City of Rochester celebrates Brooks Landing progress with addition of hotel

I recently joined city council member Dana Miller, local elected officials, University of Rochester president Joel Seligman and community representatives to celebrate the addition of the new Staybridge Suites Hotel, the city's Riverfront Improvement Project, the Brooks Village Streetscape Project and the Boulder at Brooks Landing coffee shop to the city's southwest neighborhood. The event signifies a revitalization that is 25 years in the making. This is a story about a community of people caring so deeply for their neighborhood that they persevered for 25 years to make it better and achieve their dream. We are celebrating their success. The display of commitment and dedication to the southwest demonstrated by all of the project partners is inspiring and it instills pride throughout our city. We all benefit from their efforts. The Brooks Landing project began in 1983 when the city formed a committee to look at the South Genesee River Corridor. Neighbors in 19th Ward and PLEX worked with the city and the University of Rochester to define the project. The pedestrian bridge that spans the Genesee River was completed in 1991. The city issued an RFP to continue the project in 1993 and two developers took a look at the project but ultimately walked away. Unwilling to give up on the vision of a revitalized neighborhood, Umar Mustafaa formed the Sector 4 Community Development Corp. in 1996 specifically to make sure that the project was completed. Chaired by Miller, board members have kept the project alive for the past 12 years. They recruited Christenson Corp. for development, conducted a charrette to develop the design, worked through the parkland alienation process, facilitated the storefront renovations and developed the coffee shop at 955 Genesee St. $6 million in public investment leveraged $42 million private investment including Riverview Apartments, Dalberth Sporting Goods and Brooks Landing apartments. "Brooks Landing stands today as evidence that people can make a difference in their community, investment in our urban areas can be both beneficial and profitable, high quality goods and services should be available in every part of our city and that strong partnerships can improve quality of life," said Miller. Robert Duffy is the mayor of the city of Rochester, N.Y.