Rochester Festival Area Study

The Festival Area Feasibility Study encompasses a critical site location at the juncture of where downtown Rochester meets the Riverfront and is at the center of some of Rochester’s major civic institutions. The key outcome of this study is that it revealed the need to further the larger vision for a riverfront that better provides a holistic ‘roadmap’ to guide future investments in the public realm both through design and other activation initiatives, as well as to ensure that new private development supports and honor’s the river as a public place. The best riverfronts are developed as public destinations and are recognized as strong economic attractions that support local businesses, and a community’s overall livability. Riverfront communities that have succeeded in bringing new life and attention to their Riverfront have done so by creating highly accessible, multi-use destinations that include green spaces, places to interact with the water, and informal and formal programing/activity spaces while addressing key issues such as safety and natural surveillance.