Rochester Councilmembers Call for Housing Priority in School Building Redevelopment

Three members of Rochester City Council are calling for the city to prioritize affordable housing opportunities when determining the future of former Rochester City School District buildings, following a divided vote over the proposed sale of two vacant school properties.

Rochester City Councilmembers Stanley Martin, Mary Lupien, and Chiara Smith

Councilmembers Mary Lupien, Stanley Martin, and Chiara Smith issued a joint statement after Council approved the sale of former School #20 to the Young Women's College Prep Charter School, while delaying approval of the proposed sale of former School #29 to the Rochester Academy of Science Charter School.

The School #29 proposal did not receive enough support to move forward and was instead tabled by City Council, leaving the building’s future unresolved.

The councilmembers said their opposition to the School #29 sale was rooted in concerns over Rochester’s growing housing crisis and the belief that the building could instead be redeveloped into housing for students and families experiencing instability.

According to the statement, School #29 received a viable housing proposal in addition to the charter school proposal, while School #20 did not receive any alternative redevelopment proposals.

The councilmembers argued that the city’s current request-for-proposals (RFP) process places greater emphasis on the speed of a sale rather than whether a property could address urgent community needs such as affordable housing.

“Rochester is facing a growing housing and affordability crisis,” the statement said, citing a reported 151% increase in student homelessness within the Rochester City School District in recent years.

Lupien said the decision surrounding School #29 was difficult because both proposals offered meaningful benefits to the community.

“Ultimately, I believe city-owned property should be used in ways that address our most urgent community needs, and right now housing is one of them,” Lupien said. “As we move forward we must reform the RFP process to ensure we prioritize housing from the beginning.”

Martin said the debate highlighted shortcomings in how the city evaluates redevelopment proposals for publicly owned land and buildings.

“Decisions around land use are some of the most important decisions Council has to make,” Martin said. “The existing RFP process does not prioritize housing. Recognizing that our city is experiencing a housing crisis, we must change the RFP criteria to ensure that proposals for affordable housing are prioritized.”

Smith said she intentionally remained quiet publicly during the debate in order to fully review the proposals and hear from residents on both sides of the issue.

“For me, this was never about which children deserve access to what school,” Smith said. “It was about the safety, stability, and care of students and families across the City of Rochester.”

Smith pointed to RCSD data showing a dramatic rise in unhoused students between the 2020-21 and 2023-24 school years, saying housing stability is directly connected to educational success.

The councilmembers said they plan to pursue changes to the city’s RFP criteria to ensure future sales of city-owned property place a greater emphasis on affordable housing, long-term community stability, and support for families.