Monroe Avenue

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Monroe Avenue.jpgMonroe Avenue. Photo by [WWW]_yoshi_

Location
Monroe Ave, Rochester, NY 14607 [Directions]
Public Transportation
RTS Route 7 (entire length)
Website
[WWW]Monroe Ave Merchants Association

Like other radial avenues, Monroe Avenue gets emphasis as a major commercial corridor in the City's Rochester 2010: The Renaissance urban plan. It runs southeast from downtown at Chestnut Street crossing through suburban Brighton, strip malls and plazas, and enters Pittsford. In Rochester proper, it is parallel to Park Avenue.

Monroe Avenue is designated as NY State Route 31 and together with East Avenue/State Route 96, forms one of the two historic roadways between Pittsford and the original settlement at Rochesterville, now downtown Rochester. Like the county it traverses, the Avenue was named for [wikipedia]U.S. President James Monroe.

Monroe Avenue's development as a commercial corridor mirrors the establishment and expansion of public transportation, first with horse-drawn streetcars as far as Alexander Street, then extended to Goodman. With electrification of the streetcars in the 1890s, the line was extended to the Erie Canal (present I-490 bridge) and finally to Highland Avenue. In the early 1940s, the streetcars were replaced with the #7 Bus, although the Rochester Subway continued to stop at the Monroe Avenue Station until its demise in 1956.

Some view Monroe Ave as the spirit & soul of Rochester. As fares Monroe Ave, so fares Rochester!

Monroe Village:

P1000911.JPG(2012)

As with all big cities, parts of Monroe Village have some urban grit. One of the neighborhood's most recognizable landmarks is the historic 1928 Monroe Theatre. Until the summer of 2008, this housed the porn emporium Show World and was covered in lime green, orange, and black paint. In September and October 2008 the rear portion of the old theater was demolished and the facade was cleaned and repaired in preparation for conversion to retail space.

Upper Monroe:

Traveling from Monroe Village towards Brighton, one crosses Interstate 490 and enters the Upper Monroe Avenue Neighborhood. Upper Monroe is also bounded by Pinnacle Hill, Field Street, and Cobbs Hill Park. This area tends to be more affluent, more residential, and closer in character to Park Avenue.

Brighton:

The Brighton section of Monroe Ave. basically runs from Cobbs Hill Park to Clover Street. Along the way it runs through a vibrant neighborhood commercial strip that is probably considered the "Main Street" of Brighton, centered on the Twelve Corners area.

Pittsford:

The Pittsford section of Monroe Ave. runs from Clover Street into the downtown section of Pittsford Village. This section is best known for multiple suburban plazas side-by-side, most notably Pittsford Plaza.

Establishments on Monroe Avenue

Bars

Community

Grocery and Convenience

Health and Well-Being

Restaurants - Chains

Restaurants - Local

Retail - Books and Gifts

Retail - Clothing

Retail - Furnishings and Decor

Retail - Head Shops

Retail - Jewelry

Retail - Pawn Shops

Retail - Sports

Retail - Supplies

Retail - Vision

Retail - Other

Salons and Spas

Tattoos and Piercings

Other

See Also

Comments:

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2007-07-17 10:10:28   If "As fares Monroe Ave, so fares Rochester" then Rochester must be full of hookers and drug dealers after dark. —BadFish

2011-09-06 08:18:38   You're talking about the Monroe Village section. Monroe Ave is huge and extends all the way into the wealthy suburb of Pittsford. —EileenF