From the zoo to your electric bill: Rochester this week

From the blog · Adam Stetzer

Monroe County broke ground on the largest single expansion in the zoo's 130-year history, MCC's optics program landed another major federal grant, and West Main Street is delivering its first concrete results from a $10 million revitalization push. Against that: the Xerox dividend suspension, a downtown missing $50 million in convention business, and Monroe County's updated lead-exposure data — progress that's real and limits built into the housing stock itself. Seven pieces of Rochester, all at once.

Xerox Rochester: What the Dividend Suspension Means for Local Workers

Rochester's roughly 1,225 Xerox employees saw no layoff announcements with the Q3 results — the dividend suspension is a shareholder move, not a plant-closure signal.

Monroe County Children's Lead Levels Fell 27% in 2025 — Progress Worth Understanding

Monroe County reported 217 children with elevated blood lead levels in 2025, down 27% from 299 in 2024 — 82 fewer children facing lead's documented effects on brain development.

Seneca Park Zoo Breaks Ground on a $135 Million Tropics Complex — The Biggest Transformation in Rochester Zoo History

The Seneca Park Zoo Tropics Complex broke ground October 27, 2026 — the largest single expansion in the zoo's 130-year history, backed by $135 million from Monroe County, New York State, and private donors.

Rochester's Case for Public Power Gets New Momentum from Albany

29% of Rochester households spend more than 6% of income on energy — the country's fourth-highest energy burden — and that figure predates the most recent rate increases.

West Main Street Rochester Revitalization Awards 22 Grants as Busy Bee Celebrates Its Return

Busy Bee Restaurant at 124 W. Main Street has been in downtown Rochester since the 1930s — its grand reopening this week is the first public result of the $10 million West Main Gateway program.

Rochester's Downtown Hotel Shortage Has Cost the City $50 Million

Rochester lost close to 700 downtown hotel rooms since 2020 — the Riverside has been vacant since early 2020, and the Wyndham was ordered shut in June for 23 unresolved code violations.

MCC Lands $5.4M Federal Grant to Grow Rochester's Optics Workforce

The $5.4 million DoD MEEP grant — MCC's third from that program — funds hands-on lab time and registered apprenticeships for students entering Rochester's optics and photonics workforce.

Upcoming Events

Tue, Nov 3 · 7:30 PM

Free Jazz at Kodak Hall — Eastman's Jazz Lab Band, November 3

Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre, 60 Gibbs Street, Rochester, NY

Tue, Nov 3

Hell's Kitchen Comes to Rochester — Broadway at the Auditorium, November 3–8

West Herr Auditorium Theatre, 885 E Main St, Rochester, NY

Thu, Nov 5 · 7:30 PM (matinee 2:30 PM on Nov. 8)

Eastman Opera: Bernstein's Candide — Bold and Punk-Inflected at Kilbourn Hall, Nov. 5–8

Kilbourn Hall, Eastman School of Music, 26 Gibbs Street, Rochester, NY

Fri, Nov 6 · 7:00 PM

Walk & Talk with the Curator at Rochester Contemporary (First Friday)

Main Gallery, Rochester Contemporary Art Center (RoCo), 137 East Ave,

Fri, Nov 6 · 5:30 PM

Healthy Baby Network Celebrates 30 Years With a Gala at the Hyatt — November 6

Hyatt Downtown Rochester, Rochester, NY

Fri, Nov 6 · 7:30 PM

Raiders of the Lost Ark Live in Concert — RPO Plays John Williams at Kodak Hall, November 6 and 7

Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre, 60 Gibbs Street, Rochester, NY

See all events →

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