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High Falls-based Metro Falls Real Estate's 2022 Residential Plan Highlighted...(cover)
High Falls-based Metro Falls Real Estate’s 2022 Residential Plan Highlighted by Additional Housing Units in City and Suburbs
Todd Clicquennoi and team seek to differentiate their loft apartments as the market matures
When Todd Clicquennoi of Metro Falls Real Estate Services recently decided to upgrade and renovate his loft apartment building at 208 Mill Street in Rochester’s High Falls District, he didn’t track down any market research data or worry about demand. He didn’t have to. He and his wife Michelle had lived in one of the units for six months in 2020. He knew what was needed.
“It really was pretty enlightening on a day-in-day-out basis to see what did and didn’t work in our unit, and with that in mind we’ve developed a whole new packet of amenities and finishes that we’ll use both at 208 Mill and in the new units at Brown’s Race,” reported Clicquennoi.
Working with HUNT Engineers and Architects from their shared Gorsline office building atop the west side of the High Falls, Clicquennoi has raised the bar regarding kitchen treatments, closet space, guest bathrooms, and dramatic lighting.
Not satisfied with simply bringing new loft units into the downtown market, Clicquennoi insists that the downtown residential market has entered a new era.
Sandwiched between two turn-of-the-century, downtown Rochester commercial buildings undergoing their own modernization, the mid-century modern 44 Exchange Street is well-positioned besides the future home of Constellation Brands, a dramatically reimagined pedestrian friendly Broad Street Aqueduct, and within an easy stroll or pedal from Rochester’s Roc the Riverway assets.
A former commercial office building in Rochester’s legal center, 44 Exchange now boasts several floors of residential units with striking views and plans for a rooftop patio and garden.
“The original loft building, SmithGormley on St. Paul Street, is fifty years old, and the most recent era of converting industrial and commercial space to residential units began over twenty years ago with the Loftus Brothers in the Cascade District. We are at a point where there is so much product on the market that to stand out and succeed means being able to differentiate with services and ‘experiential’ amenities.”
Metro Falls and Clicquennoi are not simply historical renovators. In addition to their multiple High Falls units (with more enroute), Metro Falls also rents office space and residential units in their midcentury-modern, 44 Exchange Blvd. Building at State and Broad Street, and, just south of the Village of Honeoye Falls, their Pinebrooke 112unit, apartment complex wanders across twenty acres, with an additional 44 units being built.
208 Mill Street sat dormant for decades before Ben Kendig and Metro Falls renovated the historic High Falls District building in the early 2000s.
According to Clicquennoi, each site includes a different and exciting challenge. At High Falls, the units are oversized and offer potential renters a “classic” post-andbeam, loft aesthetic.
Above: 208 Mill Street. Right: Having lived their themselves, in 2021 Clicquennoi and his wife recognized and set out to upgrade 208 Mill (2022-23) to answer what residents now expect in a loft unit.
The challenge? Offering a streetlevel experience that includes robust dining and retail locations.
For its part, the 44 Exchange Building sits in the heart of the business district, directly across from the Blue Cross Arena, and cheek-and-jowl with the future home of Constellation Brands. Connecting to the river and canal will be much easier in coming years as the City of Rochester’s “Roc the Riverway” continues to get traction and the dramatic renovation of Broad Street moves forward.
If the cliché ’retail follows rooftops’ holds true, Clicquennoi thinks the downtown community will soon start to express itself more vibrantly. “Keep in mind we will soon have almost 10,000 downtown residents. There is more than enough pent-up demand in those units.”
Looking south to Pinebrooke and Honeoye Falls, Clicquennoi sees a similar need for a reimagined “Main Street.”
“With the intertwining of COVID and the burgeoning on-line shopping experience, it can be daunting at times to imagine which retailers will survive. I firmly believe that ultimately our residents in the city and in
Progressive planners at the City of Rochester and private developers, including several High Falls District owners and the Genesee Brewing Company, have put their shoulders to the wheel of highlighting the Falls as a tourist and recreational site.
the suburbs all desire a similar walkable community. I am very bullish about the new City of Rochester administration. Their early appointments include creative people who have been in the downtown and broader city mix for years. I’m sort of excited to see what the City and we can come up with together – likely things currently unknown. We are all going to have to think out of the box.”
About Metro Falls:
Metro Falls Development, LLC, specializes in giving new life to historical buildings and neighborhoods that reinvigorate living and working spaces through adaptive reuse. Our team is also highly experienced in the management of other local, regional and out-of-state properties, both residential and commercial.
High Falls Aerial
Based in Rochester’s historic High Falls neighborhood, the Metro Falls team is led by Todd Clicquennoi, a Rochester native and accomplished developer with decades of real estate, investment and construction experience. The properties in their portfolio appeal to those who appreciate upscale interiors and amenities in buildings with ties to local history—properties that preserve their visual integrity and stand the test of time through exceptional workmanship.
Above & Below: Metro Falls Center City Lofts and planned units at 60 Browns Race would stand on their own as spacious and modern lofts -- having a view of a waterfall, the Genesee River, and downtown Rochester doesn’t hurt…
Metro Fall’s Todd Clicquennoi’s mixed-use buildings and current renovation efforts exemplify what is occurring in mid-sized cities and their suburbs. The planned upgrades at the 208 Mill Street, 60 Brown’s Race, Center Lofts, and 44 Exchange buildings represent what a progressive developer both CAN and NEEDs to do in a mature market with 20+plus years of loft creation. As downtown Rochester continues to transition from an office park into a residential community, property owners like Metro Falls’ Todd Clicquennoi are differentiating themselves by providing modern amenities, street-level activity, and a community within their buildings.
Metro Falls has agreed to share their downtown and small town story and plans throughout 2022, and in a series of articles we plan on exploring and comparing loft units and their features;….how a family-run development firm can team with neighboring businesses and the municipality to create a vibrant street life in the age of on-line and virtual living;…and, the resident services and amenities that secure the tenancy of existing tenants and attracts new ones.
About HUNT-EAS
HUNT is a 150-person, full-service consulting and design firm headquartered in Horseheads NY with offices in Rochester and Towanda Pa. HUNT’s architects, engineers, surveyors, and landscape architects offer school districts, municipalities, state agencies, and industrial/commercial clients the following services: planning; programming; interior design; mechanical engineering; electrical engineering; storm drainage design; technology; control systems; facilities management information systems; structural design; land surveying; asbestos/lead abatement design; project management; furniture, fixture, and equipment selection; energy studies; construction administration; cost estimating and cost control; expediting agency approvals; transportation; water and wastewater.
Article by Michael Trapanovski, AIA & Sean Phelan, Associate AIA (HUNT Engineers & Architects)
