FPCA Spring Newsletter Available for Download
(PDF)

FPCA Scholarships Available

The Forest Park Civic Association will be awarding three $500 scholarships to graduating high school students who reside in Forest Park. The criteria used will be academic achievement, involvement in extracurricular activities and service to the community.

Applications will be available from high school Guidance offices, the Vietnamese American Civic Association, and may be downloaded here. Deadline is May 15, 2008.

For more information please contact Sandra Collins at 746-5916.

SMTG Funded Gunshot Detection Demonstration a success.

Two Deputy Chiefs—Cochran and Anthony along with a number of patrol officers—attended a demonstration of gunshot detection equipment funded by the Springfield Media and Technology Group. They were enthusiastic about having this system available to them.

The technology is pretty amazing. The vendor, Shot Spotter, deployed several detector/microphones around Blunt Park, approximately 500 ft apart. An officer then fired several rounds—blanks—around the “range.” .The microphones picked up the signal, communicated with the GPS software, which then instructed a video camera to turn to the coordinates where the shot was fired, all within two to three seconds of firing the shot. The system being installed will cover two square miles in areas identified by Springfield Police Department as high gunshot areas. It will include software that will provide the coordinates and corresponding street address to the computers in patrol cars, within seconds of picking up the shot. If video cameras are in vicinity, the image from the camera will be displayed on the computer as well.

Shot Spotter is the only vendor with this product. Much of their work is with the US military, who are using it to identify snipers in Iraq and other areas. They are completing the installation of a six square mile system in Boston. Other locations installing the system include Washington D.C., San Francisco, York PA and Buffalo NY. The system will be deployed in our city by mid-December.

Mayor Sarno Supports the Winn Co's Proposed Renovation of Longhill Gardens!

Mayor Sarno has thrown is support behind the Winn Co proposal to renovate the Longhill Gardens complex. The FPCA had voted by a 12 to 3 vote,to urge him to do so.

Many members toured three of the apartment complexes managed by Winn Company. These included, Museum Park at 70 Chestnut Street (114 UNITS), Northern Heights at Main and Central Streets (148 UNITS) and Eastbrook at 259 Fernbank Road (160 UNITS) in back of the Eastfield Mall. Board members felt that all are managed well and kept in very good shape.They exercise good tenant selection (no arrests, no evictions and available income/job with a credit check) and take action immediately if there are problems.They make sure that there are no more people staying in the units than the rules allow. For example, two people are allowed to stay in a one bedroom unit and no more. Some board members checked the police records for these complexes and found them to be very clean. All of their properties have long waiting lists. In general, the board found them to be a very impressive company.

For additional information about Winn, visit their website or email Elizabeth Krupp.

The FPCA urges people to write Mayor Sarno and thank him for his support of this proposal.

Link to the Revised Plan

Letter to the Editor by Pat Triggs

Email from Carol Costa on WinnCo Experience

Statement Made by Neighbor and Secretary of Concerned Citizens for Springfield, Inc.,
Russel Seelig
to the Control Board

October 16th:

"Good Afternoon, Ladies and Gentlemen. My name is Russell Seelig. I’m Secretary of Concerned Citizens for Springfield, Inc., an all-volunteer, non-profit Housing development and blight remediation corporation that has been operating for 12 years in the Forest Park neighborhood – sw corner of city

We see a significant blighting influence in Forest Park that will inhibit economic development across the City – boarded up single and two-family houses. We now count over 30 boarded up houses, some bank foreclosures, some in tax title, a couple of burn-outs. Soon the Longhill Gardens condominium complex consisting of 211 condominiums will be boarded.

We are already asking various departments of the administration to more aggressively pursue approaches to reduce the blighting influence of these properties, The tax title process of taking properties that are behind in property taxes is notoriously slower than molasses in January. One single family property in Forest Park now has a tax bill of over $100,000 as a result of non-payment for 20 years, yes, 20 years. It went into tax title in 1993, 14 years ago and still is not owned by the City. That property now has no market value since the cost of demolition is likely to exceed the value of an empty lot and it carries an assessed value of $160,000. We are asking the City to consider the use of law school interns to help move along tax title takings, as has been done successfully in Housing Code Enforcement for the past three years.

All these boarded up properties are blights on their neighborhoods and are crime magnets, if not for the properties themselves then for the surrounding properties where decent law abiders do not want to live and where desperate denizens, those without many housing options, take up occupancy, further running down the area with their disturbances and criminal actions.

For burnouts we ask Code Enforcement to declare them blighted until either they are renovated or demolished at owner expense. The Housing Court, under the State Sanitary Code, looks favorably on action against the owner personally saying that an owner’s responsibility to abide by the SSC does not stop when the structure is empty. Fines up to $1,000 per day can be imposed under a City ordinance that has been used only sparingly. One example is 25 Warner Street, torched over a year ago that has no value yet carries an assessed value of about $200,000.

If we want to spur economic development initiatives, initiatives that bring a net positive cash flow to the City, we must, we really must, present a City that is in control of its appearance. It is important to be crime free, to have an educated work force, no graffiti, clean streets, attractive neighborhoods and no long-standing boarded up buildings.

Thank you."

Forest Park Civic Association Monthly Meeting
Sunday, May 4, 2008 at 7:00PM.

Location: Trinity United Methodist Church, 361 Sumner Ave, Springfield, MA 01108 in the Primary Room.

Guests should enter through the entrance on the right and the Primary Room is straight up the stairs.

The meeting will feature:
- a visit by the Springfield Police's Ordinance Squad;
- a liquor license request for outside dining by Family Pizza;
- a zoning request by 192 White St to amendment the cell tower special permit to relocate the existing BTS cabinet to behind the building;
- a request by the residence of Mountainview and Westernview to have Mountainview blocked off on the Belmont Ave side;
- a request to have No Parking signs in front of 309 Trafton Road; and
- FPCA committee updates.

All Forest Park residents are welcome. For further information, call (413) 642-0876 or visit www.ForestParkCA.com.

CVS Proposes a $4million Renovation of the Current Store at the "X"

Bacon Wilson, P.C., lawyers representing CVS came to the April FPCA Board meeting and gave the board a review of the proposed $4 million CVS facelift for the “X”. The design includes three drive up lanes, and a new facade for the building.

CVS plans for the “X” appear designed to rehab the current building with a new facade without many windows, that one FPCA board member described as rather like a prison in appearance. The “X’s” overlay zone which the CVS is a part of was obviously forgotten as CVS attempts to tear down Flair cleaners and create three drive up prescription lanes for folks who don’t want to leave their cars to get their prescriptions filled. As can be seen in this illustration, the proposed design uses large signage coupled with some small plantings and a solid red color to perk up the current store. The back of the store would be a solid red color. The current parking area would be reworked to make it more level.

The FPCA Board had a lively discussion about the CVS store including many comments from FPCA board members about how unresponsive CVS has been in our neighborhood to requests to clean up their property and keep it clean.

The FPCA board will see if CVS management can be persuaded to attend the next FPCA board meeting prior to their vote on the application. The Springfield Planning Department has yet to meet with the CVS representatives to look over the plans. The FPCA board voted to wait until they hear from the planning department on the design before voting.

FPCA Board Supports
WinnCo Proposal

The Forest Park Civic Association held it's monthly meeting on Sunday, March 9, 2008 at 7:00PM at Trinity United Methodist Church in Springfield.

At the meeting, the neighborhood continued their discussion regarding Longhill Gardens and specifically the proposal by Winn Companies for the redevelopment of Longhill Gardens. The FPCA voted by a vote of 12 to 3 to support the proposed redevelopment.

Museum Park Apartments on Chestnut Street

The FPCA urges neighbors and Forest Park residents to write Mayor Sarno in support of this proposal. There are a number of people who are urging that the proposal be rejected. If Winn cannot secure the needed financing, it is possible that the holder of the mortgage may sell the property to another bottom feeder who may reopen it and and rent it to any warm body who applies leading to yet another disaster in our area. The Winn Company offers the neighborhood a stable, well-run company that will rent to decent folks who just happen to not have a lot of money.

Northern Heights Apartments located at Central and Main Streets

Click here for a letter you can personalize.

Forest Park Civic Association holds a meeting about Crime in our Neighborhood.

The following city and area leaders participated in a panel discussion before roughly 100 neighbors on Wednesday evening, Novembere 29th:

• Mayor-Elect Domenic J. Sarno

• Deputy Chief Fitchet, Springfield Police Department

• Massachusetts State Police

• David Panagore, Chief Development Officer, City of Springfield

• Honorable Philip Contant, Judge, Westfield District Court

• John Compton, Ass't Hampden County District Attorney

• Carl Dietz, Director of Housing, City of Springfield

• Steve Desilets, Director of Building Code Enforcement, City of Springfield

• Yvette Cruz , Director of Neighborhood Services, City of Springfield

For more information, please contact F.P.C.A. board members, Jane Hetzel @ (413) 736-1368 or Attorney Tom Walsh @ (413) 788-6727.

Police Seeking Information on Drive-by Paint Ball, BB Shootings

Paint balls and BB shots are being fired at random from a car driving through the Forest Park neighborhood. In one case, a young woman near Pasadena Street was struck near her eye by a paint ball. At a November 14 meeting with members of the Avalon Crime Watch, Deputy William Fitchet, head of the Springfield Police Department's South Division, asked for community help in identifying the car. Information about the color, make, model, license plate number(even a partial number) and a description of the people inside will help police put a stop to these incidents.

If you can help, call the police non-emergency number 787-6302.

City Settles with the Springfield
Museum's Association

From
Heather Brandon's Blog:

"A total of four contracts were signed in front of the press during a mid-day announcement in the Museum of Fine Arts gallery upstairs currently exhibiting quilts. Both Mayor Charles Ryan and SLMA president Joseph Carvalho spoke ...The signed documents include a memorandum of understanding, a museum services agreement, a branch library lease, and a central library lease. ...

Memorandum of Understanding.

Mason Square branch library. In 2003, the SLMA sold the branch to the Urban League for $700,000. Of that amount, $600,000 is being returned to the Annie Curran Endowment Fund, and $100,000 went to the SLMA's Plant Fund. The document lays out the agreement between the parties: the city dismissed its lawsuit contesting the SLMA's right to sell the branch, and the SLMA is contributing one-third of the cost of construction or rehab for a new one, or $333,334. (A steering committee is currently engaged in working on this issue.)

Library endowment and trust funds. Certain endowment and trust funds are acknowledged as belonging to the Springfield Library Foundation, formed in 2005. The Curran Fund is one of these, total value at the end of 2006 being $4,617,494. An additional $360,526 in endowments, and $3,395,735 in trusts, is included in this category, for a grand total of $8,373,755. Two smaller endowments are agreed upon as belonging to the SLMA, a total of $33,942. Another two million dollars' worth of endowments and trusts are still in "friendly dispute."

Museum services. The museums will provide free admission to Springfield residents as of May 1, except for special exhibits. A "museum access card" will be available for those offering proof of residency. The city will pay $1.3 million annually—a "museum services fee"—to the SLMA for 25 years, although for fiscal year 2007, that amount will be $1.1 million as it has been since 2003. The museum services fee will also provide for the potential transfer to the city of the SLMA's branch libraries and their contents, as well as the furnishings, fixtures and circulating book collections in the central library. The 25-year agreement goes forward, as I understand it, as Special Act Legislation, which means it must be approved by the City Council and then goes to the state legislature for approval. A minimum three-year agreement was signed prior to the 25-year agreement gaining approval.

Rental of four library branches. For one dollar a year, the city will lease from the SLMA the East Springfield branch library, the Forest Park branch library, the Indian Orchard branch library, and the Liberty branch library, for a period of three years initially. A lease was signed today. The city will be responsible for maintenance, repair and utilities.

Central library. For one dollar a year, the city will lease from the SLMA the central library for 25 years or until the library is no longer located in the building, whichever comes first. The SLMA's telephone system and equipment access on the upper first floor are excluded from the lease. In 2032 there will be options to renew the lease in five-year terms. The SLMA will provide heat and the city will reimburse the SLMA for its share, as well as for exterior repair. The city will pay for interior repair and maintenance. Interior alterations will have to be agreed upon by both the SLMA and the Library Commission. As with the branch library lease agreement, this one is for three years, rolling over until Special Act Legislation is passed. ..."

Link to the rest of the story on Heather Brandon's Blog

How to Go to Housing Court Against
Offensive Neighbors (And Win)
by John Kontekakis.
View file
(pdf file)

Short Version for people who are fed up with an unruly neighbor, and have decided to do something about it.

Form to Request an Emergency Order from Housing Court.

Increase Your Chances for Police
Involvement in Your Neighborhood
by Susan Poole
View file
(pdf file)

3hree Cafe
684 Belmont Avenue
Has Re-Opened
Open Wednesday- Sunday,7am to 3pm

(photo by Heather Brandon)

Cathie Albrecht has re-opened the 3hree Cafe located at 684 Belmont Avenue on Wednesday, April 2nd from 7am to 3PM.

The neighborhood is rejoicing that this pleasant little eaterie and community center has reopened in the spirit of the former cafe.

The restaurant serves breakfast and lunch and features desserts, homemade baked goods and good coffee.The menu looks very similar to those of us who frequented the original restaurant, with some new items as well. There are also many of Cathie's baked goods.

This writer had a cup of chili and a corn muffin at the open house and was delighted with the food. The chili had corn in it and a hint of lime which was delightful. The corn muffin was just right. For desert, I had a coffee which comes from a vender on the Cape and tried a sample of her espresso brownie. Yum! My companion had a Mediterranean Veggie Wrap which came with a salad and some fruit. I heard no complaints. I have since sampled her Brioche Poach, two poached eggs on a Brioche with ham, cheese and a salad. Great!

The 3hree Cafe is open Wednesday through Sunday. Their phone number is 733-3332 .

(photo by Heather Brandon)

Cathie currently runs a bakery and and cafe in Wales called- Auntie Cathie's which is located at 17 Main Street in Wales. She plans on keeping this bakery open on a limited schedule and will take both wholesale and retail orders. It will be open to the public (hours TBD) serving baked goods, desserts, light breakfast & lunch Aunt Cathie's can be reached at 413-245-6235.

We wish Cathie good luck with her new venture.

Forest Park Branch
Interior Painting is Completed

(Photo by Reggie Wilson)

SPRINGFIELD, MA – December 13, 2007 – The Forest Park Branch Library on Belmont Avenue was closed from December 17 – 25 for painting of the building’s interior. The painting is now completed.

According to Emily Bader, Director of the Springfield City Library, the temporary closing of the Forest Park Branch for painting was part of the library system’s initiative to make all it buildings more user-friendly and comfortable for visitors. Interior improvements to the building will continue throughout the winter and will include upgrades to the adult reading area and the creation of a separate space for teens.

(Photo by Reggie Wilson)

About the Springfield City Library

For 150 years, the Springfield City Library (www.SpringfieldLibrary.org) has provided public library service to area residents. Starting with a single central library in 1857, the Springfield City Library today maintains ten neighborhood branches. Using state-of-the-art technology, the Library provides free and easy access to information and the opportunity for lifelong learning through a variety of programs and services, including Internet access at each location. Springfield City Library – A Place for You.

Meeting to Review Status of FP Library Lift Project

When and Where

Friday, December 14, 8:30 am at the library.

Patrick Sullivan, head of the city's Department of Parks, Buildings and Recreation Management, will meet with interested parties to review status of the Forest Park Branch Library lift project. The lift, which has been on the neighborhood "wish list" for many years, was scheduled for completion over a year ago, but had to be postponed in favor of emergency replacement of the library roof and parapet.

Library's FY08/FY09 Action Plan
Described as "The Year of Forest Park"

From EmilyBader:
(target completion dates in parentheses)

New exterior signage (June 2008) *

Enhanced programs for young adults (Sept. 2007 through Aug. 2009)

Purchase a core collection of Somali bilingual and bicultural books (not sure if it's for us, but Jeri Stolk was someone who advocated getting such a collection; June 2008)

Print and distribute "Tips for Reading with Your Children" in English, Spanish, Somali, Russian, Vietnamese, Hmong (June 2008)

Bring author Anna Hines to Kensington Ave. School and FP branch (Nov. 2007)

Collaborate with White Street School to coordinate library visits that encourage reading and learning about the Library (Sept. 2007 through June 2008)

Begin planning process for 100th anniversary celebration for FP (FY 2009)*

If funded, plan for implementation of the FP accessibility project ( date to be determined)

Plan and implement teen area at FP (plan completed Nov. 7007; implemented April 2008)

Plan and implement improvements to the adult reading area at FP (April 2008)

Develop and implement improved interior signage at FP (June 2008)

Expand wireless internet access to FP (by April 2008)

Read the Urban Land Institute's Final Report with recommendations for shaping the future of Springfield.

Read
Heather Brandon's Urban Compass Blog
for one resident's take on
issues that affect Springfield

Some Recent Articles on her Blog

Monday, February 26, 2007
New City Web site

Friday, February 23, 2007
Reader input on neighborhoods and engagement

Thursday, February 22, 2007
Feeling lukewarm

The how-to book that even seasoned landlords use as their best reference is now available. This practical guide covers all aspects of property law and practice, including:

For those who have used the HAP manual before, this new edition has extensive updates, ranging from lead compliance laws, lease clauses and new regulations to ready-to-use forms in print and on CD. It also includes the complete text of important rental housing regulations and a chapter-by-chapter study guide.

Copies cost $34.95 each.
Email landlordbook@haphousing.org
or call 413-233-1612.

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enter your email address and then
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