Springfield
Springfield is poised to capitalize on these contemporary trends. It is a city that has not yet fully realized the importance and potential of its beautiful downtown area that is filled with buildings of immense architectural significance. It is a city of neighborhoods that lend themselves to urban revitalization and, eventually, gentrification. It is unfortunate that in the depressed eras of the 70’s through the 80’s so many cities destroyed their architectural heritage by demolishing buildings and replacing them with cold, impersonal office buildings. One of our collaborators observed that Springfield is a city of neglect, but in her neglect is her salvation. The architectural beauty of Springfield, the large stock of unused buildings, the depressed real estate values combine to offer a platform for the re-building of the city – without demolishing one piece of property. Instead, we are suggesting that the city take advantage of its fundamental beauty and attributes to attract exactly those people who will contribute to its emergence as a central urban destination in western New England. The city has no competition in this claim to fame. Indeed, the region is waiting for Springfield to embrace its destiny as a regional cultural capital.
Investment in Springfield’s future is a matter of individual and public vision. There is great potential for a developer who recognizes the importance of cultural development to take a leadership role in the renewal of downtown Springfield. The first step would be to purchase and renovate some strategic buildings on Main Street which have been identified as ideal to develop into mixed use facilities for performing and visual arts. By mixed use, we mean properties that will provide gallery space, artist workspace and living space. Samuel D. Plotkin and Associates has taken an active role recently to see that we can bring about potential change in Springfield and are presently working with a number of people who share the same vision. It is our hope that such development will plant the seed of tomorrow’s Springfield.
Several venerable arts institutions are located in Springfield. A city with a population of 156,000 has a symphony, a Symphony Hall, a museum quadrangle, the Mass Mutual Center for the Performing Arts, and a historically significant library. In downtown, the Worthington Street entertainment district, which was more robust in the 1990’s, still has several nightclubs offering live entertainment on weekends. The well established traditional art venues in Springfield constitute a framework that can easily be filled in with street-level arts activities.
There are few noteworthy restaurants downtown, no art galleries, no movie theaters. The absence of these sorts of amenities may be a result of Springfield’s origins as an industrial city. But the industrial period is over. Manufacturing jobs will never return to the abandoned factories near downtown. And without an infrastructure of human capital based on creative energy, Springfield will remain unable to capitalize on its intrinsic beauty and emerge as the regional leader in the New Economy in western New England.
The Hippodrome, a historically significant theater with seating for 2,400 people, currenty functions as a nightclub with sporadic bookings for national acts. The Hippodrome and the Paramount building, present a prime opportunity for development of an arts district in the northern end of the City – and provide balance with the arts institutions in the Quadrangle, or central area of Springfield. Establishing the Paramount block as a desirable location in Springfield is important because it will help develop a footpath between what are now two distinct areas of town. Foot traffic eventually can build visibility and viability for businesses along Main Street and contribute to the perception (and reality) of Springfield as a walkable city.
Who We Are
Creative Capital Springfield was organized by a group of people determined to contribute to the revitalization of Springfield. We see in Springfield a sleeping beauty waiting for a kiss – an infusion of energy that will wake up a place that has languished for too long on the banks of the Connecticut River. We are motivated by a love for a City filled with beauty, charm, historical significance and deep potential. We have been studying the ways that other sleeping cities woke themselves up by taking advantage of their strenghts to become vital again. We believe the neighborhoods of downtown Springfield offer great opportunities to attract creative capital – new economy workers and artists who need large, beautiful, affordable living and work spaces.
We invite you to talk with us, share ideas, follow our progress and join the party!
Sincerely, Ann Black, Linda McInerney and Evan Plotkin