The ghost of Eastfield Mall and the promise of its property’s future hovered over the Springfield City Council on June 2. The administration presented the Council with a District Improvement Financing (DIF) plan to help pay for infrastructure around the site of what will be Springfield Crossing.
The municipal political season has kicked off in Springfield. On Wednesday, School Committee member Joesiah Gonzalez announced that he would run for the Ward 1 City Council seat Maria Perez now holds.
The race will be a test for Gonzalez as much as for Perez, should she seek reelection.
SPRINGFIELD—The City Council wrapped up 2024 with a brief two-item agenda and its usual caucus to select the body’s officers for next year. With so little to consider there were few surprises. Free street parking for veterans achieved final passage. Council President Michael Fenton will have another year leading the body, though there will be a new Vice President.
Tragedy and the march of time itself undermined two ordinances before the City Council on Monday. Before the body was a proposal to automate electeds’ raises and another to double the time new hires have to move into the city. A majority of councilors present
A week before the Springfield City Council was to consider tax rates for residential and commercial properties, members briefly clashed over funding to close deficits from prior years. There was another mayor-Council flashpoint last week, albeit one that took the guise of old school political territorialism. The removal of the historic Stearns Square bench had reached the Council. However, the body punted on a resolve at the request of one councilor.
As summer heats up, the Springfield City Council begins to slow down, holding fewer meetings than during the rest of the year. The body’s July 8 sitting was its only scheduled regular meeting until September. Despite the policy and finance-heavy agenda, there was little of major controversy before councilors last Monday.
Ahead of the ascendence of Deputy Chief Lawrence Akers to Police Superintendent, the Springfield City Council considered a batch of legislation in an odd Tuesday meeting to smooth things over. Substantial changes to police leadership ordinances yielded a fractious, heated and, at times, bizarre debate.
UPDATED
Newly (re-)installed Springfield City Council President Michael Fenton has released committee assignments for the body’s 2024 session. Aside from accounting for new members, the allocation of seats and chairs was not a radical departure from 2023. Still, the choices reflect the balance and tone Fenton is trying to strike with his return to the dais.
Although meetings have become much more fluid since going hybrid last year, the Springfield City Council’s outing hit a snag on Monday. The body trudged through a permit for the Student Prince to close Fort Street during summers.
SPRINGFIELD—A new calendar year also means a new municipal year here. The only formal order of business in the new year was the installation of the Council President. At-large Councilor Jesse Lederman had already secured the votes for a full term as President in 2023. Yet, this is no ordinary municipal year.