Editorial pieces written from the ground. Landmarks like the Hall of Fame and Forest Park. Neighborhoods like McKnight and Sixteen Acres. The moments when the city comes out, and the industries that keep it running.
City of FirstsSpringfield is where basketball was invented, and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is where the city tells that story.
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Downtown anchorThe casino opened in 2018 on the block bounded by Main, State, Howard, and Union, stitching the South End back into the rest of downtown.
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The spineFrom the Quadrangle museums down to the Armory, State Street is the artery the rest of downtown branches off.
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Olmsted's other parkFrederick Law Olmsted's firm laid out Forest Park in the 1890s, and the result is one of the largest urban parks in the country.
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From the riverCrossing the Memorial Bridge from West Springfield, the skyline is the postcard the rest of the country still has not figured out.
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After the lightsMGM lit the South End. Symphony Hall lit Court Square. The Civic Center lit State Street. Downtown evenings finally have a calendar again.
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Where it startedThe school on Alden Street is the birthplace of basketball, the home of the Pride, and one of three colleges inside the city.
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City limitsMcKnight, Bay, Old Hill, the South End, the North End, Brightwood, Memorial Square, Liberty Heights. The city is a stack of distinct places.
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Just past the lineLongmeadow, East Longmeadow, Wilbraham, Agawam, West Springfield. Towns that share a paper, a high school rivalry, and a downtown.
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On a SaturdayForest Park has the swings and the rose garden. Van Horn has the playground that gets busy by 9 a.m. Sixteen Acres has the soccer fields. Saturdays stay outside.
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On the greenThe Puerto Rican Day Parade on Main, the Stone Soul Festival in the South End, the Pancake Breakfast on the highway. Civic moments stack up.
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Around the tableThe cake from the bakery on Sumner. The party room at the pizza shop. The balloon arch the same vendor has done for fifteen years. Family moments run on local commerce.
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Behind the badgeThe Springfield Regional Chamber, EforAll, Valley Venture Mentors, and a calendar of breakfasts that operators actually attend.
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Where Springfield eatsCarvana on Boston Road. Mom and Rico's on Mill. The diner on Belmont. The pho shop on Boston. Springfield's restaurant scene is wider than the chains let on.
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Slice cultureThe Connecticut River valley has its own pizza dialect. Greek style pans, white pies, the corner shops on every neighborhood street.
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Boston RoadBoston Road, Riverdale, and East Springfield carry the regional auto trade. New, used, body, glass, transmission. The whole stack lives within a few miles.
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On the truckPlumbing, HVAC, roofing, electrical, paving. The home services trade in Springfield runs on word of mouth and on the right truck arriving the same day.
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On ChestnutBaystate Health is the dominant employer. Mercy and Shriners round out the hospital map. Independent practices fill the rest.
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On Court SquareCourt Square holds the courthouse. The blocks around it hold the law firms, accountants, insurance brokers, and financial planners that make Springfield a regional hub.
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