Excellent Quality of Life
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10/14/2009
Rochester NY has an Excellent Quality of Life, particularly in it's southeast suburbs & the southeast part of the city where you'll find outstanding cultural institutions: The Strong National Museum of Play is a Smithsonian affiliate & an outstanding childrens museum with ever-evolving exhibits that greatly appeal to all ages. It also contains The National Toy Hall of Fame. It's one of the most heavily endowed museums thanks to the native Rochesterian benefactress founder, Margaret Woodbury Strong & her family fortune.
Rochester has been endowed with many cultural gems bestowed by the fortunes of her wealthiest families: The Eastmans,Gleasons,Strasenburghs,Strongs,Wegmans,Wilmots,Wilsons,Woodburys,Glazers,Natapows,Sands & so many more -who founded Western Union,Eastman Kodak,Xerox,Bausch & Lomb-stillheadquartered here!, Gleasons Inc.,& countless more. Several millionaires & a few billionaires reside here,including one who owns England's most treasured Soccer team.
There are more golf course than you can count & great facilities for horseback riding. there's an annual Horse & Buggy competitition that draws people from all over the country. The same can be said for thr annual Jazz Festival & the LPGA & the PGA at Oak Hill Country club when it comes. There are Regattas on our beautiful Genesee River near the University of Rochester, Rowings is popular. River trails are extensive, beautiful & heavily used by walkers,joggers & cyclists. There is even an annual Genesee Valley Hunt in Geneseo led by the Wadsworths.
Rochester also,thanks to it's old founding families,has many very well endowed charitable foundations & trusts, with a HUGE half-billion one just coming online in the next two years- that with the benefactor's expressed wishes be used only to benefit the greater good for the Rochester community.The Memorial Art Gallery(mag.rochester.edu)has grown since founded in 1913, with 11,000 quality works of Art in a collection that literally spans centuries. It includes paintings by Monet & Rembrandt,& ancient civilization original pieces. It is one of the few art galleries in the U.S. with the highest certification. The Rochester museum & Science Center has many historical & scientific exhibits & the wonderful Strasenburgh Planetarium. The famned Eastman Music School is expanding & The Eastman Theatre has just undergone a multi-million refurbishment, with outstanding accoustics, new lounges & expanded lobby -all in a spectacularly original 1920's elegant style.
The University of Rochester & Rochester Institute of Technology are greatly expanding with new reserch institutes, new collegetowns (U of R will have TWO!) & both have received national recognition for greatly adding economic growth through High Tech new Spin-off businesses & educational/cultural enrichment to the Rochester NY Metro community. Wegamnas -the famed grocer is headquartered here-& their stores are the best here=particularly in affluent Pittsford. The Cheesecake Factory,P.F.Changs,Sephora J.Crew, have opened & now they are building a beautiful LL Bean & Anthropologie. I love this place. the people are friendly & REAL. Nobody asks you what labels you wear or what you pay for things! I've lived in Northern Virginia,Maryland,Charlotte,Short Hills,Miami,Henderson & San Francisco. I never lived anywhere that was as friendly as Rochester. People here don't put on airs. If they have money,it's just a fact, not a point to put others down.The winters can be cold-but I love it because I love winter sports. I hate heat & the dirty-hot air that comes with it. I hate heavy traffic-&there's thankfully little of that! Loads of great independent restaurants & boutiques & many of the best quality-run chains in America! I use to live in Charlotte & Henderson, where all they had was chains & strip plazas. It was depressing as hell! Rochester is a real beautiful Americana place -with four beautiful seasons, & great potential for high tech growth & incredible medical research & that's why I'm so very glad to live here & continue to do so!
Andre | Pittsford, NY