Page 52 - BusinessWest December 8, 2025

An architect’s rendering of the planned chapel at the
Veterans’ Home, which, like many facilities there, will feature
large windows and sprawling views of the surrounding area.
Veterans
Continued on page 50 >>
will host large gatherings
such as holiday activities and
Super Bowl watch parties,
he said, noting that it will be
equipped with a 90-inch television.
Tour de Force
As BusinessWest toured the second floor of the new facility and a
30-unit memory care unit under construction there, we were direct-
ed to one of the 12- by 16-foot resident rooms, complete with a large
window, spacious bath and shower area, space where a 55-inch tele-
vision will go, built-in storage and shelving units, a desk, and other
accommodations.
As the tour continued, Tim Senecal, general supervisor with
Commodore Walsh Holyoke, a joint venture comprised of Com-
modore Builders LLC and Walsh Brothers Inc., referenced com-
mon den areas with huge windows and sweeping views of the
surrounding area, the facility’s chapel, administrative space, and
the location that will become the great room.
“The higher you go, the better the views get, obviously,” said
Senecal, who talked as he walked — about everything from those
views to the many challenges involved with construction, from
excavating for the foundation to the brickwork, made more dif-
ficult by the curved nature of the structure, to the Goshen stone
retaining wall.
Some of the building’s design elements were borrowed from
the new Veterans’ Home at Chelsea, a smaller facility (154 beds)
that opened last year, said Lazo, adding that the overall design is
distinct, with input from the staff at the current home.
As noted earlier, the first residents will not move into the new
home until next September; the first group of 24 will be moved
from the fourth floor of the current facility to the third floor of the
new one. After that, if all goes well, veterans will move in roughly 20
at a time, with the memory care residents being the last to move.
Lazo said his goal is to have all residents moved by February 2027.
That 16-month period will be the most challenging for the staff
members at the facility because they will be managing two facili-
ties at the same time, he added, noting that final project completion,
including the demolition of the current home, is slated for mid-2028.
As he talked about that teardown and the logistical challenges
it will present, Lazo joked that it’s likely that several staff members
wouldn’t mind helping with that effort and send the tired, tragedy-
scarred property into history.
But that will also be a sad time, he said, noting that several gen-
erations from the same families, including his own, lived and died in
that home.
The new home, born in many ways from that tragedy of nearly
six years ago, will no doubt create its own memories and its own
history.
But right now, it’s creating excitement for the next chapter in the
story of this fabled property — and with good reason. BW
“The higher you
go, the better
the views get,
obviously.”
Local Business Insurance
“Rush is always there for us. They work to find us the
most competitive rates, and they are very responsive
to our calls. No matter what happens, they are there
for us throughout the process every step of the way.”
– Kay Simpson, President & CEO, Springfield Museums
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