Our river is a wild one. It is not like the bucolic green rivers of the Midwest or South. Surging through the center of our city, it roils and rushes headlong over a series of spectacular waterfalls and rapids. The retreat of the glaciers and the rush of water from our southern mountains, has—over time—carved out the stunning natural features of our gorge.
Row upon row of shale rock line the walls of the gorge's cliffs, echoing the many layers of our own history here. The Iroquuois and Seneca stood in primeval forests lining our river and wondered at their world. Pioneers built the first water-powered mills of industry. Modern industry almost destroyed our precious waters. And now, sensitive sustainable development will guid a new generation, eager to enjoy this great resource for decades to come.
We owe nothing less to this word-class site than to create a world-class design. The three main components of The GardenAerial plan are to:
1Create a stunning arboretum, floating high above the Genesee Gorge ON the Pont de Rennes bridge. An urban greenway. A new "garden in the sky."
2Construct a new, awe inspiring pedestrian bridge spanning the Falls itself, offering breathtaking views and a unique experience; allowing visitors to get "up close" with our wild river as it plunges almost 100' into the gorge below. The construction of this bridge would create a new 3/4 mile looped trail around the entire rim of the gorge.
3Build a new, environmentally friendly public "winter garden" on the east side of the gorge — a stunning new venue with a panoramic view of the falls and gorge.
Friends of the GardenAerial, a 501(c)(3) will eventually become the official Conservancy for The GardenAerial Project. We are now in the visioning and planning stage of our multi-year planning sequence and are looking for private seed funding to cover operational and professional services costs, creat promotional materials, produce awe-inspiring renderings and develop feasibility and economic studies—all of which is needed to successfully seek and procure funds from private, governmental and institutional entities. Join Us in helping connect the history and future of one of our greatest resources—the Great Gorge and Falls of the Genesee River in downtown Rochester.
Finally, in the tradition of our Native American ancestors, Friends of The GardenAerial would act as "stewards" of the entire High Falls Gorge and oversee the creation of a Master Plan. This stewardship and planning would ensure preservation of our natural history heritage while allowing environmentally sound reuse and sustainable development of the many built assets of the Gorge, including the RG&E BeeBee plant and its 28 associated acres.
Last Saturday we had our first friendraising (fundraising among friends) event at The Berkeley Salon. To those of you who could attend, thank you! A large thank you also goes out to Cecelia Horwitz and Floyd Tucker...Read More
Two nights ago, on Wednesday, March 7th, the Rochester Preservation Board approved an application to nominate 13 Cataract St. as a historic landmark.
While this decision has caused consternation for some, including Genesee Brewing, we at Friends of the GardenAerial think that... Read more
Copyright 2012 || Friends of the GardenAerial 81 Brown's Race, Rochester NY 14614 || 585.287.5555
