Rochester Leaders, South Street Business Owners Share Vision for 'Recreation Corridor'

Before Linda Gallaher opened six years ago, the area was zoned for light industry.

In fact, to many Rochester residents, the street — tucked underneath Rochester Road and hidden from downtown by a thick row of trees — was unexplored territory.

"People who have lived in Rochester for years don’t know this area exists," said Gallaher, who runs the park and downtown's South Street Skate Shop with her husband, Von.

"Since we have moved in, people who would have never known where South Street is know now, through us."

They are also getting to know about the street through other businesses, all related to recreation, that have popped up since the skate park's opening.

There's the nearby , which trains children from throughout the region. There's the for the ocean-bound and the for dogs who need a day out.

Next up: the much-anticipated , which is looking to build a state-of-the-art academy on what is now an empty meadow on the gravel part of the street.

The success of the skate park, in many ways, epitomizes what city leaders have as a vision for the street: to turn it into a recreation corridor.

It starts with a sidewalk

To a visitor, it's not immediately evident that within the buildings that line the two-lane industrial road are playful dogs and dancing or skating children.

The street runs parallel to the Clinton River Trail at the spot where the Paint Creek Trail ends. Right now, there's no easy way to get there from downtown; just west of Rochester Road, it curves into Diversion Street, which leads up to Main.

Building a connector bridge from South Street to Letica or Elizabeth streets is a vision, said Rochester City Manager Jaymes Vettraino. Though it's not part of the city's master plan, he said it would help connect the area, which he likes to call a "quality-of-life corridor," to the rest of the city.

Right now, the city is focused on a proposed special assessment district that would pave the road (half of it is gravel) and install sidewalks and possibly street lights. A public hearing for these changes would allow business owners and residents to voice their thoughts; that hearing will likely happen this summer or early in the fall.

The cost of the 5-foot-wide sidewalk and other additions would be shared by the property owners along the road, which would include the owners of the proposed Goldfish facility and also the city of Rochester, which owns all of the property on the north side of the road, across from where Goldfish wants to be.

Because more companies focused on these recreation services are moving into industrial zones, Vettraino said these updates are important.

'Recreation corridor'

has been on South Street for a year, and Ron Omilian, co-owner of the facility, is aware of the area’s unofficial designation.

Omilian said he hopes to expand his facility's outdoor play area to include a dog pool and waterfall feature; he is working on seeking approval for his expansion with city planners.

Vettraino said South Street offers a chance for expansions or new development for these types of recreation services.

A sidewalk would encourage walking between classes at the dance studio, swim school and skate park, for example.

The proposed changes are good news to Gallaher, as customers of the skate park she owns often ride bikes or even skateboard to the facility. It's dangerous, she said, given the number of trucks and speeding cars that fly down the street.

"As an adult to see kids in the street — it is scary," Gallaher said. "There are big trucks that use South Street, and they go really fast."

Rochester Patch editor Kristin Bull contributed to this report.