With the rapid population growth predicted for Rochester over the coming years, DMC and other community leaders appreciate the need to channel days gone by and rekindle the sense of fellowship that existed among neighbors before smartphones and Wi-Fi became the norm.
In 2007, a group of Ithaca, New York residents started a local festival to bring back a sense of unity to their community and celebrate local musicians. They launched the first “Porchfest,” an event that partnered local musical talent with area homeowners who provided porches, decks, and lawns where the artists could perform. Since that first event ten years ago, similar events have sprung up in cities all around the nation.
Rochester’s first Porchfest took place in the Kutzky Park neighborhood last fall when 12 hosts invited local musicians to perform outside their homes. More than 300 people attended the city’s inaugural event, and organizers are looking forward to an even greater turnout for Porchfest 2017, scheduled for Saturday, September 16.