Archive
by Maureen Gazda | Mar 22, 2016 | Archive, Articles
Whether it’s hanging a decorative painting on the wall, arranging a vase of spring tulips on the kitchen table or simply placing a welcome sign on the front door, these trademark aspects of having a place to call home are often taken for granted. This fall, a handful...
by Hunter Styles | Oct 2, 2015 | MGM Springfield Casino coverage, News, On Springfield, Uncategorized
If there is a silver lining to MGM Springfield’s construction delays, it may be that casino execs have had some extra time to check the books on this $800+ million project. And it’s a good thing they did. Due to budgetary concerns, the company has just announced that...
by Heather Brandon | Sep 30, 2006 | Urban Compass
George O’Brien wrote an article for the June 12 issue of BusinessWest about developments along Springfield’s State Street corridor. The story is that rare breed of news article that takes a close look at the design considerations, with a nod to the process...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 2, 2006 | Urban Compass
Springfield City Hall has posted the ULI panel’s final presentation (PDF) online. NPR affiliate station WFCR’s Tina Antolini covered the ULI panel’s visit all week, collecting hours of audio footage. Antolini deftly condensed the report into a scant...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 2, 2006 | Urban Compass
The Springfield Finance Control Board recently released its September 27 quarterly report (PDF). Its next meeting is slated for Friday, October 20, 11:00 am in room 220 at City Hall. So much fire-putting-out has been done by the FCB, I wonder why they don’t wear...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 3, 2006 | Urban Compass
The entire Urban Land Institute presentation about Springfield merits close study and discussion. Of pressing interest is Barry Elbasani’s section on downtown, in which the short- and mid-term recommended projects were unveiled, along with what might be termed...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 3, 2006 | Urban Compass
At a meeting last night, Springfield City Council approved a measure, by an eight-to-one vote, to "seek approval from the state Legislature" to change the way the council is elected, making "the first major change in the form of government here since...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 3, 2006 | Urban Compass
Amherst-based blogger Tom Devine has posted his take on the recent Urban Land Institute panel presentation, with some colorful commentary about questions that arose about Springfield’s Union Station.
by Heather Brandon | Oct 3, 2006 | Urban Compass
The works of systems-dyamics thinker Dr. Jay W. Forrester recently crossed my path, synchronously with a recent piece by Civic Strategies consultant Otis White about an innovative way to shut down drug-dealing. Forrester, whose 1969 book, Urban Dynamics, promoted his...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 4, 2006 | Urban Compass
At last Friday’s Urban Land Institute panel presentation in Springfield, Elizabeth Davison, director of Montgomery County Department of Housing and Community Affairs, capped off the formalities in a portion of the final report about implementing plans. The first...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 5, 2006 | Urban Compass
Amherst, Massachusetts is taking a look at its comprehensive master planning process. What can sometimes feel like a dry, drawn-out, no-quick-results experience is being jazzed up by rainbow colors on the town Web site. Last night, the western Massachusetts support...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 6, 2006 | Urban Compass
As the school year approached, and summer wound down, I found myself avoiding calls from a particular family. I was wracked with guilt about this. I avoided the calls because I knew what they were about, and I was frustrated, even angry, in the anticipation. My...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 10, 2006 | Urban Compass
Connecticut public radio station WNPR’s weekday morning show, “Where We Live,” featured an excellent two-parter about the city of Bridgeport last month. It’s called “A Tale of Two Connecticuts: Part 1” and “Part 2.” From...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 12, 2006 | Urban Compass
Springfield resident, registered nurse and real estate broker Mary Ayala attended the Urban Land Institute panel’s presentation on Friday, September 29. She raised an issue during the question-and-answer session about the concern many property owners have in the...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 13, 2006 | Urban Compass
I’ve been working for a few weeks now with a class at a local elementary school, under the tutelage of the school’s writing instructor, to create a published project generated by the students. The form the project takes will likely be something in print...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 13, 2006 | Urban Compass
At the ULI panel’s presentation last month, Patrick Fox, president of Saint Consulting Group in Hingham, Massachusetts, offered the shortest segment about establishing accountability in Springfield. Offering a single visual elementa slide listing eight...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 13, 2006 | Urban Compass
At last month’s ULI panel presentation, Alvin McNeal, Senior VP for Planning and Development at Fraser Forbes Company in McLean, Virginia, spoke about adopting new development strategies in Springfield. “In reviewing the most successful cities,”...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 13, 2006 | Urban Compass
At the ULI panel’s presentation last month, Ray Kuniansky, Chief Operating Officer for the Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership, spoke about how to “strengthen the present” and “plan for the future.” He began by praising...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 17, 2006 | Urban Compass
At last month’s ULI panel presentation, Jeff Kaplan, an associate with Wulfe & Co. in Houston, Texas, addressed the matter of Springfield’s image and potential for reinventionwith focus on its culture, its economy, and its government. He began...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 17, 2006 | Urban Compass
A former neighbor of mine moved out of his multi-family house this year, opting to rent it instead. He didn’t move far, and he comes back from time to time to check on the place. The tenants have changed several times over the two years I’ve been here to...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 17, 2006 | Urban Compass
I admit that my jaw dropped when I read today’s news alert in the Springfield Republican about the dismissal of all charges against racketeering and bribery defendant Peter Davis. Of 13 defendants, Davis was the only one to allow his case to go to trial. The...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 18, 2006 | Urban Compass
Reader Tom Eisenman shared with me an article in the September issue of New Urban News, laying out an argument that tall, vertical objects along streets, like trees and buildings, are deterrents for car crashesin contrast to the frequent input of...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 19, 2006 | Urban Compass
The type of housing crisis Massachusetts may be experiencing right now is distinct from the crisis Springfield is likewise enduring in particular. In most places around the state, affordable housing can be hard to find. People who can’t afford better housing may...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 19, 2006 | Urban Compass
No, this post isn’t about how people can strategize a means to move out of Springfield. It’s about the idea that Springfield might need (and continue) to strategize ways to get out of its own services or subsidies. Civic Strategies consultant Otis White,...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 19, 2006 | Urban Compass
The view down Springfield’s Harrison Street from Chestnut, standing approximately right in front of the local package store. Looks like the naked tree at center got the memo on looking as bleak as possible. Photo by Heather Brandon According to the...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 19, 2006 | Urban Compass
When a bunch of biotech executives visited the Pioneer Valley on Tuesday this week, looking into possibly locating some business resources in the area, including Springfield, one of themNina Corcoran of Cambridge-based Genzymewas quoted by Springfield...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 20, 2006 | Urban Compass
No one’s eliminated the Massachusetts Turnpike tolls just yet, but the turnpike authority did vote yesterday to end tolls west of Route 128. According to the report in the Boston Globe late yesterday, a bit of a perfect storm was brewing just as Governor Mitt...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 20, 2006 | Urban Compass
Bill Dusty of The Rogue Review, based in Springfield, posted photos yesterday of symptoms of bulk-trash-dumping in two city spots. The photos were taken at the prominent intersection of Maple and Central Streets, along a row of beautiful yet sadly neglected...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 23, 2006 | Urban Compass
Jim Madigan, host of WGBY’s "The State We’re In," interviewed Chambers of Commerce President Russell Denver and Springfield’s Chief Development Officer David Panagore for a 30-minute show that aired October 13, "Urban Land Study:...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 23, 2006 | Urban Compass
If you’re a reader of this blogor a creator or consumer of any citizen journalism projectthe J-Lab at the University of Maryland would like to hear from you.
by Heather Brandon | Oct 23, 2006 | Urban Compass
A recent study from the University of California, "Linguistic Life Expectancies: Immigrant Language Retention in Southern California" (PDF), reveals that Spanish-speaking immigrants adopt English very quickly.According to Zach Patton of Governing.com’s...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 24, 2006 | Urban Compass
In a recent article about Springfield Mayor Charles Ryan’s visit to a civic association meeting, The Reminder’s G. Michael Dobbs quoted Ryan as saying, "by being citizens of the city, ‘we perform an act of faith every day.’"Amen to...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 25, 2006 | Urban Compass
Buzz about the new Fresh Acres store at the intersection of Wilbraham Avenue and Parker Street got me to arrive at the store’s doorstep a day after it opened. The Springfield Republican primed the pump in an October 18 business-section article just a day before...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 25, 2006 | Urban Compass
The Springfield School Committee apparently voted last week to cancel school on Wednesday, November 22, which was previously scheduled to be a half-day. This news comes from a small blurb in today’s Springfield Republican: Springfield school canceled for Nov. 22...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 25, 2006 | Urban Compass
The Bethesda Lutheran Church on Island Pond Road suffered a horrendous fire in its sanctuary on Sunday afternoon. CBS3 has been all over it, with on-the-scene coverage of the fire as it was being extinguished, follow-up coverage on the day after, and another story...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 26, 2006 | Urban Compass
An article appeared in today’s Springfield Republican, by Azell Murphy Cavaan, about efforts on the part of the city (read: Finance Control Board) to seek proposals from real estate and marketing companies to analyze and market several high-profile properties...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 26, 2006 | Urban Compass
Northampton-based The Performance Project, which creates and performs "high quality original works of theater and movement with men and women in jail, and those who have been released from jail," is slated to take the stage of the Esther B. Griswold Theatre...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 27, 2006 | Urban Compass
The Boston Road Business Association (membership: $75 annually) which links businesses both in Springfield and Wilbraham, with benefits, is inviting the public to nominate the best businesses along Boston Road, in a number of categories. Winners will be lauded at the...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 27, 2006 | Urban Compass
An article in yesterday’s New Haven Independent, by Melissa Bailey, chronicles a "confab" yesterday monring at the New Haven Chamber of Commerce about regionalism and "smart growth," joining state-office candidates in a forum hosted by the...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 27, 2006 | Urban Compass
On MassLive.com’s Springfield discussion forum, poster "NoPol" initiated a thread (27818) positing that the city ought to "institute a serious crackdown on illegal apartment conversions," and enabling "legitimate renters to get a fair...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 30, 2006 | Urban Compass
The latest CommonWealth magazine includes an article, "A tale of two Valleys," by Amherst-based writer Melissa DaPonte Katz. From the article:Not surprisingly, many of the area’s cultural and recreational offerings are concentrated in the Upper Valley....
by Heather Brandon | Oct 30, 2006 | Urban Compass
One recent evening, around dinner time, I was putting away warm-weather clothes for storage, taking note of how dark it had gotten outside at an early hour. I head a jiggling of the doorknob at the front door, and assumed it was my husband coming home from his job. I...
by Heather Brandon | Oct 31, 2006 | Urban Compass
Trying to turn over a new leafwe’re not just about strip clubs, you knowthe new Springfield downtown dining district consists of six restaurants so far.The one-page Web site for the district, which is mainly a gateway to the six restaurants’...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 1, 2006 | Urban Compass
Springfield City Hall will soon be receiving, as early as yesterday afternoon, a DVD of videotaped footage of last month’s Urban Land Institute panel presentation, including both the formal portion as well as the Q&A that followed.The DVD was being copied...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 2, 2006 | Urban Compass
Celebrate the Springfield mayor’s recent announcement about Main Street upgrades"landscaping, street furniture, lighting and resurfacing pavement and sidewalks along Main Street from Lyman to Union streets," as well as $1.3 million set aside for...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 2, 2006 | Urban Compass
The Republican’s Mike Plaisance published an article today highlighting how Springfield City Council member Kateri Walsh is going to cause heads to roll when (and if) she becomes president of the council, as she anticipates. The council presidentcurrently...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 3, 2006 | Urban Compass
Receiving my trash fee bill in the mail yesterday was an exciting moment. I cheerfully opened the envelope to discover what awaited, prepared to do my civic duty and just pay the damn thing, tax or no tax, legal or not, properly budgeted or not. To my dismay, however,...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 3, 2006 | Urban Compass
The Springfield central library branch, with the co-sponsorship of Friends of the Springfield Library, is hosting an all-day used book sale tomorrow, Saturday November 4, from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, with refreshments. (Food is always a draw, is it not?) The event...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 3, 2006 | Urban Compass
The Boston Globe’s Mac Daniel reports today that the state-appointed, 13-member Transportation Finance Commission "urged the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority and [Governor Mitt] Romney administration to slow plans to abolish tolls on the turnpike west of...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 6, 2006 | Urban Compass
by Heather Brandon | Nov 6, 2006 | Urban Compass
WFCR’s Field Notes host/producer Laurie Sanders aired a report this morning about a visit with Springfield’s chief forester, Ed Casey, to discuss the status of the city’s trees. From the piece:Two years ago, Springfield became the first community in...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 6, 2006 | Urban Compass
If you happen to be looking for a "nail-biting drama" tonight, consider dropping by the Springfield central library branch at 6:00 pm for an election-eve showing of the award-winning 2005 documentary, Anytown, USA. The film chronicles a tight mayoral race in...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 7, 2006 | Urban Compass
This just in, from a resident of Springfield’s six-story McIntosh building, at the corner of Worthington and Chestnut Streets downtown:There are five units in my building going out for bid in a couple weeks. The minimum bid is around $50,000 (I paid way more),...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 8, 2006 | Urban Compass
A while after I had stopped grumbling to myself about it, walking by it every day while taking my kids to school, the signage that folks constructed last spring on the storefront at 196-206 Dickinson Street in Forest Park finally came down yesterday. I documented the...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 8, 2006 | Urban Compass
The Boston Globe predicted yesterday that election day turnout across Massachusetts would break records for any gubernatorial race in history. Today, the Globe offers up a Flash-based interactive map showing how precincts across the state voted for governor.Closer to...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 9, 2006 | Urban Compass
Longmeadow filmmaker Scott Kittredge’s most recent short film, Terminal Conversation, which was shot on location in Springfield’s former Basketball Hall of Fame, is being screened at the Northamption Independent Film Festival, which opens today and runs...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 9, 2006 | Urban Compass
The urban planning, design and development Web site Planetizen announced this week that it is partnering with Smart City Radio to produce a monthly audio segment offering up "summary and analysis of the most interesting and intriguing planning-related stories...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 10, 2006 | Urban Compass
Election day yielded some ripple effects for leadership in Massachusetts citiesfor example, the pending decision of Worcester Mayor Tim Murray, lieutenant governor-elect, on whether or not to remain in local office; and the decision of Springfield City Councilor...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 10, 2006 | Urban Compass
To help Deval Patrick adjust to the governorship, the Massachusetts chapter of the American Planning Association, together with three other agencies, sent him (as well as the other three candidates, prior to the election) a brief October white paper (PDF) called,...
by Heather Brandon | Nov 10, 2006 | Urban Compass
Springfield’s Bill Dusty, who maintains the New England Rogue Journal, expanded yesterday to host a brand new, regional blogger-welcoming forum. Dusty also posted yesterday the first part of a series, "A Springfield Story." From the piece:[B]ecause so...