ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Starting Saturday, the East End entertainment district in Rochester will be blocked off to traffic and anyone under 21 after 10 p.m. on Saturdays.

“It’s going to be blocked off with gates. And at those gates, we’re going to have security that’s going to be enforcing that. You need to be 21 or over to enter that area,” said Capt. Greg Bello of the Rochester Police Department.

The blockade will stretch from Charlotte Street to Chapman Alley, and from Alexander Street to Union Street. It’s a collaboration between RPD, City Hall, and businesses in the area.

“Over the last few months, we’ve had a few different violent incidents that have occurred down in the east end of our district. And so as a response to that, we’ve looked at different ways that we can quell that violence,” Bello said.

Bello says the goal is to eliminate underage individuals from creating trouble in the area.

“Primarily the issue that’s popped up down there is that there’s a lot of people that have been congregating and loitering outside of the bars, restaurants and nightclubs without actually going in them. They’ve been just going down there and creating problems and creating trouble,” he said.

Businesses in the area are glad to see a change coming to their neighborhood.

“Obviously, we’re a 21-and-over place, as are many of these places. So in terms of patronage, I feel like it’s still within our group, of our demographic that is going to want to come down here and those that are under 21 kind of loitering, milling about and not really patrons in the spots. So, you know, it’s definitely an issue,” said Cameron Phelps of Daily Refresher on Alexander Street.

“As a business owner, you know, you get concerned with the levels of crime and the reports that you read about this downtown area. I don’t think it’s really as bad as everyone reads, but I think taking positive steps to prevent issues from happening before they happen is an important part of, you know, making things better,” said Kerry McCarthy-Szal of Rochester Pedal Tours.

The blockade will start at 10 p.m. on Saturday nights and run through about 3 a.m. until the area is cleared out. No large bags or backpacks will be allowed in the blocked off area.

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