is now International ( I worked on the hangers to the West and inside main areas). we left 28 yrs. ago.
This is what happens when you have a two party system so all any politician has to say is “at least I’m better than that one over there” Seriously when I lived there I could never figure out what anyone’s stance was on actual issues, or if any of them even had one. They all just spent all their time and money trying to prove the other guy was a criminal. 🤷🏼♀️
My entire family used to work at Kodak. Grandpa in 1950s-80s, aunt, uncles, parent even met there. Then around 2000 when digital cameras came along it was terrible and everyone got laid off. My dad had to find new employment at another company.
I grew up there, left in 1986. Still have family and friends there, so I go back from time to time. I worked at the B Forman Co. store in Midtown Plaza when I was a a teenager. Downtown was cool then, but it's amazing how fast it deteriorated. By the time I left, it just felt like a dead end...
My sweet home! Raised in the days it was thriving! I loved growing up in Rochester New York , Greece New York! People worked hard and raised families! They went to church on Sundays! My childhood was free I could ride my bike all over the place! We played in woods and streams! Once Kodak tanked so did Rochester:( It was the best place to grow up it was and always will be in my heart home! Wegmans till death! lol I miss so much but so cold:(
Great place with lots of fun things to do with family and friends! Lovely suburbs and like any city-areas you should avoid. Tons to do if you like the arts, sciences, museums, history. Lots of growth here in medicine and technology! Come visit us for a hockey or baseball game, amazing summer festivals, and fantastic food! And not to mention-friendly people.
Mr. Forgotten Places, I have always loved your page. I find your videos very informative and comforting. I am from Rochester and have lived there all my life. Many people don’t realize the importance of our city and often overlook all it has to offer. This video really hit home. No pun intended. Thank you for making this.
@@Anthroid9 everyone has a different perspective from living in the Rochester area and I am aware of that. For me personally I love history and if you really research the city and the notable people from here it’s super interesting. Also the food, mid sized city so it’s not over crowded, 4 seasons, near the finger lakes
I just moved to Rochester a few years ago, and it’s amazing to see how much the city has changed for the better in a few years. It’s easy to write off cities as in decline, but there are a lot of young people and fun things to do in the city that are only increasing as the pandemic declines. The suburbanites here will complain all day about the city, but there are plenty of ways that it is improving.
@@SunDevil31 I've been here 52 years and I say buckle up if you want to stay here. You have got to be delusional not to see the problem with democrat run cities like Rochester over the past half century.
@@nater218 I mean not really. Rochester was great when I left and I loved growing up there and I didnt flee, I went to college. It has become a shit hole since I left, just like every other Dem run city. But hey Im glad ya love it.
I must say the upstate region of NY as a whole has been getting revived and revitalized as well as alot of huge investment with Syracuse in particular just recently getting a $100 billion investment from Micron, so these cities and this region of the state is coming back and will be the future of not only the state of NY not downstate but a major part of the country as a whole, I predict this region getting a big population increase in the near future Buffalo just recently reported an increase in their population for the first time in 70 years and Buffalo is kind of the epicenter of this "upstate rebirth" so definitely a good indicator for the future.
Great video, my entire family worked for Kodak, my wife's family worked for Xerox. Now that I am in semi retirement, it is sad to see how political corruption, crime, and decay have claimed so much of the joy Rochester brought to tens of thousands of families over the decades. Still a great area, downtown is a no fly zone for myself.
As someone who grew up in Rochester the first 30 years of my life in the late 50s, 1960s and all through the 70s, this makes me sad. Of course I'm aware that Rochester is changed but I left in the 1980s for South Florida and I've lived here ever since. I still have family that I love in Rochester though as well as several great friends, one of whom I just got off the phone with. Now here's the part where people will tell me I'm crazy, we are very strongly considering selling our home here and moving back to Rochester after 35 years away. We are both pushing 70, have no kids, and your priorities change. We've lived within a mile or two of the ocean and what is now our fifth great house here, but again your priorities change and I am ready for a change and to be close to family and old friends. So that will probably happen this spring. We can't really afford to keep two households so being snowbirds is out of the question. I hate winter, and I know I will have to deal with that. But I so miss the Rochester of old. I worked at all the restaurants in downtown Rochester in the 1970s and early 1980s and back then Rochester was like our NYC. Young people today in Rochester would be shocked to see what Rochester used to be like. I miss it very much and it's gone I realize. Anyway, great job on this video I'm sending it to several Rochester friends now.
I've met a lot of people in my entire 24 years of life here, and there's lots that have moved away and eventually came back. They all seem to say the same thing about how it feels like home, and I've even tried to move across country before and I couldn't bring myself to do it. It's strange, a place like this seems to beckon its masses back
Rochester is NOTHING like it used to be. Most of the great restaurants are all gone. And the ones that are still there, you take your life in your hands when you go to them. I've lived here my whole life and it breaks my heart what has happened. Rochester has the highest poverty rate in the state and one of the highest in the nation. Rochester has the highest property taxes in the nation. Rochester currently has more murders than Chicago. And our great hospitals are suffering needlessly due to mandates and an extreme shortage of Healthcare workers. My advice to you, think harder about coming back and if Kathy Hochul wins the election, DON'T.
@@bigpetemontesano7261 yeah, and as I said earlier, your priorities change as you get older, and being around my family and old friends in the last 1/4 of my life is more important than palm trees and the ocean, and I've had 35 great years of that.
@@lindastone4927 yeah I know it's sad and I'm not expecting to find what I used to. But as I explained to the gentleman a moment ago, when you get older your priorities change. I would rather be around my family and old friends up in Rochester in the last quarter of my life then be around palm trees and the ocean, though I loved that. I'm sure I will go through major adjustments! All my relatives live in pittsford area so that's pretty nice and safe, and my oldest best friend who's like my brother lives way out in chili, so everybody lives in nice areas.
NY has got to stop being a welfare state. Far too many people who could work and make an honest living paying taxes and contributing are just hanging out on corners,.grown able bodied men waiting for their monthly check, committing crimes, having babies all over the place and WE pay for their lifestyle with OUR hard earned tax dollars. It's been going on for GENERATIONS and it's high time that they get incentivized to get their act together. But it might be 50 years too late.
Things change - Amazon has constructed and opened a new "distribution center" in the Syracuse area, and within the past few weeks Micron Technologies has announced plans to invest $100 Billion (that's with a B) in four massive semiconductor plants in the Syracuse area over the next several years.
I live right next to Rochester in a well off town (if you know, you know) and I wouldn't have thought of it as a "forgotten place" however I will tell you that it freaks me out to go into the city. I usually won't go without my husband and yesterday I saw a homeless man walking thru traffic with a sign saying something like "will dance for food" (didn't get a good look) and by God if that old man wasn't tryin his best to hit the whoa. It was adorable and kinda sad at the same time
@@clifford7594 1st moved to Southeastern PA, then Charleston, SC. We moved back during Coved (so a lot of places were closed). But now that we are getting out of it, it seems to be more alive. Cost of homes are decent (compared to other places). Public ed (at least in the burbs) is better than the South, as well.
@@bobbyl.2484 i moved away in 94 and literally have never been back (zero ties left there) but i always wanted to take a trip to see what its like now.
Very informative video. I was born and raised near Strong and now reside in Henrietta. There has definitely been several ups and downs. Lets not forget Mt. Hope Cemetary....I know people from over seas who come here for that alone!
My dad worked at kodak for years. I still live in rochester. I left and came back. People can hate it, but this is my home and in some parts it's beautiful!!!!
Grew up in Rochester - only been away for ten years. There's still no grocery that beats Wegman's. And there still are white hots, best Italian bakeries and that can't be bought anywhere else.
Just looking at Rochester in this clip, it looks the city has so much potential. Places like Phoenix, Dallas, and other Sunbelt cities are booming. I've been to many of them, and all they are is a very huge suburb. Strip malls, suburban housing developments too close to the urban core.
Keep in mind that most sunbelt cities are much younger that Rochester and other northern cities. They also developed mostly after the Second World War when older northern cities like Rochester, Baltimore, etc were all at their peak and completely built out.
Moved out of the city in 2010. Rochester is riddled with crime, drugs and poverty. The political elite killed the city. It’s not even safe going to Seabreeze or the festival’s anymore. The ghetto is growing at an exponential rate and now affects the suburbs. Nothing will change here unless they revamp the whole system from the top down! RIP Rochester.😢
@schmac intyre: The political elite did not destroy Rochester. The incompetent elite imbeciles who ran Kodak, Xerox, Bausch & Lomb and Harris destroyed Roc! They had more than enough greed, short-sightedness and resistance to change to utterly rip the heart out of the region, allowing the massive hemorrhaging that wrecked lives so deeply. A profound disaster.
only people that have lived here a while pronounce it 'Rah-Chester'. How about 'Chili', try to explain that pronunciation to people that don't live in the area.
My grandmother was one of the people laid off from Xerox. My grandfather use to work for American Railroad (HQ in rochester) before retiring. Big places
What happened? Same thing that happened in most other big heartland cities: factories closed, the middle class moved out, crime rose, more of the middle class moved out. Next question?
would love to get my hands on the photo at 1:51 . have been working in roc on the main street bridge for two years now. When we were digging we started coming across old brick foundations on the bridge, which lead me to do a little research and find out about the buildings that used to be on it. Really neat stuff!
I’ve lived in Rochester my whole 60+ years. Retired from the brewery after 41 years. The city is crime and gang infested. There are few restaurants, cafes or bars along many of the waterways, like Ontario, the Erie Canal, or the finger lakes. Nothing good in the city.
The city is great in parts. You’re mistaken. South wedge, highland area, college town, park ave area, east ave, corn hill, north winton. All of these parts (I’m probably missing a few) are live with culture, restaurants, and night life. It’s to bad you feel that way.
I'm kind of a rarity up here--I moved up in 2020 from a much bigger city down south. It's not a half-bad place to live super cheap, and some pretty cute, lively areas are popping up, like in South Wedge. Plus it has Vertex, one of the last dedicated goth clubs in the country. For a city that all but died with Kodak, I think it's got a lot of potential.
great video! one small thing as a native, i see it was already mentioned above but just in case you didn’t see, we pronounce the city “ra-chester”, although we shorten it to “Roc” sometimes, which is pronounced “rock”
Rhachester - and after a difficult couple of decades it’s slowly coming back, to the point that it was listed as one of the best places to live in upstate NY.
What's crazy is that Rochester still has the 2nd highest economy in new york state so its not that bad alot of those companies just downsized, however kodak did drop the ball on the digital cam!!
I have had a theory (no research) for years. I've lived in Rochester my whole life. I love it here. However, here is the one mistake they made that cost us a great city; If I'm correct Rochester, Toronto and Chicago were all "settled" at the same time. Rochester was the only one that didn't plant itself on the shores of the great lakes. The rest speaks for itself. We truly missed the boat on this one. Look at the other cities and how huge they are. We were stunted by using the river and canal which we outgrew it's use. The shore stunk from so long from all the waste upriver. Anyway, that's my .02.
Interesting observation.... but what advantage would there have been if the city was built on the lake? The shipping lanes all run through the north part of Lake Ontario and skip Rochester. If the falls had been closer to the lake then perhaps it would have made sense. But otherwise I think building on the canal, perhaps in Pittsford, would have been the next best choice.
Live in the suburbs here. Wife is a nurse at strong, great place to raise a family. Most of the comments here amplify the danger within the city. There are tons of restaurants, bars, festivals all sorts of things that are welcoming and safe. We go downtown to eat out a couple time a month with no issue. The one thing is the black people in the city kill each other off left and right. My poor wife is a pediatric nurse and every single night she is there there’s a new black pre-teen there with either a stab wound or his jaw hanging off from getting jumped. With no parents that care or will come visit. Very sad cycle to see
Saddest thing is that two of the huge companies that turned Rochester, NY into a powerhouse, Kodak and Xerox, simply saw their demise coming and just let it happen to themselves and the city. Kodak had developed a digital camera as early as the mid-seventies but kept focussing on film instead of improving digital. Xerox already had developed a graphic computer interface also in the mid-seventies but its management would not know what to do with it, so they sold it to Apple.
Apple did not buy the Xerox computing machine Steve Jobs saw in Palo Alto. Jobs and Co. saw the possibilities that could come with a graphical user interface and recreated it in their own labs.
It always seems great companies are founded by people without MBAs while great companies lose their way once MBAs are out in charge….
@@gj1234567899999 It's in the name of the Degree. Not Master of Business it's Master of Business Administration.
@@gj1234567899999and now you know why they insist now on having that MBA. They know people unencumbered by what they are taught aren’t bound by those things. People like Jobs weren’t geniuses in the way we think, rather his approach was one where barriers weren’t seen as stopping points but things overcome.
Unlike Buffalo and Syracuse, Rochester had a lot of educated job postings, so to shoot themselves in the foot like that is all the more terrible. Schenectady similar screwed themselves over with GE spreading themselves thin.
Good video! But you are pronouncing Rochester wrong. ;) you are pronouncing the "Roc" and saying "Rock-chester". No one who lives here pronounces it that way. ;) we say "Raa-chester"
Raw-chest-her 😏
raw-cha-cha
I was wondering about the pronunciation, as I never heard it pronounced that way
I was waiting for someone to point that out. Correct pronunciation of a place name at least conveys some credibility.
Actually it’s pronounced Crotchfester! 👎👎👎
Rochester is also where one of the most recognizable pieces of modern clothing, the hoodie, was created. It was created by Champion to be sold to upstate and western NY laborers for winter. There's nothing more people from Rochester like than complaining about the cold and construction, so we came up with a remedy.
Wow I didn’t know that about hoodies! Sort of irrelevant but Hickey Freeman clothing company is still around as well, my grandma worked there in the 50s as a secretary and I heard countless stories about her HF days lol.
I think they just like complaining. Never been to an area that complained so much about everything.
An outsider observation: everyone in WNY craps on one another, but then goes around asking why everyrhings covered in crap. Alot of "everyone else is doing it," mentality.
@@whoppergoldstein5308 When there's a lot to complain about, you tend to complain
@@stevarino1989 Hickey Freeman made their last suit in Rochester just about a week ago.
The Hickey Freeman line is a licensed brand owned by the Authentic Brand Group. That company decided to no longer work with Hickey Freeman and will now work with another company that will produce a cheaper suit in Mexico.
@@stevarino1989Hickeys is gone too now... went to Mexico.
Left in 2013. One thing I miss are the parks. Roc area parks are awesome and underappreciated. Summer months can be beautiful. Winter not so much. You don't realize how blue skies are supposed to be until you leave Rochester.
I moved to Florida for a little while and when I came back you feel the dark gloom because winters are too long. However we don’t get terrible weather and dangerous animals.
I left in '95 and have only been back four times. Twice for funerals. All the people I grew up with are gone, no one I went to school with stayed. As soon as we got our piece of paper we were gone. I can't say that I love the place, because each time I've gone back I've wondered what kept me there for so long, but I can see how many folks would love it. One thing that I can say is that throughout its history, Rochester has repeatedly been able to reinvent itself. It wouldn't surprise me if in 20 years it would again be the vibrant place it was in the 1950s.
Coming from the PNW (not Portland), the parks are probably the most disappointing for us. From Buffalo to Rochester, everything just feels over industrialized & busy-- Living in a "rural" community here feels like living in a city!
Everywhere has its weather and climate problems. If you grow up there, and are used to winters, Rochester is ideal. No fires, earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, or droughts. Fresh water sources forever. Absolutely perfect summers. Frankly, the winters keep away the weaklings and parasites (you can't hide under the bed and wait for the snow to melt; it's shovel or die).
Loving this series and I was waiting for this one as I live in Rochester 😁. Fun Fact: Rochester was so bustling in the early 20th century it used to have a subway up until the 1960's.
didnt know that!
The Rochester subway, really cool place, used to check it out as a teenager in the 80's.
My dad actually rode it as a kid in the 50's.
There was also an open air trench part on the northwest side of town up til the 80's, then they filled it in.
I-490 is in what was the eastern open air part. It was underground downtown.
Originally, it was the Erie Canal.
Yeeaahhh now is scary as hell and lots of homeless live there.
I learned about it in High school. I never even knew we had a subway until someone mentioned it.
neat video. nice to see content about where im from nobody talks about us lol
I like Rochester. I used to live in Toronto, and I had to go there one day to do some paperwork at their airport. I went for a nice drive and ended up there. It seemed strange, like "What's this city doing here?" The Kodak museum was quite nice. I got a cheap buffet lunch at a mall, which was fun. I drove around downtown a little to check it out. I liked how the Kodak plant smelled like developing chemicals and stunk up the whole area. It was a nice drive home, taking a very quiet highway along the lakeshore. I couldn't believe how quiet it was.
I had a teacher that worked for Kodak and he told my class that they had the digital camera ready to go but upper management prevented it from going public sooner
They also turned down Chester Carlson's invention of Xerography.
Sad. The suits destroyed Kodak.
@@BeanieScooter They didn't want to kill their cash cow, but the demise took a long time, not overnight like some might think.
Kodak's bread and butter was always their film and film processing. Some called it and large chemical factory that sold cameras on the side. Digital photography has no use for such chemicals.
Fun fact: The Jack Rabbit roller coaster is the second oldest in the USA and number 4 in the world.
I gotta visit Seabreeze one of these days
Wow I never knew that. Haven't been to Seabreeze in years
seabreeze has gotta be one of those underrated amusement parks. jack rabbit is supreme
I go every year, it's great
Holy crap! I never knew that. I’ve been on the Jack Rabbit countless times. I knew it was old but not that old
This video was well done. I remember some of the glory days of Rochester. Visited Midtown Plaza when it was still alive. The one thing you really failed to mention was the high crime rates and poverty that followed the loss of low skill manufacturing jobs. The status quo at the time was not interested in serving the people as seen by some of the disastrously planned projects and lack of investment in infrastructure.
they invest in tearing down the infrastructure as seen with the innerloop
I’ve owned a second home in upstate NY now for long enough to tell you what’s really wrong with Rochester even though I’ve never been there. I was going to say it starts in Albany, but I think that’s wrong. It’s cultural, and it gets reflected in the politics. It’s simply not enough individualism. Great communities, but they have such little regard for the individual.
No one should have had to help those workers, but those workers were failed by their culture. The ones who weren’t, left I supposed. It seems it’s generational. Rinse, repeat. And oooh brother, I’m only saying this anonymously. I am hiding behind this screen. People up there turn into a nasty pack on outsiders. Nope, you better show up with lots of money and want to spend it in a way THEY approve of, or just stay away. I wouldn’t open a business up there unless I had nothing to lose.
Now, where the politicians make it worse is they constantly appease the mobs with laws which any idiot should see will not work in any way other than to bother the conscientious folks who likely were not the problem to start with. If a law has a chance of an effect, it will still fail because it will not be enforced at all on the locals or anyone who has a relationship with a lawyer and pushes back.
Our country is supposed to work on the premise that a person with a good idea who’s willing to put in the effort can make new businesses and services, but I just think NY is no longer a place where that’s likely to happen.
I’m not trying to change it. I’m too old for that. I’m not sure I even recommend anyone younger trying. I’d tell folks to look for opportunities where you can find them and if that means leaving, pack up and get out.
Im in Binghamton 2hrs South. We had IBM and shiiit was goin onnn! I worked there for 18 yrs. But ya > crime. Backwards looking projects and no infrastructure. Sad Stuff. If it werent for 'politicians' I bet we could control our destiny better.
@@micahjared8082 People should vote for politicians that will chang things. But I guess in certain places the states quo continues
@@nunyabidness3075 you sure have a strong opinion about a place you've never been to...
I have lived here for 71 years and I could never figure out why the city never took advantage it's location on the Lake Ontario shoreline as other cities on the lake did to bring in tourism. Also the Erie Canal runs through the city and it was never really developed to bring in tourism. They used to skate on the canal in downtown Rochester in the winter. The canal boats could have a port in downtown Rochester but there is nowhere to go. Our big beach for years was a smelly dirty place you could not stay there for more than 20 minutes. My parents forbid me to go there as a teenager. It has since been cleaned up but we can't seem to have it more than a destination for city area locals to swim and picnic and boat. Restaraunts come and go. The old iconic carousel is the biggest draw for young families. In the old days,before my time, there were, I think, 3 amusment parks we have one left further down the shore. I won't even talk about the Rochester Fast Ferry fiasco. There used to be nice hotels for people,not now.
A trolly used to run along the shore and the rail bed divides the lake from the roads and homes and it has long been abandoned and it could have been developed and people enjoy rides from Hilton to Sodus or even uo to the 1000 Islands along the lake with stop offs along the way for different attractions in different towns along the route that would have been a boom to each of their economies. Seems to me the city fathers missed the boat and it would cost a fortune to ever get the once thiving city back. Crime has taken over and murder rate per capita is worse than Chicago. The days of Christmas downtown looking at window displays in department stores the Midtown clock and Christmas mono rail my boys road on, have long since been forgotten. Sad to have the city in such decline. They moved all the stores and activities inland to the suburbs. Now they can't get the people back.
i used to live by the genessee river when i was a toddler and i always called it “the stinky river”
unfortunately they messed up the fast ferry to canada. that would have helped put Rochester on the map. still an awesome place to live. beautiful surrounding areas and cheap cost of living. plenty of opportunities if you’re willing to work
Man, I miss that monorail. Got some great memories of that with my parents.
Not sure if you’ll see this: but the city is trying to bring more people in. My wife and I are moving there as part of the RoC Remote program. Excited to move there and help the city grow. 😊
@@scsextra Hope you like it in the city. I know they are trying to being people in. Problem is not much there anymore shopping is all in the suburbs. Restaurants are few there Planetarium,Margaret Strong Museum and the Farmer's Market downtown are nice. But crime these days keeps me from going into the city.
I lived in New York City for 10 years. I grew up in Rochester and I just moved back 3 years ago. I don't want to be in any other city than Rochester. We lost our prosperous industry but we're growing in culture currently, I love it. I think the city will bounce back fine, I'm biased of course but there's a lot to love about Rochester post -milling/kodak
i grew up in upstate n.y. at one time Buffalo was one of the biggest cities in the country now its not even in the top 100 they all great cities in upstate but now gone, politics always ruin everything!
What culture is that? All I see lately is more crime and less compassion for people. I can't wait to leave this pos city
Another negative factor about Rochester and it’s suburbs was that the highway network was always screwed up and under construction. They would start new expressways and never finish them. During the 60s and 70s the north-south segments of the Outer Loop were separate highways on both sides of the city and they had the exact same highway route number- NY Route 47. NY Route 104 remained under construction for who knows how long. That whole metro area was a tangled up confusing mess when it came to traffic arteries.
@@JR3714 yes ,,shortly after they built it the changed it. It was 1 of the most f'd up roads I ever encountered , an i grew up in the NYC/TRI STATE AREA
I recall my father telling me the democrats in Albany, purposely routed the Thruway south of Republican led Rochester, while going through Syracuse & Buffalo which were in Democrat hands. Somethings never change.
I remember in the 2000s Rochester really pushed to organize a ferry service to Toronto to try and attract Canadians who wanted to avoid the longer route through Buffalo and the NY State Parkway that hugged the southern shore of Lake Ontario. Unfortunately, it simply didn't work out
Lake Avenue😄
I remember when they completed the outer loop, everyone was excited, finally we could get across town easy.
And yes, road construction is perpetual in Rochester, the weather does really punish the infrastructure. They start in one part of the city, and by the time they have re-built everything, the place they started needs fixing again.
Then every couple decades the state of NY changes their mind on what they want to do with all the roads.
I grew up in Rochester in the 1960s. I have nothing but great memories of my childhood in the city. I went through grade school, high school and even two years of college there. I met my first love. I got my driver’s license. My very first job was during the summer of 1971, when I worked at a marina on the banks of Irondequoit Bay. I was age 16. It was an adventure! I came of age there.
Then, one day in the summer of 1976, I packed my little Ford Pinto with all my worldly possessions and headed south. I was 21 and in pursuit of a career flying airplanes in more southerly climes. I guess, I was one of the 18% you mentioned, which left during the 1970s.
I was treated well in my new pursuits. My parents eventually moved from the city, as did my siblings. I lost touch with old friends. But I made new ones. Life took me away from my boyhood home and left me with fewer and fewer reasons to return.
Then, an opportunity arose. I returned for a half-day in 2018 while visiting nearby Syracuse. I even took the time to shoot some footage for a couple of video projects while there. I couldn’t help noticing that forty-two years had taken a heavy toll on the city. It had declined. The streets were poorly maintained. Cracked and pockmarked. Neighborhoods I once roamed as a child, I now felt unsafe in. The city was a shell of its former self. Great gaps existed in the landscape where Kodak Park and other businesses once were. Empty storefronts were everywhere with “For Lease” or “For Sale” signs. Kodak was gone. Xerox was gone. Bausch & Lomb, gone. Frenches Mustard, Nalgene, Ragu, Fanny Farmer and so many, many more companies…now gone.
Then in 2020, my old hometown was suddenly appearing in the national news, and not in a good way. Rochester was at the center of major BLM movements and working hard to defund their police department. The city was gripped by riots, protests and chaos. I sat there, watched and wondered, “What in the heck happened to this once great city?!” Politics? Moral decay? Changes in attitudes? Changes in people? Likely all of these things and more, all mixed together to produce the very worst in outcomes. But I really don’t know for sure.
What I do know is, another trip to Rochester is unlikely for me. I prefer to let the city remain a pleasant memory from my past, rather than mar those memories with the shattered reality of what it has become.
PS: I've lived in Albany and surrounding areas in the Hudson valley so I know all to well how our state is deteriating
Exactly my sentiments about Philly.
Woke libs and blacks and browns ruined it
Lovely comment. Perhaps it is best to remain an pleasant memory, and locations evolve over time, and cities like Rochester will be effectively replaced by other great places.
Well said. I grew up in the 2000s/2010s in nearby Syracuse, so have never known a thriving upstate NY. The only good memories of the area are from the beautiful upstate nature areas that are so abundant, but never from the cities themselves (also briefly lived in Rochester and also had a negative impression). Now that I've moved, I will never live there again, and I can easily say it was one of the best decisions I've ever made. I worry for my parents who have retired in the area.
Well done. It brings back fond memories. I worked for Eastman Kodak from 1972 until 1975 right out of college. Had a wonderful time living in Rochester.
The weather didn't bother me at all since I was from Brooklyn. Those were some great times, living in Rochester and working for Eastman Kodak. Well done story. I thank you.
I used to visit Rochester a lot about 5 years ago. There is definitely a fair share of rough neighborhoods, but there are still plenty of nice areas. But it's evident that its glory days are long gone
Things not mentioned in this video. Rochester has some of the best colleges in the country. UR, RIT, St. John Fisher, heck, even the community college is very good. Rochester also has some great neighborhoods, bars and restaurants. The winters are horrible, and yes, the manufacturing has left, but its still one of the better smaller cities. Underrated airport as well.
That airport was a gem! I went to visit so I can experience it for myself vs reading youtube comments putting the fear in me lol. It was wonderful and the people were delightful! So yah I just ignore the negativity lol.
I like to say Rochester is the 2nd most happening city in New York State. It might be very far behind #1, and perhaps it says more about the sad states of Buffalo, Syracuse, Albany, etc... BUT Rochester does actually have a fair amount going for it!
@@briancastro8973 Buffalo is actually a hidden gem of culture of all kinds. The Albright-Knox museum was recently named one of the "world's greatest places" by Time magazine. If anybody local hasn't been there for awhile, in the last 10 years the former "gallery" has had millions of dollars invested and is showing some of the best more important artists in the world. It was worth a visit before (much larger than the Memorial Art Gallery in Rochester) but now it outshines our MAG by far!
@@briancastro8973Thousands of people are leaving the State. The only thing that keeps happening is the crime.
Besides Kodak and Xerox. There was Bausch and Lomb, Gannett (USA Today), Rochester Products ( carburetors for GM) and Dupont to name a few. You could get Genny Cream Ale 6 packs for 99 cents and Rolling Rock Ponies were a quarter at Ronnie's Suburban Inn. The Penny Arcade had great bands. The House of Guitars was always a fun adventure and had the silliest commercials (Hop Hop Easter Bunny). Always a large supply of great pizza shops, including Sicilian pizza. It was great to be young and always had unlimited parking lots to do doughnuts in the snow with rear wheel drive.
Don't forget all the famous people who lived there or nearby: Frederick Douglass, Susan B. Anthony, Hareiet Tubman, Golisano, and so on
Rod Serling, Lou Graham, Chuck Mangione, Steve Gadd...
One of these is not like the other lol
During the "mostly peaceful protests" during the summer of 2020, mobs pulled down a statue of Fredrick Douglas.
@@markkelly6259 No, that's not accurate. Stop spreading lies
@@Musicdudeyoutub Then tell me what really happened. I used to live there but I moved away years ago so when I see a story on the news that mentions Rochester, I read it. Are you saying that I can't trust journalists?
I grew up between LeRoy and Batavia in the 1960's and thought Rochester was wonderful but there were problems with redlining and situations like the Cornhill incident that were deeply disturbing. The area has such a rich and beautiful history as part of the underground railroad and the woman's movement, among just a few, and is in a beautiful and rich part of the country. With each company that outsourced it's product more and more peoples lives were negatively affected and that happened to Batavia also, when companies like Sylvania left. What business has failed to realize, is that when they decide to go overseas, communities die. Where I lived, in the area surrounding Rochester, parents drove into the city for work and it supported the surrounding area. We weren't rich but that middle class environment flourished. We went on vacations, had good holidays and birthdays, were clothed and fed, went to the dentist and the doctor and we had a future. The lines between rich and poor were not so obvious. When the businesses left, the line became much greater and the city began to decay.
@SHAK3 N Everything is relative. And every time you feel sorry for yourself there will always be someone who has it less. But see back in the 60's lower middle class people still had those things they needed to be happy. That was before trickle down and the slow removal of businesses and jobs. So that's exactly my point. When everyone is paying their fair share of taxes, everyone can live a comfortable life. We had hardly anything. My dad worked two job and my mom worked and she also made our clothes. We had an old car, but we didn't know we were poor because, in THOSE days, the basic things were there for everyone. There wasn't a sharp divide between rich and poor, the middle class flourished. You've made my point.
Despite their vast population size difference, both Rochester and Batavia are struggling cities today facing uncertain futures. Whether or not both cities can jump start their economies and revitalize themselves remains to be seen.
@SHAK3 N Your post was uncalled for.
@@skygerspacher6891 WELL-SAID!!!!
@SHAK3 N Give it up!
Born in Rochester. Downtown in the 50's and 60 was so wonderful, especially at Christmas. Went to Aquinas, MCC and RIT. Worked for Kodak as an accountant, then owned my own businesses. Rochester, the people, the parks, it was a dream. The city has changed unfortunately but my heart ill always be there.
Rochester is still a very special place. For a city of this size we have a lot of culture and a lot to do. I moved away for several years. While I was living out of state, any time I ran into other people from Rochester we always talked about how much we missed it and of course how much we missed Wegmans. You don't know how special Rochester is until you move away.
I agree but sometimes it's hard not to things of the negative parts and realize why we left. I definitely miss all the spring and summer festivals. Lilac, Greek, Italian, German for example always a great time.
@@rbianchi1983 Don't forget about oktoberfest in Fairport
It's a dump. Nothing special about it.
@@eyeameye9565 true but pointless to say. You can say the same about any place that's not meant for wealthy people
@@eyeameye9565 thats a lie! We beautifil parks....beautiful homes and you ger alot of house for your money. Yes we have areas that are not the best....but in my travels our so called hood looks better tham many other major cities hood. We tend to forget...the world has also changed due to horrible gov practices. Rural areas are the biggest dump.
I worked for a company in the late 1960s that relied heavily on business from Xerox; digitalization of the copiers was one nail in the coffin of my employer which I'd left to join the Army. An irony of history is that Kodak was the first to invent a digital camera.
apparently Kodak also invented the popular VHS system but sold the patent to a Japanese company.
I've lived in Rochester New York my whole life and honestly can't imagine how people go without a Wegmans nearby all over the country
Moved to Wisconsin in 03, but we return every year to see family and friends....and to go to Wegmans to by some Zweigles and bring them back here...MMM MMM Good!
Everyone should have the opportunity to buy a $17 quesadilla.
LOL.... Now you can live in a much nicer community out of New York State and have Wegmans too.
@mms8393 umm okay well just bc I live in Rochester doesn't mean there aren't many suburbs. I live in a suburb.. of Rochester NY. What's your point?
there are no Wegmans here in the capital district but when i went to Super Dirt Week in syracuse i always made a point to go to Wegmans i always bought a big bag of potato chips cooked in olive oil!
When I was in fifth or sixth grade, a teacher asked the class “how many of you have a parent at Kodak?” And everyone raised their hand. Then “How many have both parents at Kodak?” I was one of five proud to raise my hand again. Then just a few years later in 10th grade: “How many of you have a parent at Kodak?” And I was one of ONLY THREE KIDS who could say we still had one parent there.
That’s what happened to Rochester. Kodak just dumped everyone. And soon enough I had neither parent there. But I got to hear at the dinner table for several years all about how the Kodak higher ups were making the dumbest possible decisions, selling off technology and departments that might actually make money in future while investing in obsolete products.
hahah when I was in kindergarten here, in Caledonia NY I was the ONLY child, whose dad did NOT WORK at Kodak, and I felt embarassed to say I remember, well, my Dad just owns his own business, hahaha no kidding.
NOW hahahahah ain't nobody work there.
@@sylinify I do.
Yeah, I saw that on the Simpsons.
I feel like businesses ultimately destroy cities. They come in and take advantage of the tax breaks and give jobs, but then when the incentives are gone - as they were knew before they came - they leave and leave thousands of people unemployed. The only benefit is to the employer. it just makes me sad
@@GorgieClarissa Possible, though not quite what happened with Kodak - Kodak was founded in Rochester, back in the 1800s. Rochester was always the Kodak town, and a ton of local buildings/organizations were built from donations by its founder. It wasn’t that a temporary incentive ran out, it was that eventually leadership passed to morons. A short-sighted focus on what’s the biggest profit now rather than best position for the future, coupled with a view of the world disconnected from reality led them to shoot themselves in the foot repeatedly. The R&D Kodak had COULD have had them at the forefront of digital cinema, digital photography, government tech, and even Harry Potter merchandise. But the higher-ups sold all that off (or straight up trashed it) because they thought they were getting a great deal from some fool and that the future was really in printers…
Grew up there as a kid in the 80's. When companies began laying off people it was a dark time for many. I remember watching channel 10 news with Janet Lomax and the late Gabe Dalmath as they reported the thousands being laid off. What put it into context for me as a kid was my 4th grade class starting the year with 30 students and ending with 19. 11 kids and their families moved because of the layoffs. I still have family there and visit often but I do not miss living there.
It was long before the 80's when the layoff's started -
I lived right across the lake in Oshawa, Ontario. When the weather conditions were just right we could pick up WROC (NBC), WHEC (CBS), and WOKR (ABC) on our old antenna. Otherwise, it was only the Buffalo network affiliates we could watch
I miss my hometown if anything happens I would move back..I'm now living in Atlanta.. people are so different...etc...
@@mrs.walton9251 you really can never go back. remember the way it was. The cold will get to you I moved back 20 years ago and my hands cracked the pain was unbearable. I am now in VA. Atlanta may be my next move.
I was a teen there in the 80's, moved away in 94.
To be honest, I kinda miss it now, not so much the city itself, but I miss that part of New York State. I have been on the west coast, so-cal and the pnw.
I hate the west coast. I am sick of pine tees. i miss the trees of the east, I miss the seasons of the east.
The west sucks. southwest, northwest, it all sucks.
Portland sucks so bad, it makes Buffalo & Rochester look good.
Rah-Chester is the correct way to to say it ! Kodak and Xerox was a huge industry and many came from all over to work. Rochester was a beautiful city at one time especially when industrialization came into play. Sadly there are many abandoned and run down areas in between some nice places.
omg, thank you! It was driving me mad listening to ROCKchester, lol.
Rochester and its surrounding suburbs are still a wonderful place to raise kids and enjoy family life. We have one of the best public and private educational systems in the country - from pre-school through college. We have a world renowned Children's Museum of Play as well. There are so many beautiful parks and the summer months keep us at home because they are wonderful (mostly). There are 2 amazing amusement parks within a short distance. We have great concert venues and theaters and a great Art Museum. There is also the Eastman School of music which routinely graduates future Emmy and Oscar winners. We don't have hurricanes, tornadoes, big earthquakes and our winters have gotten much milder over the last 20 years. Buffalo gets most of the snow these days. Winter is long and grey but that's what vacation is for! The downtown area of Rochester is like any other big city, there are good areas and not so good areas.
It’s so interesting how a lot of stuff was invented in Rochester or was headquartered here. Like Kodak, Xerox, the original Garbage Plate, white Zweigles hot dogs … It is sad about the decline of Rochester especially considering what I’ve heard about how amazing Downtown was back in the day, but not all of it is bad. We still have all the parks and places to eat and craft beers and of course the lake.
The Seneca Park Zoo has been greatly expanded! Lovely area.
I scouted the San Francisco Bay Area in the early 70's, and a dozen of us moved there within the decade. Most of us stayed, a few moved elsewhere, and none of us moved back to Rochester - a great small city on a bleak, unforgiving frozen tundra. I've only been back once, about 30 years ago, hit all of my favorite places, and was done in three days.
Rochester’s location is definitely not a bleak frozen tundra like you falsely claim. It is beautiful rolling scenic country with a beautiful moderate four season climate. The San Francisco Bay Area is chilly and breezy most of the year.
@@r.pres.4121 I lived in Rochester for 14 years, and saw snow in September, October, November, December, January, February, March, April, May and June - every month except July and August. Moderate four seasons? Moderate? We named the four seasons Mud, Humidity, Color and Ice. Rochester has the most overcast days and the most days with precipitation in the United States. Having lived in 13 cities in 4 states, I've never experienced weather as extreme as in Rochester. I remember a rain storm turning into an ice storm, resulting in all of the branches of all of the trees falling off due to the weight of the ice encrusting them. We ain't got that here.
I've lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for 40 years, which is recognized as having a Mediterranean climate. And we have micro climates here. That is, it can be foggy and cool in San Francisco in the summer (only) and it gets warmer (@ one degree per mile as you head out in all directions) - and no humidity. I haven't perspired in 40 years.
Tomorrow's November, when we can expect to experience the first brief rainstorms blowing by, cooler temperatures (lower to mid-60's), no fog, robins gorging themselves on pyracanthus berries, more red than yellow leaves left on the hardwoods, acorns falling from the oaks, and the first blades of green grass appearing. Those are my personal observations. We'll welcome some rain, everything will turn green, and everyone will be happy about this.
@@r.pres.4121 Yeah I'm ok without all 4 seasons especially that frozen hell called winter lol have fun shoveling and freezing your face off
It’s November. Hasn’t snowed yet and it’s still in the upper 60s low 70s. Perfect fall, spring and summer. Our winters have been mild, not really ramping up until January. At least we won’t be running out of water. We don’t deal with hurricanes, earthquakes and extreme droughts. Our gardens flourish. Green and lush.
@@goshen7334 Still plenty of rain, I see, with freezing temps due on Tuesday. Long term forecast says it'll average 39 degrees in Rochester this month and 33 degrees next month - then getting crazy cold in January and February. Higher precipitation too. Then there's the wind chill factor. And the Arctic Vortex. Perfect. For you, maybe. I live on an unshakeable serpentine mountain with reservoirs so full that they're spilling over the dam, and our abundant farmers markets remain in full swing. I never turn the heater on, and we have no air conditioners here. Stay warm and be careful out there.
I lived here most of my life. It's sad to see how it's changed through the decades. But she could come back with the right moves. She's got so much life left in her. So much more history to her than you even mentioned in your video.
Lots of violent crime, drugs, corrupt leaders, and a failing school school system.
Malls, restaurants and extensive heath care worker firings have suffered severely and some did not recover from extensive lockdowns.
Huge exodus from NY in the past few years.
Rochester is where Arthur Shawcross killed most of his victims.
So true. I grew up in the Rochester area and most of my family still live there. They complain about the crime all of the time and most of the public schools are horrible.
I tried to stay in Pennsylvania, but by 2004, I couldn't anymore. If I had stayed, I would consider myself lucky If I was able to land a dead end job, that had lasting qualities.
Guess they got rid of their governor a couple of years too late
@@anderander5662 The lady who has been running things since he left is arguably worse. Nothing has improved. I moved in 2021 and will never look back.
I love my hometown but its really depressed now, shes getting old and run down. Still a lot of awesome things to do and it really is a beautiful city.
Upstate New York as a whole suffers quite a lot. We should be separate from the city for starters.
@@RunninUpThatHillh Well, maybe not. Many people are fleeing NYC because it's become too expensive and too dangerous. Rochester could benefit from this current dynamic if planned accordingly. Make Rochester a haven for remote employees with affordable rents and mortgages and investing in small businesses. There are people that like the city life, but one that is affordable and safe with an American home town feel to it, and Rochester could be that place.
I love the Lilac Festival!
@@RunninUpThatHillh decades of piss poor politicians like Lovely Warren , Chuck Schumer Adam Bello and Joe Morrelle have wrecked it .
VOTE THE BUMS OUT ON NOVEMBER 8 T H
@@RunninUpThatHillh SEPARATING THE STATE FROM THE CITY WOULD SUCK THE LIFEBLOOD OUT OF UPSTATE NY. BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD IDEA. NYC SUPPORTS UPSTATE BY WAY OF THEIR DYNAMIC ECONOMY.
I lived in Rochester for two years in the early 1980's. I worked for Flanagan's on Maple St., advertising department. I remember some friendly people and a lot to do for a young person. The problem with an area like that is the weather, I remember driving around 390 with 30 mph winds, temp. below zero and snowing so hard you couldn't see the road. I moved south, seems you would have to have really good job prospects to keep people there. The year I left 85' the sun never came out in Feb., not once. The average temp. was 12. Need I say more.
Should have been here February 2015. It's the coldest February on record. Temperatures were above freezing for 5 hours on a single day for the entire month.
Some of my best memories of the kast 73 years are the snow storms we used to have. Loved, loved them!!
smart move on your part
I passed through there in August and it didn't seem in nearly as bad a shape as a place like Syracuse.
What part did you go through?
The state pours money into projects, so some parts look really nice.
Although I don’t know how much Syracuse get from the state.
Go to Binghamton NY that place is definitely depressing.
Syracuse is way dumpier than rochester. Buffalo and Albany both are shittier than rochester. But rochester is still shitty
Rochester is more intact than every other upstate city. Even Buffalo, which is growing faster. But the crime is out of control.
Syracuse blows
I lived in rochester till Aug, '21. Almost 45yrs and I'll never move back. Miss the friends and family, but not what criminal governors and mayors have done to it. It used to be unsafe to drive around late at night in the city... Ave D, Wilkins, driving park, meigs st... I'd only go to high falls area with a group of friends, and only time I'd go to a wings game would be day time or July 4th for fireworks, and amerks games at the war memorial weren't much better... and this was 20+yrs ago... Can't do any of that today and feel anywhere near remotely safe. Had the highest homicide rate per 100K residents in the country last year, and have already passed their '21 record of murders...
Moved to an area where I have more than a dozen friends and family just from rochester within about 3 hours of me, none are interested in going back. A friend moved about 20mins from me this spring, and my sister is looking to move her family close to the area as well.
What was once a great area, and something I tried to be proud of, has really gone downhill thanks to having no intelligent or productive leadership. It's very much a shame, as places like Nick Tahou's, Char Broil, Schaller's, Bill Gray's, Caraglio's, and Windjammers in Charlotte are places that deserve better. I'd mention Abbott's, but there's one close to me which was opened by another former rochesterian, as were a few bills bars close me.
Where did you end up escaping to? Where do you see most Rochesterians going?
@@TheLoanSoldier
I'm in Fort Mill, SC. I know friends and family members who are looking at FL and TX as well. I have a cousin who bought a house last year but now wishes he didn't so he could leave. The sad thing is many people don't realize how different, and better, it is outside of ny.
Only good reason to stay is to vote out all the worthless criminals, but nyc has so much power, you're just at their mercy.
The overwhelming majority of the state votes different than nyc.
Please stop the excessive hyperbole. The crime rate and homicides are the product of the inner city drug trade which you shouldn't be around. No one is being robbed at Amerks or Red Wings games. This thinking is what killed Rochester. Y'all destroyed Irondequoit with the unfounded rumors of rapes at the mall there. but when it's all said and done the city is just too black for you guys. It's what you want to say but can't.
@@Andre14615 so the homeless guy who attacked the Amerks patrons last year which led to the evacuation of all the homeless people living in the parking lot?
How about the guy who was set on fire on Lyell Ave?
Car jackings at gun point?
Bank robberies?
Running red lights on Lyell and Mt. Read and flipping vehicles with kids in them, killing a baby?
The crime rate and homicides are a product of a terrible school system, that would now rather teach sexual preferences and climate change over personal finances, entrepreneurship and/or trades; ya know, the things that will actually set our kids up for their future?
@@TheLoanSoldier again this is excessive hyperbole when those few incidents happen over a period of years like in any other city or burb. I'm a school teacher in the Rochester City School district we don't teach anything about sexuality so please get off your Trump talking points and stop making up things to fit your agenda. The fact remains that crime is deep within the inner city and that people who aren't searching for drugs will be nowhere near it for the most part. Drug dealers are robbing and killing drug dealers. Nobody cares about Bob from Pittsford unless he's doing something incredibly stupid that makes him a target. Stay away from drugs and for the most part you stay away from crime in Rochester. These are the truths
Great video. I've lived here my whole life thus far and it's sad how much my city has declined over the years. Thankfully the part where I live is still decent and hopefully one day the the city will bounce back. Keep up the great work
There would have to be a huge demographic shift for that to happen.
@@lookoutforchris that’s right. Sometimes people from more expensive cities and suburbs move to start businesses and be part of a resurgence.
Not the way it voted last century, you are thru
I live downstream in Binghamton. 2 hrs south. Been to Rochester many times. Crazy to think BOTH of our cities have declined in the past 20 years. You had Kodak > We had IBM....which are both gone now. Im not sure either city will ever truly bounce back ; but I know the people are strong.
@@micahjared8082 Definitely, I remember as a child even in the mid 90s Rochester flourished with businesses. With Jesus/God anything is possible though
Last time i checked it was still here
If you couldn’t tell I live in Rochester. I’ve always loved the city and it’s in a slow comeback. We had a new train station built in 2017 to replace the old amshack, the former Xerox tower is under a renovation and some people already live in the building, and a new state park is going to be built at High Falls. Also, the population is slowly increasing too.
Having grown up in Brighton and working in and around Rochester (including for Wegmans), I remember those "glory days" that seem now a thing of the past. It may not die away, but I doubt it will ever thrive as it once did. Thanks for the brief history. You might check out the ties to the Erie Canal project, women's suffrage movement and spiritualist enclaves, among other novel things it will always be remembered for. Check out the Frank Lloyd Wright house that he disowned since they sold off some of the land it was situated on.
Sad to hear. I have fond memories of my years at the University of Rochester, tanning on Durand Eastman Beach and riding the old wooden roller coaster at Seabreeze amusement park. I can't believe almost fifty years have passed.
Something that I love about Seabreeze is that the lines aren’t too long like the huge amusement parks, especially if you go in the evening. You can ride as many times are you want.
@@MsMockingbird06 I recently watched a video of Seabreeze. It's amazing how much it's grown since the 1970's. But I agree with you, one can spend half the day in lines at the mega-parks.
Can confirm, Jackrabbit is still here and fun to ride.
@@phantomspecter6223 I just checked Google to see if the Gyrosphere ride was still there. Sadly, it isn't. It was a Scrambler inside a big inflatable dome with laser lights inside that played “Fire on High” by ELO. Did you ever ride it?
Dont go after dark. Lol and watch for needles on the beach enjoy !!!
Lotta folks left NYS for job opportunity and were not afraid to leave family & friends … I left right out of college with a degree recognizing that a degree opens a lot of doors for job opportunity … the construction trades in the mid-seventies were dominated by Italians and if you weren’t of the same ethnic heritage you stood a snowball’s chance in hell finding a job that nepotism hadn’t already filled … major industry left for cheaper labor in the South or Mexico that wasn’t unionized … VW , Trico , Pillsbury , Bethlehem Steel , Ward Hydraulics , all left for cheaper labor and less corporate taxes … however , outfits like Wegmans and Genesee Beer have prospered by delving into new markets and the political landscape has changed to becoming more business friendly with lower corporate taxes … Lake Ontario has been evolving as a cleaned-up lake with some of the best fishing in the nation … if you focus on the positive and have the ambition , you can change a region for the better … Rochester , NY is one of the BEST places to retire in the country !!! … and , even young people are moving back to being employed in the burgeoning craft beer and restaurant scene where a lot of us old white-haired folk spend our time and money !!!😊
55+ and SNOW don't mix well!....best place to retire?
As soon as NAFTA was passed, Kodak, Xerox, Bausch & Lomb, etc. all went overseas. It's not even a shell of what it once was. None of Upstate NY is.
did he even mention Bausch and Lomb? my dad working there is why we lived there
Thank Bill Clinton for that
Lost my Kodak job because of NAFTA
I grew up in Penfield for my high school years. My Dad worked at Sibley's during the late 60s. I remember that bonus time at Kodak was a boon for retail. We moved in 1971. Glad we did by the sounds of it.
Remember the kids in my class in elementary school talked about bonus days like it was a second Christmas.
I first visited Rochester in May of 2014 for my cousins wedding, I am from Vegas. I always thought of Rochester as a small town in Western NY, so I was shocked to see how big the downtown area is, damn near the size of downtown LA, with the tall buildings and such. We spent 2 days exploring downtown and some parts of it reminded me of Detroit with how absolutely empty and eerie it was.
Rochester is the original home of the Sacramento Kings. They were originally the Rochester Royals, and were one of the best of the original NBA teams, even winning a Championship in the 50s. This is why the Sacramento Kings are credited with having an NBA title.
The Buffalo Braves another NBA team that bit the dust!
According to my Dad, Kodak's near obsolescence wasn't due to tech change so much as REFUSAL to change. They are starting a slow comeback, though not sure how. Rochester still does medical research too.
Ive noticed a lot of people moving here from New York City. The pandemic has brought in a lot of people who want a more relaxed environment.
I keep hearing "Rock-chester" and as someone from Rochester, it's "Rah-chester".
Great video with so much vivid details. The plight that is described in this city has actually happened to many cities especially in the south where I live. Many of our once booming factory towns are now ghost towns. Filled with crime and infested with drugs. This seems to be a common theme across many places in America.
Sad.
It’s very unfortunate that companies like Kodak, Xerox and such didn’t want to adapt to times changing. Kodak had digital tech in the 70s but made a fortune on film so they stayed that way. GM fell on its face due to over paid employees at the time. Now people get paid the same wages they did 20 years ago roughly.
No. GM fell on its face because of the company's shortsighted focus on profits over quality throughout the 70's and 80's. American drivers turned to imports. Fortunately, American business practices have improved significantly, and GM cars today compete well on quality. It's worth noting that America is also home to the world's most innovative car company Tesla.
Kodak gave away the business - did you know Kodak developed digital in the 60's!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@@payattention621 It was 1975 when Kodak created the first digital camera.
@@jamesslick4790 A tragic irony.
Steve Jobs hijacked Xerox graphic user interface.
No oversight of executives wasting tons of corporate money congratulating themselves with perks galore did a lot of these companies in.
Sad thing is they could've revamped stuff like Kodak going into digital and digital filming and maybe partnering with cellphone industries, xerox could've partnered with computer programs like PDF and maybe work with innovators developing 3D printers, American Railroad could've upgraded many railroads with speed trains and expand it throughout NY and beyond, and so on. Had the cananda ferry idea not fall, that could've been a good idea or if not in Rochester than buffalo. Even the hydropowering with the falls could've been revamped again at least for downtown with things going green. There were so many opportunities to evolve with the times while keeping the charm of Rochester but the ball was dropped somewhere in between
You have a vision of what might have been. I have to wonder why no one foresaw or followed up on these ideas that might have rescued Rochester. Then again, in the wake of suburbanization and outsourcing, perhaps reviving cities like Rochester wasn't considered worth the effort. The day of the center city is passed.
@@karenryder6317 I am still shocked that Sears, a company that used the 'new' Postal Service to propel itself into the 1900s, failed so miserably to compete with Amazon, a company that used the new Internet service to propel itself into the 2000s. IRONY.
Kodak developed digital in the 60's They had all the patents!
They didn't have the foresight of all that, old people in management usually don't. Sorry not sorry, Kodak lost their ass on bad decisions.
@@payattention621 1975
I spent a night in Rochester New York. I thought the city had a lot of cool buildings and the waterfall was awesome. But it definitely was a dying rust belt city.
My family was made by Kodak, my mom and dad were both packaging engineers for Kodak. My family was also destroyed by Kodak. Early 2000’s both mom and dad laid off, we went broke, fighting and blaming, followed by divorce…we lost our home, even worse, we lost our family…I was truly excited when Trump was in works with Kodak to manufacture pharmaceuticals, but some idiots ruined what I thought might be a revival for us…anyways…just one thing that I felt was missing from your video is that Kodak actually invented the digital camera. Yup. But they thought it was useless, so they sold the idea away. Imagine being that stupid. It’s like Blockbuster refusing to buy Netflix. I’m just rambling. But I was touched by your interest in something that has been the center of my life. Thank you.
So your parents inability to adapt and move on was someone else's fault and lead you to Trumpism.... sounds about right.
@@tjewett1967 😂 you’ve only proved what sort of person you are, and nothing about my family. Pay attention folks👆🏽These liberal elitists not only have no ability to understand the struggles of working class Americans, but they have no desire to show understanding. They don’t care about you or your families. This is exactly why Trump won 2016 and why he (or someone like him) will win again. Let the REEEs begin 😂
The Trump Effect. Lots of talk.
@@xcala3038 I have no idea what you’re trying to say. But I just noticed that Tracy deleted her comment. Maybe she realized how insensitive and evil it was.
@@AmishMan777 Trump promised manufacturing jobs. Never delivered.
I've lived in Rochester since the year 2000. I came here 'temporarily' from NYC to help a good friend of mine deal with an end-of-life illness so he wouldn't have to move back home with his mother. The situation was urgent- aggressive lymphoma with a bridging liver tumour. The Drs gave him 3 months at best. 3 months became 6 months and now he's gone on to have a significantly longer lifespan than predicted. He did not seek treatment for his cancer- he'd been in remission before and it came back. To this day no one can figure out why he lived. I didn't care why just glad he lived.
In the meantime, I'd already stayed here much longer than expected and was keen to go back to NYC, even though my friend decided he wanted to stay here. Just before I went back, 9/11 happened, so I decided to stay here a bit longer until I felt it was 'safe' to go back. I got a job, met a guy... and the rest is history. It's a nice place to live. Ppl are generally friendly, there's lots of nature hikes and trails nearby, so you have the advantage of living a city life but are also close to a whole lot of natural splendor.
It's a great place to live if you're in the medical field in any way. There are good schools like RIT, Eastman School of Music, St John Fischer University, and there's a even Journeyman Carpenter's union here that serves Western and Central NY. Wegmans supermarkets are the absolute best of anywhere I've ever lived!! There are some nice historical things to visit here too. We have a large Deaf community here and I find the city to be culturally diverse, though not so much in the suburbs. K-12 chools are good in the outlying districts but the actual RCSD is horrible. It's not NYC, but it's nice and a good place to raise kids.
Agree. It was clean when I went. Yes. They have poorer parts but the outskirts had nice homes that weren't too expensive. I liked it more than the Albany area for sure. Albany doesn't even have a Wegmans.
I've been in Rochester my whole life and I've learned a lot of new things about it in this video. Great video :)
Hi neighbor!
@@Parisroam Hello
Rochester tried to improve tourism in 2004 and aggressively promoted a cross Lake Ontario ferry between Rochester and Toronto (The "Spirit of Ontario"). The project was almost doomed from the start (from the ferry itself being damaged on its way to Rochester to Toronto "dragging their feet" on building a ferry dock. Ultimately the ferry and its operational costs became too prohibitive and the project was cancelled after only operating for a short time.
Cause some moron decided Canadians would want to come to Rochester. Really?
It's just awful how all our great industrial towns especially in the Northeast have just cease to exist
These companies off shore for cheaper labor and there goes the jobs. It's the same with steel mills. Cut cut and cut.
If you think Rochester is in horrible shape, take NY Route 31west to both Lockport and Niagara Falls. Both Lockport and Niagara Falls are deteriorating ghost towns that are barely getting by and there seems to be no end in sight to their decline. At least Rochester has universities, medical equipment companies, and even though it is much smaller it still has Eastman Kodak. Both Lockport and Niagara Falls have virtually nothing. They have lost almost all their industry and their city populations continue to decline.
I grew up in Rochester and am one of those people who left the city, reducing its population by one. One important industry the video failed to mention is the Rochester Telephone Corporation, which later became Frontier. It was one of the the largest independent telephone company in the country, not part of the Bell/AT&T system.
..Bausch and Lomb across from Genny Plant ,St.Pual BBlvd. no mention that Kodak sold us out for EPA Regs. Eastman Fine Chemicals now.. they moved the aqueduct awhile ago, and renamed the War Memorial, airport is now International ( I worked on the hangers to the West and inside main areas). we left 28 yrs. ago.
No one, especially the politicians in Rochester, ever wish to discuss the high crime. This is what happens when you elect bad governments.
Vote Red Tuesday
This is what happens when you have a two party system so all any politician has to say is “at least I’m better than that one over there”
Seriously when I lived there I could never figure out what anyone’s stance was on actual issues, or if any of them even had one. They all just spent all their time and money trying to prove the other guy was a criminal. 🤷🏼♀️
@@kennethjackson3727 Certainly not. Moronic.
@@DianeScotts Blue has destroyed it far to long turned it what it is today big slum hole with high crime.
same problem in CA as well. We live in suburbs and ignore those.
My entire family used to work at Kodak. Grandpa in 1950s-80s, aunt, uncles, parent even met there.
Then around 2000 when digital cameras came along it was terrible and everyone got laid off. My dad had to find new employment at another company.
The demise of Eastman Kodak primarily. The downsizing of companies like Xerox and Bausch & Lomb.
That’s what happened to Rochester.
That's where I was born and lived until around the age of 9. Much of our family worked for either Kodak or Xerox at the time.
I grew up there, left in 1986. Still have family and friends there, so I go back from time to time. I worked at the B Forman Co. store in Midtown Plaza when I was a a teenager. Downtown was cool then, but it's amazing how fast it deteriorated. By the time I left, it just felt like a dead end...
My sweet home! Raised in the days it was thriving! I loved growing up in Rochester New York , Greece New York! People worked hard and raised families! They went to church on Sundays! My childhood was free I could ride my bike all over the place! We played in woods and streams! Once Kodak tanked so did Rochester:( It was the best place to grow up it was and always will be in my heart home! Wegmans till death! lol I miss so much but so cold:(
Great place with lots of fun things to do with family and friends! Lovely suburbs and like any city-areas you should avoid. Tons to do if you like the arts, sciences, museums, history. Lots of growth here in medicine and technology! Come visit us for a hockey or baseball game, amazing summer festivals, and fantastic food! And not to mention-friendly people.
Mr. Forgotten Places,
I have always loved your page. I find your videos very informative and comforting. I am from Rochester and have lived there all my life. Many people don’t realize the importance of our city and often overlook all it has to offer. This video really hit home. No pun intended. Thank you for making this.
What is so important about Rochester? What does it actually have to offer?
i grew up there but would like to know how you would elaborate on what it has to offer...its been so long i couldn't articulate it.
@@Anthroid9 everyone has a different perspective from living in the Rochester area and I am aware of that. For me personally I love history and if you really research the city and the notable people from here it’s super interesting. Also the food, mid sized city so it’s not over crowded, 4 seasons, near the finger lakes
I just moved to Rochester a few years ago, and it’s amazing to see how much the city has changed for the better in a few years. It’s easy to write off cities as in decline, but there are a lot of young people and fun things to do in the city that are only increasing as the pandemic declines. The suburbanites here will complain all day about the city, but there are plenty of ways that it is improving.
But you just moved there. 🤣
@@SunDevil31 I've been here 52 years and I say buckle up if you want to stay here. You have got to be delusional not to see the problem with democrat run cities like Rochester over the past half century.
@@prodesign8189 I grew up there til 18. Cannot believe how bad it is. Used to be a great town.
@@SunDevil31 Sounds like you made a good decision for you then. I've just had a different experience than you.
@@nater218 I mean not really. Rochester was great when I left and I loved growing up there and I didnt flee, I went to college. It has become a shit hole since I left, just like every other Dem run city. But hey Im glad ya love it.
I must say the upstate region of NY as a whole has been getting revived and revitalized as well as alot of huge investment with Syracuse in particular just recently getting a $100 billion investment from Micron, so these cities and this region of the state is coming back and will be the future of not only the state of NY not downstate but a major part of the country as a whole, I predict this region getting a big population increase in the near future Buffalo just recently reported an increase in their population for the first time in 70 years and Buffalo is kind of the epicenter of this "upstate rebirth" so definitely a good indicator for the future.
Great video, my entire family worked for Kodak, my wife's family worked for Xerox. Now that I am in semi retirement, it is sad to see how political corruption, crime, and decay have claimed so much of the joy Rochester brought to tens of thousands of families over the decades. Still a great area, downtown is a no fly zone for myself.
Way too cold too much snow can understand why anybody would live there
Well, Kodak and Xerox ruined themselves by completely ignoring technological progress.
As someone who grew up in Rochester the first 30 years of my life in the late 50s, 1960s and all through the 70s, this makes me sad. Of course I'm aware that Rochester is changed but I left in the 1980s for South Florida and I've lived here ever since. I still have family that I love in Rochester though as well as several great friends, one of whom I just got off the phone with. Now here's the part where people will tell me I'm crazy, we are very strongly considering selling our home here and moving back to Rochester after 35 years away. We are both pushing 70, have no kids, and your priorities change. We've lived within a mile or two of the ocean and what is now our fifth great house here, but again your priorities change and I am ready for a change and to be close to family and old friends. So that will probably happen this spring. We can't really afford to keep two households so being snowbirds is out of the question. I hate winter, and I know I will have to deal with that. But I so miss the Rochester of old. I worked at all the restaurants in downtown Rochester in the 1970s and early 1980s and back then Rochester was like our NYC. Young people today in Rochester would be shocked to see what Rochester used to be like. I miss it very much and it's gone I realize. Anyway, great job on this video I'm sending it to several Rochester friends now.
I've met a lot of people in my entire 24 years of life here, and there's lots that have moved away and eventually came back. They all seem to say the same thing about how it feels like home, and I've even tried to move across country before and I couldn't bring myself to do it. It's strange, a place like this seems to beckon its masses back
Rochester is NOTHING like it used to be. Most of the great restaurants are all gone. And the ones that are still there, you take your life in your hands when you go to them. I've lived here my whole life and it breaks my heart what has happened. Rochester has the highest poverty rate in the state and one of the highest in the nation. Rochester has the highest property taxes in the nation. Rochester currently has more murders than Chicago. And our great hospitals are suffering needlessly due to mandates and an extreme shortage of Healthcare workers. My advice to you, think harder about coming back and if Kathy Hochul wins the election, DON'T.
@@bigpetemontesano7261 yeah, and as I said earlier, your priorities change as you get older, and being around my family and old friends in the last 1/4 of my life is more important than palm trees and the ocean, and I've had 35 great years of that.
@@lindastone4927 yeah I know it's sad and I'm not expecting to find what I used to. But as I explained to the gentleman a moment ago, when you get older your priorities change. I would rather be around my family and old friends up in Rochester in the last quarter of my life then be around palm trees and the ocean, though I loved that. I'm sure I will go through major adjustments! All my relatives live in pittsford area so that's pretty nice and safe, and my oldest best friend who's like my brother lives way out in chili, so everybody lives in nice areas.
@@cookingartguy2170 I do hear you. If not for family, I would be gone. Just be ready for the sticker shock.
I passed through Syracuse, Rochester, and Albany this fall. Stayed in Albany and Syracuse. Holy crap they are trashed worse than Cleveland. Sad.
Albany always seemed nice while passing thru
@@LemThurdy420 Albany is fine right in the downtown core, but drive 2 miles out in any direction and it's a hellhole.
Too many low income urbanites.
NY has got to stop being a welfare state. Far too many people who could work and make an honest living paying taxes and contributing are just hanging out on corners,.grown able bodied men waiting for their monthly check, committing crimes, having babies all over the place and WE pay for their lifestyle with OUR hard earned tax dollars. It's been going on for GENERATIONS and it's high time that they get incentivized to get their act together. But it might be 50 years too late.
Things change - Amazon has constructed and opened a new "distribution center" in the Syracuse area, and within the past few weeks Micron Technologies has announced plans to invest $100 Billion (that's with a B) in four massive semiconductor plants in the Syracuse area over the next several years.
Drugs are a staple of Rochester's ever evolving economy with past mayor Lovely Warren's husband taking part in this sector.
omg
I live right next to Rochester in a well off town (if you know, you know) and I wouldn't have thought of it as a "forgotten place" however I will tell you that it freaks me out to go into the city. I usually won't go without my husband and yesterday I saw a homeless man walking thru traffic with a sign saying something like "will dance for food" (didn't get a good look) and by God if that old man wasn't tryin his best to hit the whoa. It was adorable and kinda sad at the same time
Let me guess, Pittsford
@@argrin1875 Pittsford eh
Must be nice to have money babe I'm black in the hood we gotta do what we gotta do babe
The biggest irony in business history: Kodak literally INVENTED digital photography!
Your right...I remember the facility on east Ridge rd. where it was developed, but their management didn't see a future in it.
The executives called it a "fad" and nuked the whole company.... completely gutted the city's economy.
Still a great place to live. I moved away in the 90's and decided to move back to the area in 2021.
Where did you move to, and what has been your impression since your return?
@@clifford7594 1st moved to Southeastern PA, then Charleston, SC. We moved back during Coved (so a lot of places were closed). But now that we are getting out of it, it seems to be more alive. Cost of homes are decent (compared to other places). Public ed (at least in the burbs) is better than the South, as well.
@@bobbyl.2484 Thanks, I appreciate your reply.
@@bobbyl.2484 i moved away in 94 and literally have never been back (zero ties left there) but i always wanted to take a trip to see what its like now.
@@AlbertManiscalco i have always had ties here (so a little different for me). You should come back to visit (just not in January/Feb):)
Very informative video. I was born and raised near Strong and now reside in Henrietta. There has definitely been several ups and downs. Lets not forget Mt. Hope Cemetary....I know people from over seas who come here for that alone!
My dad worked at kodak for years. I still live in rochester. I left and came back. People can hate it, but this is my home and in some parts it's beautiful!!!!
Grew up in Rochester - only been away for ten years. There's still no grocery that beats Wegman's. And there still are white hots, best Italian bakeries and that can't be bought anywhere else.
i agree Wegmans is the best but there are none here in the Capital District!
So the city while doing a road trip from Toronto to NYC. It was pretty decent. Kind of sad to see how bustling it was until cars took over the city
It is such a beautiful place! I hope it picks up again!
I love that gorgeous waterfall in the middle of the city.
Just looking at Rochester in this clip, it looks the city has so much potential. Places like Phoenix, Dallas, and other Sunbelt cities are booming. I've been to many of them, and all they are is a very huge suburb. Strip malls, suburban housing developments too close to the urban core.
Keep in mind that most sunbelt cities are much younger that Rochester and other northern cities. They also developed mostly after the Second World War when older northern cities like Rochester, Baltimore, etc were all at their peak and completely built out.
Moved out of the city in 2010. Rochester is riddled with crime, drugs and poverty. The political elite killed the city. It’s not even safe going to Seabreeze or the festival’s anymore. The ghetto is growing at an exponential rate and now affects the suburbs. Nothing will change here unless they revamp the whole system from the top down! RIP Rochester.😢
@schmac intyre:
The political elite did not destroy Rochester. The incompetent elite imbeciles who ran Kodak, Xerox, Bausch & Lomb and Harris destroyed Roc! They had more than enough greed, short-sightedness and resistance to change to utterly rip the heart out of the region, allowing the massive hemorrhaging that wrecked lives so deeply. A profound disaster.
true, inner suburbs like Gates, Greece, Irondequoit etc.are high crime areas
Im kinda surprised you missed gleason works they are the reason there are so many cars with there gear and pinion in the drive shafts of every car
did they even mention bausch and lomb?
@@AlbertManiscalco i didnt see it
I’ve never heard the city pronounced Rock-Chester. We’ve always said Rah-Chester
only people that have lived here a while pronounce it 'Rah-Chester'. How about 'Chili', try to explain that pronunciation to people that don't live in the area.
@@danielb4560 Or Charlotte!
Or Bergen!
As someone who goes to RIT i feel the city is on an up I love this place though I wish the oppurtunities for me after school would be better
I got to RIT too lol
My grandmother was one of the people laid off from Xerox. My grandfather use to work for American Railroad (HQ in rochester) before retiring. Big places
My grandfather retired from Kodak.
What happened? Same thing that happened in most other big heartland cities: factories closed, the middle class moved out, crime rose, more of the middle class moved out. Next question?
would love to get my hands on the photo at 1:51 . have been working in roc on the main street bridge for two years now. When we were digging we started coming across old brick foundations on the bridge, which lead me to do a little research and find out about the buildings that used to be on it. Really neat stuff!
From someone who lives there we are still here
I’ve lived in Rochester my whole 60+ years. Retired from the brewery after 41 years. The city is crime and gang infested. There are few restaurants, cafes or bars along many of the waterways, like Ontario, the Erie Canal, or the finger lakes. Nothing good in the city.
The city is great in parts. You’re mistaken. South wedge, highland area, college town, park ave area, east ave, corn hill, north winton. All of these parts (I’m probably missing a few) are live with culture, restaurants, and night life. It’s to bad you feel that way.
@@johnnorthrup1608 I said few restaurants along the waterways. You didn’t name anything to do in those areas.
My late father grew-up in Rochester and he told me once that he went to high school with George Eastman, which I thought was pretty cool!
I'm kind of a rarity up here--I moved up in 2020 from a much bigger city down south. It's not a half-bad place to live super cheap, and some pretty cute, lively areas are popping up, like in South Wedge. Plus it has Vertex, one of the last dedicated goth clubs in the country. For a city that all but died with Kodak, I think it's got a lot of potential.
Sooo much things to do here many new bars and arcades and food places brand new parks a lot of events its very cool! Love my city!
There is nothing to do in rochester fym😂 only thing to do is get drunk or shot
great video! one small thing as a native, i see it was already mentioned above but just in case you didn’t see, we pronounce the city “ra-chester”, although we shorten it to “Roc” sometimes, which is pronounced “rock”
Rhachester - and after a difficult couple of decades it’s slowly coming back, to the point that it was listed as one of the best places to live in upstate NY.
Yeah, if you can live with the crime, drugs and trash people
I live near there in one of it's suburbs. They have a major crime problem there with shootings just about every day.
😲😲
I was born and raised in Rochester, NY! That is where my heart is. ❤️
What's crazy is that Rochester still has the 2nd highest economy in new york state so its not that bad alot of those companies just downsized, however kodak did drop the ball on the digital cam!!
I have had a theory (no research) for years. I've lived in Rochester my whole life. I love it here. However, here is the one mistake they made that cost us a great city; If I'm correct Rochester, Toronto and Chicago were all "settled" at the same time. Rochester was the only one that didn't plant itself on the shores of the great lakes. The rest speaks for itself. We truly missed the boat on this one. Look at the other cities and how huge they are. We were stunted by using the river and canal which we outgrew it's use. The shore stunk from so long from all the waste upriver. Anyway, that's my .02.
Interesting observation.... but what advantage would there have been if the city was built on the lake? The shipping lanes all run through the north part of Lake Ontario and skip Rochester. If the falls had been closer to the lake then perhaps it would have made sense. But otherwise I think building on the canal, perhaps in Pittsford, would have been the next best choice.
Live in the suburbs here. Wife is a nurse at strong, great place to raise a family. Most of the comments here amplify the danger within the city. There are tons of restaurants, bars, festivals all sorts of things that are welcoming and safe. We go downtown to eat out a couple time a month with no issue. The one thing is the black people in the city kill each other off left and right. My poor wife is a pediatric nurse and every single night she is there there’s a new black pre-teen there with either a stab wound or his jaw hanging off from getting jumped. With no parents that care or will come visit. Very sad cycle to see
Sad to say that it's the same way no matter where they live.