Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My family and I had decided to move to Pittsford based on schools,affordable housing and nice community for families until my brother strongly advised my husband not to move to Rochester because it is becoming a ghost town for business and companies are moving out. My husband is an executive recruiter that is self-employed and wants to open an office in a business friendly city in the North East and expand his business by hiring from a large talent pool. My brother does not believe that Rochester is the place to do this and to stick to our original plan of going to Boston. Any advice one way or the other on Rochester for business, particularly in the National Security area, and forget Virginia and D.C.
Rochester has seen a rough 5 years since 9/11 that's for sure..... but it is not in any way shape or form "dying". Most of the prolbems have stemmed from Kodak cutting manufacturing jobs in large numbers. The education and healthcare sectors are stronger in Rochester than anywhere in the state and are finally growing at a faster rate than the manufacturing base is shrinking. Rochester has long been known for having a more resilient economy than the other cities in upstate ny and accross the great lakes. It would be a fair argument that Syracuse has the better economic picture now; but I wouldn't expect that to last long because Rochester has the larger and more educated population (I'm not calling Syracuse "stupid" by the way, it's just the stats, more college grads in Rochester than Syracuse). I have 2 brothers and a brother-in-law that all have their own small businesses in Rochester and they are having their best business ever this past year. Again, while I could suggest moving to Rochester until I'm blue in the face; the best way to know is to go there and see how things are for yourselves and to compare it to other areas you are considering.
Rochester, like most northeast cities, is experiencing a slow transition to more of a service based economy. As previously mentioned, Kodak and other big manufacturers are downsizing operations here for other countiries. Operating a small business here can be done very succesfully IF all the costs of doing business here are accounted for. There are many small manufacturing and service companies here doing very well, but I imagine starting a new one would require good experience and both eyes open. It has been suggested one factor in the "stable" housing costs here (read cheaper and without much fluctuation), can be attributed to the higher property taxes we pay.
Not too sure what business there is here in National Security. That means so many things today.
This area, including Pittsford, is a great place to raise a family with lots to do and experience. Cost of living here, (after taxes) isn't so bad. You need to like winter, as most years we get many days of overcast skies and lake effect snow (which is really quite fluffy).
As someone who is recently unemployed and working with an executive recruiter (IT - not National Security) here's my two cents worth.
I think Rochester has a very large talent pool available due to all of the recent downsizings in our major manufacturing companies. From my experience the pool seems to professional, skilled and well educated. But, as one of the above posts made note, I'm not sure where this talent pool fits in with a National Security recruiting business.
As for Rochester dying, personally, I think downtown is on the decline in regard to business. However, I think there has been a shift in business activity to the southeast in suburbs such as Victor, Perinton, Bushnell's Basin, Henrietta etc. These areas seem to be healthy and growing.
Another point in Rochester's favor(vs Boston) is the housing. I have friends in real estate in Boston and you can't beat the value you get for your money here. In addition, you are not going to have to spend as much time either snarled in traffic or making a long commute from a "affordable" Boston suburb.
Lastly, the people here are very friendly and welcoming and there are tons of things to do with kids that are easy and convenient.
Hope this helps - good luck with your decision.
As far as national security goes, there are a couple of DOD contractors that are growing. Harris is one of them. They have recently received a large govt contract and have been hiring people. Other than that, you have your typical federal law enforcement agencies (fbi, dea, etc).
I wouldn't worry about Rochester dying. The East Coast megalopolis is filling up fast. Many are starting to move to the inland cities as the quality of life gets worse on the Coast. Albany will be first to see the growth. After the Albany area booms and housing prices increase there....Syracuse and Rochester will be the next metros that get investment.
I live in Florida, but I visit Rochester 2x a year or so (I'm in Rochester now); Nothing is unusual for this area; about the same amount 'For Rent' signs and empty storefronts as usual.
I'm very glad to hear that Rochester isn't dying, because I'm thinking of moving there from greater Boston. Here are a few things Puffle and her husband might want to know about Boston.
First, though the public schools in the Boston suburbs are generally quite good, they are in difficult financial straights. State aid to local schools has been cut back severely in recent years, and is not likely to improve soon. Our newly elected governor just announced that the state is running a billion-dollar deficit.
Furthermore, local towns and cities cannot easily raise property taxes because of a constitutional amendment known as proposition two and a half, which mandates that property taxes can't exceed two and a half percent of the total assessed value of their properties without approval from the voters. Getting that approval can be very difficult, because many of the towns in this area have a town meeting or modified town meeting form of government. Once a year, citizens crowd into the high school gym, and in an arduous process that can take two evenings or more, they discuss and vote on a long list of articles, including every appropriation that is over and above the two and a half limit. This process, which pits parents of schoolchildren against senior citizens living on fixed incomes, tends to divide the community.
Add to this the growing enrollments in the public schools and you have a recipe for declining educational quality. Last year voters in my town defeated three articles that would have overridden prop two and a half in order to level-fund the schools' operating budget. Staff cutbacks, increases in class size, and fee increases (for athletics, school bus service, parking, etc.) followed.
I won't tell you the name of my town, but I will tell you that it is one of the wealthier ones and is considered to have one of the best school systems in the state.
Like New York, Massachusetts has been losing population over the last few years; the trend is most noticeable among young, college-educated people, for whom there is no longer any affordable housing. Even for residents with higher incomes, housing costs can be a problem.
Traffic congestion has become a real issue over the last decade, as the number of autos on the road has proliferated. I live only about 12 miles from the center of the city, as the crow flies, but if you have a child to drop off/pick up on the way to or from work, the commute takes about an hour door to door.
Finally, Massachusetts' health care costs are the highest in the nation. For the self-employed (I am one of them), they are huge. Over the last 11 years, my health care premium has tripled; I am now paying $491 a month for a single person, prescription drugs not included. Rates may go down after the new universal health care system has been phased in, but I'm not convinced of it.
In sum, Puffle, think twice before moving to Boston.
I'm very glad to hear that Rochester isn't dying, because I'm thinking of moving there from greater Boston. Here are a few things Puffle and her husband might want to know about Boston.
First, though the public schools in the Boston suburbs are generally quite good, they are in difficult financial straights. State aid to local schools has been cut back severely in recent years, and is not likely to improve soon. Our newly elected governor just announced that the state is running a billion-dollar deficit.
Furthermore, local towns and cities cannot easily raise property taxes because of a constitutional amendment known as proposition two and a half, which mandates that property taxes can't exceed two and a half percent of the total assessed value of their properties without approval from the voters. Getting that approval can be very difficult, because many of the towns in this area have a town meeting or modified town meeting form of government. Once a year, citizens crowd into the high school gym, and in an arduous process that can take two evenings or more, they discuss and vote on a long list of articles, including every appropriation that is over and above the two and a half limit. This process, which pits parents of schoolchildren against senior citizens living on fixed incomes, tends to divide the community.
Add to this the growing enrollments in the public schools and you have a recipe for declining educational quality. Last year voters in my town defeated three articles that would have overridden prop two and a half in order to level-fund the schools' operating budget. Staff cutbacks, increases in class size, and fee increases (for athletics, school bus service, parking, etc.) followed.
I won't tell you the name of my town, but I will tell you that it is one of the wealthier ones and is considered to have one of the best school systems in the state.
Like New York, Massachusetts has been losing population over the last few years; the trend is most noticeable among young, college-educated people, for whom there is no longer any affordable housing. Even for residents with higher incomes, housing costs can be a problem.
Traffic congestion has become a real issue over the last decade, as the number of autos on the road has proliferated. I live only about 12 miles from the center of the city, as the crow flies, but if you have a child to drop off/pick up on the way to or from work, the commute takes about an hour door to door.
Finally, Massachusetts' health care costs are the highest in the nation. For the self-employed (I am one of them), they are huge. Over the last 11 years, my health care premium has tripled; I am now paying $491 a month for a single person, prescription drugs not included. Rates may go down after the new universal health care system has been phased in, but I'm not convinced of it.
In sum, Puffle, think twice before moving to Boston.
What about Connecticut?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
