Mayor Domenic J. Sarno and the Development Services Division announced today the advancement of the Court Square Urban Renewal Plan amendment to the City Council. The City Council has scheduled a public hearing to discuss the proposed plan amendment for Monday, August 22, 2022 at 7:00 p.m., at City Hall.
The proposed amendment makes the Court Square Urban Renewal Plan Area the largest in the City, totaling 192 acres covering most of the City’s downtown, which features a majority of Western Massachusetts most important cultural, business, and civic venues. The proposed amendment seeks to include the land area east of Chestnut Street bordered by Lyman Street, Spring Street and Pearl Street. This area of the City has suffered for decades from the economic impacts of deindustrialization and in 2012 was the area of a significant gas explosion.
“Throughout the pandemic Springfield has kept its eye on the future and has been steadfast in positioning itself to be ready to respond to future economic development opportunities. This major plan amendment positions the City well in responding to developer interest an investment throughout the downtown. It also identifies the priorities for future public infrastructure investments to enhance pedestrian activity and enliven the streetscape – ‘we will continue to visionary,’” said Mayor Sarno.
The plan amendment is the culmination of three years of intensive urban planning in the area, which included both the Main Street Convention Center Master Plan, the Northeast Downtown District Plan and significant public meetings and ongoing input from the Community Advisory Committee for the plan. The Court Square Urban Renewal Plan has been the guiding planning document for some of the most significant development in downtown Springfield. Some of the larger projects guided by the plan include: the original Springfield Civic Center now the Mass Mutual Center, the original Baystate West now Tower Square, the Springfield Institution for Savings Building now the TD North Building, the Monarch Place Building, Union Station, MGM and 31 Elm Street.
“The significant scale of development, investment and opportunity that the Court Square Urban Renewal Plan has shaped over its history is remarkable. This Plan Amendment seeks to build on this impressive legacy by identifying new areas of the downtown for redevelopment and furthering adaptive reuse and infill development around anchor properties in the downtown,” said Chief Development Officer Tim Sheehan.
The plan elevates the significance of many historic buildings within the plan area by calling out preservation and adaptive reuse as priorities of the plan. The plan also prioritizes ground floor activation and stresses the significance of pedestrian focused public infrastructure related to anticipated development.
“This is a pro-active plan, in that it is based on unified planning for the entire geographic area, rather than a particular development project or specific site. As such upon approval, it will be the Springfield Redevelopment Authority’s blue book in guiding development in the area over the next 28 years.” Said Armando Feliciano Chairman of the Springfield Redevelopment Authority.
Additional details relative to the plan amendment and copies of the two planning documents referenced above can be found by visiting www.springfield-ma.gov/sra/sra/urban-renewal-plans/court-square-urban-renewal-plan.