Why do you like living in Rochester?

“It’s the potential Rochester has shown for me, no doubt about it. I have lived in the Park Avenue neighborhood for the past 13 years and watching Rochester blossom has been fantastic. To me it’s not about quick and flashy changes, but the hard fought and sustainable ones. Seeing all of the newfound energy in the Public Market at night is a great example. It took Cure to create the start, and the results are now becoming palpable. The newest introduction of Fiorella has been great. Diners now have a late night choice and I see it growing extensively in the coming years. This kind of potential is so exciting.

“Joe Bean Coffee is another wonderful story of potential. Joe Bean moved into a lackluster building in a fairly industrial area on University Avenue and since we have been gifted not only third wave coffee but The Revelry, a renewed Pomodoro, Saha, Mullers [Cider House] and a soon to be expanded Joe Bean. I am sure that it is nowhere near the end of the development either.

“McCann’s Local Meats, along with The Cub Room, is a perfect example as well. Not only did McCann’s create a new destination for lunch, but gave people living in Swillburg and the South Wedge a world class butcher in their backyard, helping blend the lines between the two neighborhoods.

“The most exciting to me however is the potential of the Inner Loop. Closing this gap has the ability to connect neighborhoods to neighborhoods, patrons to museums, and new customers to new businesses. I have watched the development firsthand and I can’t wait to see what is in store. Rochester is an amazing city, community and place to live and the potential we have moving ahead is the most exciting part of all.”

—David Lane DeMarte, Park Avenue neighborhood
David Lane Design (located in The Hungerford)

Photo: Cozy and comf at Joe Bean Roasters in Rochester, uploaded to Flickr by Alyx Dellamonica; used via Creative Commons (CC BY-NC 2.0).