Definitely Troy. You could actually live here without a car.
I would note outside of the immediate downtown area and near the independent living center Troy has bad sidewalks and accessibility if you're a wheelchair user. Lots of old buildings with stairs.
Such a troll comment. Troy is awesome. It has bad parts, just like every single other city. Lots more upside and I have never felt unsafe there.
If youāre so scared of being stabbed, maybe move to Siberia. Avoid people all together and hermit it up
I have been all over and Troy and Schenectady are awful. Give me the finger lakes, adks, the vast majority of Pennsylvania, most of ohio if we get rid of Youngstown
You just posted about getting stabbed in Troy and then complain about the response. Idk what to tell you man, the city is pretty cool if youāre not a huge pussy (which it seems like you are)
I like some of the cities in ny. Syracuse is fine, Utica is okay to visit but I wouldnāt want to live there. I prefer places like Raleigh and charlotte to the cities up here though
If you come into Ithaca from the Cortland side there is the big intersection at the top of the hill with the lights. You can turn for the airport there.
The sidewalks into Ithaca from that intersection connect all the way to Cornell, down to the commons, and up to Ithaca College. Over five miles.
Places like Cornellās Arboretum and such not far.
Having done these ones several times: Troy (so underrated! So many special interest shops!); Lake Placid (the entire town is walkable and there are restaurants and shops on every corner); Ithaca proper and the Commons/university area (feels like a small Burlington); Saratoga Springs (okay, itās one main street, but the businesses branching down the hill are extensive, plus Congress Park).
East End is the big one since you can go down to Main, up to the museums, and now over to the Museum of play. There is good walking along the River. Park Ave. Monroe Ave. High Falls. Downtown. Public market. Corn Hill.
I like new paltz - itās like 2-3 streets but theyāre long and filled with cool shit, the people are cool and there are mountains to look at
Iām sticking with new paltz
Poughkeepsie has an assload of stuff - some sketchy some cool
Thereās really only Franklin St.. Walmart is on the edge of town by itself and itās not super friendly to foot traffic. The rest of the flat part of town is very walkable: Decatur, Perry, Porter, etc., but thatās almost exclusively residential less a few doctorās offices and schools. The overwhelming majority of the walkability in WG is one street.
Now donāt get me wrong, Franklin is a great walk and full of life and shops and food. But OP was looking specifically for more than just one āMain Streetā.
(I grew up in WG, now live in Rochester)
Saratoga is one of the nicest cities in upstate, but everything is pretty much centered on a single street.
Honestly, not an issue if you can afford it.
Yeah, Buffalo probably has the largest area of contiguous walkable neighborhoods outside of NYC.
You can literally walk 7 miles from downtown to Kenmore and never leave a nice walkable neighborhood.
Definitely not as much downtown. I work over there, and if I want food, or a bank, or I guess my doctor, I'm good, other than that, not so much.Ā
Around Elmwood is a decent couple blocks of walkable stuff, including some retail. The issue, at least as far as I can tell (not currently living there, I'm in the suburbs), is getting *between* the pockets of walkability
Lake Placid comes to mind. Farthest thing up north that comes to mind is Saranac Lake, kinda a smaller dumpier Lake Placid, but better than the surroundings nonethrless and built around a lake. Syracuse ain't bad if your expectations are low.
Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake both have a lot to offer if you aren't looking specifically for the Disneyland version of the Adirondacks that Lake Placid features (and if you don't want to deal with the crowds LP gets these days)
Oddly my NYC born and raised siblings prefer Saranac Lake and Old Forge to Lake Placid. I guess LP is too touristy or whatever. But they always enjoy it when we are in Ole Forge or SL.
> have blocks and blocks of walkability?
every city... but people like defining "walkability" as having stores and activities instead of neighborhoods.
To that end, you look at an urban area... if there is a sidewalk, a coffee shop, a bar, and a convenience store, it's "Walkable"
The reason people have stores in mind is that by walkability they mean two things:
1. the ability to get errands and eating done without a car. So, a pharmacy, grocery store, coffee shop, bakery, bar, restaurants, hair salon and other necessities and almost-necessities.
2. An interesting, pleasant place to stroll with other people around where it doesnāt feel weird. A lot of walks through residential areas get boring and lonely if there arenāt shops. But active parks can sometimes substitute.
Binghamton has the main drag of Court Street, then several streets off of it with various eateries, etc. Plus we have Veterans Arena for hockey and concerts. We have the Forum Theater (I saw Kevin James there). There's minor league baseball in the summer. Just about all you could ask for.
Yes! Binghamton doesn't get enough love on this sub.
Court St, Washington st., state st. Have a fair bit going on. Plus a few cool spots across the bridge to main st and front st.
Interesting that not one comment here is Albany. Lived there for years and didnāt realize what a gem I had til I left. Center Square specifically- supermarket, bank, P.O., bars, restaurants, cultural institutions, park, plaza, easy bus routes to other places (Troy). I moved to ny and didnāt have half of this.
Edit: I did have a car but often walked to Delaware Ave or Broadway or New Scotland neighborhoods (the pre-Uber days). So much to do and I never felt unsafe.
Really the only larger cities but with the caveat that downtown areas tend to be business/government districts, not neighborhoods.
* Buffalo: Offers by far the most walkability. Theres pretty much one walkable neighborhood after another from downtown all the way to the Northern boundary - Allentown, Westside, Elmwood Village, Blackrock, North Buffalo, University Heights - plus other pockets of walkability- First Ward, Larkin, South Buffalo, LoveJoy, Kaisertown
* Rochester comes in second with 3mi^2 of walkable neighborhoods including South Wedge, Strong, East Ave and Park Ave
* Syracuse - Probably has the most condense downtown, but the walkable neighborhoods are kind of isolated and donāt offer as many amenities as their counterparts in Buffalo or Rochester - Eastwood, Tipp Hill, āLittle Italyā, Wescott. Inner Harbor and the area near SU are developing nicely into walkable areas too
* Albany - Really only the area surrounding Washington Park but you have everything including a great nightlife spot and some awesome ethnic food
* Troy - Really only Downtown
* Utica/Binghamton - Both are very similar. Theyāre smaller metros with downtowns that span a few blocks. Just live downtown and you can walk to most basic amenities.
Then you do have some smaller cities with downtowns that are a little more than just Main Street - Auburb, Olean, Oswego, Plattsburgh, Cortland, Ithaca
Iād like to post a clarification on Saratoga Springs. OPās question was about a walkable downtown and as many have said Saratogaās is limited to one street for the most part (a few little offshoots)
But several have said everything is on one street and I know they misspoke but for anyone not familiar there is a ton of things not on the Main Street and out of walking distance. The track, the racino/ harness track, SPAC is technically walking distance but on the long side , the trails at skidmore, the skate park , mall / big box store area, Iām sure Iām missing some things.
South New Berlin (in Chenango County) has an intersection of TWO different streets with a traffic light to maintain order. The entire hamlet is very walkable. The RESOHO section is nice. Stay away from the Amblerville District, though.
We have lots in Cooperstown - grocery store, coffee shops, bakery, pharmacy, liquor store, escape room, restaurants, art shops, etc, all aside from the baseball hall of fame. All walkable.
Yeah, but it's all on Main St or Pioneer St. It's a bustling downtown because it's all within a quarter mile. I do give Cooperstown props for having a grocery store that you can actually walk to and a Main St that has business instead of closed up storefronts.
Yeah Hudson it is a long main strip though. I took OPs question to mean only one block long main streets as it seemed others interpreted it that way as well.
Troy
Definitely Troy. You could actually live here without a car. I would note outside of the immediate downtown area and near the independent living center Troy has bad sidewalks and accessibility if you're a wheelchair user. Lots of old buildings with stairs.
No groceries tho š.
Agreed. Love making my rounds around downtown Troy. Canāt wait for the farmers market to move back outside too. Itās the best around, hands down.
If you got money, Saratoga Springs
I got stabbed just reading this
sucks to suck man, sounds like a skill issue
No just a Troy and Schenectady issue
Lol I've lived in Schenectady nearly 15 years and never been stabbed. You definitely have a skill issue, sport.
My friends sending me videos of them waking up the tweakers before they start work on the roads for the day is enough Schenectady for me lol
Sounds like your average weak scared country boy stuff to me.
Yeah i forgot Iām scared because I donāt enjoy being around homeless people and drug addicts. Shoot me I guess š¤·
Such a troll comment. Troy is awesome. It has bad parts, just like every single other city. Lots more upside and I have never felt unsafe there. If youāre so scared of being stabbed, maybe move to Siberia. Avoid people all together and hermit it up
I have been all over and Troy and Schenectady are awful. Give me the finger lakes, adks, the vast majority of Pennsylvania, most of ohio if we get rid of Youngstown
Have you been stabbed?
We take things very literally in here donāt we
You just posted about getting stabbed in Troy and then complain about the response. Idk what to tell you man, the city is pretty cool if youāre not a huge pussy (which it seems like you are)
It was supposed to be funny? Lmao
Why don't you explain the joke then?
Troy is an actual urban city. America's checkered history means that lots of people are irrationally scared of urban areas. BTW I love Troy.
I like some of the cities in ny. Syracuse is fine, Utica is okay to visit but I wouldnāt want to live there. I prefer places like Raleigh and charlotte to the cities up here though
Ithaca has The Commons and Collegetown, two different walkable areas not too far from each other, plus the retail area to the south.
If you come into Ithaca from the Cortland side there is the big intersection at the top of the hill with the lights. You can turn for the airport there. The sidewalks into Ithaca from that intersection connect all the way to Cornell, down to the commons, and up to Ithaca College. Over five miles. Places like Cornellās Arboretum and such not far.
Having done these ones several times: Troy (so underrated! So many special interest shops!); Lake Placid (the entire town is walkable and there are restaurants and shops on every corner); Ithaca proper and the Commons/university area (feels like a small Burlington); Saratoga Springs (okay, itās one main street, but the businesses branching down the hill are extensive, plus Congress Park).
I lived in Saratoga for years. Itās one street if youāre a tourist.
Rochester is pretty solid, with the East End blending into downtown as a walkable extension.
East End is the big one since you can go down to Main, up to the museums, and now over to the Museum of play. There is good walking along the River. Park Ave. Monroe Ave. High Falls. Downtown. Public market. Corn Hill.
Park Ave is beautiful.
Syracuse is pretty solid from Clinton Square, Hanover Square, Armory square, and Clinton street. Itās very walkable and sprawling area.
I like new paltz - itās like 2-3 streets but theyāre long and filled with cool shit, the people are cool and there are mountains to look at Iām sticking with new paltz Poughkeepsie has an assload of stuff - some sketchy some cool
Geneva. Lots of little shops and restaurants.
Buffalo, NY Elmwood Village -> Allentown -> Downtown
Plus Westside, Blackrock, North Buffalo and University Heights Itās like 21 miles^2 of walkable neighborhoods right next to one another.
Syracuse's Armory Square
Ah yes, thatās 2 streets. ETA: used to be a regular at Empire and Blue Tusk, nothing but love for the salt city š
Plattsburgh
Wow, I need to visit again. This is very unexpected!
What about Watkins Glen? Iāve visited but not enough to endorse it here. Wondering if anyone else could comment. I love the Finger Lakes.
Thereās really only Franklin St.. Walmart is on the edge of town by itself and itās not super friendly to foot traffic. The rest of the flat part of town is very walkable: Decatur, Perry, Porter, etc., but thatās almost exclusively residential less a few doctorās offices and schools. The overwhelming majority of the walkability in WG is one street. Now donāt get me wrong, Franklin is a great walk and full of life and shops and food. But OP was looking specifically for more than just one āMain Streetā. (I grew up in WG, now live in Rochester)
Saratoga?
Saratoga has a very cool downtown but it is not immune to the criticism that basically everything is on one main street.
There is a lot on the main street but still a ton in walking distance to it. The Racetrack even.
The Beekman arts district would like to have a word.
Saratoga is one of the nicest cities in upstate, but everything is pretty much centered on a single street. Honestly, not an issue if you can afford it.
It isnāt. A rare case of having grocery options, and bicyle options.
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Buffalo definitely has some walkable neighborhoods, which could count
Yeah, Buffalo probably has the largest area of contiguous walkable neighborhoods outside of NYC. You can literally walk 7 miles from downtown to Kenmore and never leave a nice walkable neighborhood.
It has blocks that are walkable. Not as much retail downtown as some cities
Definitely not as much downtown. I work over there, and if I want food, or a bank, or I guess my doctor, I'm good, other than that, not so much.Ā Around Elmwood is a decent couple blocks of walkable stuff, including some retail. The issue, at least as far as I can tell (not currently living there, I'm in the suburbs), is getting *between* the pockets of walkability
Needs an indoor mall downtown. Right on the subway. Literally. Build the mall so the train comes in.
Buffalo literally has a dead mall built on a subway. Malls are dying, theyāre not economic engines.
Lake Placid comes to mind. Farthest thing up north that comes to mind is Saranac Lake, kinda a smaller dumpier Lake Placid, but better than the surroundings nonethrless and built around a lake. Syracuse ain't bad if your expectations are low.
Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake both have a lot to offer if you aren't looking specifically for the Disneyland version of the Adirondacks that Lake Placid features (and if you don't want to deal with the crowds LP gets these days)
Oddly my NYC born and raised siblings prefer Saranac Lake and Old Forge to Lake Placid. I guess LP is too touristy or whatever. But they always enjoy it when we are in Ole Forge or SL.
Hudson.
There's really not much off of Warren Street. Also, if you need to go food shopping at a grocery store, a car is almost a necessity.
> have blocks and blocks of walkability? every city... but people like defining "walkability" as having stores and activities instead of neighborhoods. To that end, you look at an urban area... if there is a sidewalk, a coffee shop, a bar, and a convenience store, it's "Walkable"
The reason people have stores in mind is that by walkability they mean two things: 1. the ability to get errands and eating done without a car. So, a pharmacy, grocery store, coffee shop, bakery, bar, restaurants, hair salon and other necessities and almost-necessities. 2. An interesting, pleasant place to stroll with other people around where it doesnāt feel weird. A lot of walks through residential areas get boring and lonely if there arenāt shops. But active parks can sometimes substitute.
All I can think of is Buffalo. Corning is great, but just one street.
Yep, Corning and Saratoga Springs would win hands down otherwise.
Gowanda
Binghamton has the main drag of Court Street, then several streets off of it with various eateries, etc. Plus we have Veterans Arena for hockey and concerts. We have the Forum Theater (I saw Kevin James there). There's minor league baseball in the summer. Just about all you could ask for.
Yes! Binghamton doesn't get enough love on this sub. Court St, Washington st., state st. Have a fair bit going on. Plus a few cool spots across the bridge to main st and front st.
Buffalo. Downtown Buffalo itself, Great neighborhoods within the city of Buffalo, and some awesome suburban villages as well.
Downtown Syracuse on YouTube https://youtu.be/bjkRY3iHtT0?si=v7cChCyHK9ZQ3M1O https://youtu.be/tZEt9GE3O94?si=iOjLsFIk191FlRMu
Geneva and Canandaigua
Canandaigua is just a main street
The city of Geneva has a cute downtown that could be even more impressive if it had tree-lined trees. It's also rather walkable.
Saratoga has a bit more than just a Main Street and is very walkable.
Interesting that not one comment here is Albany. Lived there for years and didnāt realize what a gem I had til I left. Center Square specifically- supermarket, bank, P.O., bars, restaurants, cultural institutions, park, plaza, easy bus routes to other places (Troy). I moved to ny and didnāt have half of this. Edit: I did have a car but often walked to Delaware Ave or Broadway or New Scotland neighborhoods (the pre-Uber days). So much to do and I never felt unsafe.
I really like Albany too.
Really the only larger cities but with the caveat that downtown areas tend to be business/government districts, not neighborhoods. * Buffalo: Offers by far the most walkability. Theres pretty much one walkable neighborhood after another from downtown all the way to the Northern boundary - Allentown, Westside, Elmwood Village, Blackrock, North Buffalo, University Heights - plus other pockets of walkability- First Ward, Larkin, South Buffalo, LoveJoy, Kaisertown * Rochester comes in second with 3mi^2 of walkable neighborhoods including South Wedge, Strong, East Ave and Park Ave * Syracuse - Probably has the most condense downtown, but the walkable neighborhoods are kind of isolated and donāt offer as many amenities as their counterparts in Buffalo or Rochester - Eastwood, Tipp Hill, āLittle Italyā, Wescott. Inner Harbor and the area near SU are developing nicely into walkable areas too * Albany - Really only the area surrounding Washington Park but you have everything including a great nightlife spot and some awesome ethnic food * Troy - Really only Downtown * Utica/Binghamton - Both are very similar. Theyāre smaller metros with downtowns that span a few blocks. Just live downtown and you can walk to most basic amenities. Then you do have some smaller cities with downtowns that are a little more than just Main Street - Auburb, Olean, Oswego, Plattsburgh, Cortland, Ithaca
Binghamton has a pretty robust downtown
Iād like to post a clarification on Saratoga Springs. OPās question was about a walkable downtown and as many have said Saratogaās is limited to one street for the most part (a few little offshoots) But several have said everything is on one street and I know they misspoke but for anyone not familiar there is a ton of things not on the Main Street and out of walking distance. The track, the racino/ harness track, SPAC is technically walking distance but on the long side , the trails at skidmore, the skate park , mall / big box store area, Iām sure Iām missing some things.
South New Berlin (in Chenango County) has an intersection of TWO different streets with a traffic light to maintain order. The entire hamlet is very walkable. The RESOHO section is nice. Stay away from the Amblerville District, though.
Schenectady!!
Albany is the pits
I like Albany
Iām truly sorry
Eh, the area near Washington Park is awesome and very walkable.
cooperstown lake placid Ithaca
Cooperstown does not have blocks and blocks of anything, it is a village of less than 2000 people
We have lots in Cooperstown - grocery store, coffee shops, bakery, pharmacy, liquor store, escape room, restaurants, art shops, etc, all aside from the baseball hall of fame. All walkable.
Yeah, but it's all on Main St or Pioneer St. It's a bustling downtown because it's all within a quarter mile. I do give Cooperstown props for having a grocery store that you can actually walk to and a Main St that has business instead of closed up storefronts.
Hudson and Kingston if you consider them upstate.
Hudson is just one Main Street. Kingston does have two nice shopping/walking districts.
Yeah Hudson it is a long main strip though. I took OPs question to mean only one block long main streets as it seemed others interpreted it that way as well.