Upper Monroe Neighborhood Association

Welcome to UMNA

The Upper Monroe Neighborhood Association (UMNA) is a not-for-profit advocacy group representing the 3,300 residents and property owners in the Upper Monroe Neighborhood.

If you live in our neighborhood, please Join UMNA. Be sure to check our events Calendar and get all the news. Also, City of Rochester | Monroe Branch Library 809 Monroe Avenue Rochester, NY 14607. Find out this month's library program at this month's programs.

Sign up to our E-mail List for the latest buzz on UMNA area happenings. Also, you can now pay your UMNA membership dues ONLINE by clicking here: Join UMNA And, if you've got something to say about the Upper Monroe Neighborhood, say it on our blog. UMNA Blog

"The Upper Monroe neighborhood exemplifies the best of the Monroe Urban Village. Residents can easily access the ingredients essential to comfortable city living - retail, restaurants and recreation resources - within walking distance of their homes. Its boundaries are marked at the north by Route 490, south at the city line with the Town of Brighton, east on Culver Road, and west to Field Street." - City of Rochester | Southeast Neighborhoods - Upper Monroe

This site will keep you informed about all the important resources and events in the Upper Monroe Neighborhood.

Join your friends and neighbors the Culver Road Armory on Saturday, May 12th 9am-1pm to get some unbeatable deals on a huge variety of annuals, perennials, shrubs & vegetable starts. All proceeds go to keeping Wide Water Gardens and The Upper Monroe Neighborhood beautiful. Hope to see you there! UMNA and Wide Water Garden members can get 10% off any annual or vegetable purchase.

Community Notes:

Saturday, May 5, 5-8 pm; Sunday, May 6, 11 am – 4 pm; Monday, May 7, 9-11 am Big Book Sale! at the Monroe Branch Library 809 Monroe Avenue Rochester, NY 14607 Hundreds of books will be on sale and proceeds will directly benefit Monroe Branch! Also join us for these special events during the sale: · Saturday, May 5, 7 pm Celtic Music with Michael Roddy An accomplished musician, Michael plays Scottish smallpipes, border pipes, uilleann pipes, and whistles. He graduated from Nazareth College with degrees in Music Education and Vocal Performance and is the current pipe major of the Mohawk Valley Frasers grade 3 Pipe Band. He currently teaches elementary vocal general music, chorus, and band in the Ilion Central School District. · Sunday, May 6, 2 pm Face Painting with Lisa
Hello Neighbors and Gardeners. May 12th will be a busy day in our neighborhood. We will be hosting both Clean Sweep and our neighborhood plant sale simultaneously and we could use your help. During Clean Sweep we will have two teams, one to work on Monroe Avenue spruce up projects and another to work on Wide Water Gardens projects. If you garden at Wide Waters, working on a Clean Sweep project at the gardens can be considered a "work party". If you are interested in volunteering for Clean Sweep you can meet up with the rest of the team at Cobb's Hill park between 8:30 and 9:00. There will be people there to guide you. If you know you want to work at Wide Waters you can also go directly to the gardens at 9:00-9:15 you wish. Matt Flowers, Charlotte Baltus and or Frank Regan will be on hand with assignments. If you have any questions about Clean Sweep you can contact either Jane Alexander (gojane@frontiernet.net) or I. You can also visit http://www.cityofrochester.gov/cleansweep/ For the plant sale we need volunteers to help set up, work the sale and or close up shop. We will be meeting at 7:45 at the corner of Hinsdale and Culver (NOT the New Life Church) for setup. Again, if you garden at Wide Waters, helping with the sale can be considered a "work party." If you have any questions about the sale feel free to contact me. Both activities are a great way for you to help keep your neighborhood clean and strong. I hope you will join us. Also, several trees have been taken down at Wide Water Gardens and we have a ton of norway maple wood as a result. If you or anyone you know is interested in some free firewood please contact Bill Schwappacher. All wood that is not claimed by May 12 will be hauled away. Thanks. Bill Schwappacher President, Upper Monroe Neighborhood Association 585-256-0028
Hinsdale Street/Werner Park Curb Replacement Construction Status The project includes: · New curbs on both Hinsdale Street (Rosedale to Culver) and on Werner Park (Hinsdale to Monroe, including new median curbs) · New driveway aprons at existing driveway locations · Spot replacement of sidewalks · Catch basin replacement, and · 15 to 20 new trees to replace trees that are missing or will be removed for the project (those that are too close to the new curb to survive the reconstruction). Schedule: · City Council awarded the street reconstruction project to Gordon J. Phillips contractors on April 24, 2012 · Project information letters should be distributed to residents in mid to late May · Construction to begin in late May/early June · Construction completion anticipated in late summer/early fall Project Contacts · Sam Priem, City Engineering construction manager at 428-7168 · John Knapp, on-site project manager, no number at this time · Brian Phillips, contractor superintendant, no number at this time Once the project begins, weekly project status will be posted to “Street Beat” on the City’s web site at: http://www.cityofrochester.gov/article.aspx?id=8589936612
Family Walks in Washington Grove Nestled behind the reservoir atop Cobb's Hill is a beautiful grove of giant old oaks, named Washington Grove after our First President. A dedicated coalition of people and neighborhood groups is collaborating with The Friends of Washington Grove and the City to restore and protect the Grove. Meet on the east side of the reservoir where street parking begins on the one-way circle around the reservoir. (585) 234-1056.

·         Saturday, May 12, 8:30 am: Birds in the Washington Grove. Peter Debes will identify songsters, explain why they come to the Grove and how to secure them for the next generation. Binoculars recommended. Rain Date: May 15.

·         Saturday, June 9, 8:30 am: Bugs 'n Critters in the Cobb's Hill Forest (Family/Adult with child 3-9 yrs). Join a naturalist of the Friends of Washington Grove. Learn how to recognize 8 different kinds of soil animals and discover just what they are doing in the forest.

·         Saturday, Aug. 25, 8:30 am: An Old Growth Forest in the City. Enjoy the tranquility and mystery of this beautiful old growth forest. Learn to recognize these giant trees and find out what is being done to protect them and remove invasive species.

Some useful documents for our area:

Neighborhood Service Center "NSC is based on the notion that the best way of responding to neighborhood issues is by teaming residents with city staff to devise and achieve effective solutions, supported by the full resources of “City Hall”. This approach brings City government closer to you and your neighborhood so quality of life issues can be addressed more quickly and effectively." For the UMNA area go to: City of Rochester | Southeast Quadrant Service Center

Call or visit your Neighborhood Quadrant Service Center for assistance. Common Property Complaints Illegal property uses Abandoned/unlicensed vehicles Overgrown lots Trash & Debris Blighted properties Unsafe or vacant structures Front yard parking Excessive noise Public Safety Concerns Drug house locations Disorderly people, illegal activities & public disturbances Crime Prevention Information PAC-TAC and Neighborhood Watch Programs Other nuisance activities which occur chronically at a location If you would like to submit a complaint regarding a specific property online, please complete this form

The Center for Youth Services 905 Monroe Ave Rochester, NY 14620 585-473-2464

Monroe Branch Library 809 Monroe Avenue Rochester, NY 14607 | May Programs

Always something going on at your local library: lectures, films, courses, readings, more...

Meeting Times

UMNA will meet Tuesdays | 7:00 PM - first week of the month- at The Corner Place - 969 Monroe Avenue -(corner of Shepard Street) Hope to see you there. "Wanted," The Upper Monroe Neighborhood Association Needs New Members

* You can now pay your yearly membership dues online: Membership runs from January 1st to December 31st. Only $20 and you'll help to make us viable.

Wide Water Gardens

Grow, Learn, Enjoy!

One of Rochester’s largest community gardens is poised t

o debut this May and you are invited to be a part of it. Wide Water Gardens is a joint project between the Upper Monroe Neighborhood Association (UMNA), Third Rochester Enterprises Corporation(TREC) and the City of Rochester to bring a new urban agricultural, educational and recreational resource to the residents of the City of Rochester and surrounding communities.

Important links:

Monroe Village "Monroe Village is an eclectic urban village where diversity is celebrated and all people are welcome. It is safe, healthy, sustainable and offers a high quality of life, in an authentic environment with walkable streets, a mix of land uses, and a variety of housing choices. Monroe Village is located along Monroe Avenue in the city of Rochester, New York, from the inner loop to I-490, and the adjoining residential neighborhoods.
The Corner Place - 969 Monroe Avenue - (corner of Shepard Street) Rochester, NY 14620
UMNA Design Charrette In addition to the many activities and advocacy efforts that the Upper Monroe Neighborhood Association conducts is our work on neighborhood revitalization. The Design Charrette is an exciting event in support of this effort.
Welcome To Monroe Avenue Monroe Avenue, one of Rochester's most diverse shopping strips, is the place to find the truly unique. Alive with people and places to go in an urban neighborhood which includes the Y, the library, churches, and schools as well as interesting small shops, restaurants, and pubs. "
Monroe Village Farmers' Market "The Monroe Village Farmers’ Market will open the 2011 season on June 15th. We will be open every Wednesday until October 12, 4-7 pm, in the parking lot of Blessed Sacrament Church on Monroe Ave. between Oxford and Rutgers. We are looking forward to another successful season. Each week we provide a table and tent to a local community group. If you would like to come to the market to promote your group’s work, please fill out the application below. Applications are accepted throughout the season, but spaces go fast, so apply soon. "

Make Upper Monroe Neighborhood beautiful and environmentally healthy - Recycle

Recycling, extracting our junk into resources is probably one of the greatest hopes for curbing our environmental problems. No more landfills, no more toxins leaching into our ground and water, no more exporting toxic materials to the developing countries, no more waste--period. Imagine taking everything we potentially throw away—steel, iron, paper, cardboard, computers, batteries, appliances, even house—and reusing everything. I mean everything, so that nothing gets wasted Go here to find out how to recycle everything in our UMNA area.

Saturday, May 12 Southeast Cobbs Hill Park- Culver Road and Norris Drive The yearly City of Rochester ‘Clean Sweep’ is coming up. Over the years this event has brought neighbors together to spruce up our beautiful city and makes us proud. Find out where and when ‘Clean Sweep’ will be orchestrated in your neighborhood and sign up. City of Rochester | Clean Sweep - 2012 Help make Rochester sparkle at Clean Sweep More than 25,000 volunteers have demonstrated their pride in Rochester by working alongside City crews to clean and beautify just about every street in the city. In addition to removing litter and debris, volunteers do such things as planting flowers, pruning trees and performing other neighborhood beautification projects. Register Now! 2012 Clean Sweep Dates and Places: City of Rochester

Welcoming a new business in our neighborhood

(If you are a new business in the Upper Monroe Neighborhood and would like an online intro, contact the UMNA Webmaster)

Culver Road Armory

145 Culver Road, Rochester, NY 14620

The innovative vision of the new Culver Road Armory creates a compelling and unique 100,000 sq. ft. product with cutting-edge design elements.

This well recognized and prominently located Rochester landmark will bring together a diverse and creative tenant base which when aligned, will make the new Armory and its iconic presence a destination for many years to come.

Our goal is to offer a modern, high-end design environment with an emphasis on creativity so distinctive, users feel an acute empathy toward the building.

The success of the design has been our ability to achieve the look and feel of a contemporary art museum within the original beauty of the monumental historic brick framework.