SBJ.net Poll

Last week, 83% of SBJ voters said loitering and undesirable activity is a problem on Springfield’s downtown square. What do you think contributes most to the problem?

For poll results, click here.

What Readers Think

Other

The reason for the loitering on the square is a lack of police presence. The square should be an attractive and welcoming place for all, including those considered “undesirable.” A police presence can go a long way toward assuring that the presence of undesirables won’t present a problem to others, and if inappropriate actions, such as panhandling occur, the police have the power to have those people “move along.” If and when the square is redesigned, it still needs to be an attractive and welcoming place, and it will still require a police presence to keep it that way for everyone.

—Bob Bryant, Meridian Creative Alliance

Successful downtown redevelopments across the country are anchored by a 24-hour economy where a substantial residential base drives a cleaner, more wholesome environment. Private property owners will not tolerate undesirables hanging around and smoking pot in the evening. They will pay for security and demand local ordinances that discourage unwanted behavior.

Once a critical mass of private residences is located within the downtown area, it will drive the demand for new businesses that can survive on the population base. Then you have more sustainable business activity, beside bars and nightclubs. It will take a while to build the residential base, but there are some enterprising entrepreneurs who are starting to build a solid residential base that will help strengthen the 24-hour economy in downtown Springfield. Urban Districts Alliance (just publicized) a housing study. I am interested to see if the study quantifies the demand for downtown residences. 

—Bob Hammerschmidt, Commerce Bank

There isn’t one, exclusive cause to the problem. 

It amazes me that people still talk as if there isn’t any parking downtown. The parking garages are not quite open yet, but they are nearing completion. The new Heer’s garage is less than a block from the center of the square. It will hold approximately 350 vehicles. The College Station garage (400 spaces) is two blocks from the square … We do not need more parking on the square and … I don’t feel the square, as it is designed now, needs a complete replacement. It does have changes that need to be made but to tear it out and start over is not necessary to rejuvenate it. … As much as I hate to say it, the bus terminal needs to be moved to help reduce the challenges it has for loitering.

By no means am I saying it is the sole problem to the downtown gathering of people that create/support the feelings many people have about why to not utilize the square. I am also not saying that everyone using the bus system is a problem. I am not saying I am any better than any one person that rides the bus, either. … It is just one of the more obvious ingredients.

Unfortunately, moving it would make it more of a challenge to get to the state offices. … Yes, the government offices contribute to part of the challenge as well, and it has never made much sense to me to have a driver’s license testing office in an area that isn’t very conducive to trying to drive safely and correctly to get your license issued. …

Our city visionaries and investors have done a great job of disproving the naysayers for the revival of a once “dead” area of town. The momentum is accelerating exponentially, and it will be easy to make a mistake that is hard to overcome. That fatal mistake would be doing the wrong thing, once again, with the actual square. It does need renewal/renovation but not complete replacement. Keep the trees, grass, gathering area and then work on the problem of what drives people away from enjoying it instead of creating a new problem that everyone is arguing about just a few years later.

–Buck Van Hooser, Prestressed Casting Co.

Current Question

How should the city pay for improvements to Park Central Square beyond the $1 million federal grant?

Vote at sbj.net/poll.