(Rochester, N.Y.) – Some people think it’s art. Others think it’s just plain ugly. A high-rise apartment building on Mt. Hope Avenue is drawing stares and plenty of opinions for its colorful new paint job.
“It's meant to be a signature. It's meant to evoke a response from people,” said Robert Boyd of the South Wedge Planning Committee.
Workers are almost finished putting up the multi-hued panels on The Hamilton, a 202-unit subsidized housing project.
There are no shortage of opinions about the new look, but there is one thing on which everyone agrees: People either love it or hate it.
“I can't believe it. Are you kidding me?” said Don Debrine. “I didn't think it was going to be blue, yellow, pink, gray, black. It’s terrible.”
“I actually like it. It kind of brightens up the scenery around here,” said Chris Webb.
“It's a little bit much. A little garish, I suppose,” said Kevin Reilly.
“I think the building is beautiful. It looks better than what they had before,” said Roseann Bremner.
“Once we saw the colors, we said, ‘Gee this is kind of nice.’ We really like the colors,” said Laura Trost.
“I think it's the ugliest building I’ve ever seen,” said Stacey Kilbury.
The Hamilton is also undergoing an interior renovation. Conifer Realty acquired the property a few years ago and tore down the low-rises next door to make way for townhouses and apartments. The $43 million project is called Erie Harbor.
“You took a gray monolithic, concrete structure that just looked like a big box, and you've added color and some excitement to it,” said Boyd. He said the color scheme has been used to dress up concrete 70s-era buildings in Eastern Europe.
Residents of the Hamilton don’t seem to mind the paint job.
“It's kind of awkward that they would put pink on it, but I guess that's to attract the females,” said Javonn Marion, who added the building is much cleaner and nicer under new ownership.
“I like it. It's nice. It's different,” said Charlise Lovett. “When I look at it, it puts a smile on my face.”
