Opinion

Rebuilding a Stronger Springfield

We all will remember where we were on June 1, 2011. Without a great deal of warning, an EF-3 tornado with winds of more than 160 miles per hour descended from the sky and tore a 6.2-mile path through Springfield, leaving behind a trail of damage unprecedented in the city’s history.
This devastation immediately impacted 40% of city residents and resulted in more than 350 city residents having to live in temporary shelter at the MassMutual Center, over 600 structures damaged, and 150,000 cubic yards of tree debris to be cleared from public ways.
While that was a truly historic event, what happened following the tornado was equally as significant. Neighbors helping neighbors, businesses helping businesses, our first responders and those assisting us from across the state, city employees and our federal and state partners responding in a swift and compassionate fashion demonstrated the true character of our city.
As we approach the one-year anniversary, we look back at what has been accomplished since that day. Beyond the crucial 24/7 emergency response that happened in the days and weeks after the tornado — homeless families being re-housed, streets being cleared and reopened, power being restored in 72 hours — it was clear that the community was going to need to work together on a plan to rebuild Springfield, and not just rebuild what was lost, but rebuild a stronger Springfield.
It was important to me that our entire community be represented in this process, and with that, the partnership of the Springfield Redevelopment Authority and DevelopSpringfield was established to help lead the process, truly making this a public-private partnership. To further ensure participation, the Rebuild Springfield Advisory Committee was formed, comprised of representatives from a wide spectrum of impacted residents, businesses, and organizations interested in the rebuild phase.
What followed was a phased planning process in each of the neighborhoods affected by the tornado, a process that, when completed, involved the participation of more than 3,000 city residents — the largest community planning process in the city’s history. It was inspiring to see the numbers of people taking time out of their days to come and bring their concerns, ideas, and input on how to make Springfield a better place.
And this didn’t mean the rebuilding was on hold. We saw people in their own lives rebuilding and doing it bigger and better. Since June 1, 2011, we’ve seen more than $22.5 million worth of rebuilding in the tornado-impacted areas. People are reinvesting in their community, and see the opportunity we have in Springfield. We saw more than 80 businesses that had either short-term closures due to power loss or long term disruption due to damage, rebuild, reopen, and our community has come back to support them. The city rebuilt and reopened while still planning for its future.
So we now have the completion of a grassroots plan — available at www.developspringfield.com — that does not sit on a shelf. Rather it becomes a living document, one that is led by our domain and district Leaders through DevelopSpringfield for implementation, including the hundreds of volunteers who indicated they wanted to be part of the implementation on a whole host of topics.
I couldn’t be more thankful for our business community through the recovery and planning process. Knowing the quality of our companies in Springfield, I know we can fully expect a similar wave of support as we enter into the important phase of implementation and rebuilding.
Institutions like MassMutual — which not only donated significant staff time to the process and emergency response resources, but also made a generous $1.6 million contribution toward rebuilding our city — have been nothing short of heroic.
Experiencing a tornado here at home is something we in Springfield never expected would have happened, but the silver lining in what has happened since that day, the work the community has done in helping each other and in planning for our future, has been truly inspiring.
The city will continue the rebuilding process in an effective, constructive, and compassionate manner and will fight tooth and nail to ensure we received every reimbursable dime that we are entitled to.

Domenic Sarno is mayor of Springfield.