Rochester Gets First Look at Midtown Draft

By Rachel Ward

Rochester, NY – There's now a clearer picture of what will replace Midtown Mall in downtown Rochester. The draft environmental assessment released Monday shows the demolition of the mall will produce seven parcels of land that can be used for various types of development, or left as green space.

Tom Richards, corporation counsel for Rochester, says the plan for redeveloping Midtown has purposefully been left flexible, to account for a variety of contingencies.

"There's some limits in terms of the kinds of development that can realistically take place here in the next five or ten years. And we've put them into this plan. That's why you see flexibility, that's why you don't see a picture of a building in each of those [parcels], because we are going to have to respond to the market."

Richards says that the planning for Midtown's redevelopment has taken place alongside studies of future housing and office space needs, to ensure that the plan isn't unrealistically ambitious. He also says it's being designed to go ahead, even if the other big downtown project, Renaissance Square, doesn't get off the ground.

The parcels that will be created out of the current Midtown block will include PAETEC's new headquarters, green space, new roads and pedestrian walkways and space for housing and retail development.

There's been public concern that the building of the new PAETEC headquarters, which kick started the project, would be delayed by a recent drop in the company's stock price. But Rochester Mayor Robert Duffy tried to put a rest to those concerns today.

"I have absolute confidence. I've never had my confidence waiver, and the one thing about [PAETEC CEO] Arunas Chesonis, we both come from the same school, the same background: a handshake is better than a written contract. There is no doubt in my mind where PAETEC stands. Arunas has repeatedly reinforced his sense of confidence in this project, his support of it."

There's a memorandum of understanding in place between Rochester, New York State, and PAETEC about the project. Richards says a development agreement is set to be in place early next year, to cement the roles of all of the players.

The draft environmental statement lays the groundwork for the rest of the project. Next the city will issue requests for proposals for development at the site, for projects that fit within the scope that the city has outlined. Duffy says the remediation being paid for by the state will make the site attractive to developers because most of the background work necessary to have projects approved will have already been done in advance.

Public comment on the draft is invited until December 19, and there's a public hearing set for December 2 at City Hall.

Visit the Midtown Rochester Rising website to see a copy of the Draft Generic Environmental Impact Statement.