Empire State Development (ESD) today announced that Nazareth College has broken ground on a new $15.5 million Music Performance Center at its campus in Pittsford, Monroe County. The new venue will be named for the late Jane and Larry Glazer, a beloved couple well-known to the local community for their entrepreneurial spirit and significant efforts in helping to rebuild and revitalize downtown Rochester.
Empire State Development President, CEO & Commissioner Howard Zemsky said, “The new Music Performance Center will benefit the entire Finger Lakes region and the collaborative effort to bring it to fruition is a testament to how important public-private partnerships are to our communities. The Performance Center is also a very fitting way to honor the legacy of the Glazer family and their unwavering commitment to giving back to the Rochester community.”
An extension of the Nazareth College Arts Center, the new performance center will be engineered for a premier acoustic experience, specifically designed for the acoustics of large instrumental ensembles. The new center will also provide the potential for expanded academic and community programming and collaborations including with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO).
Nazareth College President Daan Braveman said, "We are grateful to the Regional Economic Development Council and its leadership for selecting Nazareth's new Jane and Laurence Glazer Music Performance Center as a priority project, and to the Governor and Empire State Development for awarding $1 million to advance the project. The Glazers enriched our community in so many ways and they appreciated the vibrancy music adds to the community. The Glazer Music Performance Center is a fitting tribute that will benefit current and future students as well as our greater Rochester community."
“Nazareth was a very special place for our parents, and our family thought that remembering them through music was a perfect way to honor their memory,” said Kenneth Glazer, son of Jane and Laurence Glazer. As a member of the Nazareth board, our mother Jane always supported the music programs at the College, and we know how important this building is to train future musicians as well as provide a place for the entire community to enjoy professional music.”
In order to encourage the project forward, ESD is providing a $1 million grant, which was awarded to Nazareth College at the recommendation of the Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council. In addition to many other private investments, the Glazers three children are also helping to fund the construction of the new music center.
FLREDC Co-Chairs, Monroe Community College President Anne Kress and Wegmans Food Markets CEO Danny Wegman said, FLREDC Co-Chairs, said, “The FLREDC is honored to support the Jane and Laurence Glazer Music Performance Center at Nazareth College. The venue will enhance student life, and will serve as a true asset for the entire community. This facility is a wonderful way to recognize the entrepreneurial vision of the Glazer’s and to say thank you for their tireless efforts which continue to make our community better place.”
Senator Rich Funke said, “Nazareth’s reputation for music is strong in the Rochester region, and providing this high-caliber performance space for current and future students is a wonderful way to attract and hopefully keep young talent in our area. I know Larry and Jane Glazer would be honored to have this center at Nazareth named after them, honoring the work they started to keep the Rochester region a vibrant center for the arts.”
The Center is expected to open in the spring 2018.
Accelerating Finger Lakes Forward
Today’s announcement complements “Finger Lakes Forward,” the region’s comprehensive blueprint to generate robust economic growth and community development. The State has already invested more than $3.4 billion in the region since 2012 to lay the groundwork for the plan – investing in key industries including photonics, agriculture and food production, and advanced manufacturing. Today, unemployment is down to the lowest levels since before the Great Recession; personal and corporate income taxes are down; and businesses are choosing places like Rochester, Batavia and Canandaigua as a destination to grow and invest in.
Now, the region is accelerating Finger Lakes Forward with a $500 million State investment through the Upstate Revitalization Initiative, announced by Governor Cuomo in December 2015. The State’s $500 million investment will incentivize private business to invest well over $2.5 billion – and the region’s plan, as submitted, projects up to 8,200 new jobs. More information is available here.
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