Ideas

Hypergrowth market combined with a strong social safety net

Housing Ideas

Rethinking tax foreclosure auction

In November 2024 City of Rochester put almost 2,000 homes into tax foreclosure to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. Including homes of seniors on Social Security who had lived in those homes their entire lives, getting kicked out of their homes over a few thousand dollars in back taxes. Met one lady living on $1,100 social security. How is she going to pay thousands of dollars in taxes? She got to have food, pay high utility bills on a drafty house, pay for car, gas and insurance…how is she going to pay almost $500 per month payment plan for back taxes that city is offering?

Think about this… not only it makes life further difficult for struggling people and families, taking their home away makes them homeless, which makes the problem worse for the city. And taxpayers and city end up paying a lot more in the end.

We need to put a stop to this practice of blindly doing tax foreclosure and kicking struggling people out of their homes. Any foreclosure auction should be a rare exception than the norm.

Build 4,000 affordable units for ownership over 4 year to address the housing crisis

Homeownership in Rochester is shockingly low, just at 37.2%, while renters make up over 62.8%! We know that this level of high renter-ship leads to many issues. This includes properties being bought up by investors, increased rent, decline in maintenance, lower level of civic participation and general degradation of the neighborhoods. While a good mix of renters and homeownership is healthy, the current situation is hurting our renter residents and the city. We need more families to be able to own homes.

Modular and Panelized high-quality homes build on 3,000 city owned vacant lots.
Cost between $80K to $125K (Estimated monthly payment of $800 to $1,200)
No subsidies, no liability for the city. House sold at 10% margin thus generating revenue for the city. It is self-sustaining model.
Use of $150M revolving loan or bond. If state and federal loan or grants are available, we will use it, but the proposal is not dependent of any State or Federal money.
Give priority to existing city resident currently renting. Owners must live in the purchased home. Not eligible for renting. NOT to be sold to investors.
Impact of moving ~5% residents from rental to ownership, will increase rental vacancy rate, thus bringing the rent down!
10% margin on sale can be used to fund other city initiatives.

Focus on rehabbing and fixing the old housing stock

Rochester has thousands of old homes that need repair. Some abandoned, good number of them rental and a good number of them owner occupied. Instead of demolishing them, or giving struggling homeowners code violations, city should help fix and restore them.
Provide support to homeowners in need through avenues like low-interest loans and grants and assistance to ensure that the needed repairs are done, and families can afford to live in the homes.

Address Homelessness

Street homelessness is very solvable issue. There are many nonprofit organizations that are involved in it independently. Streamline and co-ordinate with these organizations. But more than that, also create couple of shelters equipped with drug related and mental health support. Goal should be to address the issues for long term.
Based on numbers impacted individuals and families, we need to address transitional homelessness by having housing options for immediate need and short-term need, while we work with individuals and families ensure long term stability.

40% property tax reduction over 4 years

Phased property tax reduction for owner occupied homes. 5% the 1st year, 8% the 2nd year, 12% the 3rd year,15% the 4th year.
The reduction can be funded through the growth initiative. The 1st and 2nd year reduction can be covered from sale of 4,000 housing program. The rest can be covered by increased revenue from, new tax base, tourism and the rest of the growth initiatives.

Revise zoning and cut red tape to create a faster and simpler process for development

Allow ADU, duplexes, triplexes, and townhomes in more neighborhoods so we can build affordable homes faster.
Ease up on parking space requirement. Stop forcing builders to create excess parking that drives up costs.
Create a 30-day target for permit approvals
Let builders use standard designs to skip red tape and break ground faster.
Allow mixed-use development (shops + housing) near transit and in vacant areas to bring life back to empty blocks.
Support and fast-track zoning revision efforts.

Public Safety Ideas

Drastic reduction in violent crime through targeted deterrence and smart deployment

Reallocate police resources from low-impact functions to violent crime suppression. Prioritize gun violence, car thefts and break-ins, and assaults.
End pretext traffic stops. Stop using minor violations like broken taillights or expired stickers to justify traffic stops. These erode trust and do nothing to prevent real crime.
Strategic police presence in high crime areas. Patrols focusing where shootings and violence are happening. This is targeted and smart protection.
Deploy blue light cameras in hot spots and expand use of drones and smart surveillance to detect and prevent criminal activity while protecting privacy and civil rights.
Expand mental health co-response units so police are not the only responders to non-violent crisis calls.
Make sure that every block in Rochester is well lit.
Use many smart tool available like drones, cameras, hotspot tech to help address the issue.

Rebuild the foundation of public safety

Crime cannot be reduced just by reacting. We need to prevent it by fixing the root causes. That means building trust, creating opportunity, and giving young people a path forward.

Community policing will ensure that the officers must walk beats, attend neighborhood meetings, and know the communities they serve. This rebuilds trust, encourages cooperation, and leads to safer neighborhoods.
Create youth jobs programs, mentorship pipelines, and partner with schools and rec centers to give young people better options than crime.
For our youngest teens who’ve gotten off track, make sure they get back into school. A different school that is structured, disciplined, and focused on turning lives around. We can’t keep losing our kids to the streets.

Focus on police responsibility and accountability

Every officer should wear a body camera, and footage of major incidents should be reviewed and released quickly.
Oversight in reviewing complaints, use of force, and misconduct. There should be an audit and investigation department.
Officers should be trained in de-escalation, mental health, cultural competency, and constitutional rights.

Education Ideas

Fixing our broken school system

RCSD spend is one of the highest in the state, but our schools rank near the bottom.

Leadership & Accountability

Align resources, cut waste, and deliver results.
Set aggressive, transparent goals for graduation rates, reading and math scores, and student attendance.
Demand accountability from the top down. No more excuses, no more bloated overhead. Every dollar must show the result.

Align school with the need of families

Advocate for school hours that better match working parents’ schedules.
Expand after-school and summer learning programs to keep kids engaged, safe, and learning year-round.
Invest in mental and social need issue.

Refocus on teaching and results

Reallocate resources toward classrooms, teachers, and direct student support, not bureaucracy.
Prioritize core skills: reading, writing, math.
Support our teachers, but also expect results.
Allow teachers to teach while social and mental health needs are addressed by trained professionals

Establish a City & University Education partnership to bring in RIT, U of R, Nazareth, and other local Universities to:

Support tutoring, STEM, and college readiness programs.
Help build a local teacher pipeline with real-world training.
Use research and data to drive smarter interventions.

Hypergrowth Ideas

Start large scale city run construction. Build workforce to develop housing

Make Rochester a tourist destination

In addition to small businesses, bring big company presence to Rochester

Eliminate red tape and make it easier for businesses to start and succeed

Bring people back to living in the City (city continues to lose people)

Bring a professional sports team to Rochester

Reform Ideas

Support a vote on term limits for city elected officials