United Neighbors Together (Rochester, New York)

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The U.N.I.T. (United Neighbors Involved Together) and Barker Street Neighborhood points to its close proximity to the Erie Canal for its origin in the 1800's as homes and businesses built up around the long waterway of commerce. The Erie Canal still marks U.N.I.T.’s boundary on the west. One of the earliest names for the Neighborhood was “Basket Town.” Older residents remember nearby marshes filled with a plentiful collection of reeds that lent themselves to basket weaving.

Additional homes were adding during the post-World War II housing boom. Many descendants of the neighborhood’s original families stayed in the area, and it remains largely filled with homeowners. Today, the neighborhood is a mix of light industry and quiet residential streets. The neighborhood includes several quiet residential streets, family businesses and the City's Theodore Roosevelt School #43, an important neighborhood center.

Lyell Avenue itself forms a busy commercial border between U.N.I.T. and Lyell-Otis. In August, residents and business owners come together to celebrate their neighborhood, promote local businesses and build community with the Lyell Avenue Street Fair.