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Take a look inside the latest designs for a new High Falls State Park

WXXI News | By Brian Sharp
Published October 23, 2025 at 5:05 AM EDT
In this rendering showing an "island overlook" that is part of the proposed High Falls State Park, people gather at a railing or sit on a wide bench on an expansive wood-plank deck. The deck extends over the water near the edge of the island in the Genesee River a short distance north of High Falls that continues north under the Pont du Rennes pedestrian bridge.
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An "island overlook" near the base of High Falls, south of the Pont du Rennes pedestrian bridge, would provide visitors a close-up view of the 80-foot cascade.
Provided rendering / OLIN
A rendering of the "terrace overlook" in the proposed High Falls State Park shows people on a wood-plank deck at the top of the eastern gorge wall looking southwest with High Falls, the High Falls district and Kodak tower in the distance.
2 of 9  — HFSP_OLIN_Terrace Overlook Perspective.jpg
The "terrace overlook" in the proposed High Falls State Park, as shown in this rendering, would provide a view of High Falls looking southwest from the east side of the gorge. The overlook would be located at what is currently High Falls Terrace immediately south of the Genesee Brewery off St. Paul Street.
Provided rendering / OLIN
In this rendering, people walk along a zigzag walkway extending down the west wall of the Genesee River gorge. A wood wailing with cables extends along the outer edges of the walkway. The Pont du Rennes bridge is shown in the distance.
3 of 9  — HFSP_OLIN_Beebee Station Walk Perspective.jpg
What is labeled the "Beebee Station walk" in the proposed High Falls State Park would extend along the west wall of the Genesee River gorge north of the Pont du Rennes pedestrian bridge, overlooking the west lawn and playground
Provided rendering / OLIN
A woman with a stroller looks down a path toward an embankment with climbing rocks and a metal tube slide and other play features. The Running Track pedestrian bridge is seen overhead in the distance.
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The east playground, shown in this rendering, would be located on the west side of the Genesee River gorge between the Smith Street and Running Track pedestrian bridges.
Provided rendering / OLIN
The west lawn in the proposed High Falls State Park,in this rendering looking north, shows the smoke stack of the old city incinerator and Smith Street bridge in the distance. This would be on the west side of the river gorge in a recently remediated area at the base of the former Beebee Station just north of the Pont de Rennes pedestrian bridge.
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The west lawn in the proposed High Falls State Park, in this rendering looking north, shows the smoke stack of the old city incinerator and Smith Street bridge in the distance. This would be on the west side of the river gorge in a recently remediated area at the base of the former Beebee Station just north of the Pont de Rennes pedestrian bridge.
Provided rendering / OLIN
A rendering shows remnants of brick walls with large window openings partially enclosing a seating area amid large rocks and vegetation with the Pont du Rennes pedestrian bridge seen in the distance.
6 of 9  — HFSP_OLIN_Incinerator Plaza Perspective.jpg
A rendering shows remnants of brick walls with large window openings partially enclosing a seating area amid large rocks and vegetation with the Pont du Rennes pedestrian bridge seen in the distance.
The proposed High Falls State Park could include a plaza where the old city incinerator sits today at the base of the Smith Street bridge on the west side of the Genesee River gorge. The "Incinerator Plaza" name shown in this rendering is a placeholder but reflects the planners’ goal of incorporating old and new and maintaining some remnants of old industrial uses in the gorge. / OLIN
People walk in winter coats, and with bicycles over a wide, wood-plank bridge a few feet over the Genesee River in this rendering showing what is proposed for a new High Falls State Park. Educational placards are mounted on the wood railing providing descriptions of what visitors are seeing. The visible placard reads Rochester, New York, Northern Cardinal.
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The pedestrian bridge connecting the western and eastern sections of the proposed High Falls State Park would extend from beneath the Smith Street bridge on the west side, north to the eastern Genesee River bank.
Provided rendering / OLIN
People sit on a raised, wooden platform along the eastern bank of the Genesee River, down in the river gorge in this rendering of the "relic garden" that is part of the proposed High Falls State Park. The Smith Street bridge, a smoke stack and Kodak Tower are seen in the distance, along with the wooded eastern edge of the gorge.
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The proposed "relic garden" is shown in the planned High Falls State Park. The rendering is looking southwest toward the Smith Street bridge from the east bank of the river. The garden would be near a large "east lawn" and south of a woodland grove and a playground, with a nearby boardwalk-like pedestrian bridge connecting to the west riverbank.
Provided rendering / OLIN
A woman crouches, taking pictures of two children in the grass in this rendering of the woodland grove envisioned to be part of the proposed High Falls State Park. The grove would be on the east side of the river, north of the Smith Street bridge near the base of the Running Track foot bridge toward the northern edge of the park. It would be near a playground.
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A rendering of the woodland grove envisioned to be part of the proposed High Falls State Park. The grove would be on the east side of the river, north of the Smith Street bridge near the base of the Running Track foot bridge toward the northern edge of the park. It would be near a playground.
Provided rendering / OLIN

The vision for a proposed High Falls State Park is gaining focus.

Newly released renderings and an overall framework or plan show restored woodlands and meadows with scattered gathering and seating areas, playgrounds, overlooks and an elevated train trestle walk alongside the Genesee Brewhouse.

Construction should begin in late 2026 on the 40-acre ribbon-like stretch, down in and along the gorge, stretching 2.5 miles from the base of the falls along either side of the Genesee River.

“We're not going to try to wait until the entire park is open and say, ‘Come in.’ It's going to be done in phases,” Mayor Malik Evans said. “So as the first phase is done, people will be able to start coming down."

Work will begin in the immediate vicinity of the falls and proceed northward. The timetable will be driven by the remediation of old industrial sites, available funding and land acquisition. Some of the property is still held by the city, Rochester Gas & Electric and Bausch+Lomb.

“That's not going to stop the park from moving forward ... in terms of being open, (and) folks getting close to the falls to be able to touch that water,” Evans said.

Rochester Gas and Electric is overseeing the clean up of contamination related to a former manufactured gas plant site on the west bank of the Genesee River below the demolished Beebee Station.
Local News
From the archive: The massive environmental cleanup preparing the river gorge for High Falls State Park
Brian Sharp
The first of four major environmental cleanups is well underway in the Genesee River gorge.

The latest designs were gleaned from the past year of public and stakeholder meetings, and mailings to more than 4,000 addresses, soliciting community input, officials said.

The framework additionally shows a train trestle walk alongside the Genesee Brewhouse, a “river lounge,” nine access points, including two by vehicle. and a pedestrian bridge down in the gorge. There also is a proposed seating area labeled "Incinerator Plaza."

While Evans cast the name as more of a placeholder and a joke, there is significance. The gorge has seen a variety of industrial uses, the incinerator being one. The plaza would sit at the base of the smokestacks, with a rendering showing it edged on two sides by partial walls of the old building.

“It’ll be interesting to see what we actually name that. But why that's actually a big piece of it,” the mayor said, “is because you can see those stacks from any vantage point of the park. ... which is part of that history. And I like the part of keeping at least part of that old wall there, too, you know? The old with the new.”

Technical design should begin in the spring. New York state has so far committed $8 million toward the project, and it continues to solicit public input.

“This project will transform downtown Rochester by connecting people to the dramatic Genesee River gorge and celebrating its rich ecological, cultural and industrial history,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a prepared statement. “Creating safe and welcoming places to get offline and get outside is how we build healthier, more prosperous and more connected communities across our state.”

The work doesn’t end here. Evans also pointed to a new Maplewood Nature Center under construction farther north along the riverway. It's expected to open in April.

"You're going to have a great tie-in from the state park going right down to our nature center, and then vice versa,” he said. “It's perfect timing.”
Local News
Brian Sharp
Brian Sharp is WXXI's investigations and enterprise editor. He also reports on business and development in the area. He has been covering Rochester since 2005. His journalism career spans nearly three decades.
See stories by Brian Sharp