Good Question: What’s the plan for the former concession stand at Ontario Beach Park?

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — What is the plan for the former concession stand at Ontario Beach Park?

The concession building, tucked between the Roger Robach Community Center and the Battle of the Bulge Memorial at Ontario Beach Park, has raised some questions and some ideas. Monroe County leaders are getting the public’s input on plans for the old concession stand.

“We want this to be a destination for the entire year for folks down here at Charlotte Beach,” said Monroe County Parks Director Patrick Meredith.

Sean writes:  “I regularly walk at Charlotte Beach and I haven’t seen the concession building open whenever I’m there.”

At one point, a commercial vendor sold coffee and hot food here. When that vendor moved out, Monroe County took over the building and served things like chips, soda, and light snacks until 2019. The pandemic hit in 2020 and the building has been empty and closed ever since.

“Knowing we want to invest tens of thousands of dollars here, we want the money to be used wisely, and again, something that will have a year round effect,” Meredith said.

The county is asking for your thoughts through a community-wide survey. If you visit Ontario Beach Park and walk by the concession building, you’ll see banners with a QR code. Click that QR code and it will take you to the website where you can let Monroe County know what you’d like to see this building become.

You can also take an online survey here. So far, there have been more than 3,400 responses to that survey.

Among the options are another concession stand, an outdoor education center, a restaurant with indoor dining, and a warming shelter for the synthetic ice rink. There’s also a space to write-in your own ideas.

“We are looking for a use that will be good for all year round, not just the summer time,” Meredith said

It will stay open through the first week of August, so you still have time if you want to share your ideas. The county says it will announce a new use for the building in the fall based on the results.

If you have a question you’d like answered, send us an email to GoodQuestion@whec.com.