High Falls Rises Again for Flower Fest
Buddhahood performs at the High Falls District for the 2026 Rochester Flower Fest celebration.
There are many places in the city of Rochester with cultural importance, but Brown’s Race in the High Falls district might arguably be the most significant. Take a walk through the neighborhood, and you will find two century-old brick buildings rising above the Genesee River, adjacent to a vast waterfall. The High Falls district is one of those rare places where Rochester’s past is still visible in the architecture, streetscape, and the sound of water raging across a misty sky.
Long ago, Brown’s Race helped to power the city’s earliest industrial growth. At that time, water flowed from High Falls to mills and factories that shaped Rochester into one of the first U.S. boomtowns, and gave the city the moniker, “Flour City”. For as long as I have lived in Rochester, Brown’s Race and the High Falls district have felt left behind. Sure, there have been shops in the neighborhood, and even housing developments, but something about the energy felt lost. While this has been the case for some years, a recent change has occurred, and for the first time in a while, you can feel the momentum of a revitalizing neighborhood.
Crowds of Flower Fest attendees visit popup art shops selling festival and Flower City themed merchandise to commemorate the event at the Brown’s Race District in High Falls.
In the past couple of years, there has been a significant investment in reconnecting the city with High Falls. The recent rehabilitation of the Pont de Rennes Bridge has also helped to give new life to the area once again. The bridge is no longer a simple walkway over the gorge, but was recently implemented as a gathering space for the first Rochester Flower Fest.
Hosted on June 6, Flower Fest was a celebration of the 50th anniversary of Rochester’s iconic city logo. However, for those of us who attended, it became a celebration of a historic space with new life. In my view, it became a reminder of what happens when the city gives one of its most historic spaces the attention it deserves, and crowds turn out to embrace the experience. For the first time since I have lived here, the district felt alive in a way that many of us have longed to witness.
Flower Fest featured food truck eats from local food vendors Melt, Mr. Squeeze Lemonade, Taco Dero, Dar’s Delights, G & D Hots, 4 the FUN’nel of It, and Rochester Kettle Corn.
Families, friends, vendors, and visitors alike filled the neighborhoods walkable streets, danced to live reggae bands, devoured food truck bites, imbibed on cold libations, and took photos of downtown Rochester, a beautiful sunset, and the roaring High Falls waterfall. From across the Pont de Rennes Bridge, the sound of music resonated throughout the district, giving the historic neighborhood new life. Numerous food trucks sold delicious offerings, while local craft vendors sold flower city-themed artwork, apparel, and handcrafted goods. During Flower Fest, I tried Melt food truck, and shamelessly, I now grab their delicious grilled sandwiches and sidewinder fries any chance I get.
All in all, Flower Fest was a success, mainly because the event gave people a reason to rediscover a district that seemed long forgotten, save for a few residential buildings and a handful of small businesses. At the end of the night, people gathered on the Pont de Rennes Bridge and turned their eyes toward the night sky to see a drone show over High Falls. It was thrilling to see and hear the historic district resonate to the sounds of applause of the lightshow. Flower Fest offered a hopeful image of the city’s future, especially when paired with the knowledge that a new state park is in the works to benefit the community.
Thousands of spectators gather on the Pont de Rennes Bridge in High Falls to catch the end of the night Flower Fest Drone Show.
For more than two centuries, Brown’s Race has carried the story of Rochester development into one of the first boomtowns before the rise of major corporations like Kodak, Bausch and Lomb, and Xerox, and even now, after years of disinvestment. On the night of Flower Fest, for the first time in a long time, you could feel the renewed sense of possibility permeate the crowd. This is what made Flower Fest a special event. It was a magnificent moment to witness crowds turn out to spend time at an iconic landmark that deserves to be seen over and over again. For now, it was a pleasure to behold the High Falls district thriving once again for Rochester’s Flower Fest.
