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Date: 12/27/2022
EDITOR’S NOTE: As 2022 comes to a close, Reminder Publishing took a look at some of the major events and storylines that shaped the community over the past year. While we tried to make this list as comprehensive as possible, we would like to hear from you. What do you feel were the important events, stories, milestones, etc., in 2022? Lets us know with a letter to the editor at cmaza@thereminder.com or pnorth@thereminder.com.
The Reminder comes to Springfield
In August, Reminder Publishing launched one of its largest and most ambitious projects to date with the publication of the Springfield North and Springfield South editions. While coverage of Springfield had previously appeared in the East Longmeadow Reminder and the Chicopee Herald and the former Springfield Magazine, these newspapers officially gave The Reminder complete distribution throughout all of the city’s neighborhoods for the first time with delivery to more than 50,000 addresses in the City of Homes. With the company’s ambitious Western Massachusetts expansion complete, Reminder Publishing now home delivers nearly 257,000 newspapers with a total readership of more than 431,000 people.
Biomass blocked again
Following years of advocacy against the development, a proposed biomass power plant in Springfield will remain without a permit following a Massachusetts Office of Appeals and Dispute Resolution decision on Nov. 30. In 2021, the Department of Environmental Protection decided to revoke permits for the planned development, which led to an appeal by developer Palmer Renewable Energy.
The biomass plant initially received a permit in 2012 after Palmer Renewable Energy first proposed the project in 2008.
In the years that followed, local organizations, such as Arise for Social Justice and the Springfield Climate Justice Coalition, spoke out against the development planned for East Springfield on 1000 Page Blvd.
Lesser steps away from Senate
State Sen. Eric Lesser made the decision, shocking to some, to not seek reelection as state senator and instead run for lieutenant governor in the 2022 state election.
Lesser, a Longmeadow resident who had served four two-year terms in the state Senate and was the tip of the spear in the east-west passenger rail movement, made the attempt to be part of the Democratic ticket for a vacant seat with Republican Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito not seeking reelection.
Lesser finished second in the race behind Salem Mayor and now Lt. Gov.-elect Kim Driscoll and ahead of state Rep. Tami Gouveia with roughly 35 percent of the vote.
Lesser has been mum on his next steps. In a December interview with Reminder Publishing, Lesser confirmed he would be teaching a class at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, but said, “There’s no announcement beyond that.”
Ludlow Democrat Jake Oliveira defeated Granby Republican Bill Johnson for Lesser’s seat in a restructured Hampden, Hampshire and Worcester District, representing South Hadley, Granby, Belchertown, Palmer, Warren, Ludlow, Wilbraham, Hampden, East Longmeadow and Longmeadow as well as portions of Springfield and Chicopee. Oliveira was in the midst of his first term as a state representative when he announced his candidacy.
Police Commission experiences growing pains
While the Police Commission was reestablished as part of a consent decree agreed upon in a settlement between the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the city, leaders have expressed concerns with the decree’s implementation and utilization of the commission.
Members of the Police Commission expressed frustration during a Sept. 19 Public Safety Subcommittee. Dr. Gary Berte, the Police Commission’s chairperson, cited a lack of resources, such as technology and inaccessible contact information, as hindrances to their process.
“I’m not trying to make excuses, but we do need support and we do need resources,” said Berte during the meeting.
The City Council hosted a special meeting in October, but neither members of the Police Commission or DOJ were in attendance. Councilors Zaida Govan, Malo Brown, Tracye Whitfield and Maria Perez were among those who voiced concerns, calling for more support, better community representation and increased transparency. Perez said constituents still feel “very intimated” to submit a complaint to the police while Govan said the department features “structurally racism embedded in it,” a statement with which Whitfield agreed.
Mayor Domenic Sarno and City Council President Jesse Lederman expressed concern with the execution of a Nov. 22 hearing from the Police Commission, which decided to reinstate patrolmen Christian Cicero and Daniel Billingsley, who were convicted in March for an off-duty assault and battery outside of Nathan Bill’s Bar and Restaurant in 2015.
“Police Superintendent Cheryl Clapprood, myself and our Springfield Police Department continue to work so hard on enhancing and building community trust and simply put, this decision erodes our work,” Sarno said.
City’s budding cannabis industry grows
Springfield’s cannabis industry experienced growth in 2022.
6 Brick’s, the city’s third and newest adult use cannabis dispensary, opened Sept. 3 and marks the conclusion of a journey for CEO and founder Payton Shubrick that started in 2019.
The dispensary had originally been planned to be part of the Gasoline Alley complex on Albany Street, but challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic highlighting the need to have curbside service caused a change in location to the first floor of the Republican building on Main Street, according the mayor’s office.
A grand opening and ribbon-cutting took place Sept. 24.
Shubrick has a real distinction in the commonwealth’s cannabis business as she is only the third African-American to have opened a dispensary. The fact she is woman and a lifelong resident of the city adds to her position.
The City Council also approved a special permit for Diem Cannabis to operate a dispensary location at 337 East Columbus Ave. during its Oct. 24 public hearings meeting. The item drew extensive debate as the council weighed whether to grant the permit despite Diem’s undefined host community agreement (HCA) status.
Diem Cannabis appeared before the council on Feb. 1 for two special permit requests – one to operate a dispensary and another to operate a cultivation site. Both permits were tied to the former Macy’s store at the Eastfield Mall on 1685 Boston Rd. Diem Cannabis only received an HCA for its dispensary operation at the time of the meeting.
Shea returned to the council with a special permit request tied instead to 337 East Columbus Ave. Shea said Diem is looking to relocate their approved HCA for dispensary operations after failing to receive one for their proposed cultivation site. Business entities that switch their HCAs location must renegotiate and receive approval from Mayor Domenic Sarno to reactivate their HCA. 6 Brick’s endured a similar process while in its development. When asked by City Councilor At-Large Justin Hurst about Diem’s HCA status, Shea said, “I don’t have an answer.”
A cannabis delivery service Tree N’ Brick and a dispensary owned by former NBA player Travis Best called Cookies also received special permit approvals from the City Council during their March 28 meeting. Tree N’Brick owner Fred Shubrick said the company’s deliveries would be sourced from the businesses’ operation center at 1860 Main St. Best applied for his permit for a dispensary located at 587-595 Main St. along with co-franchise owner Brittany Washum, business consultant Ryan McCollum and legal representation Margaret Nash. Both proposals were approved with unanimous votes.
It has not been smooth sailing for all applicants, however.
Controversy also surrounded an HCA scoring error in the evaluation process for dispensaries, which allowed Enlite, the seventh ranked applicant, to receive one of the city’s six HCA agreements. The fallout of the error caused Origins LLC, the fifth ranked applicant, to not receive an HCA. As the author of the Origin’s retail application, Business Development Director James Rushing discussed the negative impacts facing Origins in the aftermath of the tallying error with the City Council in March.
Those impacts included losing out on a lease agreement for the 1391 Main St. location that he considered “the perfect location” due to its access to parking and “beautiful” interior. Rushing argued that the Enlite special permit should be tabled as Origins advocated to Sarno, who makes final decisions about HCA applicants. The City Council voted 6-5 in favor of tabling the Enlite item, but the motion did not pass due to not securing the necessary seven-vote majority. Shortly after, the City Council approved Enlite’s special permit request in a unanimous vote.
A cannabis cultivator seeking a special permit to operate on 299 Page Blvd. failed to garner approval from the City Council during their May 23 meeting. The item was continued several times over prior meetings before the council submitted their final vote.
Previously, Smith and Wesson utilized the space as a site for their Shooting Sports Center before selling the area in 2019. In February, City Councilor At-Large Justin Hurst highlighted a violation the applicant featured despite receiving an HCA from the city. Hurst explained the project did not meet the 250-foot buffer zone that is required between adult use cannabis establishments and residential zones.
Mayoral race gets early start
City Councilor At-Large Justin Hurst announced his candidacy for the 2023 mayoral election in a Nov. 30 press release. He is the first candidate to formally announce a mayoral bid. Hurst, who lives in Sixteen Acres alongside his wife, School Committee at-large representative Denise Hurst, and two children has been a city councilor since 2013. During his tenure, he received unanimous support from his peers to serve as the City Council president in 2019 and 2020.
Hurst stressed his commitment to transparency, accountability and social and economic justice as core campaign values. He views these pillars as key concepts for improving the city. Hurst stressed his commitment to transparency, accountability and social and economic justice as core campaign values. He views these pillars as key concepts for improving the city.
The 2023 mayoral election is expected to feature several local candidates, including incumbent Mayor Domenic Sarno. Sarno is the longest-tenured mayor in Springfield’s history, serving in the leadership position since 2007.
Click-Bruce wins special election
Lavar Click-Bruce defeated former Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees at University of Massachusetts Edward Collins Jr. in the Ward 5 special election on Sept. 13.
The Ward 5 City Council seat was vacated after former City Council President Marcus Williams announced his sudden resignation on May 31. In the past, the City Council appointed new members when seats became vacant. For the last open council seat, the council appointed Gumersindo Gomez in 2021 to take over for state Sen. Adam Gomez’s Ward 1 position after the former councilor joined the state Legislature. Thanks to a home rule petition from state Rep. Angelo Puppolo, the council received the authority to host a special election for Ward 5. Gov. Charlie Baker signed the petition into law on May 16.
In the primary, Click-Bruce and Collins gained over 300 votes each as they moved on to the final election. The two candidates faced off against Communications Director of the Women’s Funding Network Ellen Moorhouse, 2021 City Council at-large candidate Mike Lee, former City Council and School Committee candidate Lamar Cook, Assistant Director of the Center for Service and Leadership at Springfield College Nicole Coakley and local coach Edward Green.
For the final election, Click-Bruce secured 653 votes, or roughly 52 percent, of the votes cast, while Collins earned 609, or 48 percent of the vote. The 1,268 votes represented a turnout of 8.5 percent – a slight decrease from the 1,424 votes cast during the Ward 5 primary on Aug. 16. The Ward 5 area features 14,826 registered voters.
Click-Bruce was later named chair of the newly formed Working Group on Civic Engagement spearheaded by City Council President Jesse Lederman with a goal of increasing community involvement in the city’s governmental activities.
Courthouse continues to be health concern
Under the agreement reached between the Executive Office of the Trial Court and the plaintiffs led by Register of Deeds Cheryl Coakley Rivera, the state agency was supposed to perform a “deep cleaning” at the Roderick Ireland Courthouse.
According to the attorney representing the group of employees as well as photos sent to Reminder Publishing, what was done this summer at the courthouse did not meet the specific requirement of the settlement.
Attorney Jeffrey Morneau said, “The deep cleaning didn’t happen. They didn’t move anything. They didn’t move any books. You can’t deep clean without moving things … it was just a surface wipe.”
In the photos, there was enough dust and grime on shelves for a person to write “Hi.” Dust and potentially mold were covering an air duct. Wads of what appeared to be lint and dust are in computers. Stained ceiling tiles were in place.
Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno continued his push for the construction of a new courthouse in early July.
He reacted to a statement from the state Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM) issuing a request for proposals (RFP) “for a five- to seven-year lease for a 172,000-square-foot facility, with the estimated combined cost of the lease for a temporary location and renovations for the current ailing Roderick L. Ireland Courthouse totaling approximately $170 million.”
Sarno said in a written statement, “It makes no financial sense, nor is it timely or cost effective. To expend this amount of money, which in essence, would be nearly two-thirds of what it would take to build a new, state-of-the-art courthouse within four years and creating a tremendous spin-off component of economic development projects, boggles my mind. I can understand doing what needs to be done short-term for the current courthouse, but the employees, patrons and our residents deserve a new courthouse in Springfield.”
Also, on June 30, with the enthusiastic support of the Sarno administration, Peter Picknelly through his Opal development company has sent letters to the Division of Capital Access Management and Maintenance (DCAMM) and the Executive Office of the Trial Court proposing constructing a new courthouse on riverfront property owned by Picknelly accessible through Avocado Street.
Those letters were also copied to Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito.
In conjunction with that development, Picknelly would like to build on the other side of Clinton Street an 11-story residential center with 120 to 180 one-and two-bedroom apartments with the first floor designated for retail and restaurants. There would be a 50-slip marina also as part of the project. The apartment building is estimated to cost $150 to $175 million.
Picknelly’s vision of the courthouse would be a four-story building on 12.5 acres with 210,000 to 260,000 square feet of space. It would feature a 700-car parking area, with 150 spaces in an underground garage. There would be a raised boardwalk from the courthouse property leading to a look-out area at the river.
Design and construction would be in the price range of $255 to $295 million.
Both buildings would be accessible to the bikeway and walkway bordering the river.
Mayflower Marathon sets record with relocation
Greater Springfield responded to the new location for Rock 102’s annual Mayflower Marathon at MGM Springfield by setting a new record of at least $171,000 in donations. The marathon raises money and food items for the Open Pantry Community Services, which operates several programs including an emergency food pantry in Springfield. By the final morning, two 53-foot trailers were packed with food items and a third truck was being filled.
“The response from the community to this year’s Mayflower Marathon and its new home here at MGM Springfield has been just incredible. We are beyond thrilled at the record-breaking total of cash and food donations collected, which will go such a long way to help those in need. Giving back to the community is something we are very proud of at MGM Springfield. We would like to thank everyone at Rock 102 for such a fantastic start to a relationship we look forward to continuing for years to come,” Beth Ward, MGM Springfield spokesperson, told Reminder Publishing.
Radio hosts Mike Baxendale, Dave Coombs and Steve Nagle revealed in July that the event would not be hosted by the Hall of Fame. Baxendale explained to Reminder Publishing that in 2021 the Hall of Fame management told the radio station they might not be hosting the event, but only confirmed it in July.
Doleva said the Hall of Fame had made a decision in 2021 and had notified the radio station the reasons behind the decision, stating, “Mr. Byrne [Alex Byrne of Rock 102] reached out just recently and we provided the same response to him based on the growth in our business via new tenants and strong organic growth of our existing tenants, as was anticipated last fall … “‘Rock 102’ was informed last fall (2021) that the Hall of Fame had made the decision that we could no longer accommodate the Mayflower marathon based on anticipated increased parking needs; this was acknowledged by Rock 102’s Alex Byrne. Again, first notification was nine months ago and acknowledged by Rock 102.”
Nagle said he believed the record-setting donations were the results, at least partially, due to the new location.
“It rekindled interest,” he said.
Springfield Thunderbirds make Calder Cup Finals
Following four seasons without playoff appearances, the Springfield Thunderbirds experienced a prosperous journey to their first Calder Cup Finals appearance during the 2021-2022 American Hockey League (AHL) season. The Thunderbirds’ success comes after the team opted out of the 2020-2021 season due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Before their playoff run, the Thunderbirds posted their best regular season record yet with 43 wins and 24 losses. It was also a Springfield AHL team’s best record since 2013, which was previously achieved by the Springfield Falcons before the team relocated to Arizona in 2016. The Thunderbirds formed shortly after the Falcons’ departure and eventually became the AHL affiliate of the St. Louis Blues.
The 2021-2022 Thunderbirds clinched the second-place spot in the Atlantic Division and a bye week for the first round of the playoffs. The Thunderbirds then swept the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and the Charlotte Checkers in two 3-0 series before clashing with the Laval Rocket in the Eastern Conference Final.
The Thunderbirds ultimately overcame Laval in a tense 4-3 series before losing to the Chicago Wolves in the Calder Cup Finals. Despite falling short in the championship round, President of the Thunderbirds Nathan Costa said the experience was “amazing” for the organization and players.
“Obviously we would’ve loved to brought home the cup, but the year was a massive success on and off the ice. We are really grateful for the experience,” said Costa in an interview with Reminder Publishing.
Springfield breweries expand
Two of the city’s breweries had major developments in 2022.
Rustic Brewing Co. celebrated the launch of its taproom at the Indian Orchard Mills during a June 10 soft opening for friends, family and members of the industry, and the official grand opening on June 11.
For partners Jared Methe of Ludlow and Todd Kopiec of Springfield, the two days represented the finalization of a transformation four years in the making. First entering the space in 2018, the coronavirus pandemic and the delays in various approvals needed to push the project forward forced multiple delays. In the meantime, the duo expanded its brewing capacity ¬ and then expanded again.
Methe added new ownership at the mills has been “pretty amazing since they took over.” The complex was sold to Raipher and Joseph Pellegrino in 2020.
White Lion Brewing Co. used its Tower Square taproom as the site for its own major growth announcement. The company announced on May 18 the plan to expand with a second brewery and taproom in Amherst as part of a joint venture with Marcus Camby, a star for the University of Massachusetts Minutemen basketball team under Hall of Fame coach John Calipari from 1993 to 1996 before enjoying a 17-year NBA career. The hoops legend and the brewery kicked off their strategic partnership in January with the launch of the Marcus Camby New England IPA.
White Lion’s new location at 104 N. Pleasant St. in Amherst will feature a small brewhouse, indoor and outdoor seating area and test kitchen similar to its Springfield location.
Superintendent gets raise despite some pushback
Some members of the School Committee disagreed with the word “exemplary” to describe the performance of School Superintendent Daniel Warwick, but the body did approve him a 2 percent raise in addition to his automatic 2 percent cost of living raise.
The committee met on Dec. 6 to accept the annual performance evaluation and then to vote to give Warwick a raise. It was Mayor Dominic Sarno who used the word “exemplary” in a summation of a performance review survey completed the committee.
The summation report was accepted by the committee with three members voting against it. A vote then came about Warwick’s raise with two members of the committee voting against it.
The superintendent had also received a two-year contract extension from the School Committee on May 13. His contract was originally set to expire in 2023 and was extended until June 30, 2025.
His new salary after the Dec. 6 vote is $306,698.86.
According to information made available through the city’s payroll open checkbook, Warwick is the city’s highest paid employee and the only one with a salary north of $300,000. According to the payroll disbursements report as of Nov. 28, only three other employees have salaries of $200,000 or more. Police Commissioner Cheryl Clapprood’s annual salary is 207,678.64, Chief Financial Officer TJ Plante earns 202,862.25 and Springfield Empowerment Zone Executive Principal Michael Calvanese makes $200,000 a year.