Public Conduct in Rochester, NY (2026)
6 verified public conduct rules for Rochester, New York, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Aggressive Panhandling
Rochester bans soliciting money 'in an aggressive manner' in any public place, plus flat bans on soliciting within 20 feet of ATMs and banks, in bus shelters, parking garages, skyways or from vehicle occupants. A first conviction draws a $25 to $250 fine; a second within a year can add up to 15 days in jail.
Rochester Aggressive Panhandling Ban
Significant RestrictionsCode of the City of Rochester § 44-4(C), (D), (E), (F), (G), (H), (I)
No person shall solicit in an aggressive manner in a public place. No person shall solicit within 20 feet of an automated teller machine or an entrance or exit of an automated teller machine facility during the time the automated teller machine is available for customers' use; or within 20 feet of an entrance or exit to a banking organization or a licensed casher of checks during its business h...
Skateboarding Rules
Rochester lets riders over 12 skateboard on sidewalks, bike lanes, cycle tracks or multi-use trails, but bans it in named Center City locations like the Liberty Pole area, the Convention Center plaza and City parking garages, and requires yielding to pedestrians everywhere.
Rochester Skateboard Rules and No-Ride Zones
Some RestrictionsCode of the City of Rochester § 34-4(C)
Prohibited areas for in-line skating and skateboarding. In-line skating and skateboarding are prohibited in the following areas: (1) In parks within the Center City District, not including Roc City Skatepark. (2) In the Liberty Pole area bordered by the east facade of the Sibley Building, East Main Street and Franklin Street. (3) On the ramps, steps and plaza in front of and adjacent to the Roc...
Loitering Rules
Rochester has no citywide loitering ordinance, but § 111-123 bans loitering or sleeping on or about the premises of any city parking garage. It's a narrow rule dating to 1957, and because it isn't a parking violation, it's punished under the chapter's general penalty, not the parking fine schedule.
Rochester Loitering Ban in City Parking Garages
Significant RestrictionsRochester City Code § 111-123
No person shall loiter or sleep on or about the premises of any parking garage as defined in this article.
Outdoor Smoking Restrictions
Rochester bans smoking outright in every city park under City Code § 79-6, and separately bars it within 100 feet of a public library's entrance, exit or outdoor area under § 69-9. Both rules cover ordinary cigarettes, cigars and pipes; the library buffer exempts residential property boundaries, but the park ban has no such carve-out.
Rochester NY Bans Smoking in Parks, Near Libraries
Heavy RestrictionsRochester City Code § 79-6
Smoking shall not be permitted, and no person shall smoke in a park.
Jaywalking
Pedestrians must use a marked crosswalk in Rochester's Central Traffic District, any business district, or on a main artery or through street. Elsewhere, crossing off a crosswalk is allowed but must go straight across at right angles or by the shortest path to the far curb.
Rochester Crosswalk Rule: Downtown Bars Mid-Block Crossing
Light RestrictionsRochester City Code § 111-65
Pedestrians shall not cross the roadway other than on a crosswalk in the Central Traffic District, in any business district or on a main artery of travel or through street. Every pedestrian crossing any other roadway at a point other than a crosswalk shall cross by a route at right angles to the curb or by the shortest route to the opposite curb.
Public Alcohol Use
Rochester bans drinking alcohol and carrying an open, uncapped alcoholic beverage with intent to drink it in any public place, from streets and sidewalks to parks and parking lots. A conviction draws a $25 to $250 fine, with up to 15 days jail possible on a second offense within a year.
Rochester Open Container & Public Drinking Ban
Significant RestrictionsCode of the City of Rochester § 44-9(B), (C), (E)(1), (G)
Consumption prohibited. No person shall consume any alcoholic beverage in a public place. Possession prohibited. No person shall possess an open container of any alcoholic beverage in a public place with the intent to consume the beverage in a public place. ... Possession by a person of an open container of an alcoholic beverage in a public place shall create a rebuttable presumption that such ...
Looking for Monroe County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Rochester city rules.
Public Conduct in Monroe County →