Conkey/Clifford

Reinvestment
District

Proposal

Version 6a, 7/23

Conkey/Clifford Reinvestment District Proposal—Contents:

I. Overview Page 1
II. Study Area Characteristics Page 3
III. Mission Statement Page 3
IV. Rationale Page 3
V. Goals Page 4
VI. Evidence of Investment Page 5
VII. Partnership Page 5
VIII. Models and Precedents Page 6
IX. Program Page 8
X. Future Page 10
Figures Page 10
Appendices After Page 12

I. Overview

Executive Summary
To be written last!

Origins of the initiative

This project began at the grassroots, with an interest by veteran house rehabbers and
lovers of local heritage in preserving the housing stock in the midst of a neighborhood
which had clearly seen difficult times, but seemed to have the potential to revitalize. The
history of Rochester shows clearly that those with similar interests and skills have been
responsible for sparking neighborhood revitalization in places such as Corn Hill and the
Atlantic/University Neighborhood. After several months of exploratory discussions and
study with the assistance of the Rochester Regional Community Design Center (hereafter
RRCDC), efforts to develop a proposal began in earnest as a result of RRCDC’s Design
Matters IV Conference in March, 2007, with its theme, “Emergence of Forgotten
Neighborhoods.”

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Figure 1—Reinvestment district study area

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II. Study Area Characteristics
1) History
o Irish farms, German settlement, Italian, immigrant district: diversity,
working-class neighborhoods, labor supply for local industry (St. Paul,
downtown)
o The basis of a novel (“Mount Allegro”) by Jerry Mangione about the
experience of growing up in an Italian-American neighborhood.
o Jim to compile section

2) Assets (need assets from list being prepared by Children’s Zone)

o Inside district boundaries
 Housing stock
• Built to last
• Affordable
• Spacious rooms
• Deep lots
• Historic architecture
 Diversity: ethnic/age/economic
o Outside district boundaries—list of neighborhood assets is being
developed for the Rochester Children’s Zone; preliminarily:
 Proximity to arts and entertainment venues
 Proximity to transit
 Proximity to river and trails

3) Demographics (Design Center—census data)

4) Housing market characteristics (which data to use?)
5) Current conditions (from survey)
6) Western Edge of Rochester Children’s Zone

III. Mission Statement—Ideas from 6/25 meeting

(how does a mission statement fit in with the rest of the document?)
• Connections with trails, river
• Connections with the past
• Arresting the decline

IV. Rationale

In addition to revitalization, a key rationale is the preservation of the existing housing

stock of the district. Preservation of these buildings helps keep the fabric of the

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community intact, helping avoid the fate of the Mount Allegro neighborhood, where
nothing remains south of Upper Falls Boulevard of a formerly vibrant Rochester
community, other than the St. Bridget’s church campus and the writings of Jerre
Mangione. Also, this district is worthy of preservation in part because it bridges two state
and national register-eligible historic districts: Huntington Park, and St. Micheal’s (see
Appendix ?). And with the rise of energy costs, construction materials, and recognition
of global warming has been a renewed recognition of the wisdom of preserving and
rehabbing existing buildings, as in this recent Op-Ed piece published in the Democrat and
Chronicle. This district, and project, are an ideal opportunity for Rochester to look to
renewing a focus on preservation and rehab of existing buildings, as opposed to
demolition.

This location is ideal of this type of demonstration project. It is centrally located amid,
and ties together, several significant neighborhood assets. Although in recent decades it
has seen significant disinvestment and decline, it is very close to areas which have seen
significant reinvestment and renwal. And within the boundaries of this relatively self-
contained district are a variety of architectural styles, housing types, and sizes
representative of northeast Rochester.

Although demolition of abandoned houses can provide a short-term fix for the problems
those houses can create in neighborhoods, such as promoting crime, disinvestment,
blight, and even community health (as pointed out by Dr. Thomas Farley in his March 20,
2007 lecture for the Design Matters IV conference), the vacant lots left by demolition
contribute to these same problems, as they lead to an appearance of disinvestment and
issues of maintenance and community ownership. That is why this project focuses
initially on halting the demolitions, which avoids creation of new vacant lots, and
regreening of existing vacant lots, it also aims for an appropriate infill program to
redensify.

V. Goals—Framework:
• Stabilize
o Greening
o Marketing
o Appearance
o public safety

• Revitalize
o Rehab structures
o Promote “sweat-equity” investment
o Rebuild “neighborly social connections”
o Connect with external assets
• Redensify
o Re-establish homeowner investment
o Construction of infill housing in neighborhood-appropriate way

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VI. Evidence of recent, current, and future investment
We need to get an exhaustive list (including dollar amounts) of:
• Recent investment:
o Ibero, Group 14621, St. Michael’s, Habitat, RHA, Huntington Park (75,
79?), Home Rochester, and individuals (like me) have all invested in
housing
o RG&E incorporated a pedestrian bridge in the project at Middle Falls
• Current investment:
o ISLA project (St. Michael’s II)
o Home rehabs underway
• Planned investment:
o Ibero housing
o Rail-Trail

14621 has this information. Note that these projects will be mostly outside the target
area, since the target area has been the victim of disinvestment.

VII. CCRD Partnership—possible partners (as this proposal is

refined, we should outline by type of partner, and indicate
something about the potential contribution/role of each):
• Architects, landscape architects available to provide consultation
• 14621
• Conea
• Ibero
• Huntington Neighbors
• City of Rochester
• NET
• Sector planning committees
• El Camino Rail Trail project
• Genesee Land Trust
• St. Michael’s Parish
• Landmark Society of Western New York
• Rochester Children’s Zone
• PAC-TAC
• Pathways For Peace
• SHPO (State Historic Preservation Office)
• Preservation League of New York State
• Enterprise Community Partners

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 • MCC Carpentry program? Edison?
• Greater Rochester Housing Partnership?

VIII. Models and precedents

Rochester, NY: Susan B. Anthony Collaborative

Perhaps the most relevant model for the Conkey/Clifford Reinvestment effort is the
successful initiative by several partners to revitalize the Susan B. Anthony Neighborhood
by addressing the abandoned property situation there. Although several entities played
key roles in this effort, including the Susan B. Anthony Neighborhood Association,
Landmark Society of Western New York, Preservation League of New York State,
Housing Opportunities, Flower City Habitat For Humanity, and the City of Rochester,
much of the actual work and financial commitment was made by committed “sweat
equity” investors. This group, which now forms the nucleus of one of the most active
and engaged neighborhood associations in the city has worked cooperatively to stabilize,
show, and rehab houses.

Among the contributions by the City have included modifications to standard policies for
demolishing and marketing houses. A process favoring stabilization of abandoned
houses, and partnership with the neighborhood association to market to owner-occupants
willing to invest sweat equity in rehab has resulted in nearly all the once-abandoned
properties improved by committed owner-occupants. Buildings still awaiting purchase
have been stabilized by the City, and carefully monitored by the neighborhood
association. In one case, the City paid to have a commercial building reroofed to keep it
structurally sound until a buyer could be found.

The two housing organizations involved have constructed infill housing on several vacant
lots using designs carefully selected and executed to be compatible with the existing
architecture of the neighborhood, which is a designated historic district. Among other
key contributions to the effort, the Landmark Society has assisted with marketing the
houses, and served as a resource for the home owners for rehabilitation of the properties.

Buffalo, NY: West Side Community Collaborative (WSCC)

• Initially improving conditions on block-by-block basis by addressing crime and
building social capital
• Proactively engaging with property owners, city inspectors, and housing court
• Specific actions with abandoned properties:
• Trying to address property/ownership issues before abandonment
• Recruiting urban homesteaders
• Volunteer efforts to:
o Secure houses
o Mow grass
o Plant gardens
o Paint/spruce up façade to make house more marketable

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 o Proactively marketing homes

Buffalo, NY: Crescent Village Revitalization Project

This $5Million project was launched this year in the Broadway/Fillmore area of Buffalo’s
east side, and area which has seen the highest degree of disinvestment and blight in the
city. The project area is severely economically challenged (one of the census tracts
involved has a 60% poverty level). The partners in this project, including a community
revitalization organization, developer, architect, and faith community are determined to
show that they can reverse the trend of disinvestment. In addition, they determined from
the beginning to rehab whatever houses in the project area could be salvaged and
rehabbed. U.S. Representative Louise Slaughter secured $472,000 in federal funds for
demolition of 40 of the 72 houses in the project area identified as unsalvageable. The
developer addresses the houses deemed rehabable by acquiring property that is vacated,
derelict or close to being vacated, either from the city or from a private owner, then
rehabilitate it and resell it at a reduced price from what it would cost for a new build or a
subsidized home. Infill housing will use a design by a Buffalo architect which reflects
the historic style of the neighborhood. This project also received assistance from the
Federal Home Loan Bank and the City of Buffalo.

Columbus, OH: Home Again approach

• Initiated by Mayor Coleman in early 2006
• For demolition, the City initially identified and targeted 1/10 of the abandoned
houses in the city in the worst condition.
• $25 Million bonded for 6 years dedicated to program
• The City initiated the formation of a non-profit Housing Trust to work in
partnership with the City
• Code enforcement expedited through more aggressive inspection and prosecution,
and streamlined by the reworking of procedures
• Goal: 1,000 vacant homes (out of 3,200) put back into productive use in 6 years
• The City and Housing Trust identified a “Model Zone” in which they could get to
work immediately and refine details of the program
• Bureaucratic obstacles to rehab removed or reduced
• 5 components (acquisition and rehabilitation were outsourced to the Housing
Trust):
o Enforcement
o Prevention
o Acquisition
o Rehabilitation
o Demolition (as last resort)

Philadelphia, PA: New Kensington Neighborhood Pilot Study

Although a Brookings Institution report has raised questions about Philadelphia’s overall
approach to neighborhood reinvestment, this single-neighborhood study of place-based
investment strategies; specifically “cleaning and greening” suggests a significant

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component that should be part of any neighborhood reinvestment strategy. Among the
findings deemed most significant to our study group are:
• Cleaning and greening of vacant lots can increase adjacent property values by as
much as 30%.
• Planting a tree within 50 feet of a house can increase its value by about 9%.
• Location of a house within 1/4 mile from a park increased values by 10%.
• Neighborhood blocks with higher concentrations of unmanaged vacant lots
displayed lower house prices, about 18%.

Providence, RI: SWAP (Stop Wasting Abandoned Properties)

SWAP was established in 1975 by a group of concerned Providence residents troubled by
the negative effects associated with the unchecked demolition of abandoned properties.
Their goal was to establish an organization that would renovate abandoned houses or
build new housing on vacant lots for low to moderate income working families. To date,
nearly 1,000 SWAP-assisted housing units are spread throughout the city, and SWAP has
become one of Rhode Island’s busiest and most productive community development
corporations. Executive Director Carla DiStephano came to Rochester as a key
participant in this year’s RRCDC conference Design Matters IV, The Emergence of
Forgotten Neighborhoods.

On Pine Street, where SWAP has its offices, freshly restored historic houses sporting
window boxes of colorful flowers line a street once blighted with abandoned houses and
littered vacant lots. With a strategy of working neighborhood-by-neighborhood, SWAP
has now revitalized essentially every pocket of vacant properties in South Providence,
and is now looking to other areas of Providence and Rhode Island.

IX. Project program and phases (in relation to project goals)

We propose to reach the goals of this project over 5 years, in roughly 3 phases. The
investigation/proposal phase will be considered closed with the acceptance and initiation
of this proposal. Consistent throughout the phases will be a year-by-year moratorium on
new demolitions in the study area. Also, although evaluation will be ongoing, extensive
review will be anticipated for the annual renewal of the demolition moratorium—with the
realization that, as in many new initiatives which address challenging and complex
community issues, positive results may not be immediate, and it may take time to reverse
the existing trend toward disinvestment.

Stabilize—year one
For the first year, the goal will be stabilization of both the housing stock, and
neighborhood environment, with an eye toward establishing progress to demonstrate for
the first yearly renewal of the demolition moratorium. Primarily low-capital strategies
will be used to both stabilize abandoned buildings and improve the appearance and civic
involvement of the neighborhood. A major focus will be on attracting and forming
partnerships with organizations, and individual owner-occupants willing to invest

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resources and sweat equity in rehab of abandoned buildings in the project area. Among
specifics are the following:

• Complete a property survey of the project area

• Marketing:
o “Adopt-a-house”: Give vacant structures a positive (“available”) image to
replace negatives (“abandoned”)
o “Adopt-a-lot”: Greening and fencing of vacant lots
o Visual treatment of board-ups (e.g. paintings of curtains/vases)
o “Opportunity” signage
o Tours primarily for partners and potential investors
• Funding
o Flexing RestoreNY funding for stabilization
o Flexing RestoreNY funding for program like now-defunct “Fix Rochester”
program
• Greening for stabilization:
o Development of “standard components” for visual/livability improvement:
 Fences, trees, benches, walkways
o Trash, mowing, maintenance
• Properties:
o One-year moratorium (with yearly reauthorization)
o Code enforcement
o Marketing and management of city-owned properties: maintain
lawn, clean-outs, walk-throughs
• Organize:
o Build partnerships
o Reach out to residents
o Create public spaces for social contacts
• Public safety:
o Establish PAC-TAC and other community-based responses to crime and
drugs

Revitalize/Reinvest—years two–three
The focus of the second and third years will be on repairing existing social and physical
assests, including the work of rehabbing the abandoned houses, and building social
capital and leadership in the neighborhood. Additional efforts will be made to increase
investment in the neighborhood and a sense of place, especially through engagement with
the development of the rail-trail, planned pocket park, and planned Ibero projects.
Among specifics are the following:

• Marketing: Create an identity

o Tours for prospective investors and promoters
• Funding
• Greening for ordinary use:

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 o Pocket parks, pedestrian paths, evergreens, play spaces
• Properties:
o Stimulate rehabs and other low-capital investment
o Strengthen owner-occupancy
o Pursue sweat-equity investment opportunities
o Home repair program (John Bero?)
 Through collaboration, as in Susan B. Anthony Neighborhood
 Through government, as in reinstitution of “City Fix-Up” program
• Organize:
o Events: Participation, pride-of-place, social contacts
o Identify and empower neighborhood leaders and organizers
o Create public spaces for communicating and problem-solving
• Public safety:
o Establish Neighborhood Watch
• Administration/oversight/evaluation/accountability

Redensify—years three–five
Also, attract significant investment in business/retail as well as residential. Working for
the long term, the effort will be to put the project area on a firm footing by making
improvement self-sustaining, and making it and its surrounding neighborhood a location
of choice. Attracting people to the project area will be improvements to the existing
housing stock, and appropriately-designed infill housing. Among specifics are the
following:

• Design guidelines
• Marketing of neighborhood as destination
o Tours for outsiders to enhance the image and attract residents, businesses
and investment.
• Funding
• Greening for neighborhood identity
• Properties:
o Non-residential uses and structures
o Opportunities for new construction (infill)
• Organize
o Make revitalization self-sustaining
• Pubic Safety

X. Future
• Avoiding foreclosures and abandonments
• Redevelopment of vacant lots
• Homesteading
• Return of “Fix-Up Rochester” home repair program

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XI. Appendices
A) Recent landmark society op-ed on environmental benefits of preserving older
buildings
B) Sections on Huntington Park and St. Michael’s from historic resources survey
(Mack Report)
C) Data from Rochester housing market study
D) Right-Sizing and Green Infrastructure for the City
E) Study team members

XII. Figures (at end, or interspersed)

1. Demographics
• Percentage owner occupancy
• Income/poverty
• Diversity
• Crime
o Personal
o Property
2. Housing
• Assessment/valuation
• Units completed?
• Code violations
3. Schools and service areas
4. Project area maps
• project boundaries, properties/survey data
• project area amid larger neighborhood context
5. Metrics
• Residents
o Portion of owner occupancy
o Income stats?
o Diversity measures: ethnic composition
• Housing
o Portion of income spent on housing
• Properties and Structures
o Vacancy rate
o Assessment stats
o Comparables
o Units completed or re-occupied
o Code citations
• Social Connections
o Nr of community organizations

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 o Nr of community events
• Safety
o Crime stats (calls per block to 911)
• Schools

XIII. Quotables (Do we want to use any of these? Where?)

“What we ourselves have made, we are at liberty to throw down. With what others have
built with their energies and their wealth, their rights over them do not end even after
death.” - John Ruskin

“For an environment to lift the spirit, attention must be focused on opportunities for
relatedness.” - Dr. Mindy Fullilove, “Root Shock”

“Creating a positive influence requires a blend of public and private commitments

oriented around assets not liabilities.” - Stephen Goldsmith, “Putting Faith in
Neighborhoods”

“Demolitions are destroying the ability of cities to heal themselves”—Tim Tielman,

Executive Director, Preservation Coalition of Erie County

“The best thing you can do for the environment is preserve older buildings”—Thomas
Hylton, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist

“A city needs to strengthen its heart, without hauling its soul off to the landfill”—Richard
Moe, President, National Trust for Historic Preservation

“Creating livable communities includes creating opportunity for meaningful contact with
our shared heritage”—Ibid

“We haven’t been called to build a fresh new world, but to heal and repair a broken
one”—Father Kennedy, Blessed Sacrament, June 10 homily

“…You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone. They demolished paradise, and put up
a bollard lot.”—Joni M.

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Nearby neighborhood investment

Recent Projects Completion Amount

Hart Street buildings ? ?

Current Projects Completion Amount

El Camino Rail/Trail (property purchase) 2006 $1.3 Million

Planned Projects Completion Amount

El Camino Rail/Trail (trail development) 2009 $2.2 Million*
Conkey/Clifford Pocket Park 2008 $150,000

* Includes $2 Million from Transportation Enhancements, $150,000 from Kodak grant,

$50,000 in Multi-Modal funding.

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