Page 12 - BusinessWest April 18, 2022

Editorial
An Important Step Forward
BusinessWest
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It’s easy to understand why members of the Springfield City Council were not happy with the way the recent request for $6.5 million in emergency funding for the
Court Square Development project came to them.
It arrived late and in the form of an ultimatum of sorts:
‘approve this additional expenditure immediately, or this impor- tant project will die.’ One of those officials involved with the now $64 million project hinted strongly that if the money was not approved, and quickly, the building would deteriorate and per- haps even collapse.
The 11th-hour request, which came on the heels of skyrock- eting construction costs that are impacting development proj- ects of all kinds across the country, should have come at the 10th hour or even the ninth. Those leading the project, which will bring 71 market-rate apartments, retail space, and a restaurant to downtown Springfield, knew costs were escalating and knew they would need additional assistance to keep the initiative on track.
They put the council on the spot, unnecessarily — so much so that a resolution was recently passed requiring the mayor’s office to give the council 30 days’ notice on any economic-devel- opment issue that needs council approval.
Fortunately, most members of the council put aside their concerns about how all this went down and did the right thing. They voted to approve the measure and enable the much-need- ed project to move forward.
There were some questions as to just how much this proj-
Editorial
It’s Time for Action
ect is needed, but the majority of the council could see how the importance of the initiative to the future of the city.
We’ve said it many times, and others have said it many times as well: one of the real keys moving forward is to balance the many people working downtown with those who actually call that area home.
This has been a formula for success in many cities, including Lowell, Worcester, Hartford, and many others, and it will be a key ingredient for Springfield moving forward, especially if current trends continue and there are fewer people actually coming to work each day in the city’s downtown.
In those other cities, a critical mass of people living in a downtown has spawned new service and hospitality businesses, which, in turn, have promoted more people to want to live in those areas, which, in turn, has prompted more businesses, which attract more people ... you get the idea.
The Court Square project, which has been talked about for decades, literally, and has come to fruition through a unique public-private partnership, isn’t the answer. But it’s part of the answer, just as MGM Springfield, a revitalized Tower Square and White Lion Brewing, the Springfield Thunderbirds, Union Sta- tion, new housing in the old Willys-Overland property on Chest- nut Street, and other developments are parts of the answer.
And that’s why it was so important for the council to look past the nature of this request and, as we said, do the right thing.
For Springfield, and the region, this was an important step forward. u
Very often, when we hear the phrase ‘feasibility study,’ there is cause for concern.
Like its close cousin, the ‘blue-ribbon panel,’ the ‘feasibility study’ is often used as a delaying tactic or a step taken to make it look like something is being done when, actually, nothing is being done. When in doubt, put a panel together to study something.
But the recent news that the Baker administration has told the state Trial Court there will be a study of the feasibili- ty and costs of building a new complex to replace the troubled Roderick L. Ireland Courthouse in downtown Springfield was cause for celebration.
That’s because, prior to that announcement, it seemed that the state was convinced that a new site could not be located and that the preferred course would be to try to clean and renovate a structure that has become a health con- cern of the tallest order.
Indeed, five people who worked at the courthouse have died of ALS, and the building has been linked to more 60 cancer diagnoses, according to a Trial Court-appointed Environmental Advi-
sory Committee for the Springfield court complex. What’s more, species of cancer- causing and toxic mold were recently found growing in the building’s ventila- tion system, its wall cavities, and random surfaces.
The phrase ‘sick building’ has gone out of use, for the most part, but this court complex, now nearly a half-century old, appears to be one very sick building that should be replaced and not simply renovated.
The announced feasibility study is a step in the right direction, but the state needs to do much more on this mat-
ter, and soon. Even under the very best of circumstances, a new courthouse is several years away. First, there’s the feasi- bility study, then the process of securing the funding from the Legislature, some- thing that will almost certainly have to be secured by the next governor because Baker is stepping down at the end of
this year. A site will have to be secured, then the new structure will have to be designed and built.
Add it all up, and it’s probably three or four years or more.
The state, which plans to undertake
air-quality and renovation work at the courthouse in June, needs to find a tem- porary solution, a bridge to a new court- house. While several offices have vacated the courthouse for other quarters, includ- ing the Hampden County district attor- ney’s offices and the Hampden Registry of Deeds, there are hundreds of employ- ees and perhaps more than 1,000 visitors to the building every day.
Their safety is being compromised, and something needs to be done, and very soon.
Meanwhile, a new courthouse could, and probably will, do more than just provide a safe workplace. It can also be a catalyst for growth and new development in the city’s central business district. The existing site could be redeveloped for one of many potential new uses, and a new facility might rejuvenate an undeveloped or underdeveloped area, such as the so- called ‘blast zone.’
Overall, the announced feasibility study is certainly promising news, but it needs to be followed up with a more complete plan of action for a problem that needs to be solved. v
12 APRIL 18, 2022
OPINION
BusinessWest