Group 14621: Rochester's Cultural Mosaic

It's a normal Wednesday summer evening on Borchard Street in the heart of the 14621 neighborhood and that means an eager crowd of kids with bicycles gathered in Ray Fitzgerald's front yard. They bring him flat tires, bent spokes, rusted brake cables and broken axles. The former helicopter mechanic gives them his know-how, spare parts and patience. By the end of the evening most of the children are off and rolling and everyone is smiling.

The project is called Second Life Bikes and it works like this. Every Wednesday night during warm weather Fitzgerald and any volunteers he can recruit repair bicycles for local kids free of charge. He also collects donated bikes, refurbishes them and gives them away on a first come, first served basis. During the summer of 2000, the three-year-old, all-volunteer program repaired more than 400 bicycles and gave away 90. "It isn't just about the bikes," explains Fitzgerald who has lived in the neighborhood for seven years. "I want to show them you've got to take care of something."

Fitzgerald's commitment to caring is not a-typical in this large Northeast district that 35,000 residents call home. Drive down the broad park-like streets of the Seneca Ridge neighborhood, or the intimate, tree-lined ones of Polish Town and you will find the tidy homes and trim yards of residents who take care of their property. Visit the scenic campus of the Rochester School for the Deaf, located on the eastern bank of the Genesee River, and you will find an institution that for more than a 125 years has been at the forefront in caring for the special needs of deaf students and their families.

Stop in at the Group 14621 office on North Clinton Avenue, and you will discover a vibrant grass-roots community organization that since 1974 has tackled tough issues like drug trafficking and abandoned housing. With some 400 paying members and six full-time staff, Group 14621 rehabilitates housing in the neighborhood, works with residents to form block clubs, publishes a monthly newsletter and staunchly advocates for services and resources for Northeast Rochester. The community association recently secured funding for a Community Technology Center that will provide free computer access and training to area residents.

Group 14621 - named after the district's zip code - stitches together a patchwork of distinct neighborhoods that together represent nearly one sixth of the city of Rochester. North along the Genesee, a lovely enclave of homes known as Seneca Ridge borders the historic 297-acre Seneca Park. Designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, considered the father of American landscape architecture, this national treasure preserves a priceless slice of wilderness in the middle of a highly developed urban area. The park's paths along the high bank of the Genesee River gorge, the trout pond and the picnic grove make for wonderful outings. At the Zoo, also located in the park, children love to splash in the stream-like wading pool and climb the huge rope spider web. The dramatic Rocky Coast underwater exhibit lets patrons stand within inches of swimming polar bears and sea lions.

Butterhole, located just south of Ridge Road, was until recently best known for Silver Stadium. Replaced by Frontier Field, the former baseball arena has been transformed into an industrial park for light industry and high-tech firms.

On the western edge of 14621 lies Old Carthage, the area's earliest settlement. Two centuries ago, the bustling river port at the lower falls of the Genesee rivaled its village sister to the south: Rochesterville. East of Carthage is Polish Town, named after the waves of Polish immigrants who began to settle the area in 1880s. They built streets of sturdy workman's cottages and in 1907 completed the lavish St. Stanislaus Church. Today the church's newly renovated102-foot spire towers majestically over Hudson Avenue. On the eastern edge of the district, St. Andrews Parish also traces its roots to immigrants, this time from Germany.

Today, 14621 is best described as a cultural mosaic. African-Americans, Hispanics, Asians, Bosnians, Ukrainians, and Turks have joined European-Americans to make this one of the most ethnically diverse residential area in greater Rochester. Food and specialty stores reflect that rich mixture. Shoppers can find Asian groceries and Caribbean delis along with neighborhood classics like Wojtczak's Bakery and Hartmann's Old World Sausage & Meats.