Thursday’s Downtown vendors battle with hottest day of the year

(ABC 6 News) – Thursday reached the hottest temperatures of the year so far, but it didn’t keep people from enjoying Thursday’s Downtown in Rochester.

Brave souls battled the hot and stick weather with the help of a cool breeze, and extra shade.

The Rochester Downtown Alliance worked to provide more seats in the shade and additional tents and umbrellas for people attending. They also welcomed vendors to leave early if their employees were feeling exhausted from the heat.

Cafe Steam owner Will Forsman, is one of the fortunate vendors as his business is only a block and a half away from First Avenue to offer an alternative option if people don’t want to get their drinks in the heat.

“This is one of those great events where if you are encountering heat-related stress, you do have some iced beverages from a number of different vendors from the downtown area.” said Forsman. “If you’re not feeling like attending the event and braving the heat in the outdoors, a lot of businesses have indoor space that are welcomed to make available for people who are trying to get inside. So the a/c is cranked and we’re hoping to provide some relief.”

And his employees are also getting an easier shift

“We’re increasing rotations so every few hours were making sure people get inside, get some a/c, get some cold water, increasing levels of communications, so that if anyone feels the levels of heat stress, we’re making sure everyone is being taken care of,” said Forsman.

If people didn’t want to cool off in a downtown business, the library was an alternative option only a few blocks away.

“We have that prime location downtown so being able to wander down from the Thursday’s event from anything going on. We’re on the bus routes. So being able to get down here nice and easy, free parking on the weekends as well. We’re just here for you to come and use that space,” said Jeremiah Baumann, Head of Marketing and Community Engagement at Rochester Public Library.

With the library, downtown businesses like Cafe Steam, and additional shaded spaces, there was plenty of space to keep people cool during the hottest day of the year.