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Date: 12/15/2022
SPRINGFIELD – A presentation took place on the evening of Dec. 1 by the request of Springfield’s downtown neighborhood council, the Armoury Quadrangle Civic Association for updates on the new Springfield parking garage by the MassMutual Center.
Chief of Operations & Capital Projects John Donahue for the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority (MCCA) stated, “The current design has a car park facility being created with sustainability initiatives, electric vehicle charging, solar panels on the roof, rainwater collection for possible future installations. We will also have retail space along Bruce Landon Way and the corners of Dwight Street in what we hope will be an enhancement for the neighborhood and to the community around as an inviting social atmosphere.”
He continued, “Our goal is to expedite as fast as we can the construction of the car park and simultaneously making the streetscape improvements. Creating a curbless street along Bruce Landon Way for a pedestrian-friendly walk and adding a lot of green to the tree line and area.”
Currently, the MCCA oversees five facilities. The Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, the Lawn on D Powered by Citizens Bank and the John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center, the Boston Common Garage, the MassMutual Center in Springfield and soon to be an additional property which is the new Convention Center Car Park. The Authority acquired the Convention Center Car Park in December of 2020 and began discussions with the city of Springfield on appropriate use of that location.
Donahue said, “The MassMutual Center provides both an arena and a convention center space for Western Massachusetts. Essential to that operation is the ability to park cars so the Authority thought it was an opportunity to improve the existing parking facility which was in desperate need of repair.”
In the spring of 2021, the Authority and in conjunction with the city of Springfield have a master plan for economic development on the way and began discussions about this project.
As discussions with the city develop and are still ongoing, Donahue told Reminder Publishing there was a surface lot that the city of Springfield has interest in and acquired that surface lot which is an adjacent parcel to the Convention Center Garage location and across the street from the MassMutual Center. In continued discussion, the authority showed interest to the city that if they were to acquire it, the authority may want to take control of that parcel and expand their plans beyond just creating a car parking facility with retail. The hope and the interest in the Authority’s plan is to create vitality to the neighborhood for their clients, the attendees and patrons of the MassMutual Center as well as the community.
“The immediate need is to get the car park facility operational and open,” Donahue responded. “It will be a clean, safe, secure parking facility, utilizing sustainable practices in its operation. We’re hoping the car park is open no later than March of 2024 and the landscaping, streetscaping and other improvements will be finished by August or September of 2024.”
President Betsy Johnson of the Armoury Quadrangle Civic Association said, “We are satisfied with the new updates we heard at the presentation. The big thing we were looking for is what the schedule is, what is it going to look like and a commitment to continuing to talk with us about how the convention center/community entertainment space is going to operate, and conversations related to traffic flow and construction noise.”