Credit: Dawn Sanborn
Key Insights
Eight key insights found:
- We are busy with family, work, and volunteer activities
- We value our time and invest it to support activities and interests
- We enjoy being outdoors and use our parks and trails system frequently
- Many feel Rochester lacks an adequate supply and variety of usable indoor space
- We find comfort in the company of our familiar social circles
- We are diverse, but are we truly being inclusive?
- We have an abundance of talent, and much to offer the community
- Many feel that Rochester is fragmented, and are unsure how to connect and engage
Coupling these eight insights, four interconnected and dichotomous themes emerged:
- The people of Rochester are busy with family and work, and time is valuable. Nonetheless, they invest their time to support activities and causes that enrich their community.
- The people of Rochester enjoy being outdoors and appreciate the many parks and trails available, both for individual use and for gathering with others. However, there is a sense that a variety of usable indoor space is lacking.
- Rochester is viewed as being very diverse, but there is some question whether it embraces that diversity or simply tolerates it. Rochester’s people find comfort in the company of their familiar circles, but is this at the expense of being inclusive?
- Rochester’s people have many talents to offer, from skills acquired through education and employment, as well as through passed-down traditions, yet they struggle to feel connected or that they “belong.”
