Envisioning a Resurgent Springfield Metro

More than 200 people participated in the 2011 HAPHousing annual event, Envisioning a Resurgent Springfield Metro, which featured an afternoon symposium and evening awards banquet. A variety of speakers discussed strategies that have worked to revitalize other communities and gave commentary on Springfield’s potential for resurgence as a metropolitan center.

Featured speaker was Mayor Allen Joines, representing the resurgent city of Winston-Salem, NC. The inspiration to invite Mayor Joines stemmed from last year’s City-to-City initiative that brought many Springfield representatives to Winston-Salem and Greensboro in late 2010.

Download a transcript of Mayor Joines’ keynote speech:Envisioning a Resurgent Springfield-evening
Download a transcript of the afternoon symposium: Envisioning a Resurgent Springfield symposium

The symposium included speeches by the following panelists,
introduced by HAPHousing Executive Director Peter Gagliardi:

Jeffrey Fuhrer, Executive Vice President and Senior Policy Advisor of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, who framed the discussion for the day by drawing upon the Fed’s research on resurgent cities of a comparable size and makeup to Springfield.

Mayor Allen Joines of Winston-Salem, NC, also the keynote speaker for the evening, shared valuable information on the successful strategies that his city employed when faced with many of the same issues that face Springfield and Western Massachusetts now.

Orson Watson, an independent consultant and community revitalization program advisor to the Garfield Foundation in New Bedford, MA. A former vice president for research and strategy for New Bedford’s Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, Watson was able to summarize what it takes for inner city revitalization.

David Dixon, who leads the planning and urban design division of Goody Clancy architectural firm in Boston, provided insight from his perspective as an authority on the topic and a member of the consulting team developing the Rebuild Springfield master planning process.

Jerry Hayes, Vice President of Administration and Finance at Westfield State University and co-chair of the Rebuild Springfield Initiative, discussed the opportunities ahead for the City of Springfield.