Brooks Avenue

Location

Travels east-west, through the 19th Ward and out to Gates.

Boundaries

Length

Approx. 2.6 miles

Brooks Avenue is a route with its eastern origins in the city's 19th Ward neighborhood. It takes Route 204 to the west and into the suburb of Gates. It intersects with I-390 and partially overlaps the Airport Expressway. For much of its length, the road is actually very residential, but it intersects with a number of commercial corridors.

In Rochester

At its eastern terminus, you find Brooks Landing, a series of buildings being developed semi-independently around the Brooks-Genesee where the pedestrian bridge connects the 19th Ward to the University of Rochester River Campus. Nearby, but still on Brooks, are Episcopalian and Baptist churches. At the intersection with Thurston Road, there is a Rite Aid pharmacy, an exterminator, a security firm, a bar and some women's apparel shops. Proceeding westward, you will find True North Rochester Preparatory Charter School on your right, sharing a parking lot with yet another church.

On the city limit, where Brooks Avenue intersects with Genesee Park Boulevard. Here you will find Gil Tegg's Mobil Mart, one of the few sources of E85 in Rochester. You will also find the Buckeye Terminal (from whence much of the area's gasoline comes) and the Holiday Inn - Airport in close proximity.

Brooks Avenue also crosses the Erie Canal and Erie Canal Trail.

In Gates

Continuing westward is the intersection with I-390 (exits 18A and 18B) on both your left and right, followed by the Greater Rochester International Airport which you enter from the right and center lanes, not far past the 24-hour Sunoco gas station. If you stay left, the center lane narrows and the road becomes two lanes wide again as you reach the underpass formed by the airport entrance. This underpass rarely floods, but the rapid narrowing, steep (but short) hill and total lack of a curb sometimes catches drivers new to the area by surprise.

Wegmans corporate offices will now be on your right. Further along, the road widens again and you can turn left on to Old Beahan Road. Turning right there provides access to McDonald's and to the (now abandoned) Wegmans parking lot.

At the western terminus, the right lane allows you to go straight or turn right, but the other two lanes are left-turn only. Going straight will bring you into Westgate Plaza, which is anchored by Wal-mart, but features a number of other largely national chain stores. The middle lane provides easy access to The Shoppes at Westgate¹ and the left lane allows you access to Beahan Road, along which you will find the Turkish Society of Rochester and a parking area for viewing airplanes as they take off and land.

Turning right here will bring you to the Chili Avenue exit (Exit 19) on 390 and past there, back into the city's 19th Ward. Turning left provides access to I-490 via the Airport Expressway, as well as a series of outlying communities, including Gates and Chili.