Culver - Winton - Main
Wilderness Access, Urban Charm

Homebuyers often face a difficult tradeoff when it comes to settling on a neighborhood. Should they opt for the convenience, fine housing and sense of community found in an older city neighborhood or choose instead the natural beauty and recreation possibilities of a country retreat? Welcome to one lucky corner of Rochester where residents enjoy both. The Culver-Winton-Main neighborhood offers classic urban charm within easy walking distance of a delightful 80-acre wilderness preserve.

Mature trees shade the tidy streets here, lined with fine older homes built mostly between 1910 and 1930 when trolley cars and buses extended the distance people could easily commute to the city center. A few older farmhouses and the city's only cobblestone house (circa 1840) stand as reminders of an earlier chapter in the neighborhood's history, when farms and nurseries covered the area.

Today, the 10-by-16-block northeast neighborhood is a stable, largely owner-occupied community well served by businesses and the city alike. The city's most popular branch library is located at 611 North Winton Road and long-established eateries abound. Rizzi's and Remington's anchor the major intersection of Merchant's Road and Akron Street, not to mention Captain Jim's, voted the "Best Fish Fry in Town", and the Winfield Grill and Calabougie Sound on North Winton Road. Mayer's Hardware provides home repair needs, while gas stations and car repair garages take care of vehicles. Close to downtown, two full-service supermarkets, and the I-590 expressway, the neighborhood is ideally located.

But what makes this neighborhood so remarkable is that all this convenience adjoins a wonderful wilderness area -- Tryon Park. Perhaps the best kept secret in Rochester, this wooded oasis is tucked away at the east end of the dead end street aptly named Tryon Park. No signs mark its entrance, only a yellow metal gate across the road, but behind this inauspicious barrier are miles of trails up and down the steep hillsides. In autumn, the leaves are a riot of color and in winter the ridge tops offer panoramic views of the reedy wetlands at the southern tip of Irondequoit Bay. Despite its low-key presence, the area has long been a favorite destination spot for hikers and birders from surrounding counties and, in recent years, it challenging paths have become a mountain biking Mecca.

The area is fortunate to be served by two community associations. Northeast Area Development (N.E.A.D.) acts as a larger umbrella group for neighborhoods in the area. They offer members a variety of services, including Neighborhood Watch, a quarterly newsletter and an extensive collection of small and large tools in their Tool Library. Check them out on the web at www.nead.cc or call 482-7320.

Also active in the area is the North Winton Village Association, which works to enhance the commercial artery of Winton Road and surrounding residential streets. See North Winton Village on this site.