Plymouth-Exchange Neighborhood

South Plymouth Ave, looking towards downtown (March 2012)

Location

Southwest Rochester (Sector 4), across the river from the University of Rochester

Boundaries

Encircled by S. Plymouth, Jefferson Ave, Seward St, Reynolds St, Dr. Samuel McCree Way, Ford St, and the Genesee River

Neighborhood Association

Plymouth-Exchange Neighborhood Association

SouthWest Area Neighborhood Association

http://www.Location19.org

Plymouth-Exchange, or PLEX for short, is a neighborhood centered on the parallel roadways of South Plymouth Avenue and Exchange Street. Parts of PLEX are included in the Third Ward Historic District. It is a largely residential area where University of Rochester students and employees mingle with working-class families.

Note that PLEX is often lumped in with the adjacent 19th Ward, which is larger and more well-known. The two share a busy, highly populated border at Brooks Landing. The northeastern border of PLEX includes the Ford St and South Plymouth Ave Traffic Roundabout where the two streets intersect. PLEX can be reached from Mount Hope Avenue and the South Wedge by crossing the Ford Street Bridge and going left. Going right is Corn Hill.

Running along the southeastern border of PLEX is the Genesee River Trail, between Exchange St. and the Genesee River. Entrances to the trail are located at Flint and Violetta Streets. The geography of PLEX is also notable for the hill on South Plymouth that offers some very nice views of the downtown skyline.

Both rent and real estate are extremely cheap. House prices are well within the five digits, sometimes as low as $25,000 for small ones.

In recent years PLEX has experienced a surge of redevelopment, including new businesses, new housing at Carlson Commons and Plymouth Manor, and the University of Rochester's Brooks Landing Project. In June 2012 UR will be opening a second pedestrian bridge extending from the Genesee River Trail behind Exchange (near the Flint Street entrance) directly to Wilson Boulevard on the River Campus. (The first pedestrian bridge was the one at Brooks Landing, which opened in 1991.) This will allow students living in Riverview Apartments quicker access to the River Campus and provide the UR community an easy way to reach downtown via bicycle.

In January 2012 UR announced that it was expanding the Brooks Landing Project to include yet more student housing. The new dormitory, located on Plymouth Ave (on the border between PLEX and the 19th Ward), is expected to be eleven stories high and home to 145-170 upperclassmen, in addition to the 400 already living in Riverview. A restaurant open to the public will occupy the first floor.

On June 16, 2012 a Riverfront Design Charette was held for residents to brainstorm with UR officials and community planners from the city. The most common requests included a well-stocked grocery store, a laundromat, a possible ice cream parlor, greater walkability, new green spaces, and the sprucing up School No. 19, which is currently bland and foreboding. Riverview Place, a dead-end street known for its tiny cottages (built in 1930 for workers), received a fair amount of attention, mostly due to public safety concerns about people roaming the bush and illegally dumping trash. Several residents expressed desire to see it opened up to the river and for street lights to be installed. Riverview and other streets were also mentioned as possible candidates for an historic district.

The biggest concern was the brownfield surrounded by Riverview Place, Exchange Street, Flint Street, and the Genesee River, where the entrance to the Genesee Valley Trail is located. It was the site of a New York Standard Oil refinery until the 1930s and is still contaminated. The City of Rochester states that it is presently working out a plan for clean-up with Exxon Mobile, the successor company to New York Standard Oil, but no deal has yet been reached. Another problem is the junk yard and several abandoned warehouses there. Suggestions for new uses included loft apartments, a gym, a large grocery store, and an outdoor sporting center and bike shop to tie in with the Genesee Valley trail.

Like the neighboring 19th Ward, PLEX suffers from a bad reputation due to its troubled past and generally low-income demographics. This has been especially prevalent on the River Campus, due in part to the memories of alumni who subsequently warn their children attending UR. There was a brief spike of muggings at Brooks Landing in 2007, but increased police patrols and a strong UR security presence have largely eliminated the problem. The crime rate today is lower than most people think, although reasonable caution should be exerted, especially at night and in the streets closer to the Genesee-Jefferson Neighborhood, which is very much a problem area. Jefferson Avenue has some issues as well.

PLEX may still appear intimidating to those unused to urban grit, but closer acquaintance reveals a strong sense of community pride and increasing signs of revitalization. Since they opened in Fall 2008, the Riverview Apartments have proven enormously popular with UR students, as have other off-campus living options in the immediate area.

A crime map of Rochester is available here.

• Ant Hill Cooperative
  

• M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence
  

• Mount Pleasant Park Park
  

• Pleasant Park Properties
  

• Plymouth Gardens
  

• School No. 19

Businesses

• Brother's Club
  

• Deli Sandros - Upcoming
  

• Garden Market
  

• King Fish Market
  

• Latimer & Son Funeral Directors
  

• Neighborhood Mini Market
  

• Ray Daniels Liquor Store - Jefferson Ave, right off S. Plymouth
  

• Small World Bakery
  

• Xtreme Styles Hair Salon

Worship

• Church of Love Faith Center - 700 Exchange St.
  

• Full Gospel Pentecostal Happy Church - 108 Magnolia St.
  

• Genesee Valley/Arnett Congregations (Jehovah's Witness) - 1037 South Plymouth Avenue

Links:

• Article and press release regarding the Gandhi Institute's move to PLEX
  

• A Brief History of School #19 and It's Neighborhood - By Judi Baker (she discusses more PLEX history here)
  

• Neighborhood profile from the City of Rochester
  

• Neighborhood Profile on Rochester City Living Page
  

• UR Campus Times: Response (page 6) from the Director of Residential Life and Housing Services to allegations of PLEX being "notoriously high in crime" (Jan.-Feb. 2012)

Comments:

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2007-05-19 23:43:30   In my opinion, in 5 or 10 years, this neighborhood will be the next South Wedge with people saying, aw darn, where was I a few years ago when that real estate was dirt cheap? —JoannaLicata

2012-03-07 22:26:06   It's been five years since your comment. PLEX has not attained Wedge levels of trendiness yet, but it's slowly moving its way along. The Gandhi Institute just moved into an old crackhouse. UR has also done a lot thanks to the Brooks Landing project. So we've got cool places like Ant Hill Co-op, people like the Daves, and more and more UR students which also brings an increased security presence. So we're getting there. I'd definitely stick around. —EileenF

2012-03-16 10:20:14   It's missing the easy highway access like the other trendy areas have. —DamianKumor