Millennials are moving to the Rochester, N.Y., area, according to a new report from the U.S. Census Bureau. The ranking included the top 10% of households with incomes between $50,000 and $75,500 per year, and the median household income of $55,400.
The racial composition of the city is similar to that of New York City, the second largest city in the United States, the report said. The city is so diverse that its population is predominantly white, with nearly 98 percent of that total being Caucasian.
Millennials born between 1980 and 1998 make up more than a third of the city's total population of 1.2 million. A 2019 report by Lending Tree shows Rochester, N.Y., is among the top 10 cities in the U.S. where millennials are pushing into the housing market. Rochester ranks in the top ten of "Cozy Cities in America," based on the number of millennials in their 20s and 30s. Among metros where millennial movers have had higher incomes than the current millennial population in recent years, Rochester tops the top five, according to the report.
Other cities on the list include New York City, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle and San Jose, California, as well as San Diego.
According to the Brookings Institute report, New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Seattle and San Jose, California, are the largest metros that manufacture patents on a large scale. Rochester is also surrounded by a fertile fruit-growing belt and is home to one of the largest dairy farms in the country, as well as a large number of dairy farmers.
The city's parks, including Highland, Maplewood and Genesee Valley, are known for garden shows, and the Lilac Festival is an annual event in May. There are a number of cultural institutions, including the Rochester Museum of Art, the Rochester Public Library and the Rochester Institute of Technology. The metropolitan area includes the city of Rochester and its suburbs, as well as the cities of Buffalo and Syracuse. Most urban areas in the Rochester area are predominantly residential, although some industrial parks have large numbers of residential and commercial buildings, such as Rochester Industrial Park and East End Park.
For example, the Rochester Area Community Foundation, with $310 million in assets, is currently working to support the economic development efforts of communities focused on reducing poverty and strengthening the region's vitality. The Democracy Collaborative is working with the city to explore ways to develop businesses that are employee owned and affiliated with anchor institutions for procurement to fight poverty, create jobs, and build prosperity in low-income communities.
What keeps me here is that the city is making so many significant changes and pushing a solid plan. Marketing our city to make it attractive to businesses is a key part of trying to grow and keep businesses in our community. But we also have great, better things to do together if we all share the same common goal of revitalising our cities.
We recently bought a building on the main street that has been empty for 20 years and converted it into our new headquarters. The move of our headquarters to downtown Rochester in 2005 gave us a new purpose and enthusiasm and helped us revitalize our employees.
It gave us the opportunity to watch the city change dramatically over the years and see its comeback first hand. The river is still one of the most majestic features of our city, representing power, prosperity and new opportunities.
The city is home to the University of Rochester, which was founded in 1850 and includes the Eastman School of Music. It is the birthplace of Xerox, Bausch & Lomb and Kodak and has several prestigious universities, including the Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester State University and Rochester Community College. The city has a number of colleges and universities including the College of Arts and Sciences, City College and the University at Buffalo.
Rochester has high violent crime, almost four times the national average, and higher than the US average in both private and property crime. Rochester is considered poor and the fifth poorest city in the country, and its children are disproportionately affected. It is the second poorest city among comparably large cities and has the highest poverty rate of any city with more than 100,000 inhabitants, while it is the second poorest city - highest in terms of the percentage of children under 18.
Rochester has a population of almost 210,360, making it the fifth poorest city in the country. 16% of the population live below the poverty line, which places them in extreme poverty. At Census 3 in 2000, 1,830 families lived in the city with incomes of less than $20,000 a year, or $28,500 a month.
In 1811 Rochester offered land for sale, and in 1817 the village was incorporated as Rochesterville (abbreviated to 1822). In 1834, it was incorporated into the city and the port of Rochester was designed to handle the Great Lakes and maritime shipping. In 1916, a strip on the shores of Lake Genesee and Lake Ontario was extended around this city. Today, Rochester borders the Erie Canal, Lake Erie, the Niagara River, Niagara Falls and Niagara Bay.